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Rein in pollution by mobile towers, MPs urge Manmohan
NEW DELHI, December 17, 2011: Parliamentarians have sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's
intervention in reining in mobile operators from misusing subsidised
diesel for running mobile towers, which were causing massive environmental pollution.
They have urged Dr. Singh to ensure that strong provisions are incorporated in the National Telecom Policy, 2011, currently being
finalised, making it mandatory for the use of renewable sources and technologies for power generation to run these towers.
On the initiative of NGO Greenpeace, around a dozen prominent MPs from
both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have expressed their concern over the
increasing exploitation of the diesel subsidy by the profit-making
telecom sector and highlighted the need for substantially reducing the
consumption of diesel by the sector, especially in their network tower
operations. These MPs have also stressed on mandating the public disclosure of
emissions and the establishment of the progressive emission reduction
plans within the ambit of the proposed NTP 2011
UN Climate Change Agreement by Developing nation
December 14, 2011: Developing nations led by China and India pledged they’d work toward an agreement that would limit their fossil fuel emissions for the first
time, the biggest advance in the fight against global warming in 14 years.
Envoys from more than 190 nations also extended the Kyoto Protocol, the only ratified treaty
limiting greenhouse gases. They will develop a document with “legal
force” by 2015 that would curb pollution for all nations, according to a
text adopted in Durban, South Africa. The move breaks a division enshrined in the United Nations- led
discussions since 1992 that allowed the poorest nations to escape commitments on burning coal and oil while requiring industrial nations
to clean up the atmosphere. That rift prevented the U.S. from ratifying
Kyoto, which is the heart of the international effort to protect the environment.
U.N. climate talks 2011 agree legal pact on global warming
DURBAN,December 11, 2011 (Reuters): U.N. climate change talks agreed a pact on Sunday
that for the first time would force all the biggest polluters to take
action to slow the pace of global changing. The deal follows years of failed attempts to impose legally-binding,
international cuts on emerging giants, such as China and India.
The developed world had already accepted formal targets under a first
phase of the Kyoto Protocol, which runs out at the end of next year,
although the United States had never ratified its commitment. After days of emotional debate, the chairwoman of the United Nations
climate talks urged delegates to approve four packages, which have legal
force. "We have made history," Maite Nkoana-Mashabane said, bringing the hammer down on more than
two weeks of sometimes fractious talks in the South African port of Durban, the longest in two decades of U.N. climate talks.
The deal was welcomed by Brazil, one of the globe's emerging economic
powers. The Durban talks had been due to wrap up on Friday, but dragged into a
second extra day on Sunday because of disputes over how to phrase the legal commitment.
The European Union pushed for strong wording and the three biggest
emitters the United States, China and India resisted. "We've had very intense discussions, we were not happy with reopening
the text, but in the spirit of flexibility and accommodation shown by
all, we have shown our flexibility, we have agreed to the words you just
mentioned and we agree to adopt it," India's Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan said.
Himalayan region faces grim future
December 6, 2011: Himalayan glaciers are retreating due to global
warming. Finally, the foundation for a thorough scientific study and monitoring has been laid, with the release of three
key reports on the sidelines of the Durban climate change summit. Prepared by scientists working with the
Kathmandu-based International Center for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) the reports have for
the first time identified over 54,000 glaciers spread over 64,000 square kilometres of the Hindu Kush-Himalaya
(HKH) region, home to some of the world's highest peaks and the biggest storehouse of freshwater
outside of the North and South Poles. The reports clearly say that not enough study has been done on the snow
and ice systems of this vast ecologically fragile system. But it provides a snapshot of kind of changes that global warming is likely to
cause in the coming decades. Within the HKH region lie the origins of 10 crucial river systems that
provide life to an estimated 1.3 billion people. These rivers -
Ganga, Brahmaputra, Indus, Amu Darya, Irrawaddy, Mekong, Salween,
Tarim, Yangtze, and Yellow - flow through 10 nations. This makes it a global
warming hotspot- changes in temperature can lead to rapid and devastating changes in river water flows that would affect millions.
Source: Times of India
Two-day national meet on environment
VARANASI, November 26, 2011: A two-day national conference on 'controlling
environmental pollution through water conservation for sustainable development',
sponsored by the Indian Council of Scientific Industrial Research (CSIR) and Indian Council of Medical Research (
ICMR) is going to be held at the department of philosophy and religion, Banaras Hindu University
(BHU) on Saturday and Sunday. According to the secretary Ratnesh Kumar Rao, various topics would be
discussed in six sessions during the two-day event. These topics include environmental pollution, water pollution and
biotechnology: mechanism of action, tools and techniques of water conservation, use of microbes for digestion of organic wastes and
suitable approach for economical agriculture, agriculture and environmental pollution: impact on human health.
Source: Times of India
India earmarks least funds to save environment
New Delhi, November 21, 2011 (PTI): India earmarks least funds to save
environment New Delhi: Despite the buzz word 'going green' catching up globally, India appears to have the
dubious distinction of earmarking the least funds for protecting the
environment. The country is spending only 0.012 per cent of its GDP for addressing
its primary green concerns including climate change, conservation of
lakes and rivers, biodiversity, forests and wildlife, ensuring the welfare of animals and prevention and abatement of pollution.
"Currently, the percentage of GDP spent on environment in India is 0.012, whereas it is 1.0 in Japan, 0.4 in USA and 0.3 in
Netherlands. The Annual Budget of Ministry of Environment and Forests at around Rs
2,000 crore is less than 0.25 per cent of the National Plan," says a
plan paper submitted by the Ministry to the Planning Commission.
A concerned Ministry has sought a significant increase in its annual
budget, noting that inadequate resources was coming in the way of environmental management. Observing that the situation in the states
level was "even worse", the paper said, "There is a case for significant
increase in the investment on protection and conservation of the environment."
Ministry sources said it will hold dialogue with the Planning Commission, the Finance Ministry and the state governments to seek
progressive enhancement of outlays on environment.
