Environment

22 Aug 2021; MEMO: Hena Al-Gul is an activist and entrepreneur who wants to increase social awareness in Palestinian society by highlighting the importance of natural resources and the environment.

The leisure centre welcomes people with chairs made of car tyres, windows with recycle washing machine door panes and paintings from fabric and yarn.

09 Aug 2021; AA: Turkey has brought under control all forest fires, except blazes in the Milas and Koycegiz districts of the country’s southwestern Mugla province, said the minister of agriculture and forestry on Monday.

“#ForestHeroes continue their work with great devotion from land and air in Milas and Koycegiz,” Bekir Pakdemirli said on Twitter.

New Delhi, Aug 7 (PTI) The railways has invited bids for hydrogen fuel cell-based technology by retrofitting on the Diesel Electric Multiple Unit (DEMU) in 89 km Sonipat-Jind section of the Northern Railway, the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

This is an attempt by the national transporter to explore whether existing diesel-run trains can be retrofitted to use hydrogen instead.

05 Aug 2021; MEMO: The 35-year-old coal-fired Kemerkoy Power Station in south-west Turkey's Mugla region and a nearby town on the Aegean Sea were evacuated late yesterday as deadly wildfires reached the plant.

Babies, children and people over the age of 65 were removed from the area, local media reported.They have been taken to shelters.

In a statement the Kemerkoy Electric Distribution Company said the power plant is not at risk of explosions.

New Delhi, Aug 3 (PTI) The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Tuesday said it has issued a notification to exempt battery operated vehicles from the payment of fees for issue or renewal of registration certificate.

In a statement, the ministry said it has also exempted battery operated vehicles from the payment of fees for assignment of new registration marks.

This has been notified to encourage e-mobility, it added.

01 Aug 2021; MEMO: 98 of 107 forest fires in Turkey are under control, the nation's Agriculture and Forestry Minister said late Saturday, reports Anadolu Agency.

Efforts to contain nine blazes are still ongoing, Bekir Pakdemirli said during a news conference at a fire management center in the Degirmenyani district of southwestern Mugla province.

Pakdemirli warned that caution will be needed to combat the massive fires on Sunday when humidity is expected to drop 10%.

31 July 2021; MEMO: During his visit to Khartoum, Algerian Foreign Minister Ramtane Lamamra will propose his country's mediation of the dispute over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, Anadolu Agency reported on Friday.

Lamamra has started a diplomatic tour of several African countries to discuss a number of issues, including cooperation between Algeria and other members of the African Union (AU).

Canberra, Jul 25 (AP-PTI) Australia has garnered enough international support to defer an attempt by the United Nations' cultural organisation to downgrade the Great Barrier Reef's World Heritage status because of damage caused by climate change.

Mumbai, Jul 18 (PTI) The toll in rain-related incidents in Mumbai reached 30 as incessant heavy downpour overnight during a major thunderstorm pummeled the Maharashtra capital, causing severe water-logging and traffic disruptions in the city on Sunday, officials said.

New Delhi, Jul 11 (PTI) India's coal import rose 20.4 per cent to 19.92 million tonnes (MT) in the month of May.

The country had imported 16.54 MT of coal in May last fiscal, according to data compiled by mjunction Services.

"On a year-on-year basis, however, India's coal and coke imports in May 2021 were up 20.4 per cent as against 16.54 MT clocked in May 2020," it said.

Import volumes of dry-fuel, it said, are expected to remain subdued in the ongoing monsoon season on account of lower demand, firm prices and high freight rates.