Trees under axe

Dare you fell trees: government told

In feedback HT

The plan to fell 1,000 trees in the campus of Delhi University to make way for a Rugby stadium has enraged many surfers. We've received angry letters condemning the move. Here are a few samples.

15-year-old Saurabh Agrawal thought it was wiser to transplant the trees rather than cutting them if at all we had to build one such stadium.

"After reading the news of felling down of trees in DU campus, I can imagine what will happen to Delhi. In an attempt to improve the city's condition to host the Commonwealth Games, we are actually destroying it. Of course, it is needed to remove trees from there to build a sports complex but it is not necessary to cut the trees. They can be transplanted just like DMRC has done for its project. We have huge areas in the capital where these trees can be transplanted."

Sunil Kumar, President, Debating Society, Hans Raj College wrote in to say that they were doing their bit to ensure that the trees stay.

"I saw your article regarding felling of trees in the DU campus. But I would like to inform you that we the students of Hans Raj College have taken a very tough attitude towards it, and we will not allow even a single tree to be felled."

"The debating society of our college is talking to various college officials and nature lovers, and are confident to hold this step back by either legal action or student protest movement. This act of Delhi government cannot be justified on any ground as it is a risk for environment."

Menta Mary Joseph, who is attached to an organisation called Lead Generation Program, had this to say.

"This is a ridiculous effort. One should work towards arranging another suitable stadium or ground, but cutting down 1,000 tress does not make sense and will have terrible effect on our environment."

"In case the authorities do plan to cut down trees, there seems to be no tangible efforts to plant at least twice the number of tress they plan to chop down. Which is even more depressing!"

"I strongly feel that India does not need such development at the cost of environment. Please, there is enough land available to build sports complexes."

K Rajagopalan from Gurgaon too was very upset.

"It is atrocious that a 1,000 trees have to be felled for a Rugby stadium, a sport not even popular in India, as part of the forthcoming Commonwealth Games!"

"First the government should stop all such activity. The Games have to be organised without affecting ecology. Further, instead of spending and indeed hosting Commonwealth Games, let us improve the standard of our popular games like football, hockey, volleyball, tennis, and badminton where once we dominated at least in the Asian level."

Point taken!

Strongly condemning the move, Vineet Singh also lauded HT for showing the way by publishing such stories.

"This is absolutely preposterous! The government's decision to cut 1,000 trees for the Commonwealth Games, just about displays the incompetence and the lack of ideas that it suffers from. And since nature can't speak for itself, nor hold strikes, in most cases it bears the brunt of these inane decisions. Well, not anymore. I appreciate what HT is doing to ameliorate the conditions of the city, be it roads, flyovers or environment and wish it keeps up the good work going."

V Chakravarty from Faridabad too was very disturbed with the report.

"Reference your front page article dated Wednesday (April 25, 2007) 'For a rugby field 1,000 Delhi University trees face the axe'. This is an absolutely ridiculous act, which should be strongly condemned. It raises many concerns as to how callous and insensible the authorities can get in the name of development. With such activities days are not far off when our ecology will go all wrong threatening human existence. I urge all responsible citizens and especially the student community of Delhi University to raise their voices against this planned activity and stop it."

Dr Gurinder Harnam Singh, Janki Devi Memorial College, University of Delhi had this to say.

"Imagine... if one thousand speechless human beings were made to stand together and massacred... such is going to be the plight of these trees. This should not be allowed to happen at any cost. The site for Commonwealth Games should be selected where no harm is done to trees and the environment is not compromised upon. This clearly shows the double standards of the authorities. I, as a responsible citizen, am totally against this. Some very concrete steps have to be taken before it is too late."

Dr Shifalika Goenka too was very angry with the authorities.

"Cut the trees and record the number of sick people before and after the cutting of trees after a gap of 7-9 years. There will be more diseases, more episodes of respiratory problems in children and adults, more cancers and more chronic diseases, and more infectious diseases in the summer; the communities around will be less healthy. So, will it be these sick people playing in the rugby field? We take for granted these silent safeguards and take the protective shield that these trees offer."

Disclaimer
All views and opinions presented in this article are solely those of the surfers and do not necessarily represent those of HindustanTimes.com.

The two shall never meet?

Brutality born from ignorance!

1,000 trees for rugby!

A diversionary note by Chief Minister

Toxic Fallout: Jadugoda's Nuclear Nightmare Jadugoda

The folks who are cheering over the Indo-U.S. accord on civil nuclear cooperation live a world away from Jadugoda, the Jharkhand village where India’s uranium mine is situated. It is these hapless villagers who continue paying a terrible price in terms of toxic health hazards after being made the sacrificial lambs of a government policy where jingoistic hubris trumps compassion or accountability, writes Sunita Dubey.

Ironically, the name Jadugoda literally means “magic land.” Located in the Potka and Mosabani block of east Singhbhum district of Jharkhand, Jadugoda is 25 km from Jamshedpur. Home to the Santhali and Hotribes of Jharkhand, it also has a uranium mining facility that has had a catastrophic effect on the health of its residents.
(Below, left): A child’s face says tells the horrific story of Jadugoda better than any bitter protest. Children have paid a heavy price for the toxic hazards posed by the callous and sloppy practices of a government-owned uranium mine.

