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 …
In the early 1990s, the Birla-led Indo-Gulf Fertilisers Limited was scouting for land near Mangalore to establish a copper smelter plant. Tokur and surrounding villages near Baikampady were proposed as a possible site, an area full of paddy fields and plantations. In 1994, the Dakshina Kannada Zilla Parisarasakta Okkoota ( …
The Indian government subsidises certain petroleum products like diesel This encourages consumers to switch from expensive petrol to cheap diesel Diesel emissions are more harmful than petrol emissions Increase in diesel vehicles means more pollution More pollution will only results in more health problems Subsidy keeps fuel use inefficient. Freight …
W hen you cry, in fact cry hoarse, and yet not be heard, what do you do? Experts contend that going to courts should be the last straw. "Firstly, there is a kind of misplaced loyalty towards the formal justice delivery mechanism as the be-all-and-end-all,' says Ramesh. Secondly, there is …
steel industry: To produce one tonne of steel, India spends 9.5 million kilocalories. In Italy it is 4.3 million kilocalories and for Japan it is only 4.1 million kilocalories. cement industry: Over 2 million kilocalories are used to produce one tonne of cement in India. In Germany it is 0.82 …
Under the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification, 1994, amended in 1997, the company seeking environmental clearance submits to the concerned state pollution control board (SPCB) an executive summary (ES) of the project The SPCB gives a 30-day notice for environmental public hearing with details of the time, date and venue. The …
One small village in Maharashtra is the teaching ground for five state governments today. Anna Saheb Hazare is the benevolent teacher. He teaches common sense. Rules of simple and sustainable living that the nation has learned to forget. Practices that have made Ralegan Siddhi an example for the numerous developmental …
for decades I searched for them in vain. Finally, I found one, but not the way I would have preferred it. Lying on the shore of a coastal Gujarat village, barely alive, was the whale shark ( Rhincodon typus ) I had chased for most of my life. Fisherfolk were …
It has shaken the confidence of the new Europe. Oil crisesfuel shortagesstreet blockades and protests that had become commonplace during the 1970s oil shortagehave come back to haunt Europe once again. Over the past few weeksas the price of oil touched a 10-year high of us $35 a barrel
The first United Nations Conference on Human Environment in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1972 led to a spate of comprehensive legislative measures for protecting the environment. India being one of the signatories to the Stockholm declaration enacted several laws and also amended the Constitution in 1976. Two important changes were made, …
Unless governments force paper companies to invest in cleaner technologies, encourage the manufacture of recycled paper and allow plantations only on lands that are
Diesel is under-prised by Rs 5. The government claims that it is used by farmers for their tubewells and tractors. But a major share of diesel is used by trucks and other heavy commercial vehicles. A cabinet decision was taken in November 1997 to deregulate diesel prices. But for the …
french president, Jacques Chirac has stated that his country is ready to host a global meeting of non-governmental organisations ( ngo ), for preparing the basis for a un environment conference, which is scheduled to be held in the year 2002, almost 10 years after the Rio de Janerio Earth …
green groups in Pakistan are making last-ditch efforts to save the country's largest wildlife sanctuary, Kirthar National Park in Sindh, from multinational oil exploration companies. Plans are underway to explore three trillion cubic metres of natural gas that is believed to be hidden in the porous rocks of the protected …
activists of Greenpeace, the international pressure group, have raised concerns about toxic sludge being dumped in the Mediterranean sea near Selaata, off the Lebanese coast. The sludge, dumped by the Lebanese Chemical Company (lcc), has destroyed most of the area's sea life. Greenpeace has urged the Lebanese environment ministry to …
in a recent highly publicised event, the un had yet another go at self improvement. Weary eyed observers saw world leaders expound lofty ideas in a series of speeches at a un millennium summit that took place in New York city from September 6-8, 2000. But this time there was …
Environment ministers from 42 countries have decided to evolve new strategies and approaches for regional co-operation to protect the environment of Asia and the Pacific region. This was decided during
across the world, silent and ceaseless crises regarding public health and environmental degradation urgently require the mobilisation of global science and technology. Gearing technological innovation towards solving the crises, by meeting the needs of the poor and the environment in which they live, is among the most critical challenges of …
Disgruntled truckdrivers may have taken to the streets. Farmers, ambulance and taxidrivers may have joined them, too. But by relenting to their demands to reduce the tax on fuel oil following a sudden jump in the price of crude, the French government has set a harmful precedent. The rise in …
What is the Rainwater Club? In 1995, my wife and I, along with some friends, started the Rainwater Club. Its members include professionals and individuals interested in managing water. One of the main objectives of the club is to disseminate information about rainwater harvesting (RWH) to professionals as well as …
