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E P T R I - E N V I S N e w s l e t t e r

Printed Matter

Volume - 10 Issue-4 October - December, 2016

ENVIS CENTRE ON STATUS OF ENVIRONMENT AND RELATED ISSUES FOR ANDHRA PRADESH

ENVIRONMENT PROTECTION TRAINING & RESEARCH INSTITUTE

91/4, Gachibowli, Hyderabad-500 032, India.Ph: +91-40-23180120, 23180111, Fax: +91-40-23180135

Website - http //apenvis.nic.inEmail : [email protected]

:

Paryavaranam

Status of Environment & Related Issues for Andhra Pradesh ISSN: 0974-2344

EPTRI

Sponsored by: Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India

Source: The Hindu 28.11.16

EPTRI-ENVIS Newsletter: Paryavaranam Vol.10, No.4, 2016

Page No.

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ContentENVIS Activities

Dr. M. Suneela,

Mrs. M. Prashanthi,

Mrs. R. Akhila,

Mr. Md. Khader,

ENVIS Coordinator

Sr. Program Officer

Program Officer

I.T., Assistant

ENVIS Team

ENVIS Activities

New at a Glance Hyderabad

AP&TS suffer from High Pesticide

Residues

Pollution after Diwali, Hyderabad

Published by

EPTRI, Hyderabad

Supported by

Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change, Government of India

New Delhi, India.

Dr. M. Suneela, ENVIS Coordinator delivered a

lecture on “Concepts of Environmental

Monitoring” and Mrs. Prashanthi (Programme

Officer) briefed about the activities of ENVIS

centre for Agriculture B.Sc -3rd year students of

Environmental Sciences, College of Agriculture,

PJSAU, at EPTRI campus on 4.10.2016.

Agriculture B.Sc-3rd year students of Environmental Sciences,

College of Agriculture, PJSAU

Dr. M.P. Johnson, Statistical Advisor and Dr. M. Salahuddin, Director Statistical Cell MoEF&CC has visited ENVIS centers, EPTRI on 6.10.2016.

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NEWS AT A GLANCE

HYDERABAD GETS RESPITE FROM RAIN

Madnur recorded the maximum 9 cm rain followed by 7 cm at Lingampet, both in Nizamabad district.

Flooded streets after heavy rain two wheelers washed away near Mahboob Mansion Market, Malakpet in

Hyderabad. (Photo: PTI)

Hyderabad: Rain occurred at many places over Hyderabad on Sunday and in some places in the state.

Madnur recorded the maximum 9 cm rain followed by 7 cm at Lingampet, both in Nizamabad district.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said that the southwest monsoon was active over the state but

no alert for heavy rainfall has been put out.

As per the website accuweather.com, rain will not occur in Hyderabad until Thursday and the maximum

temperature will continue to be about 29ºC-30ºC.

Source: Deccan Chronicle 3.10.16

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ANDHRA PRADESH AND TELANGANA SUFFER FROM HIGH PESTICIDE

RESIDUES

Residue exceeding permissible levels found in 100 out of 1,920 samples.

The adverse health effects include cancers and difficult reproductive, immune or nervous system conditions. (Representational Image)

Visakhapatnam: Andhra Pradesh and Telangana account for a hefty 24 per cent share of pesticide

consumption in the country. The two states are grappling with increased pesticide residue in food

commodities, while pesticides can help repel insects, pests and other diseases, their excessive/irrational

use can lead to health hazards, ecological disturbance and disruption, increased pesticide resistance, etc.

The adverse health effects include cancers and difficult reproductive, immune or nervous system

conditions.

The Ministry of Agriculture found pesticide residue in 800 food samples and residue exceeding

permissible levels in 100 samples out of a total 1,920 samples in the two states in 2015 (46 per cent food

samples with pesticide residues) — way higher than any other state in the country.

There are about 13,600 pesticide dealers in the two Telugu states. Even though there are regulatory

bodies to monitor and regulate production and safety of pesticides, there has been no mechanism to

monitor the usage at the ground level.

Andhra Pradesh and Telangana have a cropped area of about 90 lakh hectares.

