Environment

• Scientists Discovered New Material Capable of Converting Infrared Light into Renewable Energy

  Researchers from the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) in Bengaluru have discovered a novel material called single-crystalline scandium nitride (ScN) that can emit, detect, and modulate infrared light with high efficiencies. They used infrared light to excite polaritons (a type of quasi-particle)…

• Youth Participation Seen as “Crucial” for Future of Greater Mekong Agriculture

  “Youth involvement is imperative, not just good to have if we want to develop sustainable agriculture,” according to Don Tan, director of corporate affairs at agricultural e-commerce platform Pinduoduo.…

• Climate Crisis: Africa Requires $2.8 Trillion from 2020-2030 to Meet Goals

  According to the report, the private sector has significant potential to meet Africa's climate finance needs, but NDCs rarely address it. However, according to the report, the majority of current climate financing in Africa comes from public actors (87%, $20 billion), with only a small…

• Dr Jitendra Singh Calls for Promoting StarUps in ‘Carbon Neutral’ Building Construction

  Recognizing that net-zero carbon emission start-ups are rapidly emerging in the Indian landscape, Dr. Jitendra Singh promised all financial support from DST while also urging businesses to embrace such ventures with open arms.…

• ‘Swachh Sagar, Surakshit Sagar Campaign’ to Celebrate International Coastal Cleanup Day

  The natural wealth of the sea and ocean has continuously benefited human society. However, in recent years, plastic litter from land-based activities, tourism, and fishing has reached the coast and ocean via rivers and other waterways, posing a serious threat to the marine ecosystem.…

• Van Mahotsav: Govt to Launch a 15-Day Mega Plantation Drive in Delhi

  Van Mahotsav week is celebrated to encourage people to plant more trees as they are being cut down on a large scale for industrialization and urbanization. Trees help to produce food, maintain ecological balance, improve air quality, improve climate, conserve water, preserve soil, support wildlife,…

• Centre Directs Formation of Screening Panel to Review Forest Land’s Diversion

  The committee will consider whether the proposal is complete in all respects, as well as its location in relation to restricted areas or categories. The committee may contact the user agency for clarification or additional documents, according to the notification.…

• Union Cabinet Approves Strategic Partnership Agreement between MNRE & IRENA

  The areas of cooperation envisioned in the Strategic Partnership Agreement will help India meet its ambitious goal of 500 GW of installed non-fossil fuel electricity capacity by 2030. As a result, Atmanirbhar Bharat will gain popularity.…

• Dr Jitendra Singh Informs UN Delegates that India is Committed to ‘Coastal Clean Seas Campaign’

  Dr. Jitendra Singh assured the Ministers, Delegates, and Representatives from more than 130 countries attending the 5-day conference that India will also provide science and innovation-based solutions for SDG-Goal 14 implementation through partnerships and environmentally friendly solutions. Goal 14 calls for ocean, sea, and marine…

• Nitrogen Emissions from Agriculture Endanger Human Health & Environment: Study

  Air pollution damages are measured by increased mortality and morbidity, as well as the monetary value of statistical life, whereas climate change damages include threats to crops, property, ecosystem services, and human health.…

• Alert! These Single-Use Plastic Items Will Be Banned from July 1

  Previously, the CPCB issued directives at the national, state, and municipal levels to limit the supply of designated products.…

• CPCB Takes Steps to Implement Single Use Plastic Ban

  The Customs Authority has been asked to halt the import of prohibited SUP items. To close the loop, Local Authorities have been directed to issue new commercial licences with the condition that no SUP items be sold on their premises, and existing commercial licences will…

• Environment Conscious Lifestyle Needs to Become a Mass Movement: Bhupender Yadav

  Progressive farmer and conservationist Sunda Ram Verma, Padma Shree awardee, 2020, and forest and wildlife enthusiast Himmata Ram Bhambhu, Padma Shree awardee, 2020, shared illuminating experiences on the management of desertification and land degradation.…

• New Delhi Resounds with Sadhguru’s Call to Save Soil

  World Has Been Introduced to The Strength of India’s Soil: PM Modi on Sadhguru’s Exemplary Save Soil Journey of 30000 km across 27 nations. Sadhguru handed the Save Soil revitalization handbook to the Prime Minister which offers scientific solutions to revitalize the soil.…

• Govt Plans to Improve Habitat Protection for Biodiversity Conservation & Human Well-Being

  Integrated Landscape Management Plan calls for improved habitat protection and management of key species like tigers, vultures, and gharials. It will aid in the holistic consolidation of the landscape for biodiversity conservation and human well-being, particularly among forest-dependent communities.…

• Delhi Will Soon Be Made The ‘City of Lakes’: Environment Minister

  The Delhi administration on Tuesday decided to renovate and develop 20 lakes in the national capital with the goal of maintaining the wetland ecology.…

