PCB team inspects waste flow into Pampa

PATHANAMTHITTA: The Kerala State Pollution Control Board (PCB) has taken serious notice of the alarming pollution of the Pampa river due to large-scale discharge of liquid waste from the temple complex at Aranmula, according to K. Sajeevan, Chief Environmental Engineer of the board.

Mr. Sajeevan, accompanied by Paulus Eapen, PCB District Environmental Engineer, P.G. James and A.M. Harris, assistant environmental engineers, was talking to reporters at Aranmula while inspecting the waste discharge points on the banks of the Pampa on Friday.He said the PCB team had noticed discharge of waste from the toilets as well as kitchens attached to the temple complex into the river. Though the PCB had directed the temple authorities to check flow of filth into the river, the situation continued to be alarming, he said.

Waste discharge

He said discharge of waste into the Pampa could not be allowed as it was the main drinking water source of majority of the population of Pathanamthitta and Alappuzha districts. Mr. Sajeevan said the Administrative Officer attached to the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) at Aranmula too was summoned to the discharge site during the inspection. The TDB official said he would take up the matter with the TDB works department immediately.

Mr. Sajeevan said he would submit a detailed report to the PCB chairman recommending immediate action against the violation of pollution control norms at Aranmula.

Source :The Hindu, 4-9-2010

Formula milk puts babies' health at risk: Study

LONDON: In one more reason why mothers should breastfeed their babies as long as possible, scientists in UK have found that formula milk contain 40 times more aluminium than breast milk, potentially putting the toddlers' health at risk.

Researchers at the Keele University, Staffordshire, who examined 16 of the UK's leading formula milk brands meant for children up to the age of one, found that traces of the metal in those products are much higher than is legally allowed in water.

One formula made by Cow & Gate — specifically marketed for premature babies — had the highest level of all, with more than 800 micrograms per litre, the researchers said.

European law states water can contain no more than 200 micrograms of aluminium per litre, the Daily Mail reported.

Dr Chris Exley, who led the study, said: "We've known about the high aluminium content in infant formula for many years and there is evidence to show it is potentially quite dangerous.

"It has been linked to neurological diseases and bone defects in later life and there are even links with dementia.

"Everyone has aluminium in their bodies but infants are especially prone to absorbing it and are not so good at getting rid of it."

However, Dr Exley stressed that it is not the case that a child is not going to drop down dead if they drink it.

Manufacturers say they do not add aluminium to their products, but many formulas are often packaged in aluminium foil.

It also occurs naturally in soya plants due to the acidic soil they are grown in, so experts advise soya milk formulas should be used only on the advice of a GP.

The Food Standards Agency does not provide a 'safe' limit for aluminium in formula milk, but Dr Exley said manufacturers should lower the level dramatically or print it on the label so parents have an informed choice.

Dr Exley said: "It is concerning, especially when the product with the highest level of aluminium we found was aimed at premature babies, who are likely to be the most vulnerable of all. It is really shocking.

"Millions of parents have no choice but to feed their children this milk. I would advise if they are using ready-made milk to switch to powder as it contains lower levels."

Source: The Times Of India, 3-9-2010

Kochi vulnerable to chemical disaster: forum

KOCHI: The city and its suburbs are becoming highly vulnerable to chemical disasters becaue of the lackadaisical way in which hazardous chemicals, fuel etc., are stored and transported, the Association for Environmental Protection has said.

Careless handling of these substances has become the norm, especially since many crew members of lorries that carry them have not been trained in preventing and tackling accidents. Recent accidents like the one at Kundanoor on the NH 47 bypass after a tanker lorry carrying ammonia to the FACT hit another lorry and overturned, show that such chemicals must be transported through safer and economical waterways.

The bad condition of roads and heavy traffic makes the situation even more worrisome, said Prof. S. Sitaraman, the Association's secretary. A tanker lorry accident at Karunagapally had claimed nine lives a few months ago.

