Last year, the global generation of municipal waste reached 2.3 billion tonnes and the United Nations cautioned on Wednesday (Feb 28) that this garbage heap is projected to increase by two-thirds by 2050, posing severe consequences for health, economies, and the environment.

Also read:&nbsp;<a data-ctorig="https://www.wionews.com/world/saudi-arabia-accounts-for-half-of-annual-global-food-waste-report-680526" data-cturl="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/saudi-arabia-accounts-for-half-of-annual-global-food-waste-report-680526&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjChqqbms6EAxXX1zgGHS0KCuEQFnoECAQQAg&amp;usg=AOvVaw3uxwriTikQao9JIHluVGWG" dir="ltr" href="https://www.wionews.com/world/saudi-arabia-accounts-for-half-of-annual-global-food-waste-report-680526" target="_blank">Saudi Arabia accounts for half of annual global food&nbsp;waste: Report</a>

According to recent research by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), pollution is anticipated to surge, particularly in regions currently reliant on open dumping and burning, practices that release greenhouse gases and introduce toxic chemicals into soil, water, and air.

In the absence of prompt action, the waste volume is estimated to reach 3.8 billion tonnes by the mid-century, surpassing previous predictions.

The report also indicates that economic burdens will nearly double when factoring in hidden costs associated with inadequate waste disposal, encompassing pollution, health issues, and climate change. By 2050, these costs are expected to escalate to approximately $640 billion annually, up from around $361 billion in 2020.

Also read:&nbsp;<a data-ctorig="https://www.wionews.com/science/international-day-of-awareness-on-food-loss-and-waste-reduction-heres-how-food-waste-affects-the-environment-640920" data-cturl="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/science/international-day-of-awareness-on-food-loss-and-waste-reduction-heres-how-food-waste-affects-the-environment-640920&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwivtM2_ms6EAxW82DgGHajzAWEQFnoECAEQAg&amp;usg=AOvVaw0KaWDjubbOrsV0-5N1un2G" dir="ltr" href="https://www.wionews.com/science/international-day-of-awareness-on-food-loss-and-waste-reduction-heres-how-food-waste-affects-the-environment-640920" target="_blank">Explained | Int'l day of awareness of food loss &amp;&nbsp;waste&nbsp;reduction</a>

Inger Andersen, UNEP's Executive Director, emphasised the intrinsic link between waste generation and GDP, noting that many rapidly growing economies are grappling with the challenges of swift waste expansion.

She expressed hope that the report could assist governments in their endeavours to build more sustainable societies and secure a habitable planet for future generations.

The joint report by UNEP and the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), launched at the UN's Environment Assembly in Nairobi, serves as both a guide and a call to action.

Proposed solutions involve not only addressing waste disposal but also preventing the generation of rubbish in the first place. Enhanced disposal and treatment methods could reduce net annual costs to approximately $270 billion by 2050, according to the report.

Furthermore, a transition to a more circular economic model, decoupling increased prosperity from heightened waste, is advocated. This shift entails sustainable business practices and comprehensive trash management, potentially yielding a net gain of over $100 billion annually, as outlined in the report.

Also read:&nbsp;<a data-ctorig="https://www.wionews.com/science/ants-worst-affected-by-plastic-waste-get-snared-in-microparticles-study-647923" data-cturl="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-element-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/science/ants-worst-affected-by-plastic-waste-get-snared-in-microparticles-study-647923&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjChqqbms6EAxXX1zgGHS0KCuEQFnoECAIQAg&amp;usg=AOvVaw33DePAbSkJEbOl_kYMr_g9" dir="ltr" href="https://www.wionews.com/science/ants-worst-affected-by-plastic-waste-get-snared-in-microparticles-study-647923" target="_blank">Ants worst affected by plastic&nbsp;waste</a>

Zoe Lenkiewicz, lead author of the report from UNEP, underscored the urgent need for a zero-waste approach to mitigate pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, and adverse impacts on human health.

(With inputs from agencies)

Last year, the global generation of municipal waste reached 2.3 billion tonnes and the United Nations cautioned on Wednesday (Feb 28) that this garbage heap is projected to increase by two-thirds by 2050, posing severe consequences for health, economies, and the environment.

