Climate Change Negotiations: Some Inconvenient Truths

Posted by Bhavani Prakash on November 11, 2011 at 9:26am

This has been a week of climate pessimism. First, The Guardian on Wednesday, 9 Nov 2011 quoted the International Energy Association (IEA)’s warning that the world is headed for irreversible climate change in 5 years. Prof. Surya Sethi (formerly in the PM's Energy Co-ordination Committee) gave a lecture in Singapore yesterday on how far behind the world is on climate negotiations.

Is this alarmist information, or a call for drastic action? What do you think?

http://www.ecowalkthetalk.com/blog/2011/11/11/climate-change-negotiations-some-inconvenient-truths/

Ever wondered what a museum dedicated entirely to the history of toilets would be like ?

Posted by Rajneesh kumar on November 10, 2011 at 6:30am

"If that peculiar question ever crossed your mind-seek professional help ! But if you really want to know, you can visit Sulabh in New Delhi, India or just browse this section of our website where we bring the museum onto your screens, virtually.
The Museum

Museums as repositories for the preservation and exhibition of the objects of historical, scientific and cultural interest are found all over the world. But rare are the museums that display the evolution of toilets and their various designs.
Dr. Bindeshwar Pathak, the Founder of Sulabh International Social Service Organisation, a pioneering non-profit voluntary organisation (NGO) in the field of Sanitation in India, envisioned the need for the setting up of a museum of toilets in the sprawling campus of his central office atMahavir Enclave, Palam Dabri Road in New Delhi, India and has consultative status with Economic and Social Council of the U.N.The idea engaged his mind for long, eventually leading him to make hectic worldwide search for minutest details of the evolution of toilets, as also of various toilet designs used in different countries at different points of time. Sulabh International is grateful to the professionals, embassies and high commissions in setting up this museum by furnishing information on the subject and also providing details / photographs of various toilet designs used in their respective countries.

OBJECTIVES
The Museum has been established with the following objectives :-
To educate students about the historical trends in the development of toilets;
To provide information to researchers about the design, materials, and technologies adopted in the past and those in use in the contemporary world;
To help policy makers to understand the efforts made by predecessors in this field throughout the world;
To help the manufacturers of toilet equipment and accessories in improving their products by functioning as a technology storehouse; and
To help sanitation experts learn from the past and solve problems in the sanitation sector.

Join sanitation crusade.

Email: sulabhacademy@vsnl.net, sulabh1@nde.vsnl.net.in
Check http://www.sulabhinternational.org/pages/museum_toilets.php

EIA Training Institutes

Posted by droupti yadav on November 8, 2011 at 1:30am

Its my humble request to all of you that I wanted to know about the EIA training institutes existing in the country. Can anyone help me?

Sewage Treatment Plant Guide Book

Posted by Dr. Ananth S Kodavasal on November 3, 2011 at 9:00am

Dear Friends :

The STP ( Sewage Treatment Plant) Guide book, published by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board has been uploaded on the KSPCB website on the occasion of Karnataka Rajyotsava Day on Nov. 01, 2011, in the interest of general public. Kindly circulate this message to others who may like to benefit from some knowledge of STP's, Recycle and Reuse of treated water.

The Book is available in Low resolution & Medium resolution versions from :

http://kspcb.gov.in/STP-Guide-web(Med).pdf
http://kspcb.gov.in/STP-Guide-web(Lo).pdf

Dr. Ananth S Kodavasal

“Two Days Short term course on Fundamentals of Noise and its Control”

Posted by Ghanshyam Mourya on November 3, 2011 at 1:00am

The Mechanical Engineering Department, Thapar university is organizing a two days Short term course on Fundamentals of Noise and its Control to be held on 19-20 November, 2011

The course is aimed to apprise the participants with the basics of noise, its effects on human being and the impact of environmental noise pollution on the society. The fundamental aspects of noise terminology, measurement techniques, various units of noise, frequency analysis and noise standards will be dealt with in details. The concept of source, path and receiver in deciding the noise control techniques will be enumerated.

