WWF in its report mentioned that india's 4 megacity is facing high water scarcity and in future also. Due to Over population chennai topped followed by Kolkata on 2nd and mumbai and delhi on 11 and 14 respectively.

Cement Pollution - Cement pollution has a lot of chemical pollution which is around 7% of Global CO2 which is more than what trucs produce in the world. As to produce 1 Ton of Cement half ton CO2 is released.

Alternative to Cement - Some researchers are checking on Fly-Ash to substitute or cut the amount of clinker (a key raw ingredient) in the cement. Probelms - Greener forms of cement is costly than geopolymer cement (made from Al + Si - readily available in Fly ash and Slag).

* bibek deboraoy recommendation on beekeeping development - ease of exporting honey, training n development should b given, national n regional infra, bee friendly Flora plantation, recognize honeybee as input to agriculture n landless beekeepers as farmers,recognition of bee culture as subject for advance research under ICAR. India at 8th position in the world china at 1st. India has capability to have 200 million colonies than 3.4 mn today

* Acrndn to a recent study by 2050 airplane contrails wl emmit more CO2 than Aircraft of 2006 level n then that condense. This is due to cirrus cloud formation in upper atmosphere as new aircraft fly high above from Earth. This emmit nitrogen, surphur oxide, carbon oxide, black carbon n soot

* Fresh water dolphin - Ganges dolphine (Endangered, CITES |) 1 of 4 types, other 3 being Amazon dolhpin (Pink dolphine), Indus dolphine (in india only in Beas river) and Yangtze river in China. they use ultrasonic sound and doent live in water having current.

* Blue flag certification started in french in 1985 later adopted by Europe in 2001.

France established 'foundation For environment education (FEE non governmental non profit org)' for certifying Marina's, beaches n sustainable boat.

* Silk samagra scheme- it is implemented by central silk board (established in 1948 by an act) under min of textiles.

'Quality certification system' test the quality of silk,cocoon,raw silk ,silk products n entire silk production cycle.

five major types of silk of commercial importance, obtained from different species of silkworms are Mulberry, Oak Tasar & Tropical Tasar, Muga and Eri. Apart from mulburry all are Vanya (wild) silk.

* Spent Pot lining – is produced from smelting plant. Aluminum is extracted from aluminum oxide using Electrolytic cells called pots. This cells are made up of 2 steel lining (outer is refracted or insulating and inner is of carbon which acts as cathode for electrolytic cells absorbs Aluminum and Fluorides). After few years this pot lining is failed and called Spent pot lining.

This Spent pot lining also known as Spent pot liner and Spent cell lining have high content of Fluorides and Cynades which is highly carcinogenic value and included in Hazardous waste material act 2016.

Hazardous properties of SPL are: Toxic fluroides and cyanides are leachable in water. Corrosive – Exhibiting High ph value (1-14 scale, 7 bing nutral) and Reacive with water – Producing inflammable, Toxic and Explosive gases.

* West Antarctica Ice sheet (WAIS) is currently largest ice sheet which is melting at high rate (melting rate is tripled in last quarter century or lost 3 trillion ice sheet between 1992 – 2017.

Melting of WAIS will increase the ocean water level to 5 mtr (16 ft) even if we implement “Paris accord” which will submerge many small island cities like Hamburg, Shanghai, New York and Hong Kong.

Recent solution to Protect WAIS collapse – Artifiacial Ice (12000 Wind turbine to pump seawater 4,900 feet up to the surface, where it would be frozen into “snow”) however it has its own disadvantages.

* As per National environment engineering research institute ( 1 of 38 research institute of CSIR- under min of science and technology) has found that edible vegetables cultivated on yamuna stretch in Delhi is highly metal toxicated.

Cabbage among vegetables contains lowest n spinach highest with 14.1 mg/kg whereas as per FASSAI set standard is 2.5 mg/kg.

A study conducted by neeri in Feb 2019 was reported to NGT n NGT banned cultivation of edible food in yamuna stretch but this still continues.

Prolonged eating of toxicated metal can cause cancer, mulfunction of brain n blood cells, lungs n other organ dicease etc.

