Solar Products

Objective : Save Energy, Save Environment.

Solar Energy
Solar energy flow is not a cycle, but a flow from the sun to the biosphere. It is one of the four basic ecosystem processes or windows through which we can begin to perceive the ecosystem as a whole. Solar products are innovative mechanisms that help conserve energy, thus, help maintain the ecosystem. Solar products are environmentally friendly and are usually cost effective as well.

Today, there are several solar power products in the market for our home and office use. Solar Products include items such as solar hot water heaters, solar heating systems, solar panels, solar flashlights, small radios, solar calculators, solar battery chargers, solar lanterns, solar lighting, solar car batteries and much more.

Paper Bags and Notebooks

Objective : Save Trees and the Environment.

Everyday we face debates on the ban of plastic bags. The much cry in the air for the ban of plastic bags has raised numerous question for us. Why to ban plastic bags, as they are strong and convenient? What is the logic behind it? And, what is the alternative?

The Plastic & Environment
Plastic bags are popular with consumers and retailers as they are a functional, lightweight, strong, cheap, and hygienic way to transport food and other products. The over consumption of plastic bags find their way on to our streets, parks, and into our waterways.

In past few decades the use of plastic has increased all over the world. Plastic is a big threat to our Planet Earth. The reason is plastics are not biodegradable. Plastic is not capable of being decomposed by biological agents. Hence, when thrown after use, it is not decomposed, which tends to threat the earth.

Although plastic bags make up only a small percentage of the total litter zones, the impact of these bags is no doubt significant. Plastic bags create visual pollution problems and can have catastrophic effects on aquatic and terrestrial animals. Plastic bags are particularly striking components of the litter zone due to their size and can take a long time to fully break down (not biodegradable).

The Eco-friendly Alternative - Paper Bags
The alternative is the Paper Bag which is always environment friendly and easily biodegradable. Hence, to save our environment and our earth from the catastrophic plastics, we should start using paper made products.

These Paper Bags are either made of virgin wood pulp or recycled paper or handmade papers. Most paper bags are made from kraft paper. Kraft paper may be unbleached (brown) or bleached (white) and can be made in a wide variety of strengths or thickness (called "weight" by the industry).

Types of Paper Shopping Bags
The Paper Shopping Bags come in an exhaustive range. They are ideally made to suite the consumers requirement. They come in varied size and shape as per the packaging needs. Some of them are listed below

Paper Bag
Paper grocery bags come in a variety of paper weights from light (30 lb.) to heavy-duty (70 lb.) and 14 stock sizes, capable of holding 2 to 25 pounds. The standard paper grocery bag measures about 12 inches wide, 7 inches deep, and 17 inches tall. A shorter bag, measuring just 14 inches tall, is becoming increasingly popular. Today's paper grocery bags may also have a paper handle - making them easy to carry and reuse.

Retail Bags
Basically paper bags are used for packages that consumers buy. The paper bags are often used to hold nuts, candy, and potato chips. The much stronger one are used in packaging all types of food products, textiles, hardware, candy, sugar, flour, rice, peas, beans, and spices.

Fast Food Bags
Paper bags are the ideal solution for fast food stores.

The paper bags
Have good insulation properties, keeping food items hot.
Allow the food to "breathe," letting moisture escape so french fries, burgers, chicken, and sandwiches don't get soggy.
Are fast and easy for workers to fill.
Offer superior promotional opportunities.
Are recyclable and made from recycled content.

Multiwall Bags
A multiwall bag is two to six bags, one sitting inside the other. These bags are exceptionally strong because each layer carries its own share of the weight of the product, so the bags often are used to ship large quantities of heavy materials.

Handmade paper notebook
Notebooks made of Handmade paper are quiet popular these days. As they are made of handmade papers, they are eco-friendly. These notebooks are now available in various designs and colours. The handmade paper notebooks are directly engaged in saving hundreds and thousands of trees. By buying and using the handmade paper notebooks you will be directly or indirectly involved in saving our Planet Earth from "Deforestation" and "Greenhouse Effects".

An Inconvenient Truth - the crisis of global warming

The DVD of “An Inconvenient Truth” now available at your respective division Libraries. Please borrow the same to have a precise understanding of what is Global Warming and ways we can avoid further destruction of our mother Planet.