Haldia industry ban as critically polluted areas
Kolkata, November 17, 2011: The Centre has extended till next March a
little-known moratorium on setting up "potentially polluting" units in
Haldia and Asansol, making it all the more difficult to attract investments in sectors closely identified with the two
industrial towns. The sectors that fall under the ban include oil and gas exploration,
refineries, petrochemicals, power, coal washeries, mining, steel, metals, cement,
coke oven, asbestos, leather processing, chemical fertilisers, pesticide, distilleries, paint, pulp and paper, sugar,
ports, airports, highways, industrial estates and biotech parks. The moratorium, now extended till March 2012, had been imposed by the
Union environment and forest ministry when it was headed by Jairam Ramesh and
the Left was in power in Bengal.
The objective behind the ban was to compel critically polluted areas
to come up with plans to address the problem. The moratorium on new polluting industries was
initially put in place from end-2009 to August 2010 but with a rider that it would be lifted only if the states drew up
remedial blueprints. In Bengal, Haldia, Asansol and Howrah figured on the list.
2011 Human Development Report from
UNDP: pollution in India
November 3, 2011: Unchecked environmental destruction will halt
or even reverse the huge improvements seen in the living conditions of the world's poorest
people in recent decades, a major new UN report warned on November 2, 2011.
The 2011 Human Development report , from the United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP), concludes that problems such as worsening droughts in sub-Saharan Africa and rising sea
levels that could engulf countries like Bangladesh, could send food prices soaring by up to 50% and reverse efforts to provide access to
clean water , sanitation and energy to billions of people. "Continuing failure to reduce the grave environmental risks and
deepening social inequalities threatens to slow decades of sustained
progress by the world's poor majority," said the UNDP administrator,
Helen Clark.
The report argues that achieving sustainable ways of living
must be approached as a matter of basic social justice for both current
and future generations and address health, education and gender equality. "Sustainability is not exclusively or even primarily an
environmental issue," said Clark, noting that the landmark summit in Rio
de Janeiro in 2012, 20 years on from the Earth Summit, will be devoted to sustainable development.
SC seeks answers from Centre, UP on Taj Mahal safety
NEW DELHI, October 15, 2011: The Supreme Court on Friday took suo motu note of a British
media report reproduced in Indian newspapers which said that the 17th
century Mughal monument of love -- Taj Mahal - might collapse in the next five years and issued notices to the Union and UP governments.
A bench of Justices D K Jain and A R Dave asked the ministry of environment and forest, Archaeological Survey of India
(ASI) and the Mayawati government to file affidavits responding to the news
report which quoted BJP MP Ram Shankar Katheria saying that the Taj could collapse in five years.
The MP had said that the foundation of the monument, built between 1631
and 1648 on the banks of Yamuna river in Agra by Mughal Emperor Shahjahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal, had been
damaged and the wood used in the wells had rotted. Appearing for the ASI, advocate A D N Rao told the bench that in 2004 a
similar concern was raised by advocate Ajay Agrawal relating to tilting
of minarets because of lack of water in the river. Rao said the ASI had
examined the entire structure before ruling out any danger to the monument. Source: Times of India
Will the Taj collapse in five years?
Agra, October 9, 2011 (IANS) : The report in the Daily Mail by James Tapper earlier this week quoted
local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Ram Shankar Katheria as saying
that the foundation of the world famous 17th century mausoleum had been
damaged and the wood used in the wells had rotted. “The Taj
Mahal could collapse in five years,” Katheria is reported to have
said. Eminent Mughal historian R. Nath was also quoted. Archaeological Survey of India
(ASI) officials at the Taj Mahal took a look at the rear of the Taj Mahal facing the River
Yamuna (यमुना) after the alarm.
“We did not find any signs of stress or cracks,” said an ASI official
not wanting to be named. Most historians and architects have been expressing fears that a polluted and dry
Yamuna river could pose a threat to the Taj Mahal.
Green rules diluted to approve projects in India
New Delhi, October 1, 2011: An unprecedented number of infrastructure projects were
cleared by the environment and forests ministry in the last five years and regulations were diluted for giving clearances, said the Centre for
Science and Environment (CSE) on Thursday. A CSE study analysed environment and forest clearances granted by the
ministry in the the 11th Five Year Plan. The study looked at five key sectors - thermal power, hydropower,
cement, iron and steel and mining - and found that in the period from 2007 till August 2011, 8,284 projects were granted forest clearance and
203,576 hectare of forest land was diverted for the purpose. The pace of forest land diversion had doubled in the last five years.
A project is required to have forest clearances where there is diversion of forest land for non-forest purpose.
"Environmental regulations are seen as impeding growth, but where is the
impediment? We are finding that despite all the browbeating, almost every project is getting cleared with frightening consistency, making a
complete mockery of our regulatory systems," said Sunita Narain, CSE director general.
The CSE appealed to the ministry to stop giving forest clearances to any
new project until a transparent and effective system was put into place.
"Why is the ministry giving so many clearances? Why projects that are already cleared not being implemented first before more clearances can
be given? Is this some kind of a new scam to take over the land and water of the people?" asked Chandra Bhushan, CSE's deputy director
general and the lead author of the study. Source: IANS
Korba is the fifth most critically polluted area in India
KORBA (CHHATTISGARH), September 27, 2011: For nearly a month, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat
and Goa are coping with reduced power supply after a damaged fly ash
dam in Korba grounded power generation at four units of the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).
Fly ash is a powdery grey hazardous byproduct when coal is burnt to produce power. Deposited in the form of slurry at Dhanras, NTPC's only
ash dam site, it dries into layers of grey dust, as an industrial sized sieve consisting
of an inclined wall called spillway separates the ash from water. In the first week of September, as torrential rains pelted down, the
heaps of ash at Dhanras acquired the force of floods, cracking the spillway wall. The pond water overflowed and contaminated nearby paddy
fields. The company was forced to stop fly ash disposal to prevent more
spillage. With no alternative site for ash disposal, production in four
units came to a grinding halt. For the first time in three decades, production at NTPC's Korba station has dipped to just 200MW.
Korba is the fifth most critically polluted area in India, according to
a 2009 study of the Central Pollution Control Board. "With 6,000MW installed capacity, and seven power companies, Korba generates 48,000
metric tonnes of fly ash every day, and one lakh metric tonnes every
year," says B S Thakur, government officer incharge of monitoring environmental compliance.