It is hoped that the above course will be quite useful to the students and the teachers who are being exposed to the subject matter for the first time.

http://www.thapar.edu

Environment trainees & campus recuirtment

Posted by Rajesh Kumar .N on November 1, 2011 at 11:30pm

Dear Team,

I am an alumini of Dept of Environment , PSG CAS coimbatore

pls contact me for your requirment for Environment trainees and also for campus recuritment of environment professionals

regards

Rajesh Kumar .N

nature_rajesh@yahoo.com

9445114468

Carbon credit potentail of biomass above ground level in hilly region

Posted by Rajesh Kumar .N on November 1, 2011 at 7:00am

Dear Team

I am doing a ME PROJECT related to "Estimating Carbon credit potentail of biomass above ground level in hilly region"

Pls share your inputs & support me with your ideas , previous experience, and relevant literatue in this regard

Thank you

Regards

Rajesh

9445114468

nature_rajesh@yahoo.com

Two day International Workshop on “Challenges and Innovation in Renewable Energy Production”

Posted by Prof Pranveer S Satvat on October 31, 2011 at 4:07pm

Dear Sir/ Madam,

Greetings from VIT University!

We are delighted to inform you that the our University is organizing a most awaited Two day International Workshop on “Challenges and Innovation in Renewable Energy Production” during November 24-25, 2011 at Vellore Campus. Many International and National energy experts from academia, research and industries will be presenting their experiences and achievements.

I am honored to invite you to participate and draw possible benefits from the workshops. It will also provide you a better platform to widen and strengthen your professional relations with various energy professionals from India and abroad, especially from Germany.

The Brochure can be viewed/ downloaded from URL "http://www.vit.ac.in/events2011/smbs/workshop/Brochure_CIREP-Workshop.pdf" for further detail. Please act accordingly. Please feel free to contact me (pranveer@vit.ac.in) for further clarification, if any needed. We also solicit your cooperation for its wider circulation among your peers and making the workshop a great success.

Looking forward for your active participation in the Workshop.

With Best Regards,

-pranveer

---

Dr Pranveer S Satvat, PhD (IITK), FIE, FSED

Professor (Environmental Engineering)

Environmental, Water Res. & Transp. Eng. Division

School of Mechanical and Building Sciences

VIT University, Vellore -632 014, India

Voice #+91-416-220-2241, Cell #+91-9486961799

Fax #+91-416-2243092, pranveer@vit.ac.in

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Save the Nature that Nurture Us..

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

the real picture of Tetra Pak recycling in India

Posted by jagjeevan singh on October 31, 2011 at 6:11am

http://mail.sarai.net/pipermail/urbanstudygroup/2011-July/003903.html

Water a core issue of Pakistan than Kashmir

Posted by keerthi sureshbabu on October 24, 2011 at 7:30pm

Taken from a article by Ramaswamy R Iyer

Water issue between India and Pakistan is becoming prominent once again. A few years ago, one could have said there is no water issue because water sharing on the Indus stands settled by the Indus treaty 1960, but that does not work now. Pakistan has repeatedly made few points. They are
• India is storing or diverting waters to the detriment of Pakistan.
• The water scarcity is caused by Indian action.
• The flows in the western rivers have diminished over the years, and India, as the upper riparian, must bear the responsibility for this
• India is misusing the provisions of the Indus treaty. Every Indian project on the western rivers is a violation of the Indus treaty
• The neutral expert in the Baglihar case misinterpreted the treaty and weakened the protection that Pakistan had under treaty.
• India deliberately caused harm to Pakistan in the initial filling of the Baglihar reservoir by the timing of the filling and by failing to maintain the prescribed minimum flow at Merala.
• Environmental concern did not figure at Indus treaty.
• New development is climate change and the impact that it will have water.
Pakistani concerns are not enough; something more need to be said on the above points.
• Storage – so far India has not built any storage.
• Water scarcity in Pakistan, India has nothing to do with it.
• Reduced flow in western rivers.
• Violation of the provisions of the Indus treaty by India; every Indian project a violation of the treaty: this is not true. The treaty envisages and permits Indian projects on western rivers and so the project is they cannot be violation of the treaty.
• Misuse of the treaty: A recent article in Pakistan saying misusing the Indus treaty. India can argue that it is only using and not misusing the treaty and that Pakistan is misusing the treaty to block every Indian project on the western rivers. However Pakistan has accepted the permissive provisions and India ahs accepted the restrictive provisions.
• Baglihar ; Neutral expert blamed. When Pakistan talks about interpretation it has 3 things;
NE took the view that 1960 treaty do not bind India to 1960 technology
Importance to techno-economic soundness and satisfactory operation.
NE stressed the importance of periodical flushing of the reservoir to get rid of sediments.
• Initially filling of Baglihar reservoir. India deliberately filled the reservoir in such a manner to cause maximum harm to Pakistan refuses to die down despite repeated explanation. The filling was completed well within the prescribed period; with reference to prescribed minimum flow at Merala was only for few hours and could not possibly have caused serious harm.
• Cumulative impact of many projects: The cumulative impact of a number of projects, each conforming to the provisions of the treaty, could be greater than the sum of the impacts of individual projects. This is a concern that needs to be taken seriously and should be jointly studied.
• Environmental concerns, climate change: these are post treaty developments and call for urgent inter-country consultation, not only the government level but also at academic and expert levels.
• Joint studies are needed on
1. Reduction of flow in western rivers and the factors responsible
2. Cumulative impact of a large number of projects on the western rivers
3. Inter country consultations and researches are also called for on environmental concerns and on the impacts of climate change.