“Whatever befalls the earth befalls the child of the earth. People did not weave the web of life; they are merely strands in it. Whatever they do to the web, they do to themselves”.
— A native American on uranium mining

The Indo-U.S. nuclear deal may be considered groundbreaking and historic by many in India and the United States, but this euphoria must not shroud the misery of thousands of people suffering the effects of uranium mining in India due to poor technical and management practices in existing mines.

While major newspapers and television stations in India celebrated a major political victory by India as it covered the announcement of the Indo-U.S. deal, contrast this with an incident which happened Dec. 24.

Thousands of liters of radioactive waste spilled in a creek because of a pipe burst at a Uranium Corporation of India Limited facility at Jadugoda, India. It neither made newspaper headlines nor did UCIL come to know of the disastrous leak till alerted by the local villagers. Such are the realities of nuclear facilities in India.

Callousness of UCIL. The Dec. 24 accident is the latest example of UCIL’s callousness, which occurred in a small village inhabited largely by displaced families whose lands were acquired to construct two of the three storage dams, also known as tailings ponds. Based on the experience of similar accidents in other countries, the negative effects on human and environmental health will impact not just Jadugoda, but several communities living downstream, perhaps even hundreds of kilometers away.

UCIL had no alarm mechanism to alert the company in cases of such a disaster. Instead, the villagers who had arrived at the scene of the accident soon after the pipe burst informed the company of the toxic spill.

The toxic sludge spewed into a creek for nine hours before the flow of the radioactive waste was shut off. Consequently, a thick layer of toxic sludge on the surface of the creek killed scores of fish, frogs, and other riparian life. The waste from the leak also reached a creek that feeds into the Subarnarekha river, seriously contaminating the water resources of the communities living hundreds of kilometers along the way. This is not the first such accident. In 1986, a tailing dam had burst open and radioactive water flowed directly into the villages.

A similar disaster in 1979 in the United States at Church Rock, N.M., had also left many people and their environment scarred for years altogether. More than eighteen months after the accident, there were strong indications that the radiation and other pollutants had penetrated 30 feet into the earth. A report by a Cincinnati-based firm brought in as a consultant by the EPA warned that at least two nearby aquifers had been put “at risk. “

According to Don Hancock of the Southwest Research and Information Center in New Mexico, though remediation/ clean-up in Jadugoda will depend upon local conditions, it is essential to monitor the situation very carefully. Some of the immediate steps which need to be taken include immediate sludge removal from the river bed, as river beds are usually very permeable. The communities downstream should also be warned to not use the water till it has been established to be safe. It can take several months for the water to become safe again.

India’s Navajo Nation. Since 1967, when UCIL first started uranium mining in Jadugoda, the lives of people have been inflicted with unknown diseases, deaths and poisoned environment. The foundation of these mines has been laid on lies and misinformation by UCIL about the impact of uranium mining, radiation and toxicity in Jadugoda. Till the ’90s the tailing ponds (where uranium mine liquid waste is stored to evaporate) was in close vicinity of areas in the villages used as children’s playground, open grazing area and other public use. The radiation levels and related sickness were never revealed by UCIL, even though for years the local population has suffered from the extensive environmental degradation caused by the mining operations which are also responsible for the high frequency of radiation-related sicknesses and developmental disorders found in the area. Even though India’s Atomic Energy Act states that there should be no habitation within five kilometers of a waste site or uranium-tailing pond and even though Jadugoda has been in operation for more than 30 years, seven villages stand within one and a half kilometers of the danger zone. One of them, Dungardihi, begins just 40 meters away.

Questioning Legitimacy. It was only in 1996 when a group of people working in the mines and living in close vicinity started questioning the legitimacy UCIL’s free rein to pollute the environment and lives of indigenous people. This led to the formation of a local anti-uranium mining group called Jharkhandis Organization Against Radiation whose mission is to resist further nuclear development, and to educate the local Adivasis about the dangers of radioactivity. JOAR is also a winner of the 2004 Nuclear-Free Future Resistance Award. Even after the documentation of severe damage caused by uranium mining in Jadugoda in a documentary titled “Buddha Weeps In Jadugoda” by Shri Prakash, UCIL still admits to no wrongdoing, claiming that none of the prevalent congenital diseases in the area are due to the radiation from their uranium mines and milling operations.


India’s Nuclear History. Until World War II, uranium was regarded as little more than a substance used to color ceramics and glass, a byproduct of radium production. However, since the discovery of nuclear fission in 1938, the international nuclear industry has produced more than 1.7 million metric tons of uranium in about 30 countries. The IAEA estimates that about 360,000 metric tons of natural uranium or about 20 percent of the world’s production has been used for military purposes.

India was the first Asian country to develop a nuclear program and the Atomic Energy Commission was set up in 1948, just one year after independence, followed by the Department of Atomic Energy in August 1954. The Indian nuclear program got a boost with U.S. and Canadian support in 1969, which was for research purposes, but with the same technology, India exploded its first plutonium bomb in 1974. This shows that even though the façade behind the nuclear program might be for power generation or research, at any given time the program can be turned into nuclear weapons.