Release of Carbon Dioxide, 2010 Worst Year Ever
September 23, 2011: A record-setting 36.4 billion tons of carbon dioxide were
added to the atmosphere in 2010. That's a 45 percent increase in the global annual
release of carbon dioxide by humans since 1990, reports the European
Commission's Joint Research Centre and PBL Netherlands Environmental
Assessment Agency in the report "Long-term trend in global CO2 emissions."
Although many industrialized nations made cuts in the amount of carbon
dioxide pollution they created, the rapid growth of India, China, Brazil
and other developing nations resulted in a net increase during the two decades studied in the report.
After the global economy was shaken in 2008, emissions fell. But from
2009 to 2010 carbon dioxide made a serious comeback. Emissions increased
5.8 percent during that period, the fastest ever. Major economies, China
(10 percent), India (9 percent), USA (4 percent) and the EU-27 (3 percent) led the pack in increased
emissions of carbon dioxide pollution.
The record setting increase in emissions between 2009 and 2010 was
really more of a return to normal after the economic recovery, and didn't necessarily represent a massive failure in reduction plans. For
example, the report notes that the EU-27's emissions were lower in 2010
(4.4 billion tons) than in 2007 (4.6 billion tons).
Source: Discovery News
People demanding the closure of the nuclear plant
Chennai, September 20, 2011: Jayalalithaa has become the first Tamil Nadu chief minister to
challenge the Centre's nuclear policy. By saying that she has written to
PM Manmohan Singh to temporarily halt all work at the Koodankulam nuclear project until all issues are resolved, she has placed the buck
at the PM?s door.
Hundreds of villagers, mostly fisherfolk, have been fasting for the last
seven days, in the presence of thousands of people assembled there demanding the closure of the nuclear plant, now ready to go critical.
Children and youth boycotted educational institutions. Fisherfolk struck
work. Bus transportation to the small coastal hamlet Idinthakarai , where the agitation is on, was suspended. Several`rounds of talks failed to convince the people. Jayalalithaa issued a
statement detailing safety precautions taken and appealed to the people
to end the fast. The people refused.
Lanco Tanjore bags environment award
Hyderabad, September 16, 2011: Lanco Infratech Limited (LITL), has announced that Lanco Tanjore Power
Company Limited (Formerly known as Aban Power Company Limited) has won
the Rajiv Gandhi Environment Award for Clean Technology for the year
2009-2010 in recognition to its contribution to cleaner production as
well as its commitment towards environmental pollution control and resource conservation, by the Ministry.
The Lanco Tanjore Power has adopted Advanced Gas Turbine using natural
gas as fuel. The unit has achieved reduction in NOx emission level, water consumption and effluent generation. The unit is also met the
standards prescribed by European Union. Lanco Tanjore Power Project is the first gas based project to be registered with
UNFCCC for CDM and is regularly getting carbon credits for reduction in carbon dioxide emission.
Gauhati HC notice to ONGC, Centre, Nagaland Government
Gauhati, September 14, 2011 (UNI): Gauhati High Court has issued notices to Oil and Natural
Gas Corporation (ONGC), Central Government and Nagaland Government to
respond to a PIL, filed against the ONGC, following large scale crude
oil spillage in Champang and Tssori villages of Wokha district. According to official sources here today, the High Court during the
hearing yesterday directed motion counsels, representing two oil spillage-affected villages in the State, to issue notices to the
ONGC, the Union and Nagaland Governments for admission of the Public Interest Litigation
(PIL).
The PIL was filed against the ONGC basin Manager, Cinnamara, Jorhat in
Assam, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, the
State of Nagaland, the Nagaland Geology and Mining Department, Nagaland
Forest Department, the Nagaland State Pollution Control Board and the
Union of India represented by the Ministry of Petroleum, besides the
Natural Gas and the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India.
In the PIL at least Rs 1000 crore had been demanded as consolidated compensation to the villagers for environmental, agricultural and
economic damage allegedly caused by the 16 years of unabated oil spillage from the ONGC's abandoned oil rigs.
One mosquito coil equals 100 cigarettes
September 2, 2011 (IANS): Smoke emitted from one mosquito repellant coil is equivalent to those of
100 cigarettes, thus causing harm to a large number of people in India,
an expert said Wednesday. "Not many people know about it, but the damage done to your lungs by one
mosquito coil is equivalent to the damage done by 100 cigarettes. This
was according to a recent study conducted in Malyasia," said Chest Research Foundation director Sandeep
Salvi.
He was speaking at the conference 'Air Pollution and Our Health',
organised by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) along with the
Indian Council for Medical Research and the Indian Medical Association.Salvi said there is a lack of awareness about the impact of air pollution on human health.
Pointing out the "lack of research culture" among Indian doctors, Salvi
said that indoor air pollution too is a health risk factor. Participants
included doctors and health researchers, also spoke about vehicular air pollution in the capital. According to estimates, about 55
%t of Delhi's population lives within 500 metres from main roads - and is, therefore, prone to a variety of physical disorders.
"The vehicular pollution is a major concern for the environment. The rising incidents of genetic disorder has a lot to do with air pollution.
India loses one million children under five because of respiratory problems every year," said Sanjeev
Bagai, the chief executive officer of Batra Hospitals. He said industries also contribute to the air pollution and these need
to be shifted out of the capital.
Clearance to Nuclear Plants
New Delhi, August 29, 2011: Ministry of Environment and
Forests has granted environmental clearance to various nuclear power
projects which inter-alia include the Nuclear Power Park (6X1650 MWe)
at village Madban, Taluka Rajapur, District Ratnagiri, Maharashtra
by M/s. Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) on 26.11.2010
under the provisions of Environment Impact Assessment (EIA)
Notification, 2006. The appraisal was made by the Expert Appraisal
Committee (EAC) on the basis of the EIA report covering the impacts
on different components of environment including marine biodiversity and fisheries.
The environmental clearance to the said project was granted
based on the environmental considerations and by providing the
requisite environmental safeguards. This information was given by
the Minister of State for Environment and Forests (independent
charge) Shrimati Jayanthi Natarajan in a written reply to a question
by Shrimati Supriya Sule, Dr. Nilesh N. Rane, Shri Wakchaure Bhausaheb Rajaram and Shri S.S. Ramasubbu in Lok Sabha today.