Social Impact Assessment Training Programme (9-11 November, 2011) at CSE , New Delhi

Posted by swati singh sambyal on October 24, 2011 at 9:26am

Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) is going to organise hands-on three-day training programme aimed at giving practical exposure to participants on Social Impact Assessment (SIA) with specific reference to development projects, such as infrastructure, mining and other industrial projects.

The training programme will be organized from 9 to 11 November, 2011, at CSE’s office, 41 Tughlakabad Institutional Area, New Delhi - 62. The course fee for the programme is Rs 8000/- per participant. However, 50 % discount is available for NGOs, academician and students. The course fee includes tuition fee, training material and lunch. The participants will have to bear their own travel and accommodation expenditure.

Last date of applying has been extended to 28th October, 2011. Please go through the pdf for further details regarding the programme.

Kindly contact:

Sujit Kumar Singh, Swati Singh Sambyal

sujit@cseindia.org, swati@cseindia.org

9899676027, 9910496283

sia%20training.pdf

Novel waste water treatment technology from IIT Bombay- Soil Bio technology

Posted by Siddharth Biyani on October 19, 2011 at 5:30am

CAMUS‐SBT is an oxygenation engine that outperforms conventional technologies

likeActivated Sludge Process (ASP), Sequential Batch Reactor (SBR), Membrane Bio Reactor

(MBR)and Moving Bed Bio‐reactor (MBBR). Our technology harnesses a special set of

bio‐chemical reactions to deliver the oxygenation required for effluent treatment.

In conventional technologies, aeration isachieved mechanically, which is very energy

intensive. At higher ambient temperatures (like inIndia) the solubility of oxygen in water

is low, therefore energy requirements of mechanical aeration used by conventional

technologyincreases. Moreover, air contains only20% oxygen, the rest being nitrogen that

ispassed into water wastefully, further adding to process inefficiency.

CAMUS‐SBTresolves this problem using a bio‐chemical method of oxygenation, which

notonly uses the atmospheric oxygen, but also uses the nitrogen from the atmosphere in a

specially engineered natural ecology to achieve the desired level of purity.

In addition conventional technologiesgenerate large amount of sludge for which

additional disposal facilities have to becreated. CAMUS‐SBT does not face any such

problems.Theschematic of the process is shown below.

Featuresof our technology:

· Low‐energy consumption
· All green natural process
· No moving parts apart from pumps
· No bio‐sludgeformation
· Efficient removal of COD and nitrogen
· Near drinking water quality after treatment
· Treatment cost Rs 3‐5 per 1000L
· Garden likeambiance
· Bio‐tower designs available for spaceconstrained areas.
· One time mediainstallation
· Long life
· Unskilled personnel sufficient to operate
· No foul Odor

Varioususes of the technology

· Sewage treatment plant(STP) and industrial effluent treatment plant (ETP)applications.

· Retrofit ofpre-existing STP/ETPs with SBT/CAMUS-SBT systems.

· Laundry EffluentTreatment for total water reuse.

· Distilleryspent-wash treatment.

· Coffee Effluenttreatment.

· Hospitals waste water ,Hotels waste water,Municipal waste water can all be treated using SBT.

· Design of zerodischarge air scrubbers for removal of waste noxious gases (Sulphur, NOx

and organic pollutants from Industrialprocesses).