Last year, the global generation of municipal waste reached 2.3 billion tonnes and the United Nations cautioned on Wednesday (Feb 28) that this garbage heap is projected to increase by two-thirds by 2050, posing severe consequences for health, economies, and the environment. Also read: Saudi Arabia accounts for half of annual global food waste: Report According to recent research by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), pollution is anticipated to surge, particularly in regions currently reliant on open dumping and burning, practices that release greenhouse gases and introduce toxic chemicals into soil, water, and air. In the absence of prompt action, the waste volume is estimated to reach 3.8 billion tonnes by the mid-century, surpassing previous predictions. The report also indicates that economic burdens will nearly double when factoring in hidden costs associated with inadequate waste disposal, encompassing pollution, health issues, and climate change. By 2050, these costs are expected to escalate to approximately $640 billion annually, up from around $361 billion in 2020. Also read: Explained | Int'l day of awareness of food loss & waste reduction Inger Andersen, UNEP's Executive Director, emphasised the intrinsic link between waste generation and GDP, noting that many rapidly growing economies are grappling with the challenges of swift waste expansion. She expressed hope that the report could assist governments in their endeavours to build more sustainable societies and secure a habitable planet for future generations. The joint report by UNEP and the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA), launched at the UN's Environment Assembly in Nairobi, serves as both a guide and a call to action. Proposed solutions involve not only addressing waste disposal but also preventing the generation of rubbish in the first place. Enhanced disposal and treatment methods could reduce net annual costs to approximately $270 billion by 2050, according to the report. Furthermore, a transition to a more circular economic model, decoupling increased prosperity from heightened waste, is advocated. This shift entails sustainable business practices and comprehensive trash management, potentially yielding a net gain of over $100 billion annually, as outlined in the report. Also read: Ants worst affected by plastic waste Zoe Lenkiewicz, lead author of the report from UNEP, underscored the urgent need for a zero-waste approach to mitigate pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, and adverse impacts on human health. (With inputs from agencies)

Urgent global action needed to stop surge of polluting trash, UN warns

A majority of India`s pollution control agencies remain closed entities when it came to sharing information with the public with a mere handful of India`s pollution control boards and authorities are adequately putting out environmental and governance information into the public domain, a new rating study by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has found on Thursday. 
 
For calculating the Transparency Index and rating of pollution control boards on public disclosure - as the study is titled - the CSE assessed the data disclosure performance of 29 state pollution control boards (PCBs) and six pollution control committees from across the country. Of these, only 17 boards and committees scored 50 per cent or above. These are from Odisha, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Goa, Karnataka, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu &amp; Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan. 
 
"Governance and functioning-related data remains paper-bound: Information on functioning, actions taken by a board against polluting industries, public hearing data on new projects etc are rarely disclosed or remain difficult to access on the websites," CSE said in a release here. 
 
"State PCBs are entrusted with several functions under the provisions of the Water Act, 1974; Air Act, 1981; Water Cess Act, 1977; and various rules and notifications issued under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. One of these functions under Section 17(C) of the Air and Water Acts is to collect and disseminate information related to air and water pollution and also about its prevention, control or abatement. The law asks the boards to share the data in public domain. But this is rarely done in practice," said programme director, Industrial Pollution Unit, CSE, Nivit Kumar Yadav. 
 
Key findings of the report: 
 
Only 12 states have shared their latest annual reports on their websites: Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Sikkim, Tripura and West Bengal have shared annual reports of the year 2019-20; Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have shared annual reports of the year 2018-19 (which could be termed as the latest considering the COVID-19 situation in 2020). No initiative has been taken by 11 SPCBs/PCCs of the following states and Union territories in sharing their annual reports -- Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, J&amp;K, Jharkhand, Manipur, Andaman &amp; Nicobar, Chandigarh, Daman &amp; Diu, Dadra &amp; Nagar Haveli, Puducherry and Nagaland. 
 
The CSE study also found that the SPCB/PCCs have been protective of industries when it comes to non-compliance: Out of 35 SPCBs/PCCs, only five have shared soft copies of directions and show cause/closure notices issued on their websites - these are from J&amp;K, Rajasthan, Telangana, Uttarakhand and West Bengal. 
 
Only five boards - Delhi, Goa, Haryana, Tripura and Uttarakhand - have shared minutes of their board meetings on their websites: It is mandatory for SPCBs to meet at least once every three months. Board members in these meetings are supposed to discuss issues related to the functioning of the board, action plans, compliance and monitoring, and devising innovative methods to improve enforcement of laws. 
 
Only five SPCBs have shared information on inspection conducted by the boards: The PCBs of Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal have shared this information in their annual reports. 
 
Only nine SPCBs/PCCs have provided detailed information on public hearings, which include the executive summary, draft EIA report of the project, and minutes of the meeting. The states represented are Karnataka, Telangana, Delhi, Gujarat, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, Goa and Mizoram, the study said. 
 
