Category Science

WHAT IS A WILDLIFE UNDERPASS?

Many of our busy national highways cut deep through forests. Animals that cross these roads may sometimes get run over by fast-moving vehicles. To avoid this, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has built nine dedicated underpasses for wildlife on the national highway NH47 that passes through the Kanha-Pench forest belt.

The cameras installed in the underpasses have revealed that a number of wild animals use them. The animals, including tigers, used the underpasses mostly at night to cross over to the other side of the forest. While some stayed back to take a nap or to have some fun with their playmates, a few others prowled the dark underpasses hoping for a good catch!

The concept was first developed in France in the 1950s. It took off in the Netherlands, where more than 600 crossings have been constructed to protect badgers, elk and other mammals. The Dutch built the world’s longest animal crossing, the Natuurbrug Zanderij Crailoo, an overpass that spans more than 0.8 kilometers (0.5 miles). Wildlife crossings can also be found in Australia, Canada and other parts of the world. The idea took a little longer to catch on in the United States, but wildlife bridges and tunnels began appearing there in the 21st century.

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WHAT ARE SACRED GROVES?

The sacred grooves are the trees which are considered as socially, culturally, medicinally or religiously important. The common examples of sacred grooves are Ficus Religiosa (Peepal) tree and Ficus benghalensis (Banyan) tree. They are known as sacred groves because there are small shrines or temples inside them honouring local deities. They are pockets of forests where people are forbidden to cut the trees or disturb the animals for fear of angering the resident gods. They can only collect honey, twigs, medicinal herbs and litter.

Sacred groves are found in every state of India though they are known by different names. There are more than 20,000 sacred groves with the most – 5000-found in Himachal Pradesh. Some are small, occupying a few hectares, while others, like the Hariyali grove in Uttarakhand and the Deodar grove near Shimla, are spread over hundreds of hectares.

In Maharashtra they are called devarahi, in Karnataka, devarakaadu, in Rajasthan oran, in Himachal, devbhumi, in Kerala kaavu and kovil kaadu in Tamil Nadu.

The groves are extremely important because they are biodiversity hotspots. Not only do they contain hundreds of rare and valuable plants and trees, some of which are used in traditional medicines, but also different species of insects, birds and mammals. The trees help anchor the fertile topsoil and the litter provides valuable humus that local farmers cart away to replenish their fields. Ponds and streams run through these sacred groves helping to raise the water table.

Sacred groves have reduced in number and size over the years. In some groves, the trees have been cut to increase the space for religious activities – the shrines now attract too many pilgrims. Others have been taken over for cultivation. Unless local people become more involved in protecting and restoring them, sacred groves, and with them a treasure trove of ecosystems, will soon be gone forever.

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WHAT IS FOREST BATHING?

Forest bathing, better known as Shinrin Yoku in Japanese culture, is the practice of walking in the woods mindfully. In 1982, the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries created the term shinrin-yoku, which translates to “forest bathing” or “absorbing the forest atmosphere.” The practice encourages people to simply spend time in nature — no actual bathing required.

Anasuya Menon

Have you walked in a forest? Under the towering trees, with sunlight streaming down in thick long columns? Have you listened to the song of the birds or the sounds of a gurgling stream? Have you felt and probably smelt the fresh forest air? If you have done all of the above, you have forest bathed.

‘Forest bathing’ is nothing but. a mindful walk in the woods. The practice has its origins in Japanese culture, where it is called shinrin-yoku. The idea is to take in the forest through the senses. Being in the midst of nature refreshes the mind, energises and rejuvenates the body, says practitioners of forest bathing.

Re-connecting with nature

The concept has caught on in India, especially in the past few years with nature groups organising forest-bathing tours to help people reconnect with nature. “Forest bathing is not activity-oriented. It is a contemplative process, where the participants are guided to take in the forest through their senses. As a guide, I only help participants experience the energy of the forest,” says Dipika Sharma from Noida, who has been conducting forest bathing walks for groups in Delhi since 2019. “People are now increasingly aware of the therapeutic effect of nature especially after two years of being confined at home because of the pandemic,” says Dipika, who founded Forest Therapy, an organisation that conducts forest bathing tours.