Supreme Court Seeks Pollution Information at Sterlite Plant
New Delhi, August, 25, 2011: Supreme court today sought information about
effluents from Sterlite Industries (India) Ltd.’s copper smelter, which faces charges of violating environmental rules.The Tamil Nadu pollution control board has to file an application
specifying the polluting materials and suggest steps to control pollution in and around the factory, a two-judge bench headed by
R.V. Raveendran said in an interim order in New Delhi. The court on Sept. 6
will direct Sterlite, which appealed against a lower court order asking
it to shut the factory in the southern state, on steps it should take to check contamination.
The Madras High Court on Sept. 28 ruled Sterlite’s 400,000 metric ton
Tuticorin smelter should be shut for breaching environmental standards.
India is tightening rules to protect ecologically sensitive regions,
prevent illegal mining and safeguard the resources and livelihood of the people living around mines and factories.
The Supreme Court has allowed Sterlite to run the factory through interim orders since Oct. 18
and had asked the state and the federal government to file replies on
the court’s notice. It ordered Sterlite, a unit of Vedanta Resources Plc
(VED) , to give information about the environmental impact of the waste generated from
the facility. The company’s plan to double the Tuticorin smelter capacity to 800,000
tons by the middle of 2011 has been delayed, pending approval from the
pollution control board, according to the latest annual report. The smelter
uses imported copper concentrate
IBM join hands with NGO for smarter city
Chennai/ Bangalore August 24, 2011 (BS): As part of the centennial celebrations of IBM, the company on Tuesday
said it is collaborating with Bangalore-based non- profit organisation
Centre for Sustainable Development (CSD) to prepare an Environment Report Card (ERC) for the city. The survey will showcase
citizens perceptions of environmental issues and a factual picture of the
city's environmental condition measured across key parameters.
"This is a global initiative by IBM as part of our centennial
celebration. We internally discussed with our employees for two days and
we decided to use skills of the employees to do something for the welfare of the society. The CSD has done these kind of initiatives
earlier also and we decided to work together," Mamtha Sharma, Manager
Corporate Citizenship & Corporate Affairs, IBM India said. The findings of the survey will be submitted to the state government by
November 2011.
The environment report card is expected to provide the authorities a
perspective of what citizens consider as priority issues facing in the
city. According to the company about 500 IBMers have volunteered to collate data from over 3,000 household respondents across eight zones in
the city between August and October 2011. During this period, CSD will
collate data from different government departments to supplement the findings.
Green tribunal asks government to study nuclear radiation
New Delhi, August 08, 2011: In a decision which could have wide environmental ramifications, the
National Green Tribunal has asked the environment ministry to consider
impact of nuclear radiation emanating from coal based power plants. The
NGT order was following a submission regarding public hearing for environment clearance for thermal plant in
Maharashtra, where study on nuclear radiation from the plant was not conducted.
The occurrence of radioactive substances from the sites of Thermal Power
Plants in India have been been reported widely. A recent study by National Geophysical Laboratory found high quantity of nuclear radiation
in Chandraapur Thermal power plant in Maharashtra. However, the radiation was within permissible limits. The study, however, fails to
answer is whether these substances have affected people living near or
working in the plant.
During public hearing for another thermal plant in
Maharashtra, the issue of nuclear radiation was raised which was not addressed during the
public hearing. The villagers, thereafter, filed a petition with the tribunal seeking direction in this regards.
Justice C V Ramulu and expert member Ravinder Kumar Aggarwal asked the
environment ministry to look radioactivity aspects of coal ash for thermal plants. "Radioactivity is a serious problem. Neither the
Pollution Control Board nor the Ministry, appear to have, examined the matter properly," the tribunal bench said.
The tribunal has also asked the ministry to study the impact of radiation
on local population who live in close vicinit of the thermal plant. "We have been informed that there is large population residing within 2 to 3
KM from the project site," the bench said. In light of these observations, the tribunal said it becomes necessary
to examine the matter in detail. "The Pollution Control Board shall file detailed information in this regard also along with a sketch map,
keeping the project site as centre point," the bench said. Source: Hindustan Times
Ban on Endosulfan to continue: Supreme Court
New Delhi, August 06, 2011: The Supreme Court on Friday refused to give any
interim relief on the ban on use and manufacture of the hazardous pesticide Endosulfan across
the country. This came as the Joint Committee constituted by the court
came out with a report on the effects of the pesticides.
However keeping in view the concerns of manufacturers in mind, the
Supreme Court today said that it can allow the export of the pesticide
subject to the condition that the Court appointed Joint Committee recommends in its report confirming that effective export of already
manufactured Endosulfan can be made in accordance with the international
conventions that govern exports of the product. "Let the Joint Committee give us a report that on these conditions the
export can be allowed" the bench observed. A bench of Chief Justice SH Kapadai, Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice
Radhakrishnan, which had earlier ordered a blanket ban on the use and
manufacture of Endosulfan, today directed the Joint Committe to ascertain the conditions required for export of Endosulfan keeping in
view the international conventions that govern exports. The bench also
sought replies from the committee on what is to be done with the remaining stock that does not get exported keeping in mind environmental
norms and safe disposal methods..
Ban on Mining of Coal in India
New Delhi, August 4, 2011: Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has
imposed temporary restriction on environmental clearance for development of projects in 43
industrial clusters in India based on a Comprehensive Environmental Pollution Index
(CEPI) score of more than 70. Out of these 43 clusters,
following 7 clusters cover the coal bearing areas. This information was
given by the Minister of State in the Ministry of Coal and Statistics
and Programme Implementations, Shri Sriprakash Jaiswal in written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.
Till date, the restrictions have been lifted in 25 out of 43 clusters, out of which only 3 clusters cover coalfield areas namely
Singrauli, Angul-Talcher and Ib-Valley.The restrictions in other clusters have been
extended up to 30.09.2011.The Minister said that as per Ministry of Power/Central Electricity
Authority out of 811.10 Billion Units of total power generation in the
year 2010-11, about 562 Billion Units were generated on the basis of
Coal and Lignite and form about 69% of the total power generation. The
impact of extending moratorium due to CEPI is not expected to affect
power generation since the shortage from domestic production in 2011-12
from Coal India Limited is envisaged to be met through liquidation of pit head
stocks
India to set up independent environmental body
NEW DELHI, July 26, 2011: India plans to set up an environmental regulator to review investment projects for clearance.