"For this study, CSE collected data from two sources -- websites of SPCBs/PCCs and their annual reports. The study has evaluated the information shared by SPCBs/PCCs during the last four to five years (2016-21) and uses 25 indicators that provide a broader assessment on the type and amount of information shared. A few key indicators used in the study include the availability of information on direction/show cause/closure notices issued by boards, information on public hearings and EIA reports, non-attainment cities and polluted river stretches etc," programme officer, Industrial Pollution Unit, CSE, and author of the study Shreya Verma said. 
 
Limited data on current pollution levels: 
 
Data indicating the current pollution levels - air pollutants, waste etc - the basic indicators of environment health, is missing. Most boards display inadequate data, indicating no trends. More so, even details on upcoming projects and grievances of the general public of the locality are hardly displayed. 
 
Only 19 SPCBs/PCCs are displaying their CEMS data: 
 
This, even after a statutory obligation to do it, as per a Supreme Court order (February 22, 2017) and an environment ministry directive (GSR 96E January 29, 2018). The states from where these PCBs/PCCs come are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, J&amp;K, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. Of these 19, just five PCBs/PCCs display historical CEMS data. 
 
Laxity in sharing information on solid waste: 
 
Fourteen SPCBs/PCCs do not share any information on municipal waste generation; 11 on plastic waste generation; 10 on hazardous waste; and nine on e-waste. 
 
"We also found a lack of uniformity in displaying data. For instance, all the SPCBs/PCCs surveyed have different formats for their websites, which makes accessing information quite difficult. Similarly, there is no format for annual reports, hence, the information available varies from board to board," Verma said. 
 
Asserting that "improving transparency is a `must` when it comes to state pollution control boards," Nivit added, "Putting in the public domain the crucial pollution-related information, data and details of actions taken is critical - it can help policy-makers take the discussions to the next level of pollution management, and it can also reassure the people about efficiency of these boards and committees. SPCBs and SPCCs, therefore, must focus urgently to become more transparent by putting out data and improving the quality of their outreach for public engagement."

A majority of India`s pollution control agencies remain closed entities when it came to sharing information with the public with a mere handful of India`s pollution control boards and authorities are adequately putting out environmental and governance information into the public domain, a new rating study by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has found on Thursday.

