deforestation

Flood and Drought Occurrence Drought Drought is a complex, slow-onset phenomenon of ecological challenge that affects people more than any other natural hazards by causing serious economic, social and environmental losses in both developing and developed countries. The period of unusual dryness (i.e. drought) is a normal feature of the climate and weather system in semi-arid and arid regions of the tropics, which covers more than one-third of the land surface and is vulnerable to drought and desertification. A drought is an extended period where water availability falls below the statistical requirements for a region. Drought is not a purely ... Read more

Man-animal conflicts are common in various parts of the country. Incidents of man-animal conflict are reported from States/Union Territories of the country. In India, wild elephants probably kill far more people than tiger, leopard or lion. But, surprisingly, human conflict involving leopard draws great amount of public attention compared to other animals. Other carnivores – tigers, lions and wolves which have been known for causing a large number of human deaths in the past, are now mostly restricted in range and their impact is not as widespread as that of the leopard. The Government  supplements the financial resources available with the States/ ... Read more

The Greenhouse Effect The greenhouse effect is a natural phenomenon that insulates the Earth . Incoming solar radiations are absorbed and reemitted back from the Earth’s surface as infrared energy, greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere prevent some of this heat from escaping into space, instead reflecting the energy back to further warm the surface. Human activities that produce GHGs (anthropogenic) amplify the greenhouse effect. Anthropogenic GHG emissions are modifying the Earth’s energy balance between incoming solar radiation and the heat released back into space, resulting in climate change. Gases such as CO2 , NO2 , CFCs (chloro fluorocarbons) allow sun ... Read more

In order to check rapid deforestation due to forestlands being released by state governments for agriculture, industry and other development projects (allowed under the Indian Forest Act) the federal government enacted the Forest Conservation Act in 1980 with an amendment in 1988. The Act made the prior approval of the federal government necessary for de-reservation of reserved forests, logging and for use of forestland for non- forest purposes. The Forest Conservation Act 1980 was enacted to help conserve the country’s forests. It strictly restricts and regulates the de-reservation of forests or use of forest land for non-forest purposes without the prior approval ... Read more

Climate Change   It is the long term change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods of time Though it has been happening naturally for millions of years, in recent years it has accelerated due to anthropogenic causes and has been causing global warming. UNFCCC defines climate change as – “a change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activitythat alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods”   Climate Change Mitigation Alternative Energy sources Renewable energy Nuclear Power Reduce the carbon intensity of fossil ... Read more