Tina Casey, Tripple Pundit via ENN The issue of electric vehicle range anxiety got a thorough airing last week, in the now notorious Tesla vs The New York Times battle. It started when Times reporter John Broder wrote a story…
Category: Environment
Environment-friendly fertiliser
More efficient use of nitrogen fertilisers could cut annual consumption by 20 million tonnes, help the environment and save $170 million a year by the end of the decade, scientists said in a report on Monday.
Traditional healders lead way to fighting malaria
Traditional healers in Benin possess sophisticated knowledge regarding the treatment of malaria with medicinal plants, and strategies should be developed to exploit this and promote the plants’ conservation, says a study.
Dhaka seeks more info on Tipaimukh
Bangladesh sought more info on the controversial Tipaimukh hydroelectric project at second meeting of the Indo-Bangladesh Joint Rivers Commission (JRC), concluding in Dhaka Saturday. A joint media release after the two-day meeting said the meeting was held in a ‘friendly…
‘Bribed judge disgraces Ecuadorian’
A former Ecuadorean judge has claimed that after stepping down from the bench, he illegally ghostwrote a judgment in which Chevron was ordered to pay $18.2 billion (11.5 billion pounds) for polluting the rain forest, and that the plaintiffs paid…
‘Light green’ to sustainable buildings
The buildings in which we live and work are a major consumer of energy, responsible for some 30—40 percent of all carbon dioxide emissions, a similar share of total solid waste, and 12 percent of all fresh water used. With…
Cargill cattle plant closes for global warming
From: RP Siegel, Triple Pundit It sounds a bit like justice served, doesn’t it? When Cargill announced the closing of its Plainview, Texas, cattle operation, they cited a record low cattle supply as the result of the region’s severe drought.
Save Mayur river for water security of Khulna city
A day-long research dissimination and sharing meeting of the peri-urban project was held at Khulna City Corporation (KCC) on October 15, 2012. The Institute of Water and Flood Management (IWFM) of BUET, Environmental Science Department of Khulna University, Institute of…
‘Climate change in Pakistan turning extreme’
Suhail Yusuf KARACHI – Data presented at a seminar on climate change in Pakistan highlighted trends where this South Asian country, which stretches from high, snow-capped mountains to a deltaic coast, could be in for a sharp rise in average…
Biodiversity loss, disease cut incomes
Luís Amorim, Science and Development Network via ENN Tropical countries’ per capita incomes could more than double if they managed to reduce their health burden from vector-borne and parasitic diseases (VBPDs) to that seen in temperate countries, a study has…
48 hours in Kathmandu
Ringed by rolling hills, the city has many satellite towns, of which Patan and Bhaktapur are popular with tourists. The area has seven old monuments that are listed by the UNESCO as World Heritage sites, all within less than two…
Local bats harbour deadly Ebola variant
Washington – Fruit bats in Bangladesh are harbouring a new version of Ebola virus, which causes severe hemorrhagic fever, a fatal condition afflicting humans and primates, says a new finding.
Desertification solution? Olive trees
The planting of ten of thousands of olive trees in arid areas in Israel have proved highly beneficial, according to a study which said the trees provide shade for animals, purge the air and even produce excellent olive oil.
Tree height, leaf size have internal physics
From: Allison Winter, ENN The tallest trees in the world can grow up to 100 meters (think of a tree climbing the length of three football fields!) but if a tree has all the necessary sunlight, water, and space what…
Stunning mangrove losses in BD, India
Coastal development and climate change are eating away at the Sundarbans, the largest block of mangroves in the world, stretched along the coast of India and Bangladesh.
Air pollution in Beijing reaches hazardous levels
China’s capital city of Beijing has been shrouded in thicker-than-usual pollution for several days, with air pollution indexes reaching dangerous levels.
China landslide kills 43, three missing
BEIJING – Three people remain missing after a landslide which killed 43, including seven from a single family, struck a remote village in southwestern China, state media said Saturday.
Freed orcas not out of harm’s way
The killer whales trapped in the ice in northern Quebec appear to have left the area, but they may not be out of harm’s way yet.
Mangrove loss threatens Bengal tiger
Parts of the world’s largest mangrove forest are disappearing, taking endangered species like the Royal Bengal tiger with them.
World’s oldest living olive trees are Lebanese
Tucked away in the sleepy village of Bechealeh, Lebanon, 16 olive trees have witnessed 6000 years of political unrest, plagues, diseases, varying climatic conditions and changing civilizations. In fact these “trees of Noah” are considered by locals to be a…
‘Horrible’ 3-feet sea level rise plausible by 2100?
John Roach Melting glaciers in Antarctica and Greenland may push up global sea levels more than 3 feet by the end of this century, according to a scientific poll of experts that brings a degree of clarity to a murky…
Hurricane Sandy relief bill – good coastal policy?
Rob Young, from YALE Environment360 Next week, the U.S. Congress is expected to vote on the bulk of $60 billion in emergency spending to provide for recovery from Hurricane Sandy. Clearly, significant aid is needed to repair the damage left…
New doubts on link between global warming, drought
There have been devastating droughts in the past few years in places like Africa, Australia, and the United States. Last summer, the drought in the central US caused the loss of massive crops, causing a major economic hit for the…
River commission act okayed
The cabinet Monday approved ‘National River Protection Commission Act-2013’ as a part of steps to save all rivers in the country. The approval came from a regular cabinet meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair. Emerging from the…
Long-beaked Echidna may not be extinct
Allison Winter, ENN With a small and declining population due to forest clearing and overhunting in New Guinea, the western long-beaked echidna (Zaglossus bruijnii) is listed as “Critically Endangered” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of…
Govt picks public’s pocket: Anu Mohammad
Fuel expert Professor Dr Anu Mohammad categorically said that the incumbent government is picking the pockets of the public through hiking fuel price. He came up with the observation while addressing a rally organized by National Committee on Oil, Gas,…
Yet another fuel price hike
DHAKA: The government on Thursday hiked fuel prices to reduce subsidy on imports of petroleum products.
Manpower export to double in 5 years
Finance Minister AMA Muhith has said that the annual number of manpower export to different countries of the world would reach 10 lakh annually in the next five years from the present five lakh a year, helping the remittance inflow…
Supporting climate-friendly agriculture
Worldwatch Institute This summer, record temperatures and limited rainfall parched vast areas of U.S. cropland, and with Earth’s surface air temperature projected to rise 0.69 degrees Celsius by 2030, global food production will be even more unpredictable, according to new…
Cities hold key to Doha climate gateway
ICLEI press release Bonn, Germany: The UN Climate Change Summit ended in Doha last Saturday after negotiators agreed to the Doha Climate Gateway – a deal that extends the Kyoto Protocol for eight more years, introduces new principles on compensation…