The Montreal Protocol shows what is possible when science, diplomacy, and business cooperate to implement international environmental agreements. When the people became aware of a hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica—and damage to the protective layer of atmosphere around the world—leaders around the world coordinated action on ozone depleting …
Supermarket refrigeration is making a worrying contribution to climate change. About one quarter of the carbon footprint of supermarkets comes from the cooling gases used in their refrigeration systems
Sudha Nambudiri |KOCHI: There is a reason to cheer on the International Ozone Day. The scientists have recorded a perceptible reduction in the ozone depletion levels in the atmosphere. It is generally believed that the preventive measures taken by the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) by cutting down the …
Pune, September 16 The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and Pune Zilla Parishad Secondary School Section will hold a special programme to celebrate the International Day for the Preservation of Ozone Layer on Wednesday. An educational tool for creating awareness about Ozone depletion and climate change among students will be …
NEW DELHI Ozone layer is depleting and its effect can be felt on earth. Life on earth is bearing the effect of depleting ozone layer, caused by chemicals including chloroflurocarbons (CFCs). Every year, September 16 is observed as International Day for the preservation of the Ozone layer. Union ministry of …
It is now common knowledge that the Montreal Protocol in its effort to phase out the use of ozone depleting substances, especially CFCs, also alleviated the growing climate problem significantly. Some say the world was given a grace period of 10 years in which to react to the potentially cataclysmic …
The concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere is at its highest since the past 650,000 years, says the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Between 1979 and 2007, the level of CO2, the primary driver of climate change, increased at an average rate of 1.65 parts per million. The growth …
Environmental policymaking has been equated with the art of making the right decisions based on an insufficient understanding of the underlying problems. Given the tremendous complexities of the earth system, effective global environmental governance must rely on scientific information on both the kind of problem at stake and the options …
Health and environment officials, industry representatives and patient groups of Asia and Pacific region countries agreed to work together towards a smooth transition to ozone-friendly metered-dose inhalers (MDI) in Asia Pacific region. They reached in the agreement at a meeting organised by United Nation Environment Programme (UNEP) in Malaysian city …
The recovery of the depleted ozone layer may take 5-15 years more than that estimated earlier, says a recent study. It found that the regeneration of the protective layer will be pushed back from 2044 to 2049 over the mid-latitudes (30 0 -60 0 North and South) and from 2050 …
The Antarctic ozone hole is bigger than it has ever been at this time of the year, threatening populated regions of South America and New Zealand with harmful levels of ultraviolet radiation. Last year's hole was smaller than those recorded over the previous decade, leading to hopes that the protective …
Last time I wrote about the cycle of poison, where one toxic substance is replaced with another, equally toxic, one. This cycle, I wrote, is exactly like the modern economy where business is profitable only when it comes up with profitable solutions for old problems. It is a toxic tango, …
manufacturers of air-conditioners (acs) and producers of refrigerant gas are at loggerhead. With the Union government denying the former the licence to import refrigerant gas hydro-chlorofluorocarbon (hcfc-22 or r22), they allege that they are being forced to buy it at higher rates from domestic producers. Gas producers, in turn, contend …
The ozone hole above the Antarctic has recently begun its annually occurring expansion. As per the estimates of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), it would grow significantly over the next few days. The first patch of low ozone concentration was detected near South America. Within a few days, this had …
What would you say of an industry that takes common salt and turns it into one of the most environmentally deadly substances we know of today, namely chlorine? And what if in its production process it uses yet another deadly substance, mercury? We are talking about India's caustic-chlorine industry. Centre …
See Score Card Raw material sourcing phase To rate the companies on the raw material sourcing phase, grp used the following indicators: the quality of input salt, transportation of salt, self-sourcing of water (water harvesting) and the use of renewable and clean fuels. The Indian caustic-chlorine industry has performed poorly …
Pondicherry-based Chemfab Alkalis Ltd (cal) has been rated as the greenest caustic-chlorine company in India. With an overall score of 46.7 per cent, it has been given the Three Leaves Award. Set up in 1985 by Krishnamurthy Rao, a technical expert, cal set the trend by going in for membrane …
Although there has been a belated shift from the polluting mercury cell technology to the membrane cells, mercury pollution in India is still very high. India does not produce mercury and relies completely on imports. Between 1998-2001, the annual mercury imports stood at 170-190 tonnes, which is 10 per cent …
