Weekly Green News Update for Week 21 (May 18 to 24), 2015

weekly-media-roundup

Weekly environmental news roundup from across different media networks for week 21 (between May 18 to May 24) 2015.

1. NGT notice to CPWD over leaf burning in MP’s bungalow

BJP MP Jagdambika Pal’s official gardener Monday faced the heat of the National Green Tribunal which directed him to appear before it for allegedly burning leaves at the parliamentarian’s official bungalow here.

2. Sea of trash pollutes water, air in Delhi

People living close to some of Delhi’s landfills are routinely exposed to extremely polluted air and those drinking groundwater from the area are actually drinking water that’s far from being fit for consumption.

3. Sisodia gets feel of Okhla plant’s smoke and ash

Deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia inspected the Okhla and Ghazipur waste-to-energy plants on Friday after residents of Sukhdev Vihar met chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday complaining against toxic emissions from the former unit.

4. Dumping of construction material: NGT seeks DPCC reply

The National Green Tribunal has issued notice to Delhi Pollution Control Committee on a plea seeking action against illegal dumping of construction material on agricultural land in South Delhi.

5. NGT slams IIT Delhi for not submitting a “well reasoned” report on air pollution caused by old diesel vehicles

The National Green Tribunal on Monday pulled up a team of scientists from IIT Delhi and the ministry of road transport for not submitting a well reasoned and thorough report on how much air pollution do more than ten year old diesel vehicles contribute.

6. IIT scientists back their study on air pollution after NGT criticism

A day after being criticised by the National Green Tribunal for preparing a report that “lacked data and analysis”, IIT-Delhi scientists who authored the study came out in support of it.

7. Ban on diesel vehicles: NGT extends stay, pulls up Centre

The National Green Tribunal on Monday extended till May 25 the stay on its order banning plying of over 10-year-old diesel vehicles in Delhi-NCR.

8. Steel units operating despite closure order; NGT seeks reply 

The National Green Tribunal today issued notice to the Delhi government and Delhi Jal Board on an NGO’s plea seeking action against stainless steel pickling industries in Wazirpur here, which are not complying with mandatory pollution standards.

9. Green ministry backtracks on forest clearances after NGT orders

The environment ministry has restored the right to appeal against forest clearances given to linear projects after a rebuke from the National Green Tribunal.

10. NOCs to Yamuna high-rises under pollution board scanner

Acting on a petition filed with the National Green Tribunal on new high-rises that have come up on the banks of the Yamuna, the UP Pollution Control Board is set to conduct a survey of all multi-storey residential societies in Agra to verify if they have been sanctioned the necessary no-objection certificates by the department.

11. Air pollution causes 8m deaths/yr

Deaths due to air pollution have increased fourfold across the globe over the past decade, the latest assessment by the World Health Organization shows.

12. How arsenic contamination is affecting the Ganga basin in states like West Bengal, Bihar

There’s more that ails the Ganga basin than meets the eye – large swathes of the region’s groundwater are affected by arsenic poisoning, a health hazard that’s been largely ignored while the government focuses on reducing the flow of toxic industrial and municipal waste into the river.

13. Now SMS alerts for cleaning ganga

The Union government may turn to technology for its ambitious project to clean and protect the Ganga by using sensors that can monitor the level of chemical components in the river and send SMS alerts in real time when quantities are excessive.

14. Ganga, Brahmaputra on the same power map

The Union government has bought yet more time from the Supreme Court to decide the fate of dozens of hydropower projects on the Ganga and its tributaries in Uttarakhand.

15. Namami Gange: In The Name of Ganga

On May 13, the Cabinet approved the flagship Namami Gange programme to clean and protect the Ganga, incorporating significant new funding and implementation elements.

16. Haridwar’s Radisson Blu sealed for polluting Ganga

In one of the first instances of action against a prominent commercial establishment for allegedly violating pollution norms as laid down by the National Green Tribunal, Radisson Blu, a five-star hotel in the city, was sealed by a team of the State Pollution Control Board on Saturday.

17. NGT for river policy report by July

The National Green Tribunal on Wednesday directed the Union environment and forest ministry to present the expert committee report on the River Regulation Zone while hearing a plea against encroachments on the floodplains of the Yamuna and Hindon.

18. Blue whales spotted off Maharashtra coast after 100 years

Blue whales, a rarity around the world, have been spotted by researchers along the Sindhudurg coast of Maharashtra, the first such sighting in 100 years.

19. Pollution discolouring Taj Mahal: ASI

Centuries of pollution is slowly turning the Taj Mahal yellow despite continuing government efforts to save the historic monument in northern India, officials of the Archeological Survey have said.

20. Plants defend themselves while being eaten

Vegetarians please note! Next time when you chew upon your favourite lettuce, be a little more considerate.

21. 207 giant turtles to be released in the Galapagos

Administrators at Ecuador’s Galapagos National Park said 207 giant turtles will be released next month on the island of Santa Fe, where the native tortoises died out more than 150 years ago.

Shilpi Chakravarty

Shilpi Chakravarty is an environmental professional with a master's degree in environmental studies from the University of Delhi. She works to use her professional skills for making the planet a better place to live on.

One thought on “Weekly Green News Update for Week 21 (May 18 to 24), 2015

  1. Shri KK Sharma Ji
    Delhi Chief Secretary
    3rd Level A-Wing, Delhi Secretariat,
    I.P. Estate, New Delhi-110001

    Subject: ‘Maily Yamuna’
    { 5000/- Fine for Throwing Puja Items into YAMUNA River.
    NGT Chairperson Justice Swatanter Kumar. 13th January, 2015 JUDGMENT }

    Esteemed Sir,
    Everyday, 42,000 kg flowers enter Delhi, which means 12 lac 60 thousand kg in a month and 1.51 lac 20 thousand in a year. Besides that, an equal amount of pooja materials such as derelict idols and images of Gods and Goddess, chunni, agarbatti and dhoop packets, coconut shells, etc..But there is no account where do these flowers and other materials end up. More often than not, these ceremonial flowers and pooja samagries find their way into rivers. Clandestinely or brazenly people dispose of these flowers and other pooja materials into the rivers. This is one of the sources of polluting and choking Yamuna and other rivers. A pertinent question arises:
    • What happens to these flowers, after they get dried next day or in a few days?
    • Why do people throw these flowers into the rivers?
    I would like to bring to your kind notice that the pollution of rivers in India is a major cause of concern. Indian water-bodies get polluted due to various reasons. The chief cause of this pollution is the dumping of garbage which is produced by religious rituals in the form of garlands, statue figures of deities, paper, plastic, coconut husks, etc. This is also affecting the size of the river.

    Our NGO Youth Fraternity Foundation (YFF) has been working for the cause of cleaning of water-bodies for the last ten years in various parts of India. In order to reduce the pollution of rivers, YFF has formulated a project ‘Pushpanjali Parwaha Kalash’ which consists of (a) to collect flowers and other worship- material from temples, worship-shops, colonies; and, (b) to dump this material in a specific area from where it is sorted out in different piles like paper, flowers, plastic, coconut husks, etc. The biodegradable waste is turned into compost and the rest is recycled.
    With your support and cooperation, we would like to start pilot projects in Delhi for cleaning Puja ssmigri of the YAMUNA rivers. This will also generate income and employment for approx. 1,000 people all over Delhi. To provide employment to vulnerable and disadvantaged sections of society.
    We have solution.
    Kindly give us an opportunity. Yours faithfully,
    Gopi Dutt Aakash [ President :. YFFINDIA ]

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