Island Erosion in India

Hey guys, we are back with another topic which can give you food for thought. We don’t post daily cause  scarcity of time. But whenever we post do follow it religiously.

Recently an uninhabited islands part of Lakshadweep named “parali 1” has vanished and has fully inundated under water . Besides “parali 1” which is a part of “Bangaram a toll”, other four Islands are also facing coastal erosion, parali 2 and 3 , Bangaram and Thinnakara.

Matter of worry is , this coastal erosion is not only confined to Lakshadweep and its Islands. It has also affected “largest Delta of world-sunderbans". There is constant threat on mangroves and other biodiversity of sunderbans.

Rising temperature and pollution is harming coral reeves of Lakshadweep, thus coastal erosion phenomenon has added more to their plight.

Regions for coastal erosion :-

Global warming and rising sea level being the first and foremost. Local reasons also play vital role in the coastal states of  India.

For e.g.-  In case of Lakshadweep, 2004 tsunami is also considered a culprit.

Besides this wave energy is also a main cause of coastal erosion.

Source :- Parth Solanki

Environmental Issues in India

India being a fastest growing economies of the world face “enormous uphill tasks” in saving natural resources . The development path adopted by India is neither sustainable nor equitable. And it is leading to widespread degradation of environment.

On the tip of iceberg of environmental issues facing India today are below.

                                        

(  (1) Emissions, Rain and Climate change :-

India releases the fifth largest amount of emissions and its stand on climate change is that our right to development is non-negotiable. Globally, climate change is expected to result in sea –level rise, which is serious threat to India considering it has 7,517 kilometer-long coastline.

More than 7 million people will be at risk due to sea expansion and could cost us 1,850 million rupees . Moreover, climate refuges from south Asia will also affect India. Around 75 million people of Bangladesh might be forced to take shelter in India. But more than that, it is the impact on the rains that will affect India the most. It will create havoc for Indian farmers and in turn affect Indian economy adversely. These impacts, in fact, are already showing up.

(2)    Land Degradation :-

Extensive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides and recently the push for genetically modified crops have affected land fertility, in turn affecting production. So much that vegetables and fruits are found contaminated by heavy metals and pesticides.

  (3) Pollution of fresh water resources:-

All the major rivers including the mighty Ganga, Yamuna, Riva, Sutluj and Cauvery are polluted with sewage and industrial toxic waste .  The ground water is depleted contaminated leading to various diseases like cancer, skin ailments and water borne diseases. Millions spent on Ganga and Yamuna Action Plans have not given the desired results.

     (4) Deforestation:-

India has been busy planting trees, to provide timber and fuel wood and in some cases to earn money from selling carbon credits under the Clean Development Mechanism. The country now ranks second globally in terms of total land area plantation. Yet forest degradation in India are disappearing at a rate up to 2.7 percent per year. It could put India ahead of most other countries in terms deforestation. This has affected the livelihood of a large population of native forest residents.

(     (5) Unbridled urbanization:-

Unbridled urbanization has created mammoth cities that are heaving under the weight of human population. Resources are stretched and the demand is unending. Lack of livelihoods in rural areas, a declining agriculture is further pushing people to urban areas. The cities like Mumbai, not built to bear the pressure are falling apart with severe shortfall in basic amenities. As an example, 2/5^th of India`s urban population resided in 35 metropolitan cities.

Source:- Dr. Seema Javed, senior media officer, Greenpeace India 

                                                             Thank you!!!!!

Climate Change is moving North pole

Hey Guys, We are back at our business once again. I hope you had a great Sunday. Sunday means fun-day for everyone, so we took a break from our blog to enjoy.

Now we are back with an interesting topic which can give us food for thought.

Earth being oblate in shape is divided into 3 parts basically 1)Equator, 2)North pole, 3) South pole. I am not penning down to teach you all geography, but our today’s topic is related to this “Climate Change is moving North pole”.

Global Warming melts ice of Earth. As ice melts & aquifers are drained, Earth’s distribution of mass is changing & with it the position of planet’s spin axis.