Handmade Paper

Objective : To reduce the amount of paper waste generated by offices; To reduce the demand for paper made from virgin wood fibre; To save our Planet Earth from Global Warming and Greenhouse Effect; To stop deforestation and to save our forest reserves.

The Facts
It is well known fact that, to produce 1 tonne of paper from virgin pulp require 17 large trees, which leads to more tree cut and more deforestation. When forests are cleared, natural habitats are destroyed or disrupted, species may become extinct and native communities dwelling in the forest areas are impacted. Besides, cutting down old forests leads to a loss of diversity. Trees also serve a function of soaking up carbon dioxide, which is one of the main greenhouse gases that accelerates global warming.

The Warning for the Environment
The average office worker throws away 35-50 kg of paper per year. In Singapore, 500,000 tonnes of paper is thrown away every year, and this is equivalent to the destruction of about 8.5 million trees.

The Care for the Environment
There is a growing concern around the globe for preserving our forest reserves. The "Greenhouse Effect" has led people to become more alert about the environmental concerns. It has been seen that, in the recent few years various corporations, communities, government agencies and others are coming forward to promote products and technologies that lead to the preservation of the environment.

Global Benefits of Handmade Papers
The paper-making process uses energy, water and chemicals and produces wastes. Paper made from recycled fibres or Handmade Paper requires at least 50% less energy and up to 75% less water than making it from virgin fibre. It also produces up to 90% less wastewater and reduces air pollution by 70%.

Common Benefits of Handmade Paper
Today, there is a revival in homemade papermaking crafts. It's a good way to recycle waste into wonderful possibilities. Handmade paper is environment friendly as cotton rags and other waste products are converted into something meaningful by recycling. This leads to less deforestation.

The Benefits are :
Use of non-wood raw materials, thus saving trees.
Made with pollution free methods as solar energy is used extensively.
Acid free.
Higher tensile, bursting, tearing and double-fold strength as compared to mill made paper.
Fine and elegant quality.

Handicraft Products

Objective : To prevent animal cruelty & deforestation and promote kindness to animals & trees worldwide

Eco-friendly Handicraft Items
The products which are made of environment friendly materials are Eco-Friendly products. Generally the eco-products do not harm the environment in any form. The products which are made of leather, wood or any other parts of animal such as ivory, bones, horns, etc. are not eco-friendly products. These product are generally made by killing animals, birds or cutting trees, which results in deforestation and extinction of animals. Both deforestation and extinction of animals are harmful for our ecosystem and our Planet Earth.

Today, numerous debates are on, to protect animals and trees. Several animal and environmental rights organisations are coming forward to stop killing of animals and trees. Laws are also made to protect animals & trees from illegal trade.

The Eco-Friendly Handicraft Items
Eco-Friendly Handicraft Items are of made of jutes, waste materials, handmade paper products, polywood products, fabric products, handmade greeting cards, recycled bottles, recycled products, biodegradable products, etc.

In the making of Handicrafts Items there is less use of energy. As the products are mostly made in homes.

Eco Wheels

Objective : Save The Planet Earth.

"In addition to appearance, price and performance, consumers in the 21st century should also regard low emissions, low noise and low fuel consumption as references when purchasing a car, the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA)

The Need of the Vehicle
The need for supportable transportation has become clear, as we face the world wide results of our dependancy on fosil fuels that has resulted in global warming. There is no greater threat to global security and sustainability than global warming. It is now time to take personal responability to make changes in our lifestyle, that can reduce green house gas emissions. By just selecting the right personal transporation is one area that each one of us can make to avoid the green house gas emissions.

It is now high time that, we should start accepting ecologically resposnable vehicles. Today, there a variety of zero emission vehicles that can address a great number of our transportation needs.

Eco vehicles are designed according to the customer's, the environment's and the society's benefit.

Automobile is one of the most popular technologies ever developed. However, automobiles are presently responsible for about 20% of global energy consumption and the effluents from internal combustion engines (ICEs) in cars pollute our air (environment). The dominant role of the automobile in the economic development of the world's richest nations and the addictive convenience of cars provided to consumers have created powerful socioeconomic momentum which will resist either shifts away from automotive transport or rapid changes in the mature technology used in modern cars. Nevertheless, substantial changes are unavoidable if cars are to become sustainable.