India’s Nuclear Ambitions. India plans to put up a total installed nuclear power capacity of 20,000 MWe by the year 2020. India has 14 reactors in operation and has an installed nuclear capacity of 2720 MWe. At present eight reactors are under construction and, when completed, will add 3960 MWe to the nuclear installed capacity. With such ambitious plans and thrust on nuclear power as a future source of sustainable “green” energy and fresh impetus from the Indo-U.S. nuclear deal, many more uranium mines and nuclear plants are on the horizon. UCIL is engaged in mining and milling of uranium ore at Jadugoda, Bhatin and Narwapahar at Singhbhum district of Jharkand. Techno-commercially viable deposits are reported to have been found at Turamdih, Bagjata and Banduhuran in Jharkhand, Lambapur and Peddagattu in Andhra Pradesh and Domiasiat in Meghalaya.

Struggle Continues. Though some clean-up effort has been taken up by UCIL, the there are no alternatives for villagers to escape this radioactive fallout. Most of these poor villagers are already displaced from their lands more than once. They do not have any access to safe drinking water, and the creek, which got poisoned after the spill, was their only source of water. Even in these circumstances, not much is expected from UCIL to help this poor community. The perseverance and struggle of the Jadugoda community has led to international recognition of their problems. They have connected with other indigenous communities from all over the world, suffering the similar fallout of uranium mining. In December 2006 indigenous peoples from around the world who are victims of uranium mining, nuclear testing, and nuclear dumping came together at the Navajo Nation for the Indigenous World Uranium Summit, which called for a global ban on uranium mining on native lands. Representatives from Jadugoda gave testimony about the alarming number of babies who are stillborn or are born with serious birth defects, and of the high rates of cancer that are claiming the lives of many who live near the uranium mines.

The people of Jadugoda are not alone in this fight, even though the Indian government or UCIL may choose to ignore their plight. The recent spill and its mishandling by UCIL has drawn flak from the global community, and 400 individuals have signed petitions circulated by two U.S.-based groups, the Association for India’s Development and FOSA.

More information on Jadugoda is available at www.jadugoda.net

Courtesy: Siliconeer Magazine.
PHOTOS: P. MADHAVAN

Waste-to-energy is no quick fix for Municipal Solid Waste Management

Dear Readers,

To burn or not to burn seems to be the most important issue at the moment for all those concerned with Municipal Solid Waste in India. The management of urban waste is increasingly becoming a nightmare for the municipal bodies. In this issue of the Toxics Alert e-newsletter we have attempted to capture this debate both in theory, through a feature and an interview, and in practice, through news on a gathering momentum towards re-establishing the concept of waste-to-energy by municipal authorities in India's most important urban centres.

Editor, Toxics Alert


Toxics Alert, an environment news bulletin from toxics link
Issue 4: March 12, 2007

FEATURE

Waste-to-energy is no quick fix for Municipal Solid Waste Management

The mismanagement of solid waste in urban areas poses a grave threat to public health and the quality of life of people living in those areas. Up to now there has been no comprehensive policy in India that deals with the whole cycle of waste management from production at household level to collection and disposal, writes Prashant Pastore, Senior Programme Coordinator, Toxics Link.

Read on

INTERVIEW

Solution is urgently needed for rapid reduction in municipal waste: Urvashi Dhamija

Despite the failure of incineration-based projects in Hyderabad, Lucknow and Delhi, it seems to me that a proposal to set up such a project in Delhi should not be dismissed imperatively. With waste stacking up at the existing sites at levels higher than high rise buildings in the vicinity a solution is urgently needed for rapid waste reduction. However, reasons for the failure need to be identified and suitable steps taken to prevent their re-occurrence, says Prof. Urvashi Dhamija in conversation with Parvinder Singh.

Read on


NEWS

Delhi worst in managing its trash; MCD says not enough dumping space

A recent survey by an industry grouping has claimed that though the National Capital has the largest number of people engaged in the recycling of urban or municipal waste compared to all other metros, yet it is the worst in managing its trash and figures below Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata.

Read on


Mumbai going waste to energy way: BMC

In a bid to counter the growing problem of municipal waste management in Mumbai and its inability to address this, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will float a tender seeking expression of interest by private firms for generating energy from waste.

Read on


Kolkata's second landfill being planned on Ramsar Site

The city of joy, Kolkata, is peaking a productivity figure that it isn't quite ready to handle. The city is generating 3,000 metric tonnes of Municipal Solid Waste and its only landfill, Dhapa, is overflowing.This has forced Kolkata Municipal Corporation\u2019s (KMC) to look for a second site and if one goes by local news reports, the planned new site would encroach on a wetland listed under Ramsar Convention.

Read on


Mumbai generating 19,000 tonnes of e-waste annually: Study

In a grim reminder of the increasing environmental and health hazards in India's urban centres, a new study has revealed that Mumbai is not just the leading generator of electronic waste in the country, but also that the rate at which the commercial capital is throwing away electronic goods is far higher than believed so far.

Read on


Half of world's wetlands lost already: Experts

A half-day workshop was organised in the National Capital's National Science Centre to observe the World Wetland Day on 2 February by the Ministry of Environment and Forests and The Energy Research Institute for highlighting their ecological importance, the threat they face today and ways to protect them.

Read on


POLICY

Climate change expert committee to be formed: Finance Minister

India will set up an expert committee to study the impact of climate change on the country, even though it does not significantly contribute to green house gas (GHG) emissions, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said in his budget speech in parliament, according to an official release.

