Rising seas to cause threat to the world's most beautiful mosque

One of the most important shipping lanes in the world, the Strait of Malacca, in Malaysia is pa

rticularly vulnerable to Climate change. The Malay Government has long known this. Even during colonial times, tidal stations were set up to monitor sea levels in the country. According to the Sea Level Monitoring Network, "there are 12 tidal stations along the coast of Sabah and Sarawak". But, this has not stopped such improbable developments as the Malacca Island- the first "Twin Island City Center"-0 on the southern shore of which the Malacca Straits Mosque was built. The Mosque was completed towards the end of 2009 and cost 3.3 million. Although there is nothing green about it, it would be a shame to see such a beautiful building swallowed up by water, of which there is a very strong chance.

source:Terra Green

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Dwarf plants to cut cost down and to reduce environmental footprint

Tall, waving corn field that line Midwestern roads may soon be replaced by dwarfed versions that require less water, fertilizer and other input, thanks to a fungicide commonly used on golf courses. Burkhard Schulz, a Purdue University assistant professor of plant biochemical and molecular genetics, had earlier f

ound that knocking out the steroid function in corn plants would create tiny versions that only had female sex characteristics. But brassinazole, the chemical used to inhibit the plant steroid biosynthesis, was prohibitively expensive. One gram of brassinazole could cost as much as $ 25,000, so Schulz started looking into other options. He found that propiconzole, used to treat fungal dollar spot disease on golf course, is more potent and costs about 10 cents for the same amount.

source: Terra Green

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Human activities became second in China when Power plants led to rapid glacial meltdown in China

Experts say pollution caused by humans is the second leading cause in the melting of a glacier in the Tan Shan Mountains of Xinjiang. The number one glacier in the Tianshan Mountains in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous region has been retreating by more than four metres every year and its thickness has shrunk by more than

15 metres between 1958-2010, says one of the experts from the Tian Shan Mountains glacier observation station under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. However, Director of the International Center for integrated Mountain Development argues that climate change is the leading cause in the acceleration of the glacier thawing, with another major cause being Black carbon. The Black carbon refers to the particles including dust and ashes generated by incomplete combustion of carbon-containing material, such as the fossil and biomass material. Researchers at the Tian Shan Mountains glacier observation station under the Chinese Academy of Sciences said there are several power plants and building material factories, which have been operating for nearly 30 years near the glacier and the black carbon emissions from these plants have been accumulating on the surface of the glacier, and the black colour of the particles can absorb heat from the sun and intensify the thawing of the glacier. Additionally, the plants have also been polluting the water supply of the regional capital Urumqi, since the Urumqi Rive that runs through the city has originated from the glacier.

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New cars in the EU produce less CO2

New cars and vans in the European Union will produce one-third less carbon dioxide within eight years, under proposed new rules set out in Brussels. By 2020, the average emissions from new cars will have to be no more than 95g of carbon dioxide per kilometre driven, a cut of more than 40g from today's levels and of 35g/km compared with the 2015 target, if they proposed new regulations are accepted. Connie Hedegaard, climate chief of the European commission, said the goals were "ambitious but achievable" and would benefit consumers, through fuel cost savings, and help the EU's car making industry compete with overseas manufacturers. The proposals will now have to be accepted by member states and the European parliament, if they are to come into force. That process could be tricky as car companies are continuing to lobby politicians on the goals. According to the EU's estimates, as a result of the new goals the average driver of a new car in 2020 would save about 340 in the first year on fuel costs, and between about 2,900 and 3,800 over the car's average 13-year lifetime, compared with the 2015 target. This would equate to total savings of about 30bn a year in fuel costs, which could increase EU GDP by 12bn a year and create new jobs, as well as saving about 160m tonnes of imported oil.

source:Terra Green

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Barack Obama and four other US President’s name to be put on new discovered freshwater fishes

A newly discovered species of colourful, freshwater fish has been named after US President Barack Obama due to "global vision of environmental protection and conservation", said scientists. Five new species of freshwater fish called darters have been discovered in river drainage in eastern North America and named after four US presidents and a Vice-President, Scientific American Running Ponies blog reported.