Eco- Vehicles - Electric Vehicles
Electric vehicles (EVs) offer considerable promise to reduce the negative impacts of automobiles on the environment. In principle, EVs are far more efficient than ICE vehicles in converting energy into motion. Most EVs currently on the market have been converted from ICE vehicles. But, to make EVs acceptable, the steps that are required are - improve performance, reduce costs, win consumer acceptance and make EV technology sustainable over the long term.

The Warning Signal
Modern internal combustion engine (ICE) automobiles convert fossil deposits of ancient forests into CO2, water, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and other exhaust gases which foul the air we breath and warm the climate. People use cars for about 20% of global energy consumption. The hulks of discarded autos blemish the landscape and leach toxic materials into the environment. Fuel additives containing lead, which are still used in many countries, poison the air and soil and may be especially dangerous to the intellectual development of young children.

Despite the serious negative effects of cars on the environment, it seems unlikely that people will voluntarily forego the unparalleled convenience they provide. To make automobile manufacture and use sustainable over the long term, automobiles must consume much less energy per distance travelled, be readily recyclable, and not emit toxic or climate altering substances in significant quantities. Though, today EVs depend on the electricity which is generated from combustion of fossil fuels, but, eventually, EVs can be completely powered by batteries charged by solar energy. But, the requirements for EVs is to be accepted in the marketplace and, eventually, to drastically reduce the negative impacts of automotive industrialisation on the environment.

EVs - Satisfying Consumers
Convincing consumers to purchase commercial EVs will require performance similar to that available from concurrent ICE vehicles. Although environment-friendly products are popular, few buyers are willing to spend substantially greater amounts of money for inconvenient products with inferior performance. Most drivers today have the impression that EVs are expensive, slow, in both acceleration and top speed, and have very limited range. However, today's best EV technologies rival the performance of ICE vehicles in most respects. Electric vehicles can be also be expected to make rapid gains in those categories in which they lag.

The Benefits of Eco Vehicles
Eco-Vehicles improves road safety as well as the quality of the local and global environment and saves fuel and costs. Additionally Eco-Vehicle provides direct benefits to the drivers and the passengers - more comfort and a relaxed atmosphere. Eco-Vehicles reduces noise pollution as well as air, land and water pollution.

Eco Shoes

Objective : Save trees & animals, save the Biosphere.

Man is always
It was time when, leather was the only product, which was used to manufacture shoes. The leather which were extracted from animal, resulting in killing of thousands of wildlife reserves. The growing population, developing into growing need of leather has resulted in the extinction of several wildlife animals. This continuous use of leather resulted in a threat to the wildlife resource and then the ecosystem.

The Eco-Shoes are shoes, which can be recycled and reused. Today, numerous shoe making organisations are coming forward with eco-friendly shoes. These footwears mostly comprises of Recycled rubber, recycled plastics, waste products, textiles, and other synthetic products.

Eco Furniture

Objective : Save Trees, Save the Environment, Save the Planet .

Wood & Ecosystem
Wood is the most precious part of man's life. Wood has always attracted man since ages. Ever since his existence man is influenced by the elegance of wood. In the primal days wood was the source of fire & energy. The enormous use of wood has led to deforestation, resulting in Greenhouse Effect and Global Warming. Fortunately, the concern for healthy environment has prompted man to think again and again on the use of wood.

But, its sophistication & ornateness still inspires man to make varied products of decoration and home furnishing.

Today, the Global Warming and Greenhouse Effects have started threatening man to stop the overuse of wood. But, what do we do to make furnitures then? What are the alternatives? Furnitures are the essential part of our home. The thirst for beauty and elegance has always encouraged man to find charming alternatives to wood.

Today, there are many alternatives to wooden furnitures, which are eco-friendly furnitures. Eco-friendly furnitures are aimed towards less use of wood and more use of waste products and other products, the use of which are not a threat to our environ.

Eco-Furnitures
Eco-furnitures made with endurable materials can be easily separated and re-recycled, representing an easier, softer way to go green in your home. And the possibilities are endless and enthusing.

Today, there are desk with a removable top and legs that can be disassembled and put into a recycling bin in less than fifteen seconds to change its design. There are chairs made from straw particleboard and recycled steel.

Currently, the industry and the market is packed with Eco-furnitures made of wheat panels, sunflower board, aluminum, polywoods, wrought irons, metals, stones, post consumer materials, all of which are available in attractive designs and colours.