• India & Sweden Host Industry Transition Dialogue with Focus on Low Carbon Manufacturing

  Union Minister emphasized that now is the time to celebrate 50 years of collaborative action while also reflecting on what has been accomplished and what remains to be done.…

• Hebrew University of Jerusalem Invites Applications for M.Sc. Program in Environmental Economics & Management

  The master's program focuses on economic issues in the areas of environmental and natural resources, marketing, and finance. These include public economics and government intervention to control environmental effects; planning of efficient extraction and use of natural resources; allocation of water and land resources.…

• NTPC Issued Biodiversity Policy for Conservation & Restoration of Biodiversity

  NTPC will adhere to legal compliances with regard to biodiversity by adhering to rules and regulations related to the environment, forest, wildlife, coastal zone, and green cover.…

• Let’s Make ‘Clean Air For All’ a Participative Mission, says Union Minister Bhupender Yadav

  The Minister urged the youth to become active agents in the mission to improve air quality by adopting sustainable lifestyles, appropriate behaviours and attitudes, and becoming social change agents.…

• India’s Silent Killer 'Droughts' Reduced GDP by up to 5% in 20 years

  India was identified as one of the most severely drought-affected countries in the assessment. Drought affected nearly two-thirds of the country from 2020 to 2022. India is included in the assessment's Global Drought Vulnerability Index.…

• Climate Change Threatens Extinction of 1 out of Every 5 Reptile Species, says IUCN Study

  Researchers examined existing surveys and datasets of turtles, crocodiles, lizards, snakes, and tuatara in Africa, the Americas, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Europe, and Oceania for the study Tuatara are endemic to New Zealand and are thought to be the last survivors of a reptile order…

• UNCCD to Chalk out Plans to Restore 1 billion Hectares of Degraded Land

  The CoP15 will discuss and plan urgent actions to restore a billion hectares of degraded land between now and 2030, in addition to future-proofing land use against the effects of climate change and addressing escalating disaster risks such as droughts, sand and dust storms, and…

• Forests & Trees Can Help People Build Resilience to Multiple Crises: New FAO Report

  Restoring degraded lands and expanding agroforestry – Restoration would benefit 1.5 billion hectares of degraded land, and increasing tree cover could boost agricultural productivity on another 1 billion hectares.…

• Carbon Sequestration: Seagrass Captures Carbon Much Faster Than Rainforests

  Carbon capture is the process of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This can be accomplished through innovative technology or by anything that photosynthesizes, such as a tree.…

• ‘Third Pole’ is at Risk from Global Warming: New Report

  The Third Pole stretches from Afghanistan in the west to China in the east, covering over 5 million square kilometres. The Pamir-Hindu Kush, Himalayan, Hengduan, Tienshan, and Qilian mountain ranges are all part of it.…

• India could Achieve Carbon Neutrality Before Its 2070 Goal, says IRENA Chief

  Prime Minister Narendra Modi has increased India's non-fossil energy capacity target to 500 gigawatts (GW) by 2030, up from just over 151 GW currently. India has over 40 GW of onshore wind capacity and around 60 GW of grid-connected or centralized solar power capacity.…

• Uttardayi Opens its First Sustainable Lifestyle Store in Noida

  Uttardayi opens its first sustainable lifestyle store in Noida with an aim to cater to the needs of urban consumers looking to live sustainably.…

• Be Ready to Face at least 560 Disasters Every Year by 2030, Warns UN

  A new UN report released on Tuesday warns that human activity and behaviour are contributing to an increasing number of disasters around the world, putting millions of lives in danger while also undermining a wide range of social and economic gains made in recent decades.…

• KDHP Achieves Carbon Neutrality & Net Negative Emission Status

  To estimate the sequestration of carbon from all aspects of its landscape, a multi-pronged approach was used. The Nansen Centre has used remote sensing data, a GIS tool for analysis, and ground-truthing to verify and quantify carbon sequestration. According to the study,…

• Gujarat Biotech University Researchers Developing Carbon-Free Fuel Technologies

  The advancement of industrialization, as well as the exponential growth in global consumption of petroleum-based hydrocarbons, has increased the global carbon footprint. The newly established institute's researchers are working to reduce carbon emissions.…

• Intel Pledges to Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions to Zero by 2040

  Intel publishes annual corporate responsibility reports that detail its carbon emissions. It estimated its 2020 emissions to be the equivalent of 3 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide in its most recent report. That's the same amount of pollution produced by over 646,000 cars each…

• Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary: Haryana Revokes Its Environmental Clearance for a 10-KM Radius

  SEIAA is a branch of the Ministry of Environment, Forestry, and Climate Change tasked with implementing a state-level environmental impact assessment notification. All proposals are subject to environmental clearance.…

