Climate policies lack focus on sustainable mountain development in East Africa

There is need to integrate issues of climate change adaptation into development policies, plans and strategies

Amazon deforestation up by 190 per cent

Satellite data shows 402 square km of the forest—an area more than two times the area of Kolkata—was cleared in September alone

Stark facts: Forest destruction

“What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another”- M K …

The new culprit of global warming

Though the world's attention is focussed on the degradation of tropical forests as a major contributor to global warming, the depletion of boreal …

Chipko's triumphs extend beyond the forest

A look at the achievements and failures of a movement that began spontaneously in the Garhwal region two decades ago to protect trees from human …

Tree-felling spells doom for nesting birds

The large-scale clearing of dead and diseased trees is threatening to wipe out bird species that nest in the cavities of these trees.

Chopping down the future

About 90 per cent of Arunachal Pradesh's revenue is generated by its forests. Yet these very forests are under heavy pressure, thanks to …

Railroad Blues

Illegal logging is being carried out in the Northeast under the guise of laying railway tracks

Stemming the root ?

While there are many who welcome the Supreme Court's ban on non-forest activities within forests because of its obvious advantages for the …

Heat and death

Summer is only just setting in. And already there are reports of deaths in Orissa due to a heat wave

Kodagu landslides not a natural disaster

Here’s an account of the situation in disaster-hit Kodagu in Karnataka by a geologist who volunteered for the relief work

Missing forests: A third of recorded forest area not assessed in latest govt survey

India has a forest cover of 77.53 million ha. But recorded forests—the area under the forest department— with forest cover are only 51.…

Sustainable Development Goal 15: World off track on protecting life on land, finds UN report

Overall progress in 12 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa reversed

Afforestation: How we planted 8,000 trees — and almost killed ourselves

For decades, humans have prioritised development over environment — and the consequences have been devastating

Daily Court Digest: Major environment orders (September 3, 2019)

Down To Earth brings you the top environmental cases heard in the Supreme Court, the high courts and the National Green Tribunal     

Trees likely to absorb CO2 only till 2100: Study

Continued dependence on fossil fuels and rapid deforestation have limited their level absorption 

How schoolchildren are 'seed-bombing' Bihar

A unique initiative by an NGO is helping the state increase its green cover while also spreading awareness

About 9,000 sq km of Brazilian Amazon lost to deforestation; government unaware

The study suggests that deforestation-related greenhouse gas emissions in Brazil are nearly twice as high as government estimates

Forestry should be tied with agriculture for socio-economic development

While agriculture can feed the world’s population, it is responsible for deforestation globally. The SOFO report shows how food security …

Monarch butterflies face risk of extinction due to habitat loss

The number of monarch butterflies in hibernation colonies of Mexico has reached a 20-year low, says report

Certified eco-friendly

Eco-labelling of timber products is around the corner with the launch of the Forest Stewardship Council, which brings together businesspersons, …

Hidden subsidies in power, paper industries

If paper and power prices included ecological costs, the consumer would have to pay at least 60 per cent more for them than he pays today

Figuring out natural costs

Many economists now argue that nature cannot be the provider of a perpetual free lunch. It's time to account for natural resource degradation …

Project disaster

A natural gas pipeline which is expected to wind its way through a forest area in western Thailand could jeopardise 14 protected areas and the …

Disappearing with the forest

Survival is not easy for an endangered species of gibbons when its habitat is being destroyed, says Kashmira Kakati