Eco Friendly Paints

Objective : Save the Planet Earth.

The Facts
There are more than 10,000 chemicals that can be used in conventional paints; many of which are newly created chemical components with little research conducted regarding their long-term effects on both humans and the environment. Many of these chemicals may lead to health problems or complicate existing conditions. Low level exposure to paint may irritate or burn the eyes, nose, throat and skin and cause reactions such as headaches, dizziness or nausea.

These symptoms are generally mild and will subside once the direct exposure has ceased. However, high levels of exposure to some of the elements in paint, even for a short period of time, can cause severe and lasting impacts such as kidney or liver damage or respiratory problems. Substances found in some paint, such as formaldehyde and benzene, are carcinogenic while others, such as heavy metals and phthalates, are human and ecosystem toxins.

Eco Paints & Environment
Today, to save the ecosystem there are paints with non-toxic elements. These environmental friendly choices are made for a healthier lifestyle. The use of Eco Paints ensures a healthier body and greener environment to live. The Eco-Paints are Non-toxic with zero VOC (Volatile Organic Content) and have no odour and can be tinted to any colour your heart or home desires with non-toxic tints. Eco Paints are also safe for the chemically sensitive.
The Eco-Paints are produced from fewer than 250 chemical components and more than 98 % of these chemicals are naturally derived from plant sources and minerals. Most of the ingredients have been used for centuries or more. The raw materials that are low in toxic substances, renewable and feature a low environmental footprint.

In the Eco-Paints, the paints, stains, thinners and waxes are made from naturally-derived raw materials including citrus peel extracts, essential oils, seed oils, tree resins, inert mineral fillers, tree and bee waxes, lead-free dryers and natural pigments.

Eco Fan

Object : Save Energy, Save the Environment.

The Eco-Fan
Eco - Fan is a soundless, powerful ( up to150 cfm ) fan that stands on top of your woodstove to help distribute warm air throughout your house but doesn't use electricity! This environment friendly freestanding heat-powered Eco-Fan is designed to improve the efficiency of a wood stove by circulating the warm air produced by the stove. When placed on top of a heated surface, the Eco-Fan generates its own electricity. Temperatures of operation range from 150 degrees to 700 degrees Farenheit. The Eco-Fan does not use any batteries or external electrical connections.

The fan has a thermoelectric module which acts as a small generator to power the fan's motor. When this generator module experiences a heat differential between its top and bottom surfaces, it creates electricity. The bottom surface of the module is heated by the wood stove, while the top of the module is kept cool by the fan's top cooling fins. The speed of the fan varies with the stovetop temperature; on average.

Three Ways to Celebrate an ecosensitive Diwali this year

The first step towards celebrating an ecosensitive Diwali is to become aware of the impacts the festival of Diwali has on Nature. Here are three such impacts:

1. Firecrackers and Air Pollution

Firecrackers are the fun of Diwali! These aesthetic forms of light seem so appropriate when celebrating the 'Festival of Lights'! But in our increasingly polluted cities, the temporary joy of watching the firecrackers is soon replaced by the intense air pollution caused by these. The toxic substances used in the firecrackers release toxic gases that are harmful to the health of all living beings. The high level of noise generated by the crackers also cause immense sufferring to birds and animals and are dreaded by the sick and the ailing.

Besides few of us realise that the firecrackers are made by very young children using child labour. Since the substances being handled are extremely toxic many of these children get sick and die in their early teenage years.

Let there be an explosion of joy without crackers!

Say No to Fire crackers and ‘Yes’ to life!

2. Consumerism

An indirect but equally significant impact of Diwali on nature is due to the increased consumption. Since Diwali is also a celebration of abundance and wealth - many people believe that it is a good time to buy. Often, people go out and buy new items even when they dont need them. Advertisements and hoardings scream out to people offerings sales extravaganzas, bargains, discounts encouraging us to buy and buy more!

How does this increased consumption affect Nature?

All man made items are made out of materials that come from Nature. Be it plastic, metal, paper or cloth – the raw materials for all of these come directly from nature. Those sources that are non renewable ( cannot be grown back) such as fossil fuels and metal ores get depleted and will one day run out. Depletion of non renewable natural resources is one of the most significant impact of consumerism. The gold earrings that you will buy from Diwali is coming from a gold mine that is not only depleting the gold resources of the earth, but in the process of mining is probably ