Municipal Solid Waste Management in India: The Challenges and Solutions

The daily generation of municipal solid waste per day is enormously large in India due to the burgeoning population and the country being one of the fastest growing urban settlements. Presently, there is a lot being reported in media about the municipal garbage disposal issue not only in the metropolitan cities of the country but other cities as well. Here, A K Agnihotri and Dr Banwari Lal come out with the root cause analysis of municipal solid waste management in India.

Coral Gardening - Benefitting Caribbean Reefs

Researchers have found that Caribbean reefs are benefitting from ‘coral gardening’ process. They have provided scientific benchmarks for the restoration and recovery of threatened corals.

Sparking Conversations On Sustainability

Mr Ankush Patel, Co-Founder and CEO, Treeni Sustainability Solutions and Dr Sunita Purushottam, Head of Sustainability Consulting, Treeni Sustainability Solutions, in an exclusive email conversation with Abhas Mukherjee for TerraGreen.

Harnessing Solar Potential In India - The Developments And Challenges

Given its pollution-free nature, virtually inexhaustible supply of light and warmth, and a remarkable global distribution—solar energy is an apposite and attractive energy resource; more so for India as the country is blessed with abundant sunlight for most parts of the year. In this context, Harun Trikha examines the growth of solar energy in India as the Government of India has set an ambitious target of 175 GW renewable power installed capacity by the end of 2022, which includes 100 GW from solar power. While the cumulative solar energy capacity installed in India so far is encouraging, there are certain grey areas brought to light by the author that need to be addressed if India is to effectively make the most of this wonderful energy resource.

The Spiti Challenge

Nestled in the Himalayan valleys in the north-eastern part of Himachal Pradesh, Spiti, literally translating as ‘middle land’, is as challenging a terrain as it is picturesque. Known for its pristine beauty, Spiti, thanks to the relentless efforts of young pioneers to bring sustainable livelihood opportunities to its people, is on its way to becoming a unique hub of alternative practices that are compatible with the ecology. In this article, Dr Rakesh Agrawal ‘Ridh’, talks about how local resources, for example, the underrated sea buckthorn berry, are mobilized to generate not just income, but an interest in the ways in which the communities cope with the intermittent difficulties.

Coexisting With Elephants - One Fence At A Time

Conflict between animals migrating or foraging for food, and local communities are reported from many parts of India, with crop raiding as the main form of conflict. WWF-India has been working to conserve elephant population by securing elephant habitats and addressing human–elephant conflict across four of its landscapes—Western Ghats Nilgiris in southern India, the northern bank of the Brahmaputra, Kaziranga and Karbi-Anglong, and in parts of Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar.

Fostering Biodiversity

Pankaj Satija, GM (Ores, Mines, and Quarries) Tata Steel/Biodiversity, in conversation with Sapna Gopal for TerraGreen, details on the initiatives which will add impetus to the company’s sustainability drive.

Towards Sustainable Citiesand Habitats - Averting the Global Crisis

As countries celebrate yet another World Habitat Day on October 3, 2016, homelessness remains a critical global crisis with nearly 100 million people having no roof over their heads. An additional 1.6 billion people worldwide are living in substandard housing, according to the United Nations (UN) statistics. Nitin Jugran Bahuguna dwells into the present trends and challenges of rapid urbanization and highlights the initiatives that would go a long way to realize a sustainable, inclusive, and resilient urban future.

Snakebite Mitigation Project In Gujarat

Snakebite Mitigation Project In Gujarat

Women's Leadership Schools Empowering Indian Women

Sarah Berry talks about a pioneering initiative by S M Sehgal Foundation, Gurugram, Haryana, that empowers women in a few Indian states to become advocates of their own development, by providing them information and support and making them aware of government programmes to ensure better delivery of public services. At Women’s Leadership Schools, women learn about crucial issues, such as food security, health and nutrition, their right to information, and social security programmes.