• India will Require $12.4 Trillion to Achieve Long-Term Net Zero Goals

  According to the 'Just in Time' study, developed market funding, in the form of grants and loans, would be critical to ensuring that emerging markets can transition without negatively impacting their growth or household spending.…

• Pune-Based Environmentalists Convert 25 MT of Plastic Waste into Poly Fuel

  Phadtare was visiting an animal sanctuary when they were denied entry due to the death of a deer. Further investigation revealed that the animal died as a result of plastic consumption and that this incident triggered him, resulting in the formation of the entity.…

• Forest Dept of Karnataka Decides not to Bury or Burn Wild Animal Carcasses

  The senior officer agreed with wildlife biologist Sanjay Gubbi that the system of burning or burying wildlife carcasses should be discontinued immediately.…

• India's First Underwater Metro Tunnel to be Ready in 2023

  The Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRCL) is building the Kolkata East-West Metro line, which is an underwater tunnel that will run beneath the Hooghly River.…

• Geotagging to Track Vultures in Panna Tiger Reserve of Madhya Pradesh

  During the winters of 2020-2021 and 2021-2022, a team of veterinarians from the Wildlife Institute of India worked with professional trappers, resident veterinary officers, and PTR park officials to tag vultures as part of the Landscape Management Plan project.…

• Recycled Plastic Gavel Brought to Symbolise an Agreement on Plastic Pollution

  The plastics agreement recognized the rapidly rising levels of plastic pollution and emphasized the critical need for global coordination, cooperation, and governance. It comes at a time when plastic production is increasing at an exponential rate.…

• Vedanta to Source 580 MW of Green Energy for its Operations in India

  The overall agreement calls for the purchase of 580 MW of renewable energy from the plant where Sterlite Power Technologies Private Ltd (SPTPL) and its affiliates are constructing a 1,960 MW hybrid-based renewable energy capacity.…

• Environment Ministry Permits Imported PET Bottles for Processing

  Last December, an expert committee of the Environment Ministry recommended that firms that had applied for permission import up to 50% of their production capacity in PET Flakes/Bottles. Polyethylene Terephthalate bottles are a type of plastic that is already recycled in nearly 90 percent of…

• Hydrogen Car: Benefits of Hydrogen Fuel Cells in a Car

  Hydrogen is the most abundant element on the planet. It can be extracted and is the ideal source of energy to help the world achieve a zero-carbon future. It can adequately meet the zero-carbon future's heat and power needs.…

• UN Biodiversity Talks Failed to Reach an Agreement on New Targets to Protect Wildlife

  Officials from 195 countries gathered in Geneva, Switzerland, to discuss the "post-2020 global biodiversity framework," a new mission and set of 21 goals ranging from expanding protected areas to halting species extinctions. However, they were unable to reach an agreement on any of the objectives…

• Group of Islanders Uses AI to Help Save Coral Reefs

  An ambitious project in the South Pacific, on the other hand, is on a mission to restore these vital habitats. The initiative, called Coral Gardeners, is the brainchild of Titouan Bernicot, a 23-year-old from the French Polynesian island of Mo'orea.…

• RMIT is on Track to Meet Its Carbon Neutral Target by 2025

  Professor Alec Cameron, Vice-Chancellor and President of RMIT, said the University's new 2025 target and the practical steps it had taken to achieve significant carbon reductions demonstrated the University's long-standing commitment to sustainability.…

• New Campaign in Lower Mekong Basin Aims to Stop Illegal Rosewood Logging

  Rosewood, which is known for its dark red colour and dense bark, has traditionally been used to make furniture and is valued at tens of thousands of dollars per cubic metre. Almost all rosewood logs are shipped to China, where rosewood furniture is extremely popular,…

• March 21 is Celebrated as World Wood Day at Banda University of Agriculture & Technology

  Forest Products Utilization of College of forestry celebrated World Wood Day on 21st March, 2022. One day virtual seminar on sustainable utilization of wood for people and planet was inaugurated at Banda University of Agriculture & Technology, Banda where two resource persons Wong Vi Hong,…

• Project Nilgiri Tahr: Activists Demand Action to Protect Grassland Ecosystem

  The Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972 protects this ungulate species, which is listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The Nilgiri tahr (nilgiritragus hylocrius) lives in montane grasslands with rocky cliffs between 300 and 2,600 metres above mean sea level.…

• 100 Vultures- ‘All Himalayan Griffons’ Die of Suspected Poisoning

  The bones of a goat were discovered among the vulture carcasses, according to Divisional Forest Officer Dimpi Bora. "We believe the vultures perished after nibbling on the goat's poisoned carcass, but an autopsy report will determine the cause of death," she said.…

• Unknown Species of Giant Tortoise Discovered in Galapagos

  Galapagos Conservancy stated that C. chathamensis species is "probably certainly extinct" and that the island had previously been home to two separate tortoise species, one in the mountains and the other in the lowlands.…