* Land Degradation - the TERI report titled ‘Economics of Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought in India’ stated that while loss of productive land for various ecosystems is a concern, a larger concern is the degradation of existing ecosystems.

As about 30% of India’s land is degraded, so Govt is trying to merge existing Land and Water scheme to utilize these resources effectively and neutralize the Land degration by 2030 (i.e no addition Net loss of land by balancing equivalent gains in land).

annual economic costs of land degradation and land use change in the country have been estimated at ₹3,17,739 crore (82% cost is due to Land degradation & 18% coz of Land change), which is 2.54 per cent of India’s GDP in 2014-15 and about 15.9 per cent of the GVA from agriculture, forestry and fishing sectors.

Causes of Land Degradation – Population Encrochment, Climate change, Deforestation, Poor farming Techniques, Over irrigation, Urban Sprawl, Land use change, Soli pollution and Overgrazing.

Govt Initiative- National Action programme for combating desertification (2001), Integrated watershed mgt program (IWMP), National Aforestation Program (NAP), National Mission for Green India (GIM), MNREGA, Soil Conservation in the Catchment of River Valley Project, National Watershed Development Project for Rainfed Areas (NWDPRA), Command Area Development and Water Management (CADWM) programme, Soil Health Card Scheme, Awareness programs, Desertification and Land Degradation Atlas of India released in 2016 etc.

Mythylmercury - Researchers from IIT -hyderabad, Harvard University and fisheries n ocean Canada found that though there has been decrease in Mercury emission, concentration of mythylmercury varies in different species.

It causes many deseases such as loss of hearing n visual ability, nervous digestive n immune system. also threat to development of the child in utero and early in life.

Mythylmercury is different from ethylmercury which is used preservative in some vaccine and does not pose a health issue.

Minamata convention -global treaty to protect human health and environment from adverse effect of Mercury.

India n more than 140 countries have ratified the convention

Biofules - hydrocarbon fuel produced from an organic matter in short period of time.

Biofules can be solid (wood,bioplant and manure), liquid (bioethanol n biodiesel) or gaseous (biogas)

Categories -

First generation - made from food sources such as sugar,starch, vegetable oil or animal days etc.

Second generation -produced from non food crop or portion of food crops that are non edibles n considered waste. Eg stem,husks, wood chips, fruit skin n peeling etc. Cellulose Ethanol n biodiesel.

3rd generation- produced from micro organism such as algae. Eg buthanol .

4th generation- crop that are genetically engineered to take high amount of carbon are grown n harvested

* IPCC report of climate change due to land use

report focuses on the contribution of land-related activities to global warming i.e how the different uses of land, like agriculture, industry, forestry, cattle-rearing, and urbanisation, was affecting emission of greenhouse gases

Effect on environment- aridity, flood rainfall n draught, Reduced photosynthesis

Effect on human- poverty, food production nnsecurity, migration, animal production (heatwave will cause more morbidity), Nutritional quality, food prices.

* IPCC 3rd report of 5th assessment report - The Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate -

Key finding - ocean temp has hightened by 90% since 1970. Since 1990 Marine heat waves has likely to be doubled.

Glacier Melting - Himalayan meting of 220bn metric tonnes per year. Antarctica - 155bn my per year. Greenland ice sheet - 278bn mt. year.

Mean Sea level rise - global sea level increases by 16 cm from 1902 to 2015 n 3.4 mm per year from 2006 to 2015 which is more than double from first 90 year of 20th century. Sea level rise is not uniform globally it differs regionwise.

* National animal decease control program - fully centrally sponsored against the foot n mouth decease n brucellosis n cover Buffalo,goat ,pigs, sheep.

Govt aims to control the decease by 2025 n eradicate by 2030 through this program.

* Waste Management Accelerators for Aspire Women Entrepreneurs (Wawe) Summit 2019 - by AICTE and Institute of waste mgt (Jaipur)

IIWM & AICTE will be registering the interested participants and will guide them to connect from Start-Up India to Stand Up India.
The theme of the summit is: “Make your own bag

* Greenpeace report on environment states that India is largest emitter (15% of total anthropogenic sulphur emmition) of sulphur dioxide (so2) in world with 5 out 10 worlds most sulphur dioxide emitting hotspot in the world.

