The World Meteorological Organization’s State of the Climate in Asia 2024 report warns that the region is warming nearly twice as fast as the global average, driving more extreme weather and posing serious threats to lives, ecosystems, and economies. In 2024, Asia experienced its warmest or second warmest year on …
scientists in India are baffled by a new study which states that Southwest Asian monsoon has become stronger over the past four centuries and it might continue to intensify as a result of global warming. The findings of the study seem to be ironic, considering the fact that due to …
on june 10, 2002, the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (asean) signed the first ever agreement on transboundary haze pollution to deal with the recurring smoke and haze problem in their region. The pact places the onus of taking concrete steps to curb smog from land and forest fires …
harlan Watson, the high-profile us senior climate change negotiator and special representative, arrived in Delhi on April 29, 2002. On the same day, the Confederation of Indian Industry (cii) began closed-door parleys with the Washington-based think-tank, Atlantic Council. Watson did the rounds of various ministries even as cii got on …
SciDev is a website supported by the Swedish International Development Cooperative Agency, International Development Research Centre and UK Department for International Development, and sponsored by Nature and Science in association with the Third World Academy of Sciences. A must read for all those who keenly follow studies on scientific and …
Imported liquefied petroleum gas (lpg)-powered buses will ply on Beijing roads soon. The move has been directed to bring down the rising vehicular pollution and to prepare the city for hosting the forthcoming Olympic Games in 2008. It is reported that an agreement has been signed between Beijing lpg Company …
Around 55 million years ago, Earth's climate underwent a short but intense bout of global warming, accompanied by dramatic shifts in plant and animal life. Of particular interest to paleontologists is the sudden appearance in the Northern Hemisphere of several groups of mammals, including the primates. Researchers have long wondered …
The most detailed analysis of coral reefs in Southeast Asia indicates that threats to the world's most important and extensive reef system are much higher than what was estimated in 1998. A team of international scientists has estimated that 88 per cent of Southeast Asia's reefs are severely threatened by …
E-WASTE - a byproduct of the US technological revolution - is being sneaked into India, Pakistan and China. This revelation has been made in a report released by five non-governmental organisations (NGOs) spread over four countries. The document titled 'Exporting Harm: The High-Tech Trashing of Asia' warns that the processing …
THE contagion appears to have been contained before it could assume epidemic proportions. But it has still claimed four lives. The recent outbreak of plague in the Rohru-Jubbal belt of Himachal Pradesh (HP) highlights how a surveillance mechanism is conspicuously absent in India. While the disease is said to have …
What is the general understanding of the term ‘pesticides’? In the Asian and South Asian countries, people often term pesticides as ‘medicines’. I have heard this in the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and India. This is a wrong notion that the pesticide manu facturers have succeeded in implanting in the minds …
Increasing concentrations of atmospheric carbon dioxide will almost certainly lead to changes in global mean climate. But because - by defnition-extreme events are rare, it is significantly more difficult to quantify the risk of extremes. Ensemblebased probabilistic predictions, as used in short- and medium term forecasts of weather and climate, …
Unmasking the dragon Two and three wheeler population is exploding in Asia. The health implications are scary: they emit dangerous pollutants that have gone unnoticed till now ASIANS are riding high on dragons that they cannot get off. The dragons are small but far too many. Consider this: About 85 …
a plant derivative might be the promising cancer cure that oncologists have been seeking. Researchers from the University of Washington, usa, claim that a derivative of Artemesia annua (wormwood) could help cure cancer. The derivative called artemisinin is used extensively as a remedy in malaria prone regions of Asia and …
for years the rainforests of Assam have suffered the ignominy of isolation and neglect. Attempts are now underway to conserve this national heritage with active public participation. As a measure of this enterprise, a three-day festival rejoicing the cultural and spiritual links between these rainforests and the local communities was …
WHEN the "last chance to save the Earth" came around in 1992, the global environment and development community was full of hope, energy and expectations. Ten years later, another such chance is round the corner, but nobody is getting his or her hopes up. Commentators around the world have remarked …
An estimate of the global emission of mercury from anthropogenicsources in 1995 has been prepared. Major emphasis is placed onemissions from stationary combustion sources, non-ferrous metalproduction, pig iron and steel production, cement production andwaste disposal. About three quarters of the total emission,estimated to be about 1900 tonnes, was from combustion …
globally, there are now 40 million adults and children suffering from aids, according to a new report by the World Health Organisation (who) and the Joint United Nations Programme on hiv/aids called unaids. The epidemic shows no signs of abating
During the past years, there have been calls to move the tasks of sustainable development at the international level to a new independent body, often labelled a World Environment Organisation (weo) or International Environmental Organisation. Advocates of weo include academics and expert commissions as well as international civil servants, politicians, …
It is unfathomable why a civilisation that has worshipped water as part of its tradition should suffer from its scarcity. Mainly, because people today don't know the cost of the water used, and they seldom try to conserve or collect water where it falls. The fact that 1.5 million tanks …
Despite the absence of commercial approval for genetically engineered Bt cotton in any Asian country outside China, it is spreading fast. Weak or non-existent biosafety legislation and a lack of government concern mean that Bt cotton is finding its way into farmers' fields by deception and default. This article summarises …