Whiz Mantra & Build A Class Initiative

Whiz Mantra & Build A Class Initiative

Test Driving! Absolute Freedom Behind Wheels

Driving in India is not easy, in fact, it has always been dangerous, but the recent statistics show that Indian roads are getting worse. The number of road accidents and the fatalities are rising steadily. In this article, Dr Elsa Lycias Joel discusses the mindset of an average Indian driver and what needs to be done to improve the situation.

Common Man On A Mission To Save Trees

Anadish Pal is a prime example of what a citizen should do every time a precious tree is slayed. An inventor by profession, Anadish rose to popularity as an environmentalist in 2008 when he gathered the courage to fight tooth and nail against the girdling of a tree in his locality. Ten years later, he continues to plant trees and raise awareness on the importance of saving trees. As this interview with Namrata Gulati Sapra will reveal, the passionate environmentalist does not mince his words when it comes to issues concerning the environment, particularly trees.

Pesticides, Poor Nutrition Damage Animal Health Combined Effects On Bee Survival

The combined effects of pesticides and a lack of nutrition form a deadly punch for many living beings, a new research from biologists at the University of California San Diego has shown for the first time. The study is the first to demonstrate the combined effects of pesticides and poor nutrition on bee survival.

Meat Is Water - The World Cannot Have Both

You can live without pork. But, you cannot live without water. The time has come for you to make a choice, says Maneka Sanjay Gandhi.

Towards A Peaceful Co-existence

Sikkim’s Lower Kitam and Talkhadka districts shift towards newer practices to reduce the human–wildlife conflict.

Promoting Better Cooling Technologies - For Lowering Environmental Footprint

Mr George Koutsaftes is President of Honeywell Advanced Materials, part of the Honeywell Performance Materials and Technologies (PMT) strategic business group. Advanced Materials businesses manufacture a wide variety of high-performance products, including environmentally preferable refrigerants and materials used to manufacture end products, such as bullet-resistant armour, computer chips, and pharmaceutical packaging. Here, he is in an exclusive interaction with Abhas Mukherjee for TerraGreen.

Large Volcanic Eruptions In The Tropics - Could Trigger El Niño Events

The El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the leading mode of natural interannual climate variability. It is associated with large-scale sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the central and eastern Pacific. According to a new study, explosive volcanic eruptions in the tropics can lead to El Niño events, those notorious warming periods in the Pacific Ocean with dramatic global impacts on the climate.

Sparrows: An Important Emotional Link In Nature Conservation

Mohammed Dilawar, the founder of Nature Forever Society, has been working extensively in the field of conservation. The environmentalist, who has been listed by the Time Magazine as one of the 30 ‘Heroes of the Environment’, gets candid in an interview with Namrata Gulati Sapra for TerraGreen.

So, It's All A Game? - Impacts Of Game Theory In The Environmental Arena

Game theory is ‘the study of mathematical models of conflict and cooperation between intelligent and rational decision-makers.’ Today, game theory applies to a wide range of behavioural relations, and is now an umbrella term for the science of logical decision-making. It has emerged as a powerful new tool in environmental economics, especially in the study of transboundary pollution problems, such as global warming and acid rain. Here, Mahazareen Dastur looks at how a very clever blend of economics and mathematics can help answer some of the most vexing environmental issues. She dwells on the nitty-gritties and nuances the game theory and illustrates with suitable examples of how the game theory influences environmental issues.

Smart Cities Missionin Rajasthan - The Focus Areas And Challenges

A smart city is an urban area that uses different types of electronic data collection/ sensors to supply information used to manage assets and resources efficiently. This includes data collected from citizens, devices, and assets that is processed and analysed to monitor and manage traffic and transportation systems, power plants, water supply networks, waste management, law enforcement, information systems, schools, libraries, hospitals, and other community services. Here, Saurabh Somani discusses the focus areas and the challenges in implementing the smart cities mission in Rajasthan.