The panel would free the government from making sometimes-unpopular
choices between protecting ecology or spurring development. Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh says the environment should no longer be treated with ``passive disregard.''
The government has worried markets and irked investors in
recent years by holding up or canceling major projects over
environmental concerns. Singh said during a conference on Sunday
that the new National Environment Appraisal and Monitoring Authority
could lead to a ``complete change'' in how clearances are granted,
as projects would be reviewed by ``better and more objective
standards of scrutiny.'' He gave no details
Andhra Pradesh one of the world's top 20 emitters of carbon emissions
Hydrabad, July 19, 2011: Andhra Pradesh is to build a new fleet of coal- power stations that could
make it one of the world's top 20 emitters of carbon emissions. The proposed coal plants in the south-eastern state of Andhra Pradesh
are part of a wider Indian "coal rush" to bring power to the country's hundreds of millions living
without electricity. They face opposition from local people and environmental NGOs who warn of farmland being turned over to opencast
mines and coasts being threatened with pollution from ports that will handle coal.
India last year approved plans for 173 coal-fired power stations expected to provide an extra 80-100 gigawatts
(GW) of electricity capacity within a few years. Many are expected to be
fuelled by cheap coal imported from Australia, Indonesia and southern
Africa, but applications to mine more than 600m tonnes of coal in India have been lodged.
Andhra Pradesh which, with a population is 84.7 million people, is now expanding its power production by 800%.
Seven major and more than 30 smaller coal-powered power stations are
planned, together intended to have a capacity of 56GW. In comparison,
the UK's installed electricity capacity is 75GW, but is expected to rise to 100GW in the next two decades. The largest
plant, expected to be opened in two years, will be the $4bn Krishnapatnam power station, India's first "ultra-mega" class of
coal-fired power station. With 4GW, capacity it will be one of the world's 25 biggest electricity sources, capable of powering 7m
middle-class homes.
Uranium Corp gets Karnataka government nod for uranium processing
Chennai/ Bangalore July 18, 2011: The state-owned Uranium Corporation of India Limited (UCIL) has received
clearance from the Karnataka government for setting up a uranium processing unit at Gogi village in Yadgir district. The UCIL, which
started exploration for uranium in this village in 2007, has found rich
deposits of high-grade uranium (U235) that is used to generate nuclear
power. The state high-level clearance committee (SHLCC) headed by Karnataka
chief minister B S Yeddyurappa recently cleared the company's application for mining uranium and processing, at an investment of Rs
550 crore.
The uranium ore mining by UCIL is likely to yield royalty in excess of
Rs 400 crore per annum for the department of mines and geology, he said.
However, the residents of Gogi village have raised serious doubts over
the safety of conducting uranium mining in their village. During the
public hearing conducted by Karnataka State Pollution Control Board on
November 16, 2010, residents of Gogi and four nearby villages had raised
objections for carrying out mining.
Pollution can lead to brain damage and depression warn scientists
London, July 8, 2011: Long term exposure to air pollution could damage the brain and lead
to learning and memory problems and even depression, new research has revealed.
The tests on mice showed that in the long term dirty air could cause
actual physical changes to the brain which in turn had negative effects.
While other studies have looked at the impact polluted air has on the
heart and lungs this is one of the first to look at the effect on the brain, lead author Laura Fonken noted.
She said: "The results suggest prolonged exposure to polluted air can
have visible, negative effects on the brain, which can lead to a variety
of health problems. "This could have important and troubling implications for people who
live and work in polluted urban areas around the world." Ms
Fonken, a doctoral student, and her colleagues at Ohio State
University exposed mice to either filtered air of polluted air six hours
a day, five days a week for almost half their lifespan which was 10 months.
India's first green tribunal gets scores of environment cases
New Delhi, July 4, 2011 (IANS): The National Green Tribunal (NGT), a judicial
body aimed at expediting environment-related cases and the first in the
country, has got scores of cases to be dealt with, an official said.
India is only the third country after Australia and New Zealand to have
a dedicated green court. It resumed hearings Monday after the summer break.
Launched last October, NGT is headed by L.S. Panta, a retired judge of
the Supreme Court. "The tribunal started functioning in mid-May Cases have been heard
earlier. Today was the first hearing after the vacation," Panta told IANS.
According to an environment ministry official, the NGT is an independent
body which was launched with the "initial support" of the ministry. The bench is hearing cases transferred from the National Environment
Appellate Authority and from the various courts including the Supreme
Court of India. With the launch of the NGT, the appellate authority has ceased to exist.
"Twenty-six cases have been transferred from the appellate authority to
the NGT. There are various other cases from courts as well. We don't
have the exact figure," Panta said, adding that fresh cases are being
heard too. The tribunal deals with cases relating to water pollution, forest
conservation, air pollution, environment protection, public liability
and biological diversity. Headquartered in New Delhi, the NGT will have circuit benches in the
four regions of the country. The eastern bench will be at Kolkata, the western at Pune, the central
at Bhopal and the southern at Chennai. The Delhi bench then would be
called as the principal bench. The other four benches are yet to begin functioning.
Inter governmental meet on Male declaration takes place
New Delhi, June 28,2011 (ANI): In an initiative to combat air pollution,
the officials of Environment Ministry of eight countries, held a meeting on Tuesday over the Male Declaration to control and prevent the
rise in air pollution in Indian capital New Delhi. Various senior level Environment Ministry officials from South Asian
countries, analysts and policy influencers, and representatives from key
environmental organizations participated in the meeting. "Its an inter governmental meeting on Maledeclaration. Now, everyone
forgot about Maledeclaration as its an agreement of 1988 in which Trans
Boundary Air Pollution which is the black particle prevailing in our air
mostly due to vehicular pollution, that does not remain at one position.
"So it's about how to capture that pollutant and what should be the policy of every country for this. We are discussing about that in this
meeting," said T Chatterjee, secretary of Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh
The MaleDeclaration stressed on the need for countries to undertake
studies and programmes on air pollution in each country of South Asia.