Read on


UPDATES

Two-day workshop on medical, municipal waste held in Ranchi

In continuation with its efforts to generate awareness and share knowledge on the issue of medical and municipal waste management, Toxics Link, in association with Rachi-based Nav Bharat Jagriti Kendra (NBJK), recently organised a two-day regional workshop in the Jharkhand capital.

Read on


PARTNERS

NGO recommendations on planned DMRC-link through Delhi Ridge

Delhi-based Environmentalists spurred into action last month following reports of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) planning a segment of Mehrauli to Gurgaon line that would cut-through the Delhi-ridge forest area, believed to be one of the oldest geographical entities in the world.

Read on

Sign on to save the trees of Delhi

Save Delhi’s Trees, Do Not Sacrifice this heritage for transport

The rise of technology addiction

Source: BBC

The Blackberry mobile device allows users to send e-mails

The seemingly exponential growth of portable technology has sparked fears that people are becoming addicted or swamped by gadgets and their uses.

One major consequence of this phenomenon is that the line between work and private life is much more blurred, now that e-mail and phones provide a 24-hour link between employers and staff.

Experts believe that even the decision-making process of the average person can be adversely affected.

However, others think that the bombardment of various communications can enhance the brain's ability to process information.

Addiction symptoms

Nada Kakabadse, a Professor at the Northampton Business School, said: "Your judgement is impaired. Equally your decision making processes are impaired.

"It's like losing your spatial judgement, so instead of walking through the door you walk into it. You're more prone to have a car accident if you drive."

Prof Kakabadse added: "It's addiction to portable technology, which you take with you practically to bed, the cinema, to the theatre, to a dinner party. The symptoms are, like with any other addiction, that people spend more time using their technology than spending it in socialising or in family time."

The growing importance of the issue was highlighted at a gathering in Geneva, Switzerland, for the LIFT 07 technology conference.

One of the conclusions reached by experts was that "tech overload" is the price people have to pay for always-on communication, where the line between work and play has become blurred.

I really think it is the responsibility of the individual to prioritise Professor Nada Kakabadse, Northampton Business School

In fact, there is even some evidence that being bombarded with information from all directions is actually beneficial.

Professor Fred Mast, of the University of Lausanne, said: "I think that we can become overloaded. It depends on the situation, but I think we are underestimating the brain's capacity to adapt to new challenges.

"Studies have been done showing that people can actually enhance their cognitive abilities, which helps them to process more information at the same time. And their performance even transfers to other tasks."

Experts have also noted how different types of technology have developed their own etiquette.

E-mail tends to be a more formal type of communication

For instance, an e-mail can wait two days to be answered but a text message demands an almost immediate reply.

Stefana Broadbent from Swisscom said: "E-mail is considered the most formal. At the other end of the spectrum SMS is the most personal of all.

"That's where we find all those little exchanges, little endearments, what we call grooming, which is sending: 'I think about you. How did it go? How did you sleep?'

He added: "That is actually given by the number of characters. With such few characters, you have to have a lot of mutual understanding and mutual knowledge."

Prof Kakabadse added that prioritising was a vital way to prevent communication overload.

She said: "I really think it is the responsibility of the individual to prioritise. Even if an employee pushes the boundaries, do discuss with the employee in a constructive way how we can do things better without being overloaded."

India was among the countries more vulnerable to climate change: Finance Minister

Climate change figured prominently in the Budget speech of finance minister P. Chidambaram, who admitted that India was among the countries more vulnerable to climate change.

His "green intentions" were also highlighted when he proposed subsidy for farmers to encourage them to set up “dug wells” to trap rain water and recharge fast-depleting groundwater in several parts of the country, besides tax benefits for eco-friendly industry like coir.

The minister informed the House that the government proposed to appoint an expert committee on climate change in the country in order to study the impact of climate change and identify measures to tackle it.

“India is not a significant contributor to emissions, nor will it be so in the foreseeable future. Nevertheless, in line with the principle of common but differentiated responsibility, India has taken steps to mitigate the Green House Gas (GHG) emissions and adapt to climate change impact,” he told the House, however, also adding that India was among the countries more vulnerable to climate change.

Chidambaram said that India strongly promoted the Clean Development Mechanism under the Kyoto protocol and had the world’s largest number of CDM projects.

Since plywood helps to save wood, the minister announced a reduction in excise duty on plywood from 16 per cent to eight per cent and exempted biodiesal completely from excise duty, as they “greatly reduce dependence on fossil fuels”.

Considering that depletion of groundwater has assumed grave proportions in several parts of the country, he also proposed to provide 100 per cent subsidy to small and marginal farmers and 50 per cent to other farmers to encourage them to construct “dug wells” to recharge groundwater.

The Central Ground Water Board has identified 1065 assessment blocks in the country as “over-exploited” or “critical” and over over 80 per cent of these blocks are in 100 districts in seven states.

“ The strategy for groundwater recharge is to divert rain water into “dug wells”. Each structure will cost about Rs 4,000. The requirement is seven million structures, including about two million on land belonging to small and marginal farmers,” he said, voicing his concern.

While the scheme is being finalised, the government intends to transfer Rs 1,800 crore to NABARD, which will be held in escrow and disbursed through lead bank of the district concerned to beneficiaries.