Earth’s northern pole is drifting rapidly eastward, & it looks like climate change is to blame.

The discovery may have measured implication for studies of ice loss & drought potentially improving our ability to predict such changes in future.

The North pole had shifted back & forth from East to West, with an overall trend that had it moving towards Canada. But since 2000, the pole’s typical drift as made a dramatic change. Since that time, the pole has been moving steadily eastward by about 75 degree, heading towards the prime meridian that runs through Greenwich England. This shift has been on the order of 10 cm a year.

What’s most exciting to the scientists is that they can now explain what’s actually causing the drift, and that may have significant ramification on climate science.

For at least a decade, scientists have suspected that the massive amounts of melting taking place in glaciers around the World could significantly redistribute mass on Earth.

If ice disappears from one part of the spinning Earth & resettles elsewhere as water, the planet shifts on its axis toward the place where it lost mass.

This does not end here or this is not the final conclusion because climate change is accelerating day by day and scientists are also doing their job. If we need to stop this catastrophe to happen, then we have to stop hurting our Mother Earth.

Share this as much as possible and also hit comment section to let us know your views regarding environmental issues.

High caffeine in energy drink

Hey guys, we are back with another hot topic and I’m dead certain you all are gonna like it.

But before that, I wanna ask you a question all the hard work you do after your hectic schedule, do you consume any sort of drink to get your energy back , well I’m talking about energy drink. It tastes so good, but it does have harmful effects on your body. So our today’s topic is “High caffeine in energy  drink.”

This energy drink contains Vitamin B12, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B3, etc. These vitamins does affect human body, but the main culprit is caffeine, which is in very high amount. Producer of these drinks often manipulate ingredient figures to increase their sales and this turns the tide in favour of producers.

Most of these brands have upto 320ppm  of caffeine in them. The Manufacturers claim  caffeine, taurine, glucoronolactone, vitamins, herbal supplements and sugar or sweetness that gives the energy.

According to study reports, it is the sugar that gives the energy rush, the caffeine only gives a “feeling” of energy.

Energy drinks fall under the category of “proprietors  foods ” in the Prevention Of Food Adulteration (PFA) Act of 1954.

    

An Amendment in the PFA act 2009 ensured that caffeine in energy drinks should be capped at 145ppm, the limit that was set for carbonate beverages.

However, Red Bull managed to set stay order on the amendment of the PFA act in 2010 And since then the energy drink market is expanding unregulated.

The Food Safety & Standards Authority Of India (FSSAI) is currently making regulations on energy drinks.

I guess many of you all are thinking how does these drinks affects environment, but it deteriorates human health, so individuals and government has to spend more on public health and also ill health disturbs food chain.

Vertical Forests

  Vertical Forest

Vertical forest  is a model for sustainable residential building, a  project for metropolitan reforestation contributing to the regeneration of the environment and urban biodiversity without the implication of expanding the city upon the territory. It is a model of vertical densification of nature within the city that operates in relation to policies for reforestation and naturalization of large urban and metropolitan borders.

Benefits of Vertical Forests :-

·        Biological Habitats

·        Mitigations

·        Anti-sprawls

Biological Habitats:-

Vertical  Forests increases biodiversity. It helps to set up an urban ecosystem where a different kind of vegetation creates a vertical environment which can also be colonized by birds and insects , and therefore becomes both a magnet for and a symbol of spontaneous re-colonization of the city by vegetation and by animal life. The creation of a number of vertical forests in the city can set up a network of environmental corridors which will give life to the main parks in the city, bringing together the green space of avenues and gardens and interweaving various spaces of spontaneous vegetation growth

Mitigations:-

Vertical forest helps to build a micro-climate and to filter dust particles which are present in the urban environment. The diversity of the plants helps to create humidity and absorbs CO2 and dust ,produces oxygen, protects people and houses from harmful sun rays and from acoustic pollution.

Anti-sprawl:-

Vertical forest is an anti-sprawl measure which aims to control and reduce urban expansion . If we think in the terms of urban densification, each tower o the Vertical forest is equivalent to an area of urban sprawl of family houses and buildings o up to 50,000 square meters.