Chatterjee further said that India would contribute an amount of Rs. 1
million along with other countries to make a programme for the prevention of air pollution.
"We are going to contribute Rs. 10 lakh (1 million or $22,212) for this
effort and we are still trying for this contribution as it has not been
sanctioned by higher authorities. The other countries would also contribute some amount for this noble cause," he said.
The meeting contained dialogues regarding the rapidly increasing problem
of regional air pollution and was organised by the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP). The meeting approved the draft declaration in principle and decided to
submit to the Seventh Governing Council of South Asia Cooperative
Environment Programme (SACEP) for adoption.
Environmental degradation has marred India's growth
New Delhi, June 17 (PTI) Environmental degradation and growing scarcity
of natural resources has marred India's remarkable economic growth, a
World Bank report said today. The report also said the scale of responses from environmentalists and
media needs to be further enhanced in order to address the green challenges facing the country.
"India's recent remarkable growth has been clouded by a degrading
environment and growing scarcity of natural resources," said World
Bank's Project Appraisal Document on National Ganga River Basin. "A rapidly growing population and dynamic economic development have been
accompanied by extensive and unplanned urbanization and industrialization, the expansion and intensification of agriculture, and
the destruction of forests," it said. The report was made public a day after the Government signed a USD 1
billion loan agreement with World Bank for cleaning the River Ganga.
The Bank said a 2009 State of the Environment Report for India stressed
the major concerns and costs associated with serious land degradation,
loss of biodiversity, deteriorating air quality in cities, increasing
water scarcity, and generation of large quantities of hazardous waste from industries.
"The share of the most polluting sectors in India�s exports has increased dramatically during the last decade, and a growing pollution
footprint is negatively impacting human health and development outcomes," it said.
Churches encouraged to observe 'Green Sunday' on June 5
May 31, 2011 (UNEP) Churches in India are being encouraged to observe June 5 as 'Green
Sunday' in commemoration of the World Environment Day. The National Council of Churches in India
(NCCI) is urging churches to conduct special prayers, sermons and intercessions on World Environment
Day which falls on Sunday. World Environment Day is an annual event that is aimed at being the
biggest and most widely celebrated global day for positive environmental
action.
WED celebration began in 1972 and has grown to become one of the main
vehicles through which the UN stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and encourages political attention and action.
As the apex body of Protestant and Orthodox churches in India, NCCI is
urging churches to have special events like exhibitions, candle vigil,
essay and pamphlet distributions after the worship to contribute to environmental awareness.
India will be hosting the celebrations for this year’s World Environment
Day for which the theme is: ‘Forests: Nature at your service’.
“This year fortunately, the WED falls on Sunday, so the Members are
encouraged to observe this day as ‘Green Sunday’," said Christopher
Rajkumar, Secretary of NCCI Commission on Justice, Peace and Creation.
Commenting on the theme, he said, " God almighty has created forest to
liberate the human and other cosmic communities from ecological and climate catastrophes. Forests serve as life giving and life caring agent
of God."
Bihar plans for green panchayats on June 5, the World Environment
Day
Patna, May 27, 2011 (IANS): Bihar plans to plant six thousand saplings in
each panchayat in the state by launching a new social forestry programme
under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Generation
Act(MNREGA), officials said Friday. An official of the environment and forest department said that
government will launch a programme on June 5, the World Environment Day,
to promote afforestation under MNREGA. "About 6,000 saplings would be planted in each
panchayat", he said.
The forest officials along with district officials will involve
villagers to plant saplings and to protect it under the MNREGA. "It will
provide an employment opportunity to old age people, widows and physically incapable men and women in villages to protect the saplings
for five years," he said. All of them would get wages of 100 days of employment in a year under
MNREGA in over 8,500 panchayats in the state, officials said. According to official data, Bihar has only a fragile 6.07 percent forest
cover.
The Bihar government has set an ambitious plan to increase the forest
cover to 35 percent within a decade. Forest officials admit that Bihar lost most of its green cover when the
state of Jharkhand was carved out of it in 2000. Undivided Bihar had a forest cover of 17 percent.
Supreme Court bans endosulphan
New Delhi, May 14, 2011: The Supreme Court on Friday ordered a complete ban on the production and
sale of pesticide endosulphan throughout the country till further orders.
A bench presided over by Chief Justice of India S. H. Kapadia stressed
it was passing an interim order as a precautionary measure keeping in
view the fundamental right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
To make the order effective, the bench directed the statutory authorities concerned to freeze the permits for manufacturing
endosulphan with immediate effect.
The bench directed a detailed study on the harmful effects of the
pesticide on an all- India basis by an expert committee. The panel will be an amalgam of two committees - one headed by the
director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research and the other
under the agricultural commissioner. The court said the expert committee should come up with an interim
report within eight weeks stating whether endosulphan should be banned.
Only after that will the apex court taken a final decision in the matter.
SC mine bar notice on environment ministry
New Delhi, April 21: The Supreme Court today asked the environment
ministry to explain why a venture led by UK firm Vedanta had been denied
permission to mine bauxite in an ecologically sensitive Orissa pocket
despite its clearance.
The Orissa Mining Corporation (OMC), run by the state government, has
challenged the decision of the Jairam Ramesh-led ministry to deny clearance to a joint venture led by Sterlite Industries (India)
Vedanta's sister concern to mine bauxite in the Niyamgiri hills. The
Dongria Kondh tribe regards the hills as sacred and opposes mining.
IITM’s clean act for CWG earns UN pat
New Delhi, April 12, 2011: The Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology
(IITM) has won accolades from the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) for its excellent work
during the Commonwealth games 2010. The institute had installed one of its ambitious projects System of Air
Pollution Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) to forecast air quality and
predict it quality in the next 24 hours.WMO, a Geneva-based specialised agency of the United Nations on
meteorology (weather and climate), commended the IITM for being an excellent example
of a well carried out project. SAFAR forecasts air quality at a particular time and predicts what it
will be like in the next 24 hours It further states that pilot projects like these are an important part
of the WMO’s Global Atmospheric Watch (GAW) Urban Research Meteorology
and Environment (GURME) project. This project aims at improving capabilities to handle meteorological and
related features of air pollution. SAFAR coordinator Dr Gufran Beig said, “The WMO’s commendation letter is a big achievement for us. It has
come after close scrutiny.”