A majority of India`s pollution control agencies remain closed entities when it came to sharing information with the public with a mere handful of India`s pollution control boards and authorities are adequately putting out environmental and governance information into the public domain, a new rating study by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has found on Thursday. For calculating the Transparency Index and rating of pollution control boards on public disclosure - as the study is titled - the CSE assessed the data disclosure performance of 29 state pollution control boards (PCBs) and six pollution control committees from across the country. Of these, only 17 boards and committees scored 50 per cent or above. These are from Odisha, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Goa, Karnataka, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan. "Governance and functioning-related data remains paper-bound: Information on functioning, actions taken by a board against polluting industries, public hearing data on new projects etc are rarely disclosed or remain difficult to access on the websites," CSE said in a release here. "State PCBs are entrusted with several functions under the provisions of the Water Act, 1974; Air Act, 1981; Water Cess Act, 1977; and various rules and notifications issued under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. One of these functions under Section 17(C) of the Air and Water Acts is to collect and disseminate information related to air and water pollution and also about its prevention, control or abatement. The law asks the boards to share the data in public domain. But this is rarely done in practice," said programme director, Industrial Pollution Unit, CSE, Nivit Kumar Yadav. Key findings of the report: Only 12 states have shared their latest annual reports on their websites: Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Sikkim, Tripura and West Bengal have shared annual reports of the year 2019-20; Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have shared annual reports of the year 2018-19 (which could be termed as the latest considering the COVID-19 situation in 2020). No initiative has been taken by 11 SPCBs/PCCs of the following states and Union territories in sharing their annual reports -- Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Bihar, J&K, Jharkhand, Manipur, Andaman & Nicobar, Chandigarh, Daman & Diu, Dadra & Nagar Haveli, Puducherry and Nagaland. The CSE study also found that the SPCB/PCCs have been protective of industries when it comes to non-compliance: Out of 35 SPCBs/PCCs, only five have shared soft copies of directions and show cause/closure notices issued on their websites - these are from J&K, Rajasthan, Telangana, Uttarakhand and West Bengal. Only five boards - Delhi, Goa, Haryana, Tripura and Uttarakhand - have shared minutes of their board meetings on their websites: It is mandatory for SPCBs to meet at least once every three months. Board members in these meetings are supposed to discuss issues related to the functioning of the board, action plans, compliance and monitoring, and devising innovative methods to improve enforcement of laws. Only five SPCBs have shared information on inspection conducted by the boards: The PCBs of Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal have shared this information in their annual reports. Only nine SPCBs/PCCs have provided detailed information on public hearings, which include the executive summary, draft EIA report of the project, and minutes of the meeting. The states represented are Karnataka, Telangana, Delhi, Gujarat, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, Goa and Mizoram, the study said. "For this study, CSE collected data from two sources -- websites of SPCBs/PCCs and their annual reports. The study has evaluated the information shared by SPCBs/PCCs during the last four to five years (2016-21) and uses 25 indicators that provide a broader assessment on the type and amount of information shared. A few key indicators used in the study include the availability of information on direction/show cause/closure notices issued by boards, information on public hearings and EIA reports, non-attainment cities and polluted river stretches etc," programme officer, Industrial Pollution Unit, CSE, and author of the study Shreya Verma said. Limited data on current pollution levels: Data indicating the current pollution levels - air pollutants, waste etc - the basic indicators of environment health, is missing. Most boards display inadequate data, indicating no trends. More so, even details on upcoming projects and grievances of the general public of the locality are hardly displayed. Only 19 SPCBs/PCCs are displaying their CEMS data: This, even after a statutory obligation to do it, as per a Supreme Court order (February 22, 2017) and an environment ministry directive (GSR 96E January 29, 2018). The states from where these PCBs/PCCs come are Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, J&K, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Telangana. Of these 19, just five PCBs/PCCs display historical CEMS data. Laxity in sharing information on solid waste: Fourteen SPCBs/PCCs do not share any information on municipal waste generation; 11 on plastic waste generation; 10 on hazardous waste; and nine on e-waste. "We also found a lack of uniformity in displaying data. For instance, all the SPCBs/PCCs surveyed have different formats for their websites, which makes accessing information quite difficult. Similarly, there is no format for annual reports, hence, the information available varies from board to board," Verma said. Asserting that "improving transparency is a `must` when it comes to state pollution control boards," Nivit added, "Putting in the public domain the crucial pollution-related information, data and details of actions taken is critical - it can help policy-makers take the discussions to the next level of pollution management, and it can also reassure the people about efficiency of these boards and committees. SPCBs and SPCCs, therefore, must focus urgently to become more transparent by putting out data and improving the quality of their outreach for public engagement."

Most pollution control boards in India are non-transparent: Centre for Science and Environment

It’s raining plastic - literally! 1,100 tonnes of micro plastics float in the skies of United States at any moment. Microplastics are increasingly being found across species and were recently spotted in a human placenta.

A new modelling was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and showed that 84 per cent of airborne micro plastics in Western USA came from roads outside of major cities.&nbsp;

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/water-with-microplastics-is-safe-world-health-organization-who-244807/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

An additional 11 per cent potentially came from the winds coming in from the ocean. Researchers behind the model also believe that the microplastics remain airborne for at least a week.

The particles raining down on humans are smaller than 5 millimetres and can be traced back to multiple sources including plastic bags and bottles that are thrown into waterways. Over time, these break into smaller pieces.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/entertainment/lifestyle/news-among-seafood-highest-levels-of-microplastics-found-in-molluscs-study-352659" hreflang="en">Among seafood highest levels of microplastics found in molluscs: Study</a>

The study cited washing machines as another source, for synthetic clothes release tiny microfibres after every wash, which are then into the water.

Plastics that are released into the ocean disintegrate into smaller pieces over time but never completely disappear. Even now, the number of microplastics in the ocean continue to increase.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/world/ocean-bed-now-has-more-microplastics-than-ever-before-296144" hreflang="en">Ocean bed now has more microplastics than ever before</a>

Microplastics continue to threaten marine life and could also pose threat to humans if consumed in large quantities. Plastic pollution is considered the major pollutant of oceans, and many patches of plastic garbage have emerged in the oceans over the last few decades.

It’s raining plastic - literally! 1,100 tonnes of micro plastics float in the skies of United States at any moment. Microplastics are increasingly being found across species and were recently spotted in a human placenta.

