Environment News

Now, coastal vulnerability is classified

Thursday, 17 May 2012 00:00

A large extent of Kancheepuram district and parts of Chennai along the 1,000 km-long Tamil Nadu coastline have been classified as “very high risk” areas in relation to future sea-level rise.

At least 6.38 per cent of the Tamil Nadu coastline has been bracketed as “very high risk,” seven per cent as “high risk” and the rest at medium and low risk.

In Andhra Pradesh, a stretch of 37 km (7.51 per cent of the total coastline) between East Godavari and Visakhapatnam districts has been classified as very high risk.

This classification emerges from a comprehensive ‘Coastal Vulnerability Index' (CVI) Atlas brought out by the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS).

There were 32 tiger deaths this year: Jayanthi Natarajan

Wednesday, 16 May 2012 15:32

As many as 32 tigers have died this year, even as latest official data showed an increase in the population estimates of the big cats. Of these, 18 were natural deaths, Environment and Forests Minister Jayanthi Natarajan said.

Expressing concern over the endangered status of the tiger the world over, Ms. Natarajan on Tuesday said the Ministry was looking into the reasons for the deaths.

Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the first stocktaking meeting of the Global Tiger Recovery Program (GTRP), Ms. Natarajan said poaching was one of the reasons. Other reasons include man-animal conflict.

Wildlife census under way in south Nilgiris

Tuesday, 15 May 2012 09:39

With the recent wildlife census  in the North Division of the Nilgiris Forest department having revealed that the population of most of the wild animals was healthy, a two-day census got under way in the South division on Monday.

Speaking to The Hindu, the District Forest Officer, Nilgiris South, Anurag Mishra said that it was being conducted by forest officials with the help of volunteers from the World Wide Fund (WWF) of India and the Nilgiris Wildlife and Environment Association (NWLEA).

Pointing out that the division extended over about 320 Square km and covered areas like Kundah, Parsons Valley, Naduvattam, Pykara, Avanalchi and Emerald, he said that about 40 persons in groups had fanned out to different places. Among them were college students.

Training in various aspects of the census operation has been imparted to them. The transact method was being adopted.

Asia-Pacific countries must respond to climate change: UNDP

Monday, 14 May 2012 10:33

Countries in Asia and the Pacific must strike a balance between rising prosperity and rising emission as their success or failure will have repercussions worldwide, a latest report of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has said.

"The Asia-Pacific region must continue to grow economically to lift millions out of poverty, but it must also respond to climate change to survive. Growing first and cleaning up later is no longer an option, according to "One Plant to Share: Sustaining Human Progress in a Changing Climate" released by the UNDP on Thursday.

"The world’s common future will be hugely affected by the choices that are made in Asia and the Pacific on a low carbon oath," said Ajay Chhibber, UN Assistant General Secretary, UNDP.