Key elements to look for:-

·        Trees:- Trees are a key element. The types of trees are made to fit their positioning on the facades and by height, and plants used in this type project should be pre cultivated. Over a period these plants can slowly get used to the conditions they will find on the building.

·        Management:- The management of the tree pots is under building regulation, as well as the upkeep of the greenery and the number of plants for each pot

·        Irrigation:- Irrigation in order to understand the need for water , the plan for these buildings took into account the distribution of plants across the various floors and their positioning.

The first example of vertical forest consisting of two residential towers of 110  and 76 m height, was realized in the centre of Milan, on the edge of the Isola neighborhood, hosting 900 trees(each measuring 3,6 or 9 meters) and over 20,000 plants from wide range of shrubs and floral plants distributed according to the sun exposure of the façade. On flat land, each vertical forest equals to 7,000 sq.m of forest. In terms of urban densification it is the equivalent of an area of a single family dwelling of nearly 75,000 sq.m. 


        Thank you!!

Mammals shrink in size when Earth heats

Global Warming is an ever increasing phenomenon right now our world is facing due to ever increasing anthropogenic activities. So, today to spice up your knowledge, we have come up with a different topic related to Global Warming & its repercussions.

You all are aware of problems animals are facing due to Global Warming & climate change, but have you ever heard of size shrinking of animals due to global warming?

Yes, our beloved readers, you heard it right. Mammals do shrink in size when Earth heats up.

A study shows that, Global  Warming shrank certain animals in the ancient past & scientists worry it could happen again. Warm blooded animals got smaller at least twice in Earth's history when carbon dioxide levels soared & temperature spiked as part of a natural warming.

The size reduction  phenomenon of large animals into smaller one's is known as ''INSULAR DWARFISM''.

Three different species shrank noticeably about 54 million years ago when the planet suddenly heated up. One of them an early compact horse got 14% smaller, going from about 17pounds (7.7kg) to 14.6pounds (6.6kg).

Another creature that contracted was a lemur like animal that's the earliest known primate. It shrank about 4% while it may not seem like much, its noticeable because studies of animal over millions of years showed it was usually getting bigger over time.

Scientists & farmers have also long tracked animals such as cows, that shrink & give less milk during hotter stretches. These results are very significant because they provide another independent test of whether climate drives changes in body size in mammals.

In hotter climates, mammals & other warm blooded animals need to shed heat so they shrink. Smaller animals have more skin or fur per pound than bigger animals so more heat can escape, making them better adapted for warmer climate. Larger animals do better in the cold because they have less skin per pound & keep their heat.

The bigger natural warming 56 millions years ago saw temperatures rise 5.8⁰C or more probably from giant belches of methane from dead plants & animals that had accumulated on the sea floor.

I hope you guys are liking our posts, so please support us & inform your friends about this blog so that this  blog can expand.

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World Water Day

History

• World Water Day is celebrated annually on 22^nd March. 
• This day focuses on importance of clean water & sustainable management of fresh water bodies. 
• World Water Day is supported by prominent organization, institution across the globe. 
• The U.N. designated 22^nd March as International World Water Day in 1992 at UNCED(United Nations Conference on Environment & Development). 
• The first World Water Day was commemorated in 1993.

There are many contaminants which contaminates water making it less useful or of no use. For example; dumping of industrial pollutants, nuclear dumping, plastics. But the biggest concern above all is Oil Spilling because not only it deteriorates whole water body, but it pollutes water organisms which leads to loss of species & habitat.

The below video shows how to overcome this problem:-

Scientists at the US department of Energy's Argonne National Lab have invented a "sponge" that could prevent a similar situation in future spills. The foam called ''OLEO SPONGE" can soak up 90 times its own weight in oil before it needs to be wrung out to be reused & the oil can be recovered.

For Good Earth, 

                                       Many prominent institutions, organizations, NGOs around the globe have teamed up with respective Government of concerned countries. These institutions, organizations like WB(World Bank), IMF(International Monetary Fund) are providing financial assistance to under-developed & developing countries to overcome problems related to Water.