It’s raining plastic - literally! 1,100 tonnes of micro plastics float in the skies of United States at any moment. Microplastics are increasingly being found across species and were recently spotted in a human placenta. A new modelling was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and showed that 84 per cent of airborne micro plastics in Western USA came from roads outside of major cities. An additional 11 per cent potentially came from the winds coming in from the ocean. Researchers behind the model also believe that the microplastics remain airborne for at least a week. The particles raining down on humans are smaller than 5 millimetres and can be traced back to multiple sources including plastic bags and bottles that are thrown into waterways. Over time, these break into smaller pieces. Also read: Among seafood highest levels of microplastics found in molluscs: Study The study cited washing machines as another source, for synthetic clothes release tiny microfibres after every wash, which are then into the water. Plastics that are released into the ocean disintegrate into smaller pieces over time but never completely disappear. Even now, the number of microplastics in the ocean continue to increase. Also read: Ocean bed now has more microplastics than ever before Microplastics continue to threaten marine life and could also pose threat to humans if consumed in large quantities. Plastic pollution is considered the major pollutant of oceans, and many patches of plastic garbage have emerged in the oceans over the last few decades.

It's raining plastic and we can't even see it!

Aiming at promoting energy-efficient and environment-friendly hydrogen fuel cell-based vehicles in the country, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Wednesday notified the standards for safety evaluation of such vehicles through an amendment to Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989.

The Ministry said the standards for the testing of such vehicles, which are at par with the international standards, have been made available with the prospective manufacturers and suppliers.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/india-proud-to-endorse-us-initiative-on-joint-statement-on-universal-declaration-of-human-rights-329826">Also read:India 'proud' to endorse US initiative on joint statement on Universal Declaration of Human Rights&nbsp;</a>

According to the draft rules, the motor vehicles of Category M and Category N, running on compressed gaseous hydrogen fuel cell, shall be in accordance with AIS 157:2020, as amended from time to time, till the corresponding Bureau of Indian Standard Act, 2016, specification is notified.

Also, the hydrogen fuel specification for fuel cell vehicles will be in accordance with ISO 14687.

Earlier, gazetted copies of the draft rules were made available to the public on July 10, but no objections or suggestions were received in this respect.&nbsp;

Aiming at promoting energy-efficient and environment-friendly hydrogen fuel cell-based vehicles in the country, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Wednesday notified the standards for safety evaluation of such vehicles through an amendment to Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989.

Aiming at promoting energy-efficient and environment-friendly hydrogen fuel cell-based vehicles in the country, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Wednesday notified the standards for safety evaluation of such vehicles through an amendment to Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989. The Ministry said the standards for the testing of such vehicles, which are at par with the international standards, have been made available with the prospective manufacturers and suppliers. Also read:India 'proud' to endorse US initiative on joint statement on Universal Declaration of Human Rights According to the draft rules, the motor vehicles of Category M and Category N, running on compressed gaseous hydrogen fuel cell, shall be in accordance with AIS 157:2020, as amended from time to time, till the corresponding Bureau of Indian Standard Act, 2016, specification is notified. Also, the hydrogen fuel specification for fuel cell vehicles will be in accordance with ISO 14687. Earlier, gazetted copies of the draft rules were made available to the public on July 10, but no objections or suggestions were received in this respect.

Government notifies new evaluation standards for hydrogen cell vehicles

Tiny waxworms who gorge&nbsp;on plastic can potentially help in combatting pollution, as per a new study.

Scientists believe that they&nbsp;are&nbsp;capable of doing this due to their gut bacteria or microbiome.

Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/a-very-hungry-caterpillar-invades-asia-194892">A very hungry caterpillar invades Asia</a>

The findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

"We found that waxworm caterpillars are endowed with gut microbes that are essential in the plastic biodegradation process, " said Christophe LeMoine, co-author of the study and a professor of biology at Brandon University in Canada.

Watch: Changing India: City Spaces &amp; The Golden Caterpillar

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/changing-india-city-spaces-the-golden-caterpillar-3968/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

"This process seems reliant on a synergy between the caterpillars and their gut bacteria to accelerate polyethylene degradation," he added.

According to scientists, such plastic-consuming caterpillars can solve one of the world's most pressing issues, that is, pollution as they consume even polyethylene which is a common and non-biodegradable plastic currently clogging up landfills and seas.

Also read: <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/drought-pests-could-force-india-to-grant-duty-free-corn-imports-197618">Drought, pests could force India to grant duty-free corn imports</a>

The team found the wax worms broke down polyethylene plastic bags faster than other methods.

However, they believe that these creatures were not an immediate solution to plastic pollution, with still more work to be done to understand how the caterpillars and the microbes in their digestive tract work together before it can be adapted and replicated on a large scale.

Tiny waxworms who gorge on plastic can potentially help in combatting pollution, as per a new study. Scientists believe that they are capable of doing this due to their gut bacteria or microbiome.

