|Environment|
Kerala's unconvincing shot at the environment ministry
Kerala’s Left-dominated 141-member legislative assembly adopted a resolution on 11 July urging New Delhi to withdraw the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification of 2006. The resolution says the notification is “against the interest of Kerala State, nature, environment and people.” reports on the controversy.
SEZ? Yes. Fisher Folk? Who Are They?
The proposed Coastal Zone Management notification, which is expected to replace the existing Coastal Regulation Zone notification (1991), will hit the coastline like a second tsunami, say activists. With the shifting of `zones', entire fishing communities will be moved out of coastal areas, making way for unbridled construction in the name of `development' reports.Thirst below sea level
Despite being enriched by two monsoons and four rivers, Kerala's Kuttanad region
has become `a desert of backwaters' after many developmental trials, says
Working Group on Environment Releases Report in Kerala
The Kerala Planning Board, for
the first time, has taken up environment as a specific subject for
formulating plan proposals to get a reliable status picture of the
state's environment. The board has set up a Working Group on
Environment (WGE) to rediscover the natural environmental design of the
state and to agree upon its potentials and limitations. reports.
The environmental refugees of Brahmapuram
Recently, disaster struck all 53 families of the Chellipadam village in a Kochi
suburb, when nearly 25 lorries, all carrying stinking garbage from the city
rolled in with heavy police escort and dumped decaying garbage in their midst.
The villagers had to flee their homes unable to stand the stench.
and
have more.
At Harm's length
Greenpeace, an international organisation fighting for the environment, recently launched the
"Guide to Greener Electronics" campaign. As part of this campaign, it ranked 14 mobile phone
and PC producers globally, based on the use of harmful chemicals in their products and recycling
of e-waste or electronic waste. Nokia and Dell topped the ranking with their decision to
phase out the use of harmful chemicals such as Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and brominated
flame retardants (BFRs) from their products and take-back policies.
Motorola and Lenovo are at the bottom of the ranking for failing to do more of the same.
reports
|Environment|
Coca cola in the Dock; Liable to Pay Damages
A high power committee appointed by the govt of Kerala has indicted Cocoa cola and has fixed the total loss due to their functioning at Rs 216 crores. The report has recommended the setting up of a tribunal for payment of compensation.
Kerala mangrove island under threat, cabinet divided
Kerala's biodiversity board has asked Chief Minister V S Achutanandan to reject single window clearance for the 'High Tech City' project at the exhilarating Valanthakad island in the backwaters outside Kochi.
reports.
Periyar discolouration: state board slammed
On 6 September, the water of the Periyar, Kerala's largest river, suddenly changed
colour into red. Eloor remains a glaring example of unchecked corporate crimes
against neighbourhood communities. It also highlights the apathy of the state's
apex pollution watchdog, writes
Kerala: rain-blessed and short of water
With its enchanting greenery and network of backwaters and rivers, Kerala is
thought to be a water-plenty state. After all, Kerala gets 6 months of rainfall,
2.5 times higher than the national average. Despite this, the state has been
experiencing water scarcity, with conditions worsening in some regions.
analyses the causes.
Blink and I'll Dump: Kochi's Waste Disposal Options
In December 2006, the Municipal Corporation of Kochi came up with a rather ingenious way of disposing its garbage: loading it on to trucks and sending it to remote villages in neighbouring districts; even neighbouring states. A contractor was granted permission to transport the waste at the rate of Rs 1,365 a tonne. The municipal corporation didn't bother to ask the contractor about the dumping site, or whether he had obtained no-objection certificates from villages where the dumping was to happen. reports.
Rain or no rain, water for Coke
The Permumatty grama panchayat of Kerala's Plachimada village has appealed to the Supreme Court for revocation of a recent High Court order granting permission to Coca Cola to draw water upto 5 lakh litres per day. The High Court's ruling was based on an investigation that has raised more questions than answered. report. reports.
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