Amazon, a click away

People can now explore portions of the Amazon Basin from the comfort of their homes, thanks to Google’s free online map service. Pictures taken along the Rio Negro in Brazil last year have been woven into Google Maps, allowing users to virtually venture on waterways, trails and in villages.

News Snippets

>> Richard Yemm, the inventor of a device that uses giant wave machines to generate electricity by harnessing the power of the sea, has been given the Saltire Energy Award. Deemed as the Nobel for research in wave technology, the £10m prize is given by the Scottish government. >> Australia’s last river boat postman, Hawkesbury River ferry service at Brooklyn, has discontinued its operations.

Audit of reluctance

The ministry of environment and forests (MEF) has decided to postpone from May 15 to September 30 the date for industries to submit their first environmental audit. This corresponds to the date by which companies are expected to file annual reports.

'Clean environment has to be a fundamental right'

What has been your role in pushing for green provisions in Nepal's new Constitution? Interviewee:  Narayan Belbase

Let’s talk

Accreditation scheme on hold

THE accreditation scheme for environmental impact assessment consultants has hit a roadblock after the Karnataka High Court stayed it on January 19. The scheme launched in December 2009 by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) requires EIA consultants to get accredited with the Quality Council of India (QCI).

Letters - March 31, 2012

Science restricted

A way to live with the demon

I have often wondered whether I am doing the right thing by using anything that looks like plastic or buying anything remotely associated with it.

Money matters

The web is getting tighter. The South is realising that funds that were to pay for global environmental problems are entangled in countless issues.

Talk to neighbours

Down To Earth has been consistently arguing that people’s self-management is the best way to deal with the critical ecological problems facing India. This is a powerful thesis based on real-life experience of village communities that are actively battling ecological decline and the crises in their daily lives. During the past few months, India has suffered the traumatic experience of being rocked by communal disharmony. Can participatory politics help in the maintenance of urban communal harmony and peace and produce the same positive results as it does when dealing with rural natural resource management?