Introducing children to forest bathing would help them form a lasting bond with nature, says Verhaen Khanna, commercial pilot-turned environmental activist, who has been conducting forest bathing workshops for school and college students.

“When children are out in the wild, their instincts are most alive. It instills a sense of curiosity in them. While on these walks, children usually ask me a lot of questions about the sights, smells and sounds of the forest. At times, it might be about a strange insect they have seen or it could be about a sound they heard. They become very aware of their surroundings,” says Verhaen. Being amid trees is also believed to boost immunity, says Verhaen, whose organisation, New Delhi Nature Society organises a variety of programmes for children starting from listening to birds to creating art, planting trees, mediation, tree climbing, yoga in the park and saving trees. “We have children as young as four years of age taking part. I have seen that children enjoy the time in the wilderness,” says Verhaen. The most receptive are children in the four to seven age group. “They are very attentive. They are curious about snakes and spiders. We ensure their safety, of course,” he adds.

The basic idea is to help children appreciate nature and understand how important it is to to be able to co-exist with nature. “We are also, in a way, helping them create memories. And the experience of a forest will stay with them for a long time,” Verhaen says.

In addition to building a bond with nature, children also develop their personalities by learning how to interact with others in the group.

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WHAT IS LIGHT POLLUTION?

It’s unnecessary light which creates health hazards for humans and animals, and affects the ecosystem. Ms. Sumaira Abdulali, an activist who has been fighting against noise pollution, is now urging the government to regard light pollution as a serious environmental hazard and frame a regulatory policy to make night-time lighting safer. Learn more about light pollution and what we can do about it here.

What is unnecessary light?

Flashing lights and additional colours in hoardings, halogen lights, car headlights, street lights using blue LED lights of high intensity are a few examples (the International Dark Sky Association recommends using LEDS of 3000 Kelvin or below).

Wrong lighting is also hazardous. For example, street lamps that don’t light up an area uniformly create patches of brightness followed by darkness. If they are not shielded and set on high masts. the light gets projected onto the eyes of residents or they get directed into the sky, causing a sky glow and blotting out the moon and the stars.

Light is necessary, so how can we prevent it from becoming a hazard?

Use light only when needed and in the required amount. Use better lights, not brighter lights. Instead of using very bright lights that light up only particular areas, have lights that light up the room evenly. Switch over from blue light to yellow light. Blue light creates glare impairs vision and brightens the sky more than any other colour. Have shades for lights. Deploy motion sensors instead of leaving lights on all night. Also avoid watching TV or working at the computer at night without lights.

What should the government do?

The government should plan a proper lighting policy with rules regarding what is the right amount of light, what is appropriate light and state the limit for light pollution. It should see that car headlights are checked for colour. intensity and beam angles so that they don’t create temporary blindness in drivers of oncoming cars. pedestrians and people living close to the streets.

It should hold advertisers responsible for light clutter (grouping of lights that cause confusion and distract from obstacles, potentially causing accidents). It should also ensure that street lights are shielded, placed at the right distance from each other and at the right height and angle, so that they project light down onto the street..

What can children do to reduce light pollution?

Children should be taught about light pollution. They could use a single yellow light. that would brighten up the entire room when they want to study or read but at other times, they could make use of low voltage lights. They should also turn off lights when not in use.

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WHAT ARE POLLUTION PERILS?

Pollution is considered to be one of the world’s biggest environmental threats. Here are ten shocking facts about pollution.