India launches National consultation for air pollutants
NEW DELHI, March 25, 2011
(PTI): To meet the challenges of pollution on both local and global
scale, India on Thursday launched a national technical consultation for air pollutants
on a market-friendly emissions scheme. Speaking at the inaugural session, environment minister Jairam Ramesh
said it is "a very small" but "a necessary step" in environmental regulation to address global climate change.
"There is a debate on carbon trade globally. Today what India is doing
with this initiative is a carbon trade for local polluters," Ramesh said.
Advocating "stricter and more robust" environmental regulations, the
Minister said, it certainly could do with less environmental regulators.
"So, we had to find a way of regulating without regulators," Ramesh said.
"I look upon today's initiative as a first step that India is taking to
enforce environmental regulations in a market-friendly manner," Ramesh said.
Maintaining that the government is not doing "this carbon trade initiative because of the global negotiations on Climate change," he
said the initiative is linked to tackle public health problem due to the
local polluter
Over half of Bangalore's sewage flows into storm water drains, lakes
Bangalore, March 20, 2011 ( PTI ): More than half the sewage generated in Bangalore is directly
discharged into storm water drains and lakes, contaminating water bodies and ground
water, a CAG report revealed. The existing sewage network covers only 40% of Bangalore Metropolitan
Region (BMR) and the sewage treatment plants receive only 47% of the
sewage generated, says the report of the CAG (comptroller and auditor general of India) for the year ended March 31, 2010.
"The remaining 53 per cent was discharged directly into stormwater
drains and lakes, contaminating water bodies and groundwater", according
to the report, tabled in the current session of the state legislative
assembly. "The groundwater quality in BMR was affected due to presence of
pollutants in excess of permissible limits". Though concentration of air pollutants continued to be high at many
places in BMR, an effective plan to control air pollution could not be
drawn up due to non-finalisation of source apportionment studies.
Udupi: Thermal plant harming environment
Udupi, 12 March 2011: The coal-based thermal plant of Udupi Power
Corporation Ltd (UPCL) will wreak havoc on the environment in Udupi district and should be closed down, said Vijaykumar Hegde, Karnataka
Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) district unit president, here on Tuesday.
He was speaking at a dharna organised by the youth wing of the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind in front of the Deputy Commissioner's office here.
Mr. Hegde said Udupi is an eco-sensitive district. The thermal plant had
been set up at Yellur in Udupi district without following proper norms
such as the study of carrying capacity of the district, environmental
impact assessment and public hearing. As a result, there were problems
such as fly ash, bottom ash, and saline water from the thermal plant.
There was dense fog in the areas surrounding the thermal plant in the
mornings. There had been a rise in the temperature in the area. It was
only after intense protest by KRRS at the power house of the UPCL near
Padubidri on March 4 that the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board
had taken serious note of the pollution by UPCL. The thermal plant had been affecting agriculture in about 35,000 acres
of land around it. It had affected jasmine cultivation in the area. The
KRRS had been conducting house-to-house survey to study the damage done
to agriculture by the plant. Nearly 250 wells in the region had been contaminated.
The UPCL had been using saline water for the disposal of bottom ash.
"These are the problems only after a part of the project has become operational. Once the project
becomes fully operational, the scale of problems can be imagined," he said. All political parties were supporting the
UPCL. "But the people of the district cannot be fooled
any longer," Mr. Hegde said.
Indian Coast Guard is also the green crusaders
March 06, 2011: Indian Coast Guard isn't only India's land and air borders that need to
be secured. Along the international maritime border with Pakistan, the
Indian Coast Guard has its hands full. In 2008, the assailants of the Mumbai terror attacks hijacked Kuber - an
Indian boat - that was registered in Porbandar. They then made their way
to Mumbai. Since then, the patrols by the Indian coast guard have intensified.
The men constantly roam the waters to look out for anything suspicious.
They intercept boats to check the identity and nationality of the fishermen. The checks are carried out by going through the identity
cards, which all Indian fishermen are required to carry at all times. Apart from guarding the coastline, the Coast Guard also play the role of
environmental crusaders. They caution fishermen against throwing oil
into water, and advise them about endangered species and pollution
laws Source: NDTV .
Internal air pollution more harmful
LUCKNOW, February 24, 2011: As per the World Health Organisation,Indoor Air Pollution
(IAP) is thousand times more likely to make an impact on your health
rather than outdoor pollution. Ajay Taneja, faculty, department of chemistry, Dr BR Ambedkar University, Agra defines IAP as an air within
a building occupied for at least one hour. "This is not only the problem
of rural areas, unplanned urban colonies, adjacent to highways are one
of the biggest takers of IAP," said Taneja.
IAP is emission of random gases out of walls, and other sources that
cause cancer, unconsciousness, headache, dizziness, burning sensation in
eyes and throat, and other diseases.Indoor Air Pollution (IAP), as it is termed, is gradually turning out to be a killer.
IAP is a term referred to the air quality within and around building and
structures. "What we breathe is the air that keeps on re-circulating
within an enclosure. We don't realise that there are certain pollutants
present only in indoor air, which can be fatal," said Mukesh Sharma,
head, Centre for Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of
Technology-Kanpur. He was in the city to attend a two-day national conference on `Indoor Air Quality-A New Challenge to
India', organised by Isabella Thoburn College. Source: Times of India
UNEP to report on Pollution and global warming
Nairobi, February 19, 2011: Next week ministers attending the governing council of the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi will be presented with
the summary of a new report on how fighting air pollution can help the
global climate (the report due to follow a couple of months later).
The summary makes a powerful case for acting on two short-lived
climate “forcings”, factors that change the amount of energy the
atmosphere absorbs, as carbon dioxide does, but stay in it only briefly.
One is black carbon and the other is ozone, which is vital for blocking
ultraviolet rays in the stratosphere but hazardous in the bits of the
atmosphere where plants live and people have to breathe.
