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AIR |
Asia's
Brown Cloud
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A
research study conducted by scientists of Stockholm
University indicated wood and dung burned for home heating
and cooking makes up most of a huge brown cloud of pollution
that hangs over South Asia and the Indian Ocean during
the winter months.
Orjan Gustafsson, leader of Swedish and Indian team
said, “Doing something about this brown cloud
has been difficult because the sources are poorly understood.”
The team used a newly developed radiocarbon technique
to measure atmospheric soot particles collected from
a mountain top in western India and on the Maldives
and found that two-thirds of the particles in the cloud
were made up of so-called biomass, or organic matter
like wood or dung, and the rest from fossil fuels.
Gustafsson said that green technology, such as solar
power, could quickly make a difference because the particles
only linger in the air for a few weeks. “You can
get clear skies within a few weeks. That would be a
huge benefit to the humans and the climate in the region,”
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(World Environment News, Jan 24, 2009) |
Climate
Change Cause of Droughts
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Scientists at the UN World Meteorological Organisation
(WMO) meeting have in a statement blamed climate change
for the severe droughts and searing heat that recently
allowed wildfires to char much of Australia. It said,
“The combination of record heat and widespread
drought during the past five to ten years over large
parts of southern and eastern Australia is without historical
precedent and is, at least partly, a result of climate
change.” The continental United States and Mexico,
the Mediterranean basin, part of northern China, Southern
Africa and Australia and parts of South America were
cited as particularly prone to harsh drought.
The conference was attended by more than 40 scientists
from climate and agricultural research institutes,
universities and environmental monitoring organisations.
Several presentations stated the increase in Australian
droughts and heat waves could be a temporary climate
event lasting 10 to 30 years. However, they added,
the Australian events are also consistent with the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth
Assessment Report, which says that the world has been
more drought- prone during the past 25 years.
Several participants detailed examples of droughts
and heat waves, such as those in Europe in 2003, in
south-east Australia in 2009, and currently in northern
and central China, which are the worst drought in
half a century.
To help agriculture, rangelands and forestry cope
with the phenomenon, they recommended the development
of a standardized drought index that can be practically
applied to a wide range of agricultural purposes across
the world. Other recommendations included more proactive
drought planning, efficient water use and wider introduction
of new drought-tolerant crop varieties.
It added that World Climate Conference-3, which is
being held from 31 August to 4 September 2009 in Geneva,
Switzerland, will address these issues through several
presentations on the connections between climate variability
and change and agriculture.
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(UN News Service, Feb 19, 2009) |
Monitoring Air Quality
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The Jharkhand State Pollution Control Board (JSPCB),
Jharkhand, is taking new initiatives to reduce air pollution
in the region.
Two ambient air quality monitoring stations have been
planned for the industrial hubs of Saraikela and Chaibasa.
At present, the board has similar monitoring stations
at Bistupur and Golmuri in East Singhbhum.
An official of the board said that the upcoming monitoring
stations at Chaibasa and Seraikela would help keep a
tab on air and water quality in these areas. Besides,
the board is also trying to ensure that the vehicle
checking drive is re-started at its Golmuri and Bistupur-based
stations to control pollution. It has also decided to
request the motor vehicles inspector to re-implement
the motor checking drive. “Vehicles at these two
stations are not being checked for the past four years
due to shortage of manpower and equipment,” the
official said.
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(The Telegraph, Feb 11, 2009) |
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