Darters are the smallest members of the perch family, and are named after their ability to zip around, under, into rocks and sediment on the beds of clean, fast-moving waterways. Almost 200 darter species have so far been discovered, most of which live in the rivers and creeks of northern Alabama and eastern Tennessee.

source: Terragreen

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Hawaii became first US state to ban plastic bags at checkout counter in airports

The Honolulu Country in the state of Hawaii has joined three other countries to give Hawaii a first in the nation title as the state that has banned plastic bags at checkout counters in airports and train stations. "Passing the bans did not take an effort- change always does- but people seemed to understand the need for such an effort", Robert Harris, director of the Sierra Club's Hawaii chapter, told msnbc.com of the two-year campaign across the islands. The Honolulu

Country Council approved the ban in late April and Honolulu Mayor Peter Carlisle, who is also the country executive, initially held back his support, saying he wanted to collect more public input due to enforcement and cost concerns. "This is groundbreaking. By signing this environment-friendly bill, Honolulu joined our neighbour island countries", Carlisle said. "Hawaii has become thee only state in the US where every county has plastic bag legislation"

source:Terragreen

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Strong odour of garbage has overcome the incense of arati in Varanasi

The pleasing incense filling the atmosphere during arati and other rituals has been overcome by the strong odour of garbage. This is the scene at one of the most spectacular ghats in Varanasi, the Dasawamedh Ghats. The Ghats, which is centrally located and witnesses round the year activities, has started to crumble, as reflected in its broken steps and ruptured platforms. While the rec

eding Ganga had left heavy deposition oil silt and mud on the embankments, the dumping of leftovers of puja and other rituals on the ghat had turned the embankments murky. Loads of rotten flowers, garlands, and plastic bags can be found floating nears the embankments and wastes from other ghats are also carried along river banks. "The renovated steps and platforms have started to rupture, unable to withstand even two bouts of monsoon season. The stone slabs that were fixed to the steps and platforms have started to crumble, some of them already uprooted from their original place", said Vinod Majhi, one of the local boatmen and residents of the locality.

Source: Terragreen

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Climate change could influence the Colorado Mountain hail to disappear in a warmer future

Summertime hail could all but disappear from the eastern flank of Colorado's Rocky Mountains by 2070, says a new study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the University of Colorado Boulder's Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, and the National Center for Atmospheric Research. Less hail damage could be good news for gardeners and farmers, said lead author Kelly Mahoney, a research scientist at CIRES, but a shift from hail to rain can also mean more runoff, which could raise the risk of flash floods. "In this region of elevated terrain, hail may lessen the risk of flooding because it takes a while to melt," Mahoney said. "Decision makers may not want to count on that in the future". For the new study, published in the journal Natural Climate Change, Mahoney and her colleagues used "downscaling" techniques to try to understand how climate change might affect hail-producing weather patterns across Colorado.

 Source: Terragreen

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Solar projects could be clouded by Finance problems

The second round if the National Solar Mission, which has seen the lowest of the low tariffs, could soon face financing hurdles. The 350 MW of solar power saw birds as low as little than Rs.8 a unit. That is about 33% lower than the current average solar power tariffs of close to Rs. 12 per unit. Banks, which are already wary of lending t

o the power sector, are becoming more cautious with these projects. "I think these bids are aggressive to the extent that they might affect the long-term viability of these projects", says B K Batra, executive director of IDBI Bank. "But, developers might have made their calculations; we will have to see on what basis they were made". Sector experts say tariffs like Rs. 7.50 per unit and Rs. 7.9 could render these projects unviable if they were to get financing at current domestic rates of about 13%. "With non-recourse rupee financing of dept, it will be changing to achieve these tariff numbers and deliver a reasonable return to the equality investor", notes Debashish Mishra, senior director of accounting from Deloitte Touché Tomatsu.

Source: Terra Green

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