Joint-Director of Agric-ulture V. Satyanarayana said that with the majority of the area under cultivation

being rain-fed, the farmers have been resorting to increased pesticide usage without knowing the ill-

effects.

“Farmers can get more yield by using bio-pesticides and growing own seeds. The organic crops could even

withstand the cyclones as the root system grows strong. We have recently formed about 330 farmer

clusters in the st-ate to make them try their hands at organic farming and trained them under Dr


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Subhash Palekar. Integrating the WebLand details for the issuance of pesticides can help better manage

the pesticide usage at the retail level,” Mr. Satyanarayana added.

R. Rekha, an Andhra University faculty in Food, Nutrition and Dietetics, said consumption of food with

pesticide residues and exposure to the pesticides will cause various health conditions, including nervous

system disorders, endocrine abnormalities, cancers, cognitive impairment, etc.

“Soaking the vegetables and fruits in salt water and washing them under tap water thereafter can help

remove pesticide residue to a good extent. According to our studies, cauliflower, cabbage, radish and other

cruciferous vegetables contain more residues,” Ms. Rekha added.

Noted environmentalist J.V. Ratnam commented that pesticides have been wreaking havoc on the

environment. “Only about 1 to 2 per cent pesticides reach the targeted species and the remaining runoff

ends up in water bodies, human habitats and other environments, potentially contributing to air and

water pollution, soil contamination and ecological disruption. For example, there has been a decline in the

honeybee population due to increased pesticide usage. Bees play a crucial role in pollinating crops,” Mr

Ratnam said.

Panel recommends ban on 13 pesticides.The expert committee, constituted under former professor at the

Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Anupam Verma recommended a ban on 13 pesticides that were

banned, restricted or withdrawn in one or more countries but continued to be registered in India.

The committee also recommended reviewing 27 pesticides in 2018 after completion of certain technical

studies and phasing out six pesticides by 2020. For example, exposure to 'Chlorpyrifos,' which would be

again reviewed in 2018 by the Union Government, has been linked to neurological, developmental and

autoimmune disorders. The committee was appointed by the Centre to carry out a technical review of 66

pesticides.

The committee has suggested continued use of 18 pesticides. Carbofuran, a carbamate pesticide set for

review in 2018, is highly toxic to vertebrates and an endocrine disruptor in humans, including disrupting

the reproductive system. Carbofuran was banned in Canada and the European Union countries.

The list of pesticides that would be phased out by 2020 include Alachlor, Dichlorvos, Phorate, Phos-

phamidon, Triazophos and Trichlorfon.

The banned 13 pesticides include Benomyl, Carba-ryl, DDT, Diazinon, Fenar-imol, Fenthion, Linuron,

MEMC, Methyl Parathion, Sodium Cyanide, Thio-meton, Tridemorph and Trifluralin.


VISAKHAPATNAM: MANY FISH SPECIES STARE AT EXTINCTION

Local fisherfolk catch about 20 species of fish

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Visakhapatnam: Many fish species on the Vizag coast continue to lose their habitat and are slowly

disappearing due to rising sea pollution owing to release of untreated sewerage and other toxic elements

into it. Environmentalists opine that the coastal fishes, having low temperature resistance, are either

being killed or moving away from the shore due to release of hot water from power plants, after being used

for cooling purpose.

Dr. Shubhadeep Ghosh, senior scientist at Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI),

Visakhapatnam regional centre said, “There are many fish in danger on the Vizag coast under the impact

of industrial effluents being released into sea. Hilsa, Lethrinus, Polynemus and Threadfins are the major

fish species experiencing threat in the coast as per our surveys. The fish die in large numbers at times.”

“For instance, the juveniles of Lethrinus need sea grass beds while the adult ones breed in rocky areas. As

the sea grass on the coast is degrading, this fish species is also slowly facing extinction,” he added. The

existing sewerage plants of the city can treat only 52 per cent of the sewage generated. So a large amount

of sewage is being released into the sea untreated.