  1. Plastic pollution adversely affects marine life. Over 1 million seabirds and 1,00,000 sea mammals are killed by plastic litter in the oceans every year.
  2. In January 2019, the Ministry of Environment. Forest and Climate Change (MOEFCC) launched the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) to monitor and curb air pollution around the country. It aims to reduce air pollution in 122 cities by 20-30 per cent by 2024.
  3. According to the World Air Quality Report, 2020′ released by the Swiss organisation, IQAir, New Delhi is the most polluted capital city in the world. Altogether 35 Indian cities are among the world’s top 50 most polluted cities.
  4. River Ganga flows through many urban centres such as Kanpur, Patna and Kolkata, which dump their industrial effluents and wastewater in the river. The entire length of the river is polluted by the presence of faecal coliform bacteria (germs found in the faeces of warm-blooded animals and humans), making its waters unfit for bathing and drinking.
  5. About 70% of water sources in India are severely contaminated. Every year about 37.7 million Indians are affected by waterborne diseases.
  6. Noise pollution is one of the most under-rated forms of pollution. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), noise above 65 decibels (dB) is termed as noise pollution. Sounds becomes harmful when its exceeds 75 decibels (dB) and painful when it is above 120 dB.
  7. Only 20% of about 3.5 million tonnes of solid waste that our world generates every day is recycled, thus overwhleming the landfills with unmangable quantities. Waste is often disposed of at hazardous open dump sites in developing nations including India causing land pollution. Indiscriminate use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides has led to degradation of soil. making it infertile.
  8. According to the WHO, air pollution kills about seven million people worldwide every year. Almost all of the global population (99%) breathe air that contains high levels of pollutants.
  9. 80% of the world’s wastewater is released back into the environment-most of it untreated, in the developing countries. Farm runoffs containing minerals such as nitrogen and phosphurus causes nutrient pollution leading to algae bloom. This destroys marine life and even results in permanent ‘dead zones.
  10. The Asian Brown Cloud (ABC) is a dense fog of pollutants that blankets South Asia from November to April. It hovers over western China, northwest Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Indo-Gangetic plain in northern India. The cloud is almost three kilometres thick. It contains a deadly cocktail of aerosols, ash, soot and other particles, 80 per cent of which is caused by human activity.

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WHAT’S YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT?

Your carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gases (including carbon dioxide and methane) that are generated by your actions. This includes everything from production, use and end-of-life of a product or service that you consume.

While the global average carbon footprint is close to 4 tons, it is as high as 16 tons per person in a country like the U.S. In order to achieve the net-zero targets that we have set ourselves for 2050, this average figure has to be brought down to under 2 tons per person by then.

This daunting task can be made achievable by breaking it down suitably. By understanding your carbon footprint and reducing it with changes in your lifestyle, it is possible to make a big difference.

HOW CAN YOU CALCULATE YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT?

There are many online calculators that help you find out your carbon footprint. Most of our daily activities like using electricity, driving a vehicle, or disposing waste. Cause greenhouse emissions. All these emissions together make up our household’s carbon footprint. Transportation, housing and food are the three broad categories that form the bulk of an individual’s carbon footprint. You will need to know the following details to key into a calculator and find out your carbon footprint:

1) Energy usage in your house.

2) Fuel consumption for cooking.

3) Average distances travelled by flights, car, two-wheelers, bus and train.

4) Composition of diet and average money spent on shopping and various other consumables on a weekly/monthly/yearly basis. Once you have a ballpark estimate of these values, you can then enter them into a calculator like this one: v.gd/cfcalc

Your carbon footprint across categories and the total will then be displayed, comparing it with India’s average (if you had used our link) and that of the world’s.

Knowing your carbon footprint is the first step towards reducing it. And when you reduce your carbon footprint, you will not only save the planet, but also increase your own savings.

HOW CAN YOU REDUCE YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT?

Knowing your carbon footprint is the first step towards taking action. Once you are more aware of the effects of your actions, then it is possible to start with small changes in your lifestyle that might eventually make a big difference.

Here are some pointers that you and your family can act upon

1) Think about how much and how often you travel. Cut down where you can, especially air travel, and try to make the unavoidable trips more climate-friendly.

2) Be conscious of what you are eating. By eating low down the food chain as frequently as you can, you will not only be able to reduce your carbon footprint, but also stay healthier in the process. Eating everything on the plate is also very important as wasting less food helps you cut down on your carbon footprint while also saving you some money.

3) Make small changes in your home. Be it turning off lights and appliances when not in use, choosing renewables, recycling products, or making your home more energy efficient, there are plenty of things that you can do to save energy and money.

4) By buying less, shopping sustainably and adding your voice to the climate change discussion, you will be able to achieve more towards saving our planet.

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