Besides this, the minister also allocated Rs 100 crore for new Rainfed Area Development Programme and urged states to come up with propopsals to repair, renovate and restore water bodies in their areas

A scheme for modernisation and technology upgradation of the coir industry with special emphasis to major coir producing states like Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa, was also announced by the minister, who said that since coir was an eco-friendly fibre and provided employment as well as earns valuable foreign exchange, a provision of Rs 22.50 crore had been made for the industry.

Source: Tribune

Gore says Oscar bid helps shift public opinion on climate crisis

"An Inconvenient Truth," former U.S. vice president Al Gore's dire warning about the threat of climate change, won the Oscar for best documentary Sunday.

Making use of a vast body of scientific data, the film represents a stinging rebuttal to the dwindling and increasingly discredited band of skeptics who refuse to acknowledge the extent of climate change, AFP reported.

Though the film is directed by David Guggenheim, Gore is the undisputed star, interspersing persuasive presentations about the environment with personal recollections from his life.

The central thrust of Gore's claims is that global warming is a genuine threat and largely man-made, an assertion that is backed by recent research.

The Kyoto Protocol assigning mandatory targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions has been ratified by 169 countries. However, the United States has failed to ratify the protocol.

But what Gore did as number 2 man in the White House for global warming during his time was very different from his documentary.

Online newsletter Green Left writes "The Clinton-Gore years were anything but environment-friendly. Under Clinton-Gore, more old growth forests were cut down than under any other recent U.S. administration.

'Wise Use' committees, set up by the timber industry, were permitted to clear-cut whole mountain ranges, while Clinton-Gore helped to 'green-wash' their activities for public consumption.

Former Vice President Al Gore said the Oscar nomination for his global warming documentary is shifting public opinion, but he's not happy about being right.

"An Inconvenient Truth," the documentary about Gore's crusade against global warming, is the odds-on favorite to win an Oscar tonight.Gore said he hopes to pull the global warming argument out of a partisan context and frame it as a moral and spiritual issue that involves responsibility to future generations.Skeptical at first at the idea of turning his slideshow into a movie, Gore said now he's grateful for all the people the movie has reached.Once criticized for his stiffness, Gore now mingles among celebrities with rock star fame, but he said his wife, Tipper, keeps his feet on the ground.

India's booming economy brings toxic hi-tech waste

By Nita Bhalla, Source: Reuters

India's booming economy is producing mountains of toxic electronic waste like discarded computers and televisions, but there are no laws to regulate its disposal, a local environment group said on Friday.

Toxics Link said while the Asian giant's economy has been growing at eight percent annually over the last three years, it has also resulted in the generation of 150,000 tonnes of electronic waste each year.

An eight-month study by the group found that India's bustling financial hub of Mumbai was the biggest source of electronic or e-waste, generating 19,000 tonnes every year.

"Being the hub of India's commercial activities, the banks and financial institutions in Mumbai generate huge amounts of e-waste," Ravi Agarwal, director of Toxics Link, told a news conference.

"But like the rest of India, there are no laws for its safe handling and this will lead to serious health and environmental impacts."

Agarwal said the government had to regulate the management of e-waste by setting up a central authority to collect all discarded electronic goods and put in place laws to deal with disposal and recycling.

India's economic liberalisation that began in the early 1990s has seen hundreds of banks, financial institutions, electronics industries, information technology firms and call centres setting up operations across the country.

The booming economy has also led to a growing middle class -- estimated around 300 million -- which has more disposable income and an insatiable appetite for electronic products.

"When electronics like televisions, PCs and refrigerators are discarded, it is the informal sector made up of tens of thousands of people who collect it and then break it down and recycle parts of it which can be sold," said Agarwal.

"They extract toxic-heavy metals such as lead, mercury, cadmium and chromium which are sold for other uses."

These metals harm the development of the brain, kidneys and some are carcinogens which enter the food chain through the air, water and soil.

Colours of Nature

Colours of Nature

MANISHA GUTMAN, Source: The Hindu

Holi marks the end of winter and the coming of spring.

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Many colours are made up of chemical colorant with a base of asbestos or silica, and these are harmful to the skin.

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PHOTO: C.V SUBRAMANYAM

WELCOME SPRING: Joy of hope.

Holi is around the corner! So many of us love playing this colourful festival and look forward to it with excitement! But, did you know that some of the colours we buy in the market are not meant for use?

Holi began as a celebration of the end of winter and the coming of spring. This was also the time when crops like wheat and barley were harvested and the festival was a way of thanking nature. There are several legends about the festival. The bonfire on the night of Holi is symbolic of the victory of good over evil.

The colours of Holi were, originally, the colours of trees that flower in spring. These colours were made from flowers, roots and herbs and had therapeutic and medicinal value. Some of the common plants that were used include henna, hibiscus, and marigold. In addition there are roots such as beetroot and tubers like turmeric that also give bright colours.

Highly toxic

But today, toxic chemical substances, many of which are meant for industrial use only, have replaced the beautiful colours of nature. The commercial colours include pastes, dry powders and watercolours and they are mostly made up of a chemical colorant with a base such as asbestos or silica. The colorants contain heavy metals like mercury, lead and chromium, which can cause damage when they enter the body causing rashes, allergies and breathing difficulties. Some industrial dyes take a long time to come off the skin and slowly enter the body through the skin!

