Contamination, Pollution and Quality

A radical new method is fast emerging as an effective and sustainable solution to increasing pollution in urban lakes. Called floating treatment wetlands (FTW), they are artificial islands with plants that stay afloat on the lake. The plants clean the lake through hydroponics system, resulting in a cleaner, beautiful lake and an improved habitat for creatures that depend on it.

In a significant input for the growing debate on global climate change, a study by researchers at the Dehradun-based Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG) has found that there is a remarkable increase in the concentration of black carbon in the atmosphere near the pilgrim town of Gangotri in Uttarakhand during the two annual tourist seasons of April to June and during September and Octobe

Fluorosis continues to be a regional issue in Telangana to this day, even decades after the first cases were discovered in Nalgonda in 1937. More than three lakh people in the district are affected with skeletal and dental fluorosis, a stigma that has stuck for generations.

In 2010, nine-year-old Kailash from Miyati village, Jhabua developed symptoms of skeletal fluorosis. Fluorosis, which affects millions of people in India, is a health issue caused due to high fluoride content in drinking water. Skeletal fluorosis is marked by deformed bones.

Korba in Chhattisgarh is an industrial area which has a significant number of coal mines and thermal power plants. Fly ash is a byproduct of the thermal power plants and has become a significant problem for the residents of Korba now.

Treatment of wastewater containing industrial dyes and toxic heavy metals is a major environmental problem as available treatment techniques are not very efficient and environment-friendly. Now a team of Indian scientists has developed a nanomaterial drawn from seaweed for effective treatment of toxic wastewater without using any chemicals.

A recent BBC report projected that Bengaluru will run out of water soon.

West Bengal’s tryst with dengue in 2017 could not have been more deadly. Around 13000 people were affected and nearly 100 people lost their lives to the disease.

Faecal coliform contamination found to be significantly higher in rivers around holy sites

The GFES initiative aims to support the collaboration between users and researchers in the earlier stages of water science and promote the assimilation of local knowledge and users experiences into research design to develop ideas for future India-UK water research.