Tiny waxworms who gorge on plastic can potentially help in combatting pollution, as per a new study. Scientists believe that they are capable of doing this due to their gut bacteria or microbiome. Also read: A very hungry caterpillar invades Asia The findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. "We found that waxworm caterpillars are endowed with gut microbes that are essential in the plastic biodegradation process, " said Christophe LeMoine, co-author of the study and a professor of biology at Brandon University in Canada. Watch: Changing India: City Spaces & The Golden Caterpillar "This process seems reliant on a synergy between the caterpillars and their gut bacteria to accelerate polyethylene degradation," he added. According to scientists, such plastic-consuming caterpillars can solve one of the world's most pressing issues, that is, pollution as they consume even polyethylene which is a common and non-biodegradable plastic currently clogging up landfills and seas. Also read: Drought, pests could force India to grant duty-free corn imports The team found the wax worms broke down polyethylene plastic bags faster than other methods. However, they believe that these creatures were not an immediate solution to plastic pollution, with still more work to be done to understand how the caterpillars and the microbes in their digestive tract work together before it can be adapted and replicated on a large scale.

Plastic-consuming caterpillars can help fight pollution: Study

China will adopt more efficient and targeted measures during its campaign against pollution next year, but will not relax the targets or ease the crackdown on violators, the environment ministry said in a statement on Monday night.

The push for new measures follows an annual meeting of top leaders last week which noted that the world`s second-largest economy is facing downward pressures.

"We will coordinate environmental protection with economic development and avoid simple and brutal forces to deal with violations," the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) said in a statement.

The ministry urged local environmental bureaus to help companies set pollution treatment solution plans and to pay attention to reasonable appeals of companies during environmental inspections.

Beijing has ditched blanket production cuts on heavy industry as part of its anti-pollution campaign and allowed local authorities to adopt measures based on regional emission levels. However, declining air quality in the past two months in northern China has stirred concerns that the government is easing up on violations.

The ministry did not disclose the air quality situation across 169 monitored cities in November.&nbsp;

However, Hebei province found that the average concentration of particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns (PM2.5), dangerous, because it can penetrate deep into the lungs, in all of its 11 cities, rose in November compared to a year earlier, according to a statement from the Hebei Environment Protection Bureau on Monday.

"China`s environmental protection campaign is facing multiple pressures...Some regions have weakened their cognition of the significance of the environment amid economic downstream pressure and we have seen imbalanced work progress in different places," said the MEE.

The MEE has scheduled a second round of national environmental inspections in 2019, and vowed to win the war against air pollution and promote water and soil protection.

In a separate statement on Tuesday, the MEE said it has issued 166,210 notices of penalty decisions to environmental regulation violators, with fines totalling 13.6 billion yuan ($1.98 billion) in the first 11 months this year. ($1 = 6.8783 Chinese yuan renminbi)

China will adopt more efficient and targeted measures during its campaign against pollution next year, but will not relax the targets or ease the crackdown on violators, the environment ministry said in a statement on Monday night.

China will adopt more efficient and targeted measures during its campaign against pollution next year, but will not relax the targets or ease the crackdown on violators, the environment ministry said in a statement on Monday night. The push for new measures follows an annual meeting of top leaders last week which noted that the world`s second-largest economy is facing downward pressures. "We will coordinate environmental protection with economic development and avoid simple and brutal forces to deal with violations," the Ministry of Ecology and Environment (MEE) said in a statement. The ministry urged local environmental bureaus to help companies set pollution treatment solution plans and to pay attention to reasonable appeals of companies during environmental inspections. Beijing has ditched blanket production cuts on heavy industry as part of its anti-pollution campaign and allowed local authorities to adopt measures based on regional emission levels. However, declining air quality in the past two months in northern China has stirred concerns that the government is easing up on violations. The ministry did not disclose the air quality situation across 169 monitored cities in November. However, Hebei province found that the average concentration of particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns (PM2.5), dangerous, because it can penetrate deep into the lungs, in all of its 11 cities, rose in November compared to a year earlier, according to a statement from the Hebei Environment Protection Bureau on Monday. "China`s environmental protection campaign is facing multiple pressures...Some regions have weakened their cognition of the significance of the environment amid economic downstream pressure and we have seen imbalanced work progress in different places," said the MEE. The MEE has scheduled a second round of national environmental inspections in 2019, and vowed to win the war against air pollution and promote water and soil protection. In a separate statement on Tuesday, the MEE said it has issued 166,210 notices of penalty decisions to environmental regulation violators, with fines totalling 13.6 billion yuan ($1.98 billion) in the first 11 months this year. ($1 = 6.8783 Chinese yuan renminbi)

China plans more nuanced anti-pollution measures in 2019: Ministry

Why should Indians worry when Deepavali, a festival of joy, approaches? Why should agricultural harvests, once a cause for celebration in all regions of India, make the residents of Delhi groan in despair? Should pregnant Indian women in cities henceforth go to rural areas to deliver and bring up their children? Alarmist as these questions sound, they highlight the grim reality of air pollution in India.