Ascending The Learning Curve With GRIHA

The Rise And Ensuing Developments. Prof. Ian Jacobs, Vice Chancellor and President, UNSW and Dr Ajay Mathur, President, GRIHA Council recently announced that the 10th edition of the GRIHA Summit will be co-hosted by UNSW and GRIHA Council in December, 2018 at New Delhi, India. In this article, Namrata Mahal and Shabnam Bassi discuss the increasing significance of GRIHA Council’s work as the year 2018 marks the 10th edition of the GRIHA Summit. GRIHA has been acknowledged as a national tool to evaluate reduction in emissions intensity through habitats, as part of mitigation strategy for combating climate change in India's NDCs submitted to the UNFCCC. The authors also discuss other instruments that GRIHA uses to further ascend the learning curve.

Climate Change Is Wreaking

On the Delicate Relationship between Orchids and BeesHavoc The first definitive demonstration of climate change upsetting the vital interdependent relationships between species has been revealed, thanks to a study led by the University of Sussex.

Biodiesel From Animal Fat

An Environment-Friendly Alternative to Conventional Fuel Animal fats and oils are lipid materials derived from animals. This includes beef tallow, pork lard, and chicken fat. Animal fat is currently added to pet food and animal feed, and used for industrial purposes such as soap making. In this article, Dr S Talukder, Dr Arvind Soni, and Dr Sagar Chand discuss that animal fats are attractive feedstocks for biodiesel because their cost is substantially lower than the cost of vegetable oil. Animal fat feedstocks can be made into high-quality biodiesel that meets the standard specifications for biodiesel. The authors also briefly discuss the process of biodiesel production from animal fat while also highlighting the drawbacks and challenges to using animal fat feedstocks for producing biodiesel.

Climate Finance

For Helping India’s Clean Energy SectorA consultant with Climate Policy Initiative’s India office, Charith Konda supports the India Innovation Lab for Green Finance. He speaks to Sapna Gopal for TerraGreen on why it is the need of the hour.

The Disappearing River Island Of Majuli

Is There a Glimmer of Hope? Majuli is the world's biggest river island in the Brahmaputra River, Assam, and in 2016 it became the first island to be made a district in India. In this article, Namrata Gulati Sapra says that unfortunately the river island of Majuli is facing an existential crisis as we stand the risk of losing this biodiversity heritage site due to large-scale industrialization and the perils of climate change. But, she further says that there is a ray of hope as the government is leaving no stone unturned to conserve Majuli and if things go as planned, India will have its first ever carbon neutral district in the form of Majuli. She also highlights the societal efforts at spreading awareness and impacting change as there is a realistic chance of it being granted the UNESCO World Heritage Site status in the near future.

Is Farming A Curse For Indian Farmers?

Potential Ways to Find Solutions India is predominantly an agrarian economy but our farmers have to deal with extremely distressing conditions of poverty, extreme mental pressure, and the subsequent suicides. Poor return on cultivation and absence of non-farming opportunities are indicators of the greater socio-economic illness in rural India. Moreover, the increasing cases of farmers’ suicides are symptomatic of a larger crisis, which is evident in the Indian society today. In this article, Dr Arvind Bijalwan and Dr Manmohan J R Dobriyal have discussed the ordeal that Indian farmers have to go through, the things that plague the agriculture sector in India today, and the possible ways to find solutions to this national problem.

Pench Tiger Reserve

Memoirs of the Mowgli’s LandPench National Park or Tiger Reserve is one of the premier tiger reserves of India and the only one to straddle across two states—Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Here, Dr Chandra Prakash Kala reminiscences his visit to the tiger reserve and shares his experiences with us.

Is It Worth It?

Maneka Sanjay Gandhi says that when you eat meat, you are actually consuming vast amounts of water and polluting the rest. You need to reduce your water footprint and becoming vegetarian is the first step.

Climate Resilient Infrastructure Services in Coastal Cities of India

Climate change presents a unique challenge for coastal cities. In this regard, Riya Rahiman and Raina Singh highlight TERI’s study on ‘Climate Resilient Infrastructure Services’ in two Indian coastal cities—Panaji in Goa and Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh. This year-long study was supported by USAID as part of their Climate Change Resilient Development (CCRD) project.