Bilateral cooperation to be enhanced in strategic areas of environment and Climate change

hri Prakash Javadekar, Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change today met his Malaysian Counterpart Mr. Datuk Seri G. Palanivel, Minister for Natural Resources and Environment. Both the principals agreed to strengthen the bi-lateral strategic partnership in the area of environment and climate change. They reiterated the need to work closely in the domain of international negotiations so as to protect the interest of developing countries.

During the discussions both the ministers discussed the possibility of co-operation in the areas of technical exchange for forest bio-diversity conservation with the focus on the following issues DNA Finger-printing of Wildlife animals, Sustainable forest management, Production forestry, Strengthening forest based livelihoods, E-waste management, River cleaning and water conservation etc. Possibilities for enhancing bilateral cooperation in areas of Climate Change and Watershed Management were also discussed.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri Javadekar said India was committed for cooperation in climate change negotiations under the UNFCCC, where both the countries belonged to the Like Minded Developing Countries (LMDC) group and needed to coordinate with each other so as to ensure that the developed countries did not shift the emission burden on the developing countries. The Minister said that a concerted stand was required on the Global Climate Change negotiations.

On the bio-diversity conservation and promotion, Shri Javadekar said that Indian White Tiger may be exchanged for famous Malayan Tapir. Shri Javadekar also referred to the draft MoU under consideration by the Malaysian Forestry Research and Development Board in the field of Bio-technology, tree improvement and Conservation of Forest Genetics Resources and requested his Malaysian counterpart to facilitate the signing of the MoU at the earliest. Appreciating India’s efforts in the areas of Climate Change and Watershed management, Malaysian Minister expressed his willingness to enhance technological co-operation. Secretary (Environment), Shri Ashok Lavasa said that in order to enhance bilateral cooperation the possibility of a draft MoU incorporating issues of mutual interest could be considered in order to enhance level of interaction and exchange.

CP/ ST

Power & Mines Ministers of States/UTS Meets to Chalk Out Strategy for Attaining 24x7 Power for all Piyush Goyal Urges for Mission Mode Approach

Shri Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of State( I/C) for Power, Coal & New & Renewable Energy has urged all States & UTs to work together in a time bound manner to achieve the goal of 24x7 Power for All. Inaugurating the Conference of Ministers of Power and Mines of States & UTs here today, Shri Goyal said that a “Mission Mode” approach in a fast track manner need to be adopted for solving problems in the energy sector. He said this conference will pave the way for getting a better understanding of the ground realities and practical problems of the States/UTs. The Minister also assured that the Centre is committed unequivocally to help resolves these issues.

Pointing out that the working of Ministries of Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy in an inclusive fashion is going to be the game changer in the energy sector, Shri Goyal appealed to all States &UTs to work as a team with the Centre for focusing on the development agenda of the Nation.

Expressing condolence over the loss of lives in J&K floods, the Minister suggested that the states which had experienced such massive natural disaster in recent times may send their experts to J&K for immediate relief and rehabilitation in consultation with National Disaster Relief Force.

The one day conference is being attended by Power and Mines ministers from 29 States and 5 UTs. The agenda of the meeting includes 24 x7 power for all, strengthening of Transmission network, Development of hydro power, Coal related issues and promotion of Renewable energy sources. 

PTI

Indian villages can use 'solar power technology' to turn saltwater into potable water

Indian villages can use 'solar power technology' to turn saltwater into potable water

Washington: Researchers have revealed that Indian villages could use solar power technology to turn salty water into sufficient potable water.

Around the world, there is more salty groundwater than fresh, drinkable groundwater. For example, 60 percent of India was underlain by salty water and much of that area was not served by an electric grid that could run conventional reverse-osmosis desalination plants.

MIT researchers showed that a different desalination technology called electrodialysis, powered by solar panels, could provide enough clean, palatable drinking water to supply the needs of a typical village.

The factors that point to the choice of electrodialysis in India include both relatively low levels of salinity, ranging from 500 to 3,000 milligrams per liter, compared with seawater at about 35,000 mg/L; as well as the region's lack of electrical power.

Such moderately salty water is not directly toxic, but it can have long-term effects on health, and its unpleasant taste can cause people to turn to other, dirtier water sources.

While many homes in India currently use individual, home-based filtration systems to treat their water, however, MIT graduate student Natasha Wright and Amos Winter concluded that village-scale systems would be more effective, both because fewer people would be left out of access to clean water, and because home-based systems are much harder to monitor to ensure effective water treatment.

Researchers plan to put together a working prototype for field evaluations in India in January. While this approach was initially conceived for village-scale, self-contained systems, researchers said that the same technology could also be useful for applications such as disaster relief, and for military use in remote locations.

The study is published in the journal Desalination.
Source: Zee News

Rajasthan Nuclear Plant Makes History, Runs Uninterrupted for Over 2 Years

Rawatbhata, Rajasthan:  An indigenously made nuclear plant in Rajasthan has created history by running continuously for a period 765 days, or a little over two years. Usually, most nuclear plants globally need to be shut down every year for maintenance; only well-maintained facilities can run for longer periods.

With this achievement, the 220 MW reactor has beaten an American unit which ran for 739 days at a stretch. Unit-5 at Rawatbhata, a Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) made at a cost of Rs. 1200 crore in 2010, is run by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and is now ranked number two globally for continuous generation of electricity by a nuclear plant. The pole position is still held by a Canadian reactor, Ontario Power Corporation's Pickering-7 plant, which ran continuously for 894 days before it was shutdown in 1994. The PHWRs are a type of reactors that are easier to run for longer periods as fuel can be added into the reactor without shutting them down for maintenance.

The world is lauding India on its achievement. "The achievement of Rajasthan's Unit-5 is another excellent example of how nuclear energy supplies clean, affordable and reliable electricity around the world," Agneta Rising, Director General, World Nuclear Association, London, told NDTV.

In this 765-day period, the reactor produced about 4258 million units of electricity, lighting up nearly 2.5 million homes in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. The NPCIL earned Rs. 1225 crore by selling the electricity generated by the Rawatbhata plant. According to estimates, this was more than the cost of installing the plant.

The reactor is expected to run for a full life of more than 40 years. Every year, the cost of fuelling and maintaining it comes to about Rs. 230 crore and it supplies electricity to the grid at a fixed tariff of Rs. 3.43 per unit. On the flip side, it generates about 33 cubic meters of radioactive waste year by burning 40 tonnes of natural uranium every year. This waste can remain dangerous for a very long time.

Basking in the after-glow of the nuclear milestone, Ratan Kumar Sinha, Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission said, "There is no release of carbon dioxide in the process of power generation from any of the nuclear power reactor including RAPS-5. The nuclear power is a clean and green source of energy which indeed is helpful in reducing the carbon emission in the environment." The NPCIL too points out that in the 765-day period, 4.25 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emission was avoided.

The reactor used 82 tonnes of uranium to produce the power output. In comparison, to generate a similar quantity of electricity in a thermal plant, a whopping over 3 million tons of coal would have been required.

After this record-breaking dream run, the plant will now be shut down for routine maintenance and safety checks.

Source: NDTV