How is trash produced, processed and consumed? What can an individual do to understand and be a part of a waste conscious society? Garbology 101, an educational toolkit uses fun tools to inspire children!
Often ignored, soil is quite literally the foundation of our existence. However, soils are now threatened by a variety of factors including deforestation, improper cultivation and urbanization. The Global Soil Partnership is working to bring some focus to this neglected area. This article presents a short animated film produced by the partnership.
Ever wondered why there is so much fuss about groundwater getting scarce by the day and its quality deteriorating like never before ? And does the liquid and solid waste that my home releases into the environment everyday influence groundwater ? These questions and many more were answered in a recent training workshop organized by People’s Science Institute, Dehradun from 12th to 22nd December 2012. The training was conducted with the aim of promoting the integration of hydrogeology into mainstream watershed management with a focus on issues of equity, quality and sustainability. This was the third in this series of workshops organized by PSI after December 2011 and June 2012, with the focus on groundwater management in the Himalayan states of India.
This video demonstrates an alternative way of dealing with waste through a decentralised waste disposal method. Rahul Banerjee, Director, Dhas Gramin Vikas Kendra, believes in managing the waste at the point of origin itself, rather than expecting an already inefficient and over burdened local body to find a conducive solution.
What happens when two or more states are dependent on same water resource for agricultural purposes ? Do the states compete for the resource or are their needs sufficiently different from each other? What are the consequences of the competition for this precious resource?
A compilation by Andhra Pradesh State Groundwater Department & Central Groundwater Board gives details of volumetric data on the groundwater resources and its uses for the year 2007-08.
This report in Hindi by Rehmat and Makarand Purohit of Manthan Adhyayan Kendra deals with the water sector reforms, in particular with the Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT) scheme being undertaken in Badwani, Madhya Pradesh. This study of the water supply project in Badwani being implemented through public private partnership (PPP) mode provides insights on the impacts of the project and the conflicts that have been appearing in its wake.
To assess the exact level of water contamination in Nadia district of West Bengal, India Water Partnership commissioned a brief study to one of its east zone partners - Kalyani Institute for Study, Planning & Action for Rural Change (KINSPARC). KINSPARC conducted a comprehensive base-line survey of a cluster of villages in Nadia, based on which Iswaripur and Chandamari village were identified for in-depth study. Awareness and attitudinal changes among people generated by this survey may be interpreted as a step towards mitigating the threat of an impending disaster.
Prolonged and recurrent drought, being experienced in India and various parts of south Asia, is the manifestation of climate change, partly caused by human interventions.
Industrial effluents and sewage water are being diverted to the river Ganga by the cities and towns through which it passes. Nestled on the banks of Ganga, Kanpur, a highly urbanized and industrial city is polluting it most. Apart from the Government of India’s recently constituted National Ganga River Basin Authority, civil societies and NGOs too are putting rigorous efforts to make Ganga pollution free. Though the city has several big and small industries, the leather industries located in Jajmau, the oldest part of the city add to the problem of pollution in the river to a large extent.
