Sustainability Outlook Headlines

Civic bodies not worried with ‘bulging’ waste

The Jaipur Municipal Corporation's (JMC) 12th general body meeting on Monday witnessed Independent councillor Haji Nawab Ali throwing garbage on the sanitation committee chairman, BJP's Roshan Saini. It seems that the civic body that has the responsibility of keeping the city clean is least interested in solid waste management.

The population of 3.5 million people in Jaipur produces 1,100 metric tonnes of solid waste every day but only 85 per cent of it gets dumped, leaving the rest inside the premises of the city. JMC has placed a total of 1,794 dustbins. But the bins have been... Read more..

Hedegaard confident that Rio+20 can deliver

Connie Hedegaard, the European Commission’s climate chief, expressed confidence that a noteworthy agreement would emerge from the Rio+20 conference.

“I’m absolutely sure,” she told attendees of KPMG’s Global Sustainable Business Growth Summit in New York. “It’s doable. I think there are viable, specific things that can be done so it’s not just a talk show.”

The landmark conference will take place in June in Rio de Janeiro like the original Earth Summit in 1992, which spawned among other things the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

“We cannot afford Rio+20 not... Read more..

Pakistan, India must explore vistas of cooperation

Pakistan and India must discuss and explore vistas of cooperation on climate change as both countries have an integrated ecological system with shared natural resources, said Shafqat Kakakhel, former deputy executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme.

He was addressing a three-day Pakistan-India Track II Dialogue on (Climate) Change for Peace organised by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) and Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), India, in collaboration with Heinrich Boll Stiftung here on Monday. Dr Ishfaq Ahmad, adviser to the Planning... Read more..

Ministry of New & Renewable Energy to participate at CSP Today India

CSP Today announced this week that the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, World Bank and IREDA have been confirmed to participate at the 3rd CSP Today India Summit (14-15 March, Leela Kempinski Hotel, Gurgaon, Delhi).

The latest additions will discuss the impact that Phase I of India’s National Solar Mission has had on future industry growth. As well as this, the latest fiscal incentives and government regulations that are aimed at furthering CSP development and building a local, cost effective supply chain will also be outlined. 

The conference is now only four weeks... Read more..

Second WMO International Conference on Indian Ocean Tropical Cyclones and Climate Change

ropical cyclones are one of the most devastating natural disasters having taken more than half a million lives all over the world in the last five decades. More than 75% of total tropical cyclones over the globe causing the human deaths of 5,000 or more have occurred over the north Indian Ocean during past 300 years. This high vulnerability may be attributed to various factors including geographical conditions and limitations of observations, prediction systems, understanding of physical processes, early warning systems and disaster management processes, apart from the socio-economic... Read more..

Foresters facing climate change challenges

Foresters must face various tough challenges in the current scenario of global climate change, Forest Survey of India director general AK Wahal said while chairing the valedictory session of a two-day workshop on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation plus (REDD +) for Indian Forest Service officers organised by the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE) on Tuesday.

Addressing the gathering on the occasion, Wahal elaborated the role of Forest Survey of India in creating a forest inventory which will help in developing REDD+ projects. The... Read more..

Nations Slam Canada's Withdrawal From Kyoto Protocol

Four emerging economies, including India and China, today condemned top carbon emitter Canada's decision to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol saying such steps by developed countries "seriously questions their credibility" in dealing with the threat of climate change.

Canada, a major energy producer, had quit the Kyoto Protocol on climate change within a few days after the Durban Conference, saying the 1997 accord was an 'impediment' on cutting global carbon emissions.

According to the Kyoto Protocol, developed countries should reduce their annual carbon emissions below 1990... Read more..

Praj Honored with Bio Excellence Award 2012

Praj Industries Limited has been bestowed the Bio Excellence Award 2012 in the BioIndustrial category at the Bangalore India Bio. The award was presented at the hands of Dr. T. Ramasamy, Secretary of the DBT. This award was given to Praj for the hard work and efforts of Praj Matrix- the innovation center towards research in bioindustrials. Praj was also awarded with Bio Excellence Award in the 2009.

Innovation and research have always been important focus area for Praj who is continuously working towards creating a sustainable world through new technologies which are under... Read more..

India's JSW Energy to set up power plant in South Africa

Integrated power generator JSW Energy, looking for suitable acquisitions inside India, is planning to set up a 450-600-MW coal-fired plant in South Africa where the power sector is opening up for investment.

"We are interested in acquiring power projects in India. The sector will now see only serious long-term players. Many of the new players have put on hold their projects or are going slow," Navraj Singh, senior vice president, business development, JSW Energy, told IANS here.

According to him, the decision on target companies would depend on the total package, whether land... Read more..

Pollution by Chinese electric cars greater than by gasoline cars: Study

Chinese electric cars have a disastrous impact on pollution that could be more harmful to health than gasoline vehicles, a new study has found.

The University of Tennessee study found that electric cars cause more particulate matter pollution than gasoline cars.

"An implicit assumption has been that air quality and health impacts are lower for electric vehicles than for conventional vehicles. Our findings challenge that by comparing what is emitted by vehicle use to what people are actually exposed to. Prior studies have only examined environmental impacts by comparing... Read more..

New solar-powered water pumps from Grundfos

The Danish water pump major, Grundfos, will soon introduce a range of solar-powered water pumps for use in agriculture, industries and commercial buildings.

Grundfos has been selling solar water pumps in India but of low power — 900 W to 1,400 W. Last year, it sold 2,500 pumps, which was 25 per cent higher than in the previous year. Now, Grundfos India has sent a proposal to Denmark for approval for producing four products up to 7.5 kW.

The pump plus the inverter would cost around Rs 2.5 lakh, but the solar panels would cost close to Rs 70 a watt, sources in the company said... Read more..

Indian and Swiss cooperation on energy efficiency in buildings

India and Switzerland have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for a joint project on energy efficiency in buildings in India.

The five-year MoU aims to reduce energy consumption in new buildings in India through building capacities and knowledge of builders, architects, engineers, laboratories, institutions and others, in the area of building energy efficiency using Swiss experience and expertise.

It is estimated that 30-40% of the total primary energy worldwide is used in buildings. Commercial buildings consume about 8% of the total electricity generated in India and... Read more..