According to the UNEP report, implementing measures known to be
effective against these two pollutants over the next 20 years would have
“immediate and multiple” benefits, including temperatures between 0.2°C
and 0.7°C lower than they would otherwise be by 2050 and the saving of
between 0.7m and 4.6m lives with improved air quality. For black carbon
the measures are largely in the form of more efficient ways of burning
things; for ozone they mostly involve reducing emissions of methane,
which encourages reactions in the atmosphere that make ozone. The black-carbon measures save a lot more lives than ozone control, but are
trickier to assess in terms of climate.
Mobile phone health hazard: call for changes in radiation norms
New Delhi, February 3, 2011(PTI): Taking a stringent view of the health hazards posed by radiation from
mobile phones, towers and base stations, a high-level inter-ministerial
committee (IMC) has called for revision of radiation norms according to Indian needs.
According to the report submitted by the IMC, radiation from mobile phones and towers could lead to symptoms like fatigue, sleep
disturbance, dizziness and lack of concentration. It said it could also lead to slowing down of reaction time, loss of
memory, headache, disturbance in digestive system and heart palpitation.
As a sequel, the committee has called for imposing strict restrictions
on installation of mobile towers near high-density residential areas, schools, playgrounds and hospitals.
Though the impact of long term exposure to such emissions is unclear,
the panel suggested conducting scientific research on its effect,
especially among children, pregnant women and elderly persons.
Following reports that electromagnetic radiation emitted by the mobile
towers were threating the movement and breeding of bees and birds (which
are the best indicators of the status of the ecology), the government
had set up a panel to study the impact and formulate guidelines for regulating installation of such structures.
The report suggested that since the Indian weather conditions were different compared to European countries, revision of radiation norms
may be considered. “The radiation limits in India may be lowered to 1/10th of the existing
level keeping in view the data submitted by COAI/ AUSPI,” it added.
The report suggested methods like use of wireless hands-free system,
keeping calls short or sending text messages (SMS) and using mobile phones when the signal quality is
good
Miss Earth makes earthy promises
Bangalore, January 13, 2011: A somber mood greeted newly crowned Miss Earth 2010, Nicole
Faria, makes earthy promises at Bangalore. Speaking about her future plans, she said,
"The crown comes with a lot of responsibility. Now my mission is to address
environmental issues, and save Mother Earth"
Nicole said that she is now part of a company, U-Solar, with which she
will be working to attack global warming. "I have also joined the
Rotaract Club, through which I hope to address environmental issues. I
also want to introduce cycle-rickshaws in Bangalore. We have to take
measures, that will reduce the pollution in the city and save the greenery," Faria said.
Her parents, Ian and Anita Faria, were thrilled at their
daughter's win.. "She has always had a mind of her own, and we know that when she makes
up her mind about anything, she will do it. She has proved herself once
again," said her mother. "In fact, when she wanted to get into modeling, I was quite reluctant.But she has worked hard and came up in a way, we had never expected," said Ian
Faria.
Ankleshwar topped the list of India's polluted industrial
clusters.
Mumbai, January 8, 2011: Ankleshwar topped the 2009 list of India's critically polluted industrial clusters. The list was based on
the survey conducted by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). The companies involved insist there is no truth in the allegation they are
simply poisoning the area. And yet, people in Sarangpur, Piraman,
Dadhal, Koshmdi, Bhadhkodra, Pungam and Amboli villages —which ring
Ankleshwar—insist they suffer from the toxic fumes discharged by the town's many chemical factories.
The villagers allege the water is polluted too. Is this no more than
a shadow boxing contest? Are the villagers, who "allege" and "claim" and
"insist" destined to lose out to the companies that "allege" and "claim" and
"insist"? In 2004, the Supreme Court ordered a special water supply for these
very villages because it found the groundwater to be severely polluted. In March
2008, a team led by Dr N J Pawar, Suyash Kumar, and K D Shirke of Pune
University's geology department said it had found critical pollution levels in
38 sample wells around Ankleshwar and from the local stream Amlakhadi.
The Pune team found high levels of molybdenum, zinc, lead, nickel, cobalt, iron,
cadmium and chromium. The highest concentration of molybdenum was 2,760 ppb or
parts per billion. The WHO standard is 70 ppb. The effluents treated here and in
the neighbouring industrial estate of Panoli remain dangerously toxic. The
Central Pollution Control Board sets a standard 100 for 'chemical oxygen demand'
of effluent, which simply means that water has an acceptable organic chemical
content and quality. But Ankleshwar's "purified" effluent has a chemical oxygen demand value of 1,156
Cap-and-trade regime coming for industrial emissions
New Delhi January 3, 2011 (PTI): The Union environment ministry is planning a scheme to control emissions from industrial plants and other air polluters, using a market-based mechanism.
The move comes on the heels of India’s assurance to voluntarily take mitigation action to reduce carbon emissions by 2020. The ministry is mulling the idea of introducing an emissions trading scheme
(ETS) as a pilot project in Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. Both states have critically polluted areas, with many large industries.
A discussion paper on such a scheme was presented by a team from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University and the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab, at the request of minister Jairam Ramesh in August last year. In an
ETS, industrial plants and other polluters, rather than being told to stick to a fixed emission limit, face a price for their emissions and choose how much to emit, within
reasonable limits, taking this price into account.
“The price of emissions makes pollution costly and gives polluters an intensive to cut back,” it says. The paper says
such schemes have great potential to lower pollution, while minimising costs for industries. Units are able to choose for
themselves the cheapest way to reduce pollution. In comparison, traditional command and control regulations do not allow for differences across industries.
On the regulatory side, an ETS, once established, will provide a self-regulating system that makes
pollution control more efficient. “In the longer run, the reduced costs of compliance can also make it easier to introduce new regulations that increase
environmental quality,” the paper said. The ministry opted for Tamil Nadu to introduce the scheme as the state is experimenting on a similar innovation, the
real-time online monitoring of pollution loads at the ndustrial unit level.
The state has already started a programme for generating eal-time air quality information reports in some of their
large industrial clusters. Ramesh has said availability of accurate real-time data of the type being generated in Tamil Nadu also allows for possibility of implementing market-based instruments such as an
ETS. “An ETS for air pollution would have the benefit of enabling lower pollution levels, at lower overall costs of compliance. It would allow the regulator to set a cap on the aggregate level of pollution permitted,
allow a self-regulating system to ensure that pollution does not exceed this cap,” the minister had said. |
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