It is largely due to coal based power generation activity in India and abSense of FUEL GAS DESULFURIZATION (FGD) Technology in many coal plants.

* Syngas (Synthesis Gas) is currently made from a mixture of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, and is used to produce a range of commodities, such as fuels, pharmaceuticals, plastics and fertilisers.

Scientist has invented an artificial leaf which will use sunlight to produce (carbon dioxide + water). It is carbon nutral n doesn't release any more carbon to environment.

* SAFAR (System of Air quality and weather forecasting and Research) under Min of Earth science provide real time update on pollution by measuring location specific air quality in the metropolitan cities also 72 hours before early warning system.

Developed by Institute of Tropical metrology, Pune and operationalize by IMD.

Pollutants monitored: PM2.5, PM10, Ozone, Carbon Monoxide (CO), Nitrogen Oxides (NOx), Sulfur Dioxide (SO2), Benzene, Toluene, Xylene, and Mercury. It monitors all types of weather phenomena.

* PPSW (Punjab preservation of Subsoil water) Act (2009) may have helped arrest the rapid decline in the groundwater table and aquifers, but it has contributed to the unprecedented deterioration in Air Quality Index (AQI) in the National Capital Region. As per this Act farmers were ordered to sow paddy after May which eventually get harvested in October (coincide with Diwali and western disturbances) with very less time for Rabi crop. This forced farmer to burn the Stubble in order to prepare the Land for Sowing.

* International energy emissions report 2018 -

- India's per capita energy consumption is 40% of global average.

- India accounts 7% of total carbon dioxide emissions burden whereas USA accounts for 14%.

* IndAIR (Indian Air quality Studies Interactive Repository) by CSIR-NEERI (NEERI was created in 1958 under min of science n tech) - It is an interactive online repository to have all the research n studies available to everybody related to Air pollution.

It is first such repository contains research from 1950-1999 and related legislation from 1905.

* International Instruments and Programmes on Invasive Species

Rio de janerio 1992 identified invasive species 2nd biggest threat to environment after habitat destruction.

1. Cartagena protocol 2000 - Potential risk posed by living modified organisms.

2. CBD - Article 8 (h) eradication or control of invasive species which threaten the environment

3. Convention on conservation of migratory species (Bonn challenge 1979) - intergovernmental treaty to Protect avian, Marine n terrestrial migratory species n also talk abt invasive migratory species.

4. Convention on international trade of endangered species - International agreement in 1975 - talks abt international trade in endangered species n also talk abt invasive species trade which is threat to Live animal n plants.

5. Ramsar convention 1971 - International treaty for conservation n sustainable use of wetlands.

It also talks abt invasive specie's effect on wetlands.

* Green wall of India - center ambitious plant to create 1400km long n 5km wide green belt from Gujrat (porbandar) to Delhi (panipat)

Plan is based inspired by Africa's great green wall project running from Senegal (west) to Djibouti (East) which came into effect in 2007.

Aravali is identified as one of key degraded zones to be taken up for greening under India's Target to restore 26 mn hectare of it's degraded land.

In 2016 report from ISRO hasmd also indicated that land of Delhi, Gujrat n Rajasthan has already degraded over 50%.

* WAYU (wind augmentation n Purifying unit) developed by CSIR - NEERI which purify air in 500mt area n very energy efficient n low maintenance cost.

It purify the wind by 2 methods -

1. By diluting the air with less polutants.

2. By removing the Active polutants - eg. dangerous carbon monoxide to less dangerous carbon dioxide.

HEPA ( High efficiency particulate arrestance) - It traps the Air contaminants in Fiber web n is able to capture 99.97% of particles that are of 0.3 microns

* Shola vegetation - Tropical forest saperated by rolling grassland found on Western Ghat.

These are stunted dwarf tree reaching 25 to 30 feet's with double layered story closed canopy which doesn't let sun rays to penetrate.

These are found on hills of nilgiri, annamalai, Munnar, palini, meghamalai, agasthyamalai in South and waynad, kudremukh, baba budangiri, coorge in northern mountains n mainly found in kerla, Karnataka and tamilnadu.

*

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