Page 8 - Environment

Suzuki Motorcycle launches scooters compliant with latest emission norms

Suzuki Motorcycle India on Wednesday said it has launched a range of scooters, which conform with the upcoming stricter emission norms, priced between Rs 79,400 to Rs 97,000 (ex-showroom Delhi). The company's 125cc scooters, including Access 125, Avenis and Burgman Street, get the latest on-board diagnostics (OBD2-A) system. Suzuki has also introduced E20 fuel-compliant engines on the Access 125, Avenis and Burgman Street range. "Suzuki's powerful 125cc engine which delivers high performance and has been ruling riders' hearts is now E20 (petrol with 20 per cent ethanol) and OBD2-A compliant. We plan to gradually make our entire product portfolio compatible to E20 fuel," Suzuki Motorcycle India Executive Vice President (Sales, Marketing and After Sales) Devashish Handa said in a statement.

28% fall in cost of emissions reductions by Indian businesses: WRI study

A study, implemented in 2020-21, included 21 businesses, representing about 10% of industry emissions, and all elements of a carbon market demonstrated a 28% reduction in cost of emissions reductions

Green Strategic Partnership catalyst for India, Denmark cooperation: Prez

President Droupadi Murmu said that the India-Denmark Green Strategic Partnership has become a catalyst for enhanced cooperation between the two countries.President met Denmark's Crown Prince Frederik Andre Henrik Christian and Crown Princess Mary Elizabeth at Rashtrapati Bhavan.The Danish royal couple arrived in India on Sunday for a four-day visit.Yesterday, the Danish royal couple paid their respects to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat.Ministry of External Affairs official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted, "Their Royal Highness Crown Prince Frederik & Crown Princess Mary of Denmark paid their respects to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat this afternoon."Danish crown Prince and Princess also met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. During the meeting, they discussed sustainability and digital delivery.Jaishankar tweeted, "Delighted to call on their Royal Highness, Crown Prince Frederik and Princess Mary Elizabeth of Denmark during their India visit. Shared with them various aspects of ..

Net zero target: Why 'sustainable economic growth' will elude India

Western reluctance to spend on climate action and the govt's inability to accelerate renewables to power faster economic growth are major hurdles to the net zero target

All at sea

The impact of warming oceans is a neglected threat

Urbanisation and urban dynamics

Cities are not just an economic landscape. In the post-Covid world there is a need to understand the role culture plays in how a city grows beyond its economic allure

Earth lost one-fifth of its wetlands since 1700, most could still be saved

Earth has lost one-fifth of its wetlands since 1700 but most could still be saved

First G20 meeting of environment, climate groups starts in Bengaluru

The first Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) meeting, under India's G20 presidency, started in Bengaluru on Thursday with focus on restoration of mining and forest fire affected areas. The Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group, one of the 13 working groups under the Sherpa track, will meet four times between February and May. The first meeting underway in Bengaluru will continue till February 9, the second will be held in Gandhinagar (March 27-29), the third in Mumbai (May 21-23) and the fourth in Chennai (May 26-27). The ministerial meeting is expected to be held on July 28 in Chennai. Land degradation, biodiversity loss, marine pollution, resource overconsumption and lack of waste absorption are the key environmental concerns which will be addressed in the four ECSWG meetings in India's G20 presidency. Under the Biodiversity and Land Degradation Theme, India aims to enhance G20's contributions to achieve 50 per cent reduction in degraded .

G20: Environment & Climate Sustainability meet in Bengaluru from Thursday

The first Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) Meeting, under India's year-long G20 presidency, will be held here from February 9 to 11. Hosted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the conference will be chaired by Secretary in the ministry, Leena Nandan. With the goal of adopting an integrated, comprehensive and consensus-driven approach to tackling the challenges of climate change, several delegates from G20 countries along with representatives of international organisations will participate in this meeting. "India's G20 presidency aims to bring an integrated, comprehensive and consensus-driven approach to address climate change and pursue sustainable growth," Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav had recently said. He also said India will promote LiFE - Lifestyle for Environment - and a resilient development paradigm for G20. As a matter of priority, the working group will be focusing on arresti

Second round of IPEF negotiation to start in India on Wednesday

India has opted out of the trade pillar as broad consensus had not emerged on issues pertaining to labour, environment, digital trade, and public procurement

15 million people live under threat of glacial floods, finds study

As glaciers melt and pour massive amounts of water into nearby lakes, 15 million people across the globe live under the threat of a sudden and deadly outburst flood, a new study finds. More than half of those living in the shadow of the disaster called glacial lake outburst floods are in just four countries: India, Pakistan, Peru and China, according to a study in Tuesday's Nature Communications. A second study, awaiting publication in a peer-reviewed journal, catalogs more than 150 glacial flood outbursts in history and recent times. It's a threat Americans and Europeans rarely think about, but 1 million people live within just 6 miles (10 kilometers) of potentially unstable glacial-fed lakes, the study calculated. One of the more devastating floods was in Peru in 1941 and it killed between 1,800 and 6,000 people. A 2020 glacial lake outburst flood in British Columbia, Canada, caused a tsunami of water about 330 feet (100 meters) high, but no one was hurt. A 2017 glacial outburst

