Clay the solution for safe disposal of biomedical waste, say IIT-G scientists 

A 99.6% reduction of viral contamination & very low diffusion rates were observed using compacted clays like bentonite and kaolin

International E-Waste Day: Why India needs to step up its act on recycling

India generated 3.2 million tonnes of E-waste in 2019; details of 90 per cent of this waste are undocumented

Karnataka government seeks more time to clean Bellandur Lake

Officials say that one month is too short a period to finish cleaning as they need to redirect the waste currently being dumped in the lake

Gujarat high court orders fencing of water bodies in Thatlej area

In the absence of proper protection laws, the city’s lakes are becoming vulnerable to encroachments and building activity, say activists

Light on mercury

Regulations to check mercury pollution take backseat as Centre promotes fluorescent light

Emerging hazard: Radioactive contamination increasingly found in scraps for recycling, says UN body

Radioactive contaminated metal, if used to manufacture household goods, could pose a potential health problem to unsuspecting consumers: …

NGT orders closure of industrial units in Bellandur Lake area

No industry would be allowed to operate in the lake area unless effluent emissions are under permissible limits. Industries found violating the …

Where river runs black

Industries from far and near dump untreated toxic effluents near Ulhasnagar, choking a river and sickening people

High time to address occupational hazards of waste pickers

Informal waste sector in India carry out most labour-intensive and least rewarding job; most work and live in hazardous conditions with no …

Urban shit: where does it all go?

India is staring at a big sanitation crisis and needs to reinvent its excreta disposal mechanism

Inaction in waste management leading to huge economic loss

Huge investment needed to clean billions of tonnes of waste that has been dumped across the world

Daily Court Digest: Major environment orders (June 7, 2022)

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

Effluent treatment plants must meet water quality norms by March 31: SC

Justice Kehar directs state governments to initiate criminal and civil proceedings against industrial units flouting norms

Kicking up a stink

Waste pickers in Pune force corporates and the municipality to address safe disposal of sanitary napkins

Blind spot in Namami Gange

By 2019, when Swachh Bharat Mission comes to an end, some 30 million septic tanks and pits would have been dug along the Ganga. It's time the …

10 reasons why Sri Sri Ravishankar should not be conducting the World Culture Festival on the Yamuna floodplain

The activity cannot be termed as a benign activity and shall have a permanent footprint on the floodplain, say experts

Dying oceans

Oxygen-deprived zones in oceans across the world have emerged as a huge threat to marine ecosystems

Delhi plans to remediate Okhla landfill by end of 2023. How will it do this?

CSE team found fresh waste continues to be disposed of at site; critical to use waste fractions recovered from landfill safely

NGT judgement on Okhla waste plant: no lessons learned

National Green Tribunal has, once again, made clear that it advocates a centralised system for waste processing which may not serve a long-term …

How Baddi pharma waste can make your medicines ineffective

The waste contains active ingredients used in antibiotics and may be contributing to the spread of antimicrobial resistance. It is time to …

Antimicrobial resistance: Prevention key to control pandemics

Important to prevent emergence and spread of infections to reduce need and dependence on antimicrobials

Lessons from two cities

Pune aims to become a zero-landfill city by 2015. With a range of solid waste management options, the target does not seem too ambitious. …

Mismanaged solid waste in Tanzania’s Mwanza city is polluting Lake Victoria

Critical for Mwanza to invest in source separation of waste, developing infrastructure for ensuring 100% collection coverage and efficient …

Win against waste colonialism: US group pledges restorative action after taking back ‘harmful’ report

A 2015 report by US-based Ocean Conservancy blamed 5 Asian countries for plastic waste

Why better sewage management in Chennai will help fight floods

Down To Earth Editor Sunita Narain explains how the city's three rivers and 320 tanks and lakes that worked as flood barriers are used mostly for …