The Global Burden of Disease (2016) ranked air pollution as the second highest contributor to death and disability in India, next only to malnutrition. Both indoor and outdoor (ambient) air pollution pose several acute and chronic threats to health, causing over 1.8 million deaths. A recent WHO report estimates that over 100,000 children die each year from air pollution in India. While indoor pollution had the higher count of deaths two decades ago, ambient air pollution is the bigger killer now according to recent estimates. In reality, both are major killers with both forms of pollution mixing with each other as air flows between homes and the streets.

Fourteen of the world’s 20 most polluted cities are in India. Most of the cities in India, large and small, are in the list of highly polluted urban settlements by global standards. Among all cities in the world, between 1998 and 2016, the largest rise in ambient air pollution (44 per cent) has been recorded in Delhi. Global health agencies as well as economic growth charters worry about India’s smoggy future, as the menace mounts.

Air pollution, from a wide range of sources, damages health through many agents and several pathways, resulting in a multitude of harmful health effects. The complex mixture of pollutants includes carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, lead, arsenic, mercury, sulphur dioxide, poly aromatic hydrocarbons and particulate matter (PM). While the air quality indices and media reports usually inform us about PM10 and PM2.5 permeating through our deeper airways and lungs and damaging them, scientists warn us that ultrafine particles (PM&lt;0.1) penetrate further to enter the blood stream causing further havoc. Even within the PM2.5 category, combustion derived particles are more toxic than those that emanate from construction dust. Ground level ozone too will rise due to secondary chemical effects, hurting the lungs. Air pollutants can also be ingested through contaminated water, food, soil or vegetation on to which the pollutants may settle.&nbsp;

The health effects are manifest in disorders of many organs. The common underlying mechanism is inflammation. Damaged airways and lungs can result in asthma, respiratory infections, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or lung cancer. Cardiovascular disease is now recognised to be particular common, due to blood vessel injury and increased clotting tendency causing heart attacks and paralysing brain strokes. Effects on children is particularly horrendous, because their small airways and lungs are especially vulnerable to toxic injury. Pregnant women may pass pollutants they breathe in to the foetus through placental blood flow, resulting in still birth or a growth retarded baby. Childhood may be blighted by lung and ear infections, with even the risk of childhood cancers like leukaemia and retinoblastoma. Both physical and cognitive growth are affected as both body and brain of the young child are ravaged by the polluted air he or she is forced to breathe. The elderly too are especially vulnerable to the many maladies that air pollution inflicts.

The many sources of air pollution in India include the emissions from vehicular transport, coal consuming thermal power plants, construction dust, burning of agricultural crop residues and garbage, brick kilns and burning of solid biomass fuels for cooking. While the deterioration of air quality is agonised in the media and denounced by an angry public at certain times of the year (Deepavali, post-harvest, winter slowdown of air currents), the fact remains that we breathe polluted air (much above WHO’s cautionary thresholds) even during the rest of the year. The cumulative of such prolonged exposure is likely to be very harmful to health. Alas, even the rural areas in India are recording rising levels of air pollution. Surely, the Himalayas cannot become the refuge of all of India’s population which will soon become the largest in the world!

The health of the economy will also feel the ill effects of air pollution. The physical effects, which range from lassitude to lethal diseases, will hurt productivity. Compromised cognitive brain power, from childhood, will corrode the demographic developmental dividend of our young population. Healthcare costs will escalate &nbsp;as acute and chronic disorders deluge the health services. Investors will shy away from the highly unwelcoming air of the Indian cities.&nbsp;

Piecemeal solutions will not work. All sources of air pollution must be earnestly and effectively tackled, all across the country and all year round. Targets must be set, monitored and accomplished. A national consensus for concerted action against air pollution must emerge from the national distress, binding the central and state governments to time bound actions. The health of the nation is in peril and the future of our children is at stake. It is time for resolute action, not just seasonal lament. 
 