PHOTO: SATISH H.

You can understand more about natural colours by exploring the work of the following groups on their websites: Navdanya, Delhi; CleanIndia, Delhi; Kalpavriksh Environment Action Group, Pune. To read more about the health impacts of industrial colours visit the website of Toxics Link, Delhi.This year play a safe and natural Holi.

Make your own colours

Yellow: Mix turmeric powder with besan for a lovely yellow.

Red : Did you know that if you add a few drops of lemon juice to turmeric powder it turns bright red?

Magenta: Slice or grate a beetroot. Soak in one litre of water for a wonderful magenta.

Orange : Boil the peels of 10 - 15 onions in half litre of water for an orangish-pink colour. Remove the peels before use, to remove the smell of the onions.

Green : Mix a fine paste of leaves like spinach, mustard, coriander or mint in water. Use mehendi / henna powder, separately or mix with equal quantity of any flour for a lovely green shade.

If you don't have the time for this then make sure you buy only natural colours. Locate a shop you that can supply you with genuine natural colours. How will you know that they are genuine? First, verify that the packet of colour does not say "For Industrial use only!"

The terms — herbal, natural, non-toxic and organic — indicate that the colours are probably sensitive on the skin.

Check the ingredients of the colours on the packets.

India's commercial and financial capital is generating 19,000 tonnes of e-waste annually: Study

In a grim reminder of the increasing environmental and health hazards in India's urban centres, a new study by Toxics Link, an environmental group, has revealed that Mumbai is not just the leading generator of electronic waste in the country, but also that the rate at which the commercial capital is throwing away electronic goods is far higher than believed so far.

The pioneering study shows that besides a total generation of electronic waste to the tune of 19,000 tonnes annually - inclusive of computers, televisions, refrigerator and washing machines - the city receives a good amount of it through clandestine imports from the developed world. The report, thus hints that even this shocking figure is at best modest.

The study indicates that the National Capital and its adjoining areas are receiving a substantial part of Mumbai's electronic discards, both internal as well as imported, particularly computer printed circuit boards (PCBs) that are too dangerous to be handled in congested areas of Mumbai. Delhi has been tipped as the largest e-waste recycler in the country. In an earlier study by Toxics Link, it was revealed that the slack enforcement of laws banning hazardous waste processing in residential areas of Delhi was cited as the added 'attraction' for recyclers. Further, Delhi and some of its satellite urban areas seem to have acquired specialisation in dealing with this environmentally hazards activity.

Releasing the report, titled Mumbai: Choking on E-Waste, here today, Ravi Agwarwal, Director, Toxics link, said, "This study is a part of our ongoing efforts to create a body of research that, we hope, will help to fill the void of information on the issue and, eventually, facilitate a strong legislative action in the country."

He added, "Since the release of 'Scrapping the High-tech Myth: Computer Waste in India', in 2003, we have seen the menace of e-waste grow consistently. On the good side, with it have grown the calls for action, both internationally and nationally. Carrying out these assessments guides our campaign for installing proper and adequate e-waste management systems in India."

Also, we hope to prevent the import of e waste, which is growing in India. The waste comes in both misclassified as 'metal scrap' as well as end of life products as 'second hand goods'. Currently, customs are not able to screen or monitor the import of hazardous waste, and this needs to be stopped.

India generates about 150,000 tons of WEEE annually and almost all of it finds its way into the informal sector, as there is no organised alternative available at present. The trend is likely to increase manifold in proportion to the growth in the consumption of electronic products," the report asserts.

Key findings:

• Mumbai generates roughly 19,000 tonnes of WEEE annually, which is substantially higher than the existing approximation. This figure includes not just computers, but also televisions, refrigerators and washing machines. The actual WEEE quantity is expected to be much higher, as several other electronic products, which have not been used in the study, are being dumped into the city's waste stream, and also because there are no figures available on imports from developed nations.
  
• A substantial part of Mumbai's WEEE, both imported and locally generated, is sent to recycling markets located in other parts of the country. The National Capital Region of Delhi is a preferred recycling destination for printed circuit boards (PCBs) originating from the city.
  
• Being the hub of India's commercial and financial activities, the banks and financial institutions in Mumbai generate huge amounts of WEEE, but they do not have any method for its safe handling contributing to disastrous health and environmental impacts of WEEE. The issue of security of data on discarded computers is adequately addressed when such waste is auctioned to waste dealers as scrap.
  
• Mumbai has a large network of scrap traders. The hotspots that handle WEEE in and around Mumbai are - Kurla, Saki Naka, Kamthipura-Grant Road, Jogeshwari and Malad. Recycling in these shops and rooftops not only exposes those involved in the activity to serious health hazards, but also pollutes the surrounding environment. The rate of WEEE generation and the current methods of disposal in Mumbai pose grave environmental and health risks to the city at large due to its dense population and spatial character.
  
• The current handling practices suffer from use of crude methods for dismantling and storage, minimal capital input and zero health and environmental safeguards.
  
• Lack of a legislative framework to address the issue of WEEE management by taking on-board all stakeholders is hampering solution implementation.
  