AU environment department professor E.U.B. Reddi said oil spills from the port and also hot water

released from the thermal power plants are major threat to fish. “The fish will have different temperature

resistance power. So, those fish that cannot bear the temperature rise due to hot water effluent are

vanishing at an alarming rate.” The environment professor also attributed depletion of dissolved oxygen-

level at some stretch of the coast due to dumping of organic materials. “The bacteria decompose the

organic wastes and the increased concentration of bacteria in the marine ecosystem leaves less dissolved

oxygen for fish.” he added. Senior scientist Mr Ghosh also pointed out the blocking of Mouth Rivers, in the

coastal areas due to human intervention and pollution has led to collapse of Hilsa fish.


POLLUTION AFTER DIWALI WAS NOT SO BAD IN HYDERABAD, FIGURES SHOW

Even in such areas the PM2.5 levels have been recorded close to four times higher than the CPCB

standards.


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Hyderabad: Many Hyderabadis said no to crackers this Diwali, and this was reflected in the city's pollution

data for Sunday.3 Last year the maximum PM10 level was recorded at Kukatpally at 412 µg/m whereas this year at the

3same location it was recorded at 164µg/m . Similarly at Jubilee Hills, while it was recorded at 171µg/m3

3last year, this year it was 146µg/m .

The main air pollutant that affects human health directly is Particulate Matter10 (PM10). PM10 are those

pollutants in the air, which measure less than 10 micrometres in diameter and hence can directly get

lodged in the trachea or bronchi.

Chart shows PM10 values on normal day and during Diwali, in micrograms/metre cube.

However, there is still much cause for concern. While the PM10 levels during Diwali this year were less

than the last, the levels are still very high when compared to the safe standards set by the Central Pollution

Control Board. As per CPCB norms, the PM10 should be within 100µg/m3.

Another cause of worry is the high PM2.5 values. PM2.5 are particulate matter that measure less than 2.5

micrometer in diameter and are much more dangerous than PM10. PM2.5 particles can reach all the way

into the lungs and get lodged in the alveoli.

The TSPCB has not yet released the data of PM2.5 recorded on Diwali. An official said that the lab

procedure takes more time.

To Printed Matter Sri........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................Pin:....................................................................

From:ENVIS CoordinatorENVIS Centre on Status of Environment and Related Issues for Andhra PradeshEnvironment Protection Training and Research Institute (EPTRI)91/4, Gachibowli, Hyderabad-500 032, India.Ph : +91-040-23180120, 23180111Fax No.:+40-23180135,Website: http://apenvis.nic.inEmail: [email protected]

7 Des

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by:

Md.

Kh

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The Continuous Ambi-ent Air Quality Monitor-ing System, which gives data in real time, is installed at

such places that do not give a real picture of pollution in the city, like the one close to Hyderabad zoo, at

the University of Hyderabad or at the industrial area in Sanathnagar, where not many people reside or

burst crackers on Diwali.

Even in such areas the PM2.5 levels have been recorded close to four times higher than the CPCB

standards.

The data of PM2.5 for Sanathnagar was recorded at 194µg/m3, and at 217µg/m3 at Hyderabad zoo. As

per the air pollution monitoring unit at the US Consulate at Begumpet, it was 440µg/m3. The CPCB

standard for PM2.5 is 60µg/m3.


AP, TELANGANA EXPERIENCE LOWER RAINFALL RATES, SHOWS STUDY

Scientists from Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture have presented a localised picture of

the impact of climate change and have developed a vulnerability map of all districts in the country to

climate change. The CRIDA study was led by Dr C.A. Rama Rao of the institute.The vulnerability index in Andhra Pradesh, Chittoor and Anantapur districts fall in the 'very high'

vulnerability category In Telangana, as per the new districts, Mahbubnagar, Wanaparthy and

Nagarkurnool fall in the 'high' vulnerability category and Hyderabad, Sangareddy, Medak, Nirmal,

Adilabad and Komaram Bheem in the 'medium' category. This is due to poor July rainfall which was found

to be an important factor.Various studies have detected significant rise in annual mean temperatures across country including in

Telangana and Andhra Pradesh apart from increase in trends like forest fires and falling groundwater

levels.

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