Thermax profit after tax up 59% y-o-y to Rs 126 cr in Dec quarter

Energy and environment solutions provider Thermax on Tuesday posted a 59 per cent jump in its net profit to Rs 126 crore in the December quarter mainly due to higher revenues. "Profit after tax (PAT or net profit) stood at Rs 126 crore, up 59 per cent as compared to Rs 79 crore in the corresponding quarter of FY 2021-22," a company statement said. For the third quarter of FY 2022-23, Thermax posted a consolidated operating revenue of Rs 2,049 crore in the quarter compared to Rs 1,615 crore in the same period a year ago. The profitability was driven by good performance in all three segments - Energy, Environment and Chemical; last year's margins were affected by higher commodity and freight costs, which have now stabilised, the company said. As of December 31, 2022, Thermax Group had an order balance of Rs 9,859 crore. The order booking for the quarter was 10 per cent lower at Rs 2,204 crore compared to Rs 2,462 crore in the same period year ago. The order book last year was highe

CMFRI identifies 146 sites along Indian coastline for sea cage farming

Aimed at empowering the coastal population through additional livelihood options, the ICAR-CMFRI has chalked out plans to boost mariculture activities across the coastal states of the country

How the dodo might return with the Nicobar pigeon as its surrogate mother

A 'de-extinction' firm plans to also bring back the Tasmanian wolf and woolly mammoth

Environmentalists concerned over reducing snow cover, rising temp in Shimla

Harsh winters with heavy snowfalls beginning in December itself, covering Shimla in a white mantle of snow till March-end or even early April have become a thing of the past now. The Himachal Pradesh capital, which used to be draped in white and attract tourists from all over, now mostly presents a brownish look with dry grass covering the hills. There is growing concern among environmentalists and locals over the rising temperatures and depleting snow cover that the snow line is moving upwards and the "Queen of Hills" gradually losing her winter charm. Its effect now is more visible than ever in the hill city's dwindling winter tourist inflow and drying water sources. According to climate experts, the snow line is receding and Shimla's adjoining tourist towns Kufri and Narkanda, popular skiing destinations, too are experiencing scanty snowfall. The state capital's tourism industry is taking a hit due to the falling numbers and there is a dire need to find more tourist spots and ..

Budget 2023: Experts expect a boost to decarbonisation, energy transition

Issues that need to be addressed include expanding funding for renewable manufacturing, extending PLI to wind and green hydrogen, among others

Long-haul carrier Emirates test flies Boeing 777 on sustainable fuel

Long-haul carrier Emirates successfully flew a Boeing 777 on a test flight Monday with one engine entirely powered by so-called sustainable aviation fuel. This comes as carriers worldwide try to lessen their carbon footprint. Flight No. EK2646 flew for just under an hour over the coastline of the United Arab Emirates, after taking off from Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel, and heading out into the Persian Gulf before circling back to land. The fuel powered one of Boeing's two General Electric Co. engines, with the other running on conventional jet fuel for safety. This flight is a milestone moment for Emirates and a positive step for our industry as we work collectively to address one of our biggest challenges reducing our carbon footprint," Adel al-Redha, Emirates' chief operation officer, said in a statement. Emirates, a state-owned airline under Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, described the sustainable fuel as a blen

Joshimath subsidence: Declare Himalayas eco-sensitive zone, demand experts

Unplanned and uncontrolled construction in the name of development in Uttarakhand has brought Joshimath on the brink of sinking, experts said here, demanding that the Himalayas be declared an eco-sensitive zone. In a resolution passed at a roundtable organised by the Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM) on Saturday, experts termed as "inadequate" the steps taken to deal with the prevailing situation in subsidence-hit Joshimath. They also asked the government to consider taking long-term measures to address the problem, saying a similar situation may arise in Nainital, Mussoorie and other areas of Garhwal as well if the "so-called development driven by human greed" is not checked in the hill state. "Declare Himalayas as an eco-sensitive zone. Regulate big projects causing devastation," the resolution said. While the width of the road under the Char Dham road widening project must be regulated to intermediate standard to minimize the damage to the terrain, the Char Dham railways project shoul

Human activity degraded more than a third of remaining Amazon forest: Study

The Amazon rainforest has been degraded by a much greater extent than scientists previously believed with more than a third of remaining forest affected by humans, according to a new study. The study shows that up to 38 per cent of the remaining Amazon forest area - equivalent to ten times the size of the UK - has been affected by some form of human disturbance, causing carbon emissions equivalent to or greater than those from deforestation. The paper was led by an international team of 35 scientists and researchers, from institutions such as Brazil's University of Campinas (Unicamp), the Amazon Environmental Research Institute (IPAM), National Institute for Space Research (INPE), and UK's Lancaster University, it said. The work is the result of the AIMES (Analysis, Integration and Modelling of the Earth System) project, linked to the Future Earth international initiative, which brings together scientists and researchers who study sustainability, the study said. The findings, ...

Green buildings and infra will ensure environmental sustainability

Green infrastructure brings nature into work for human benefits ranging from economic, social, environmental and health benefits