• Extended Producers Responsibility (EPR) approach, which broadly implies that producers be made responsible for their product even after the consumer has bought and used it, is emerging as popular alternative for e-waste management in various countries of the world. India needs to take steps in this direction.

Whiff of Death: Mercury in healthcare

Recent research studies have revealed a large number of contaminants that are in everyday use without most of us being aware of the threat that they pose to the environment and human health. Mercury is one such element. It is widely used in a variety of instruments and objects of daily use.

How would you react to the information that a regular thermometer can cause serious health problems to you or a pregnant woman in your house? Or on being told that a dental clinic near your home may be releasing this deadly heavy metal - an established neurotoxin - into the environment, through its waste discharge.

The present healthcare system relies on a host of mercury-based equipments. In a list of 5,000 medical products, compiled by a technical assistance organisation, over 15 per cent contain mercury. It has also been revealed that mercury is present in the indoor air of a typical healthcare setting. It gets introduced into the ambient environment of healthcare facilities through breakage of mercury-laden instruments. This places those working and visiting such facilities at serious health risk through inhalation and exposure.

Mercury usage in healthcare system is totally replaceable. All that is needed is greater awareness and willingness on the part of policymakers and healthcare administration to implement strategies for its reduction and replacement.

We invite you to a discussion on the use of mercury in healthcare settings, its lethal environmental / health impacts and the way out.

Presentation by Prashant Pastore, Senior Programme Coordinator, Toxics Free Healthcare.

Panelist:
Dr. T.K. Joshi, Project Director, Centre for Occupational & Environmental Health, Lok Nayak Hospital

Dr. Vijay Agarwal, Director-Administration, Max Super Speciality Hospital.

Moderator:
Satish Sinha, Whiff of Death: Mercury in healthcare, Chief Programme Coordinator, Toxics Link.

Date: 21st February 2007, Wednesday	Time: 6.30 p.m.
Venue: Conference Room 1, India International Centre, 40, Max Mueller Marg, New Delhi -110003. (In collaboration with India International Centre)

From Toxics Alert

Mercury in healthcare: Clear and present danger Two recent studies have once again highlighted the clear and present risk of mercury exposure to medical staff and patients in the everyday healthcare settings. While one reinforces the global impact of mercury as a contaminant, the other shows its specific threat in the Indian context in terms of its impact on a wide social and professional group associated with such facilities.

India to demand international ban on mercury trade at UNEP meet in Nairobi

India's Toxics Link will join a large number of non-governmental organisations to call upon Governments across the globe to place a ban on mercury exports in a bid to check increasing mercury pollution at the 24th United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Governing Council meeting to be held from 5th to 9th February 2007.

India, which has no regulatory mechanism on mercury import, has emerged in the recent years as one the leading user of mercury thus contributing substantially to its increasing emission. There has been a growing shift of mercury demand towards the developing nations. One of the key demands to be raised at this meeting will be to urge the developed nations to provide new and additional funding towards mercury reduction in developing countries.

Ravi Agarwal, Director Toxics Link, the Delhi-based group that has pioneered research and advocacy on the issue of mercury hazard in India, will be at the meeting to lend a voice to an overwhelming opinion in the anti-mercury international community to call for adding more teeth to their efforts by enacting a globally binding instrument for control of use and supply of mercury.

He said that though the threat posed by mercury is global, as the heavy metal has the ability to travel widely across a number of environmental mediums, its health and environmental hazard locally, ranging from hospitals to schools, in day-to-day setting have been documented. India is also one of the largest importers of this deadly metal.

Two studies, highlighting the wide social group being exposed to this neurotoxin in a regular basis, were released last month. One by Toxics Link detailed presence of mercury in hospital indoor air exposing staff and patients, while the other by Health Care Without Harm, a global coalition of 443 organisations in 52 countries working to protect health by reducing pollution in the healthcare industry, found mercury in hair samples of volunteers, mostly women from 21 countries, including India.

"Governments must now agree on tough and binding rules to reduce mercury contamination," said Elena Lymberidi from the Zero Mercury coalition. "Mercury poisons the brain and threatens all of us and future generations, at both high and low levels. So this Governing Council Decision must have teeth to ensure global action."

In the five years, since UNEP's Global Mercury Assessment report, there has been no significant reduction in mercury use worldwide, according to its new mercury trade report. As mercury use has gone down in industrialised nations, developing countries have become increasingly reliant on this toxic metal. Air pollution experts also report that global mercury releases into the atmosphere have increased over the past 15 years.

"UNEP's Governing Council first identified mercury as a serious global threat over six years ago," said Michael Bender of the Mercury Policy Project. "It has since supported extensive research that all leads to one conclusion - serious, concerted global action must be taken immediately to reduce the level of mercury in the environment and protect fish as a viable world protein source."

Anti-mercury campaigners believe that the fundamental cause of failure over the past two years has been that governments have only supported voluntary 'partnership' programmes, instead of backing a meaningful, legally binding agreement, with the necessary financial assistance and explicit reduction goals. Advocates insist that global, binding agreements are the only way to curtail mercury's worldwide reach.

