Sustainability Outlook Headlines

Indian Solar Projects May Struggle to Get Funds for Development, ADB Says

Developers of solar-power projects in India may be unable to obtain loans to complete the plants because the government’s proposed stations are too small and tariffs may be too low, an Asian Development Bank official said.

“Banks are very uncomfortable financing solar in India,” Don Purka, senior investment specialist for the Manila-based bank, said in an interview today at the Clean Energy Forum in Singapore. “The power purchase agreements must be modified for banks to lend.”

There are no cost benefits in building 5 megawatt-sized solar photovoltaic projects, the standard... Read more..

Govt. mulls common transport card for pan-India travel

If everything goes fine, soon we will be able to travel across the country carrying just a swipe card that can be used for all modes of transport. The Union Urban Development Ministry is planning to introduce the common transport card, or 'Common Mobility Card'/'India Mobility Card', by next year, reports Esha Roy the Indian Express.

"These cards will function essentially as e-purses. What this means is that the money will be on the card - these can be swiped and the value would be automatically deducted," the report cited a senior Ministry official as saying.

The system,... Read more..

Green message from the Bachchans travelling around the world

A kilometre-long piece of cloth with 'Go Green' messages, written over it by luminaries including the Bachchans and Kapil Dev, is now travelling from the North Pole to the South Pole inspiring children across the globe.

NRI fashion designer Satish Sikha has stitched hundreds of messages, each written on a yard-long eco-fabric advocating efforts to save the environment from global warming and climate change, to make a single piece of cloth.

Claimed to be the world's longest eco hand-woven silk fabric, the cloth is being exhibited in schools across the world to spread the green... Read more..

Sonia flags environment as prime national concern

Congress chief Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday elevated environment to a new level of concern in the party, saying that safeguarding the ecology was as important as economic growth and flagging it as "an issue of national significance".

Sonia gave unprecedented space to green concerns in her speech at the AICC session in what appears to mark the new party agenda on the issue. That the speech comes in the backdrop of withdrawal of permission to Vedanta aluminium plant in Niyamgiri hills in Orissa and amid talk of trouble for the big-ticket Posco plant in the state, indicates a fresh approach... Read more..

Brazil Olympics spurring green construction

Brazil's "green building" industry will expand in the coming years, spurred by construction of low-impact venues to be used in the 2016 Olympics venues, an expert on environmental construction said in an interview.

Global concerns about the impact of arenas and stadiums led the International Olympic Committee to require arenas built for the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro meet international standards for low carbon emissions and energy efficiency.

This has boosted local interest in developing real estate that with lower environmental impact than existing buildings, a trend that... Read more..

China vows efforts with UN for fruitful climate summit

China's top legislator Wu Bangguo said Tuesday that China will join efforts with the United Nations and countries around the world to push for a fruitful year-end climate change summit in Cancun, Mexico.

Wu, chairman of the Standing Committee of China's National People's Congress (NPC), made the pledge in his meeting with visiting United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

Wu briefed Ban on the country's efforts to counter climate change, adding that China attaches great importance to the issue and the NPC had approved a resolution on climate change.

"China always... Read more..

Ramesh leaves for Cancun preparatory meeting

Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh today left for Cancun to attend a ministerial meet to be held on Thursday and Friday to discuss strategies for the crucial UN summit on climate change scheduled there later this month.

Before leaving for the meet, Ramesh said that he was not very hopeful of any agreement given the way the developed countries had failed to meet their obligations whether it was on carbon emission front or in releasing climate fund to the developing nations to meet the challenges.

"The promised USD 30 billion is nowhere in the sight. At best we can hope to get... Read more..

Do away with unsustainable, toxic agricultural practices'

The Kisan Swaraj Yatra, which is traversing the country to mobilise support and create awareness on farmers' livelihood issues, interacted with farmers of H.D. Kote on Tuesday and apprised itself of the issues germane to the region.

The yatra, comprising farmers from Punjab, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Puducherry and other States, had stopped over at the backward taluk of H.D. Kote and sought support for ecological and organic farming from the community.

The crux of the issue revolved around the agricultural policies of the Government that threaten to... Read more..

Indian farmers pool groundwater to protect against drought

ntil 10 years ago, the six acres of land Dappu Pulya owns with his younger brother in India's drought-prone state of Andhra Pradesh produced nothing but debt.

The brothers took out loan after loan to buy seeds, pesticides and fertilizers but their crops failed as the monsoons came late or less rain fell. After investing in two bore wells that drew no water, they migrated to Mumbai to work in construction.

But since they returned in 2000 to their hamlet of Malkaipet, in Ibrahimpur village some 100 kilometres from Hyderabad, things have been different.

With their... Read more..

DMRC suggests six new lines, govt 2 more

Delhi is expected to get additional 108 km of Metro lines in Phase III with the government suggesting two more lines to the six already planned. While the six new lines will be around 69 km long, the two lines suggested by Delhi government will be 39 km long. The Delhi Metro will now start preparing detailed projects on the two new suggested lines.

The government has suggested an Outer Ring Road route connecting Badli with Sector 18 in Noida through Uttam Nagar, Dhaula Kuan and GK II. Since this line is a completely new proposal, the DMRC will have to prepare a detailed project... Read more..

Models of climate action to be showcased daily by UN agency, ahead of Cancun parlay

A project to light up the Indian countryside with the power of the sun is one of 30 solutions to climate change to be showcased each day, starting today, in the month leading up to the next major meeting on the topic, according to the United Nations Evironmental Programme (UNEP).

The “30 ways in 30 days” initiative, launched one month before the start of the next conference of parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) scheduled from 29 November to 10 December in Cancun, Mexico, will release case studies of successful climate schemes that can be... Read more..

A lifeline for ecosystems?

A historic global treaty to protect the world's forests, coral reefs and other threatened ecosystems within 10 years was sealed at a UN summit.

Rich and poor nations agreed to take "effective and urgent" action to curb the destruction of nature in an effort to halt the loss of the world's biodiversity on which human survival depends.

Delegates from 193 countries on Saturday committed to key goals by 2020 such as curbing pollution, protecting forests and coral reefs, setting aside areas of land and water for conservation, and managing fisheries sustainably.

"This is a... Read more..