(This article was originally published on DNA. Read the<a href="https://www.dnaindia.com/analysis/column-air-pollution-menace-mounts-2682118"> original article</a>)

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

&nbsp;

Why should Indians worry when Deepavali, a festival of joy, approaches? Why should agricultural harvests, once a cause for celebration in all regions of India, make the residents of Delhi groan in despair?

Why should Indians worry when Deepavali, a festival of joy, approaches? Why should agricultural harvests, once a cause for celebration in all regions of India, make the residents of Delhi groan in despair? Should pregnant Indian women in cities henceforth go to rural areas to deliver and bring up their children? Alarmist as these questions sound, they highlight the grim reality of air pollution in India. The Global Burden of Disease (2016) ranked air pollution as the second highest contributor to death and disability in India, next only to malnutrition. Both indoor and outdoor (ambient) air pollution pose several acute and chronic threats to health, causing over 1.8 million deaths. A recent WHO report estimates that over 100,000 children die each year from air pollution in India. While indoor pollution had the higher count of deaths two decades ago, ambient air pollution is the bigger killer now according to recent estimates. In reality, both are major killers with both forms of pollution mixing with each other as air flows between homes and the streets. Fourteen of the world’s 20 most polluted cities are in India. Most of the cities in India, large and small, are in the list of highly polluted urban settlements by global standards. Among all cities in the world, between 1998 and 2016, the largest rise in ambient air pollution (44 per cent) has been recorded in Delhi. Global health agencies as well as economic growth charters worry about India’s smoggy future, as the menace mounts. Air pollution, from a wide range of sources, damages health through many agents and several pathways, resulting in a multitude of harmful health effects. The complex mixture of pollutants includes carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, lead, arsenic, mercury, sulphur dioxide, poly aromatic hydrocarbons and particulate matter (PM). While the air quality indices and media reports usually inform us about PM10 and PM2.5 permeating through our deeper airways and lungs and damaging them, scientists warn us that ultrafine particles (PM<0.1) penetrate further to enter the blood stream causing further havoc. Even within the PM2.5 category, combustion derived particles are more toxic than those that emanate from construction dust. Ground level ozone too will rise due to secondary chemical effects, hurting the lungs. Air pollutants can also be ingested through contaminated water, food, soil or vegetation on to which the pollutants may settle. The health effects are manifest in disorders of many organs. The common underlying mechanism is inflammation. Damaged airways and lungs can result in asthma, respiratory infections, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or lung cancer. Cardiovascular disease is now recognised to be particular common, due to blood vessel injury and increased clotting tendency causing heart attacks and paralysing brain strokes. Effects on children is particularly horrendous, because their small airways and lungs are especially vulnerable to toxic injury. Pregnant women may pass pollutants they breathe in to the foetus through placental blood flow, resulting in still birth or a growth retarded baby. Childhood may be blighted by lung and ear infections, with even the risk of childhood cancers like leukaemia and retinoblastoma. Both physical and cognitive growth are affected as both body and brain of the young child are ravaged by the polluted air he or she is forced to breathe. The elderly too are especially vulnerable to the many maladies that air pollution inflicts. The many sources of air pollution in India include the emissions from vehicular transport, coal consuming thermal power plants, construction dust, burning of agricultural crop residues and garbage, brick kilns and burning of solid biomass fuels for cooking. While the deterioration of air quality is agonised in the media and denounced by an angry public at certain times of the year (Deepavali, post-harvest, winter slowdown of air currents), the fact remains that we breathe polluted air (much above WHO’s cautionary thresholds) even during the rest of the year. The cumulative of such prolonged exposure is likely to be very harmful to health. Alas, even the rural areas in India are recording rising levels of air pollution. Surely, the Himalayas cannot become the refuge of all of India’s population which will soon become the largest in the world! The health of the economy will also feel the ill effects of air pollution. The physical effects, which range from lassitude to lethal diseases, will hurt productivity. Compromised cognitive brain power, from childhood, will corrode the demographic developmental dividend of our young population. Healthcare costs will escalate as acute and chronic disorders deluge the health services. Investors will shy away from the highly unwelcoming air of the Indian cities. Piecemeal solutions will not work. All sources of air pollution must be earnestly and effectively tackled, all across the country and all year round. Targets must be set, monitored and accomplished. A national consensus for concerted action against air pollution must emerge from the national distress, binding the central and state governments to time bound actions. The health of the nation is in peril and the future of our children is at stake. It is time for resolute action, not just seasonal lament. (This article was originally published on DNA. Read the original article) (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Air pollution: It's time for resolute action

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