Sustainability Outlook Headlines

Mahyco Seeds buys Arcadia's technology to develop NUE rice

 Maharashtra-based seed company Mahyco Seeds today said it has bought technology from US-based agricultural technology company Arcadia Biosciences to develop Nitrogen Use Efficient (NUE) rice in India.

This was under an agreement signed by both firms in 2008, Mahyco Seeds said in a release issued here.

However, the company did not disclose the amount paid for the technology.

NUE technology significantly increased plant growth and yield in multiple rice lines developed by the company.

Rice lines incorporating NUE technology showed double-digit increases in key... Read more..

10MGD water being stolen: Municipal Corporation

 An estimated 10 million gallons per day (MGD) of potable water out of the 22MGD assumed to be lost in leakage is being stolen for commercial purposes after puncturing the main supply pipelines, said the Municipal Corporation during its house meeting on Wednesday.

Unauthorized service stations, dhabas, taxi stands and illegal structures are labeled the culprits, who are not even sparing the unmetered stand post taps installed in markets for public usage.

" A preliminary survey has revealed that 10MGD of water is being stolen from the 22MGD considered to be leaked. Those... Read more..

5 yrs on, India-US set to firm up nuclear commerce

 Almost five years after signing of the India-US nuclear deal, the two countries are set to take a definite step in nuclear commerce during Manmohan Singh’s visit to the US in September.

US-based firm Westinghouse and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) will sign a contract “denoting their commercial commitment” for reactors to be put up at the Mithi Virdi nuclear park in Bhavnagar district in Gujarat.

While a commercial contract will take time because of the foreign suppliers’ disagreements over India’s nuclear liability law, the pact will involve commitment... Read more..

Consumption of Wind Energy Composites forecast to grow 12.8% pa between 2013 - 2018

An enormous opportunity for raw materials used in the fabrication of fiber-reinforced plastics (FRP) products exists in the Indian Wind Energy Industry, as per Composite Insights. The demand for composite materials in Indian Wind Energy Industry continued its growth momentum till 2011. However, in 2012, the industry was affected by the withdrawal of two key incentives by the government: accelerated depreciation and generation-based incentive. In 2012, India was the fourth largest wind market in the world, with around 1700 MW new capacity addition. With a generation-based incentive of 50... Read more..

FAO urges developing nations to cut hazardous pesticides

 Developing countries should speed up the withdrawal of highly hazardous pesticides from their markets following the death of 23 children from contaminated food in India, the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization says.

The children in the Indian state of Bihar died earlier this month after eating a school meal of rice and potato curry contaminated with monocrotophos, a pesticide considered highly hazardous by the FAO and the World Health Organization.

"Experience in many developing countries shows that the distribution and use of such highly toxic products very... Read more..

Need to make power a national sector: Expert

India should make power a national sector and and de-link it from politics to meet the country's growing electricity demand, an expert said Tuesday.

"Declaring the power sector as a national sector would create the right environment for investments, both public and private," Harry Dhaul, director general of the Independent Power Producers Association of India (IPPAI), told IANS.

The power industry expert said that ironing out uncertainties in both policy and regulation matters as well as "de-... Read more..

Now, sewage from Delhi to be treated

The Noida Authority plans to treat the waste water flowing into the city from Delhi at its sewage treatment plants (STPs). The purified water would be used by the Authority for irrigating green belts, construction and other purposes. IIT-Roorkee has been told to conduct a feasibility study for the project. It will submit its report within a month. 

About half a dozen drains empty into Noida every day. These drains flow from New Ashok Nagar and other areas of Delhi adjacent to Noida. The sewage would be channelized to the STPs soon... Read more..

Experts to prepare draft of policy on organic farming by August 15

Enthused by Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal promising to frame a policy to promote natural farming, organic farming enthusiasts and environmentalists have decided to prepare a draft of the proposed policy.

Organic farming lovers and environmentalists have started deliberations to prepare a foolproof draft wherein earnest efforts to be made to promote organic farming, minus the use of pesticides and insecticides. The draft will be handed over to the chief minister on August 15. Earlier on Friday, CM Badal had asked to prepare a draft for a policy, which could go a long way... Read more..

Plasmonic Black Metals: Breakthrough in Solar Energy Research?

The use of plasmonic black metals could someday provide a pathway to more efficient photovoltaics (PV) -- the use of solar panels containing photovoltaic solar cells -- to improve solar energy harvesting, according to researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL).

The LLNL Materials Engineering Division (MED) research team has made breakthroughs experimenting with black metals. These nanostructured metals are designed to have low reflectivity and high absorption of visible and infrared light. The MED research team recently published their black metals research results... Read more..

Point-of-Use Water Treatment Is a $14 Billion Market, Booming in the Developing World

Product differentiation and innovation are key in targeting the $14 billion market for point-of-use (POU) and point-of-entry (POE) water treatment products in developing nations, some of which will grow at an annual rate of nearly 20%, according to Lux Research.

Overall, the market is growing at a modest 2.2% annually as countries such as China and South Korea reach maturity. But poorer countries such as Bangladesh and Myanmar offer remarkably high annual growth rates of up to 19%.

"Small-scale... Read more..

Reliance Power commissions 45 mw wind power project in Maharashtra

Reliance PowerBSE -4.04 % commissioned its wind power facility of 45 mw in Vashpet, Maharashtra. Built with an investment of Rs 300 crore, the power from this project would be sold to Reliance Infrastructure Limited for distribution to Mumbai in line with regulated tariff structure of Maharashtra. 

The wind project consists of 18 wind turbine generators (WTGs) having 2.5 mw of rated capacity each.

The project is registered as a Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) project with UNFCCC and is expected to earn 1.6 million carbon credits during its operations phase.

Reliance... Read more..

BMW unveils electric car i3 in 3 continents; eyes Indian market

German luxury car maker BMW Group on Monday launched the first production series of its all-electric ‘i3’ city car simultaneously in three continents — Asia, Europe and the US.

The company said it sees huge potential in India for the BMW i3 and is in talks with the government on the issue of sustainable mobility.

The i3 would go on sale in London by the end of this year and in Beijing and New York from the beginning of 2014.

While it will be priced 35,000 euros in Europe, the i3 will cost $41,350 in the US. The company has not yet decided price for the Chinese market... Read more..