| Enviro-Chat --- World Environment Day 2008 Edition |
| Posted by Enviroadmin |
| Monday, 24 May 2010 19:48 |
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Happy Environment Day 2008, let’s all do something special for the environment today, every little bit counts. In South Africa, the entire month of June has been selected as Environment month and hopefully as more and more people come to their senses we will eventually declare each and every day environment day. Herewith the picks of the latest from environment news in South Africa and around the globe, much more news available at www.environment.co.za <http://www.environment.co.za> SOUTH AFRICA ENVIRONMENT NEWS Visit the Energex Expo 6-8 June 2008 - As part of its efforts to respond to the national campaign to save electricity by 10%, this initiative is brought to you by Gauteng Provincial Government and takes the form of an Energy Efficiency Products & Information Exhibition which will run from the 6th to the 8th of June 2008 at the Johannesburg Expo Centre ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2023> . June to be Celebrated as Environment Month - The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism will launch national Environment Month and various clean up campaigns on 2 June 2008. The national launch of Environment Month coincides with the global celebrations of World Environment Day on 5 June ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2026> . SA launches first commercial wind farm in W Cape - South Africa's first commercial wind energy project, the 5,2 MW Darling Wind Farm in the Western Cape, was officially launched on Friday by Minerals and Energy Minister Buyelwa Sonjica. Speaking at a media briefing, she said that although this project was modest in terms of its generation capacity, the timing of the launch of the wind farm was perfect in light of the country's current energy crisis ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2012> . SA to launch battery-operated car in 2009 - South African-designed, battery-operated passenger car is to be unveiled early next year, Deputy Science and Technology Minister Derek Hanekom announced on Friday. The development of the vehicle - described as "beautiful" by those who have had a glimpse of the design sketches - could not have come at a better time, he told MPs during debate in Parliament on the science and technology budget vote ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2006> . W Cape signs deal on second 80-MW wind farm - The Western Cape Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, together with the Saldanha Municipality, Seeland Development Trust, Oxfam UK and Genesis Eco-Energy, embarked on a process to develop an 80 MW wind farm on Thursday, with signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) governing the development of the project ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2004> . Climate change risks tend to be underestimated - Professional services organisation KPMG identified the six most prevalent sectors in danger of risks from climate change, and these were transport, tourism, aviation, healthcare, the financial sector, and the oil and gas sector. These sectors scored high on the risks facing the sector (either physical, regulatory, reputational, or litigious), and yet they scored poorly in terms of preparedness to face these risks ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2014> . CapeNature Not Out of the Woods Yet - CapeNature is "under new management", but the conservation authority still has some way to go before it will be "business as usual", the province has been warned ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2025> . Stiff sentences for 6 yellowwood fellers - In a case described as environmental rape, six men who cut down 86 yellowwood trees - some as old as 500 years - in the Gongqo-Gongqo State Forest near Umzimkulu in 2001, were given stiff jail sentences. Victor Terblanche, 65, and his sons Morne, 35, and Pierre, 39, were sentenced to an effective eight years' imprisonment, while their accomplices, Chief Wilson Ntlabathi, 66, Eric Sithole, 58, and Siphiwe Satywa, 68, received effective five-year jail terms ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1994> . Manganese poisoning inquiry resumes - A Department of Labour inquiry into exposure of workers to toxic manganese fumes and dust at the Assmang ferromanganese smelter near Durban will resume on Monday. Manganism is acquired by overexposure to airborne manganese and is a disease that affects the sufferer's central nervous system, leaving them with symptoms very similar to Parkinson's disease and multiplesclerosis ...read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2018> . Mining Activists Arrested Outside Amplats PPL Mine - Community members dispersing to their vehicles after a peaceful picket OUTSIDE Anglo Platinum's PPL Mine Property on 27 May were DRAGGED from their vehicles onto the PPL Property by the SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE SERVICES ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2001> . ANGLO PLATINUM has been trying to remove gravesites without family members' permission in Sekuruwe (near Amplats PPL Mine, north of Mokopane, Limpopo). Community members gathered early to protect their ancestors' graves, as well as several unknown graves that are being removed. WHY IS ANGLO PLATINUM REMOVING THESE GRAVES? TO MAKE WAY FOR A TAILINGS DAM ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2003> . Why is GM food not labelled as such? - The Consumer Protection Bill, an act of Parliament devised to protect the rights of consumers, as its name suggests, has come before the National Council of Provinces, usually the final step before ratification. Interestingly the NCOP has asked for comment on the bill before it is ratified. One issue that has elicited much debate is the matter of foods derived from crops that have been genetically modified (GM) ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2015> . WORLD ENVIRONMENT NEWS World Environment Day 2008 - World Environment Day, commemorated each year on 5 June, is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and action ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2022> . Abu Dhabi unveils zero-waste city - Abu Dhabi, the oil-rich emirate, has unveiled a plan to build a zero-waste, zero-carbon, car-less city in the desert. Famous for a history of development that triumphs over nature -- so much so that it transformed a desert strip into a place known for greenery and parkland -- the region's latest grand development project is for what is billed as the world's first carbon-neutral city, a community that will eventually house 50,000 people and 1,500 businesses near the emirate's airport ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1986> . French adopt contested GM crops bill - The French parliament on Thursday adopted a controversial bill on genetically-modified (GM) crops that had raised hackles in both the right-wing ruling camp and the opposition ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2000> . Europe Grapples Over Biofuels - Like much of the rest of the world, Europe has invested heaps of money and even more hope in the promise of biofuels to provide secure supplies of environmentally friendly energy. But now rising food prices, trade tensions and social unrest are prompting a rethink of the E.U.'s ambitious hopes for running its cars and trucks on biofuel ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1983> . China to ban thin plastic bags - The Chinese government is banning production and distribution of the thinnest plastic bags in a bid to curb the white pollution that is taking over the countryside. The bags are also banned from all forms of public transportation and "scenic locations." The move may save as much as 37 million barrels of oil currently used to produce the plastic totes, according to China Trade News ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2016> . Giant plastic soup floats out to sea - The Independent has an early contender for grossest news of the year when it reports on a “plastic soup” of waste floating in the Pacific Ocean. Scientists say that it is growing at an alarming rate and now covers an area twice the size of the continental United States ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1987> . Making a killing from hunger - For some time now the rising cost of food all over the world has taken households, governments and the media by storm. The price of wheat has gone up by 130% over the last year. Rice has doubled in price in Asia in the first three months of 2008 alone, and just last week it hit record highs on the Chicago futures market ... read more <http://www.environment.co.za/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=1961> . Much more news at www.environment.co.za <http://www.environment.co.za> |