The NGOs recommend curtailing mercury's global reach by:

* Immediately working towards a globally-binding instrument on mercury using the UNEP trade reports' findings
* Reducing global mercury demand by setting a target to reduce it by 70 per cent by 2017, ending mercury use in electronics, button cell batteries, thermometers, and other non-electronic measuring equipment, phasing out the mercury-cell chlor-alkali process, and setting a sector-specific demand reduction goal to halve artisanal and small-scale gold mining by 2017, eliminating mercury use in whole ore processing, and other practicable measures
* Instructing UNEP to develop a global air emissions report for the next GC, to form the basis for setting goals to reduce major sources of airborne mercury emissions
* Reducing mercury supply by halting primary mining, except where mercury is a by-product from other ore processing, and restricting developed nation mercury exports and managing mercury from closing mercury cell chlor-alkali facilities
* Developed nations providing new and additional funding to support these activities in developing nations.

Mercury is a potent nerve poison and affects the brain and central nervous system. Workers exposed to mercury, eg. small-scale gold miners, often suffer from tremors, memory loss and other neurological damage. Those most at risk from methylmercury-contaminated food are babies and small children. The brains of babies in the uterus are the most vulnerable. The greatest risk is to young women, before or during pregnancy, eating fish containing high levels of methylmercury (e.g. shark, swordfish, king mackerel, and some types of tuna) or miners being exposed during gold mining.

From Toxics Alert

Breathing Asian nightmare Asia's urban population is dying a slow death. The very economic growth that made the Asian developmental dream very real and palpable is now threatening to choke it as well, writes Parvinder Singh.

Documentary series to depict borderless humans and the environment in a global world at two-day festival in Delhi

As the global environmental crisis continues to capture more and more space in our everyday communication, films are emerging as a potent means of giving this concern a cross-cultural unity by highlighting commonalities that go beyond statistics of ecological degradation and rising sea levels and touch a chord at a more experiential level.

Toxics Link, Max Mueller Bhavan and ECOMOVE International have joined hands to bring to Delhiites some of the most outstanding international and Indian documentaries on the environment and struggles associated with it through a two-day film festival from 9^th to 10^th February 2007 at the Max Mueller Bhavan's Siddhartha Hall. These films strongly underline that events like global warming, climate change and natural disasters are not only on the rise but also require solutions beyond borders.

India with its rapidly growing economy is facing both the opportunities and risks of globalisation. On the one hand, for a limited section of society, wealth is growing, on the other, the social inequalities seem to be worsening. To counter environmental abuse and consequent inequities, it is paramount to act locally, while looking across borders to learn about common concerns and solutions.

ECOMOVE International is a network of international environmental film festivals. Its primary purpose is to promote environmental media -in particular the audio-visual. ECOMOVE works to improve the image and appreciation of environmental films, by increasing quality and quantity of media productions. It also conceives and implements educational and media projects on a national and international level. Michael Greif is project manager with ECOMOVE International. This series of films is supported by the German Ministry for the Environment.

On the opening day a panel discussion is scheduled on the topic 'Creativity versus Agenda in the Genre of Environmental Film Making'. Veteran documentary filmmaker Sanjay Kak will moderate it. Michael Greif, Down to Earth Managing Editor, Pradip Saha and Rahul Roy from Delhi Film Archives will be the participants.

Among other highlights are the Delhi premier of '100 per cent Cotton: Made in India' by Inge Altemeier. The film portrays the merchandise 'cotton' from its breeding and processing in India to its sale in the form of clothes in the industrialised countries – along with the grave consequences this involves for humans and the environment. From its polluted landscapes to its poisoned workers, India is paying a heavy price for Europe’s desire for cheap cotton.

SCHEDULE

9th February, Friday
* Inauguration at 1500 hrs
* Introduction by Michael Greif at 1515 hrs
* Premier Screening: 100% Cotton, Dir.: Inge Altemeier, Germany: 30 mins at 1530 hrs
* The many faces of madness, Dir.: Amar Kanwar, India: 19 mins at 1605 hrs
* PANEL DISCUSSION: Creativity versus agenda in the genre of environment film making-Michael Greif, Pradip Saha, Rahul Roy, Sanjay Kak at 1645 hrs

10th February, Saturday
* Drowned out, Dir.: Franny Armstrong, UK: 75 min at 1000 hrs
* Water business is good business, Dir.: Sanjay Barnela/Vasant Saberwal, India: 26 min at 1120 hrs
* Thirsty planet, Dir.: Henning Hesse/Martin Fensch, Germany: 30 mins at 1200 hrs
* Looking for Coal, Dir.: Gunnar Walter/Roland Wagner, Germany: 67 mins at 1315 hrs
* Ship breakers, Dir.: Michael. Kott, Canada: 72 mins at 1430 hrs
* Surplus - Terrorized into being consumers, Dir.: Erik Gandini, Sweden: 52 mins at 1600 hrs
* Life running out of control, Dir.: Bertram Verhaag/Gabriele Kröber, Germany: 58 at mins 1700 hrs
* Harvesting hunger, Dir.: Krishnendu Bose, India: 53 mins at 1800 hrs
* Bullshit, Dir.: Pea Holmquist/Suzanne Khardalian, Sweden: 58 mins at 1900 hrs

Contact: Parvinder Singh, +91-9811703798, T: +91-(0) 11-24320711, 24328006 or Mary Therese, +91 9818068589, T: +91-(0) 11-23329506, 23329890