“People would not be able to come anywhere within a sq.km. of the accident site if ammonia leaks. Anyone who inhales it would begin to bleed from the nose. Still, Kochi alone has around 40 bullet tankers that transport ammonia. This is apart from the around 800 fuel tankers that criss-cross the city and the around 50 lorries that regularly transport acids, phenol, rubber chemicals, radio-active substances, benzene etc., through busy roads every day. Many of the lorries are ill-maintained. This apart, mandatory care is not taken when storing these chemicals and gases in locations around the city,” said C M Joy, president of the organisation.

Instead of importing ammonia and transporting it to FACT, it can be manufactured at the factory itself, said Prof Sitaraman. It is still a mystery why the waterways around Kochi are not being used to ferry such chemicals. The District Administration, the Motor Vehicles' Department and other agencies must ensure that provisions of the Hazardous Chemical Rules, 1989 and the Environment Protection Act, 1986 are enforced, he said.

The activists pointed out that excess use of phenol and other chemicals have been contaminating ground water sources in the State.

Crisis-management teams must be stationed in different parts of the city, since traffic snarls delay their reaction time.

The Ernakulam RTO, C. G. Michael said that only drivers who have attended a three-day hazardous-goods training course organised by authorized firms must be permitted to steer lorries that carry chemicals and inflammable materials.

“The attendance certificate must be endorsed in their driving licence. This is in addition to the day-long course that they must attend each year. They must know how to neutralize the leak. Pouring of water might worsen the leak/fire. Many chemicals can be neutralized only using foam, sand etc.”

For this, each lorry must have fire extinguisher and the right foam.

Though rules say that they must not ferry goods through congested roads during office time/school hours, they are flouted very often, especially when transporting essential commodities like LPG.

Mr. Michael suggested that the safety valves that extend behind the cylinder (tanker) of lorries must be enclosed in a safe casing since the chemical would leak in case of any impact from behind.

The ‘spark arrest' at the front of fuel tankers too must be effective and checked frequently, he said.

Source: The Hindu, 1-9-2010

Supreme Court order gives PETS a breather

KANNUR: The Supreme Court order directing the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-controlled Pappinissery Eco Tourism Society (PETS) to stop all commercial activities at its mangrove theme park on the northern bank of the Valapattanam river here may be seen as a setback to those running the park and a victory for those opposing it.

But it also gives a breather to the society by offering a four-week time during which the controversial park will remain open with no commercial activities as directed by the court.While those opposing the park, including environmental activists, and the CPI(M) political adversaries view the Supreme Court directive as a victory of sorts, the CPI(M) and the society office-bearers are taking the apex court order as a fresh lease of life to the park riddled with controversy ever since it was opened on April 4. last.

“We are not going to close down the park in the wake of the Supreme Court order of August 31 because the order does not direct us to do so,” society president A.V. Ajayakumar told The Hindu when contacted on Wednesday.

The apex court said there should be no eco-tourism and commercial activities in the park, he said.

There had been no such activities since it was re-opened on August 22 following a decision of the High Court to grant a stay order against the Ministry of Environment and Forest's (MoEF) directive that the park be closed for breaching the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules.He said the restaurant and the boating facilities in the park had already been closed as the park was now being used for education purpose. The society was only collecting Rs.10 as donation from those visiting the park, he said.

The society had already indicated, following the earlier High Court stay order against the MoEF, its willingness to re-brand the park as mangrove study and research centre as a way to deflect the criticism that the park had been established in an ecologically fragile area as a commercial eco-tourism project in violation of the CRZ rules. The park authorities take relief from the Supreme Court directive that asks the MoEF to issue notice to the society and allows PETS to file its reply.

UDF stand
Meanwhile, United Democratic Front (UDF) circles here say that the apex court order was a victory for the rule of law.

When contacted Congress leader Sunny Joseph said the apex court order, as he understood it, did not allow the park to remain open. The only consolation for the park authorities was that it allowed them to be heard in the matter by giving them time to reply to the notice to be issued by the MoEF, he said.

The park has been set up on a 4.85 hectare land close to the Valapattanam bridge on the National Highway.

The park established as part of the society's eco-tourism project has emerged as a major political issue here after the UDF parties took it over from the environmental groups that had initially raised objection to construction activities in the park in the fragile mangrove-rich area on the bank of the Valapattanam river.

Source: The Hindu, 2-9-2010