For example:- 

• Rs. 6000-crore World Bank-backed scheme proposed to manage groundwater resources.

Deforestation

Definition

PC:- Mahesh Chovatiya

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• Indiscriminate felling of trees results in urbanization, industrialization, mining operation and use of wood for domestic and other purposes have caused heavy depletion of forest .This phenomenon is known as deforestation.

Causes

·         Shifting cultivation

·         Development project

·         Fuel and raw materials requirements

·         Over grazing

·         Defense and communication activities

·         Palm oil cultivation

Shifting cultivation:-  In this practice a patch of land is cleared, vegetation is burned and ash is mixed with the soil thus adding nutrients to the soil. This patch of land is used raising crops for 2-3 years and yield is modest.

Then this area is abandoned and is left to recover its fertility. The same practice is repeated elsewhere on fresh piece of land.

Developed project:-   Development projects like hydro-electric projects, large dams and reservoirs,  laying down of railway lines and roads are not only extremely beneficial, but they are also linked with several environmental problems. Many of these projects requires immense deforestation.

Fuel and raw materials requirements: -    The increasing demand for firewood with ever growing population increases greater pressure on the forests which result in increased intensity of deforestation.

over grazing:-  Over grazing of cattle leads to over grazing.

Defense and communication activities:- Military and defense activities in forest For examples - Land used for military bunkers, training camps.

Palm oil cultivation:- Palm oil has emerged as main global source of vegetable oil due to adequate availability versatility in usage, higher yield and lower cost, as compared to other vegetable oils. Palm oil is generally sold in the name of vegetable oil.

Global edible oil consumption has grown from 123 mn metric tonnes in 2007 to 158 mn metric in 2012. This growth has been fuelled by increase population, incomes and per capita consumption especially in developing countries like India, Indonesia and China. Palm oil at 48.7 mn metric is the largest consumed edible oil in the World.

·          Environmental impacts of palm oil production

       1.       Deforestation

       2.       Loss of biodiversity

       3.       Climate change

1. Deforestation:-   Substantial tracts of tropical forest are cleared to make room for large plantations to service an ever increasing demand for palm oil. Studies show that the forest cover on Island of Borneo had declined from 73.7 % in 1985 to 50.4% in 2005, while the projected cover in 2020 was 32.6 %. Loss of forest cover in Sumatra, Indonesia has also been very alarming.

2. Loss of Biodiversity:-  Concerns about biodiversity loss are directly related to loss of natural forest. In particular, Orangutan habitats have been threatened by palm oil production. In 1900, there were around 315000 Orangutans in Indonesia and Malaysia. Today, fewer than 50000 exist in the wild, split into small groups. The palm oil industry is the biggest threat to Orangutans, the species like to be driven to extinction within 12 years unless the devastation of their natural habitat is halted.

 3. Climate change:-  15% of all human induced greenhouse gas emissions are caused by deforestation, forest degradation and peat land emissions. As land on mineral soil becomes less readily available, the expansion of oil palm is increasing on peat lands. As these areas are drained, the peat is exposed to oxidation resulting in significant CO₂ release over an extended period. Other significant sources of GHGs emissions associated with oil palm are the use of fires for land clearing and emission of methane from effluent treatment ponds of palm oil mills. Forest are felled, peat swamps drained and burnt, creating a haze that covers large areas, affecting people’s health and disrupting economic activities. 

World Forestry Day

Hey Guys, Happy World Forestry Day.

    Introduction

•  World Forestry Day is being celebrated on 21st of March to make people aware of problems related to forests and how to over come it.

History

• World Forestry Day's history lies way back in November 1971 when the states members at 16th session of conference of Food And Agriculture Organization voted to establish World Forestry Day on 21st March each year.
• From 2007-2012 organized 6 forest days events on behalf of and in close cooperation with other members of collabrative on forest following the international year of forest 2011.
•  International day of forest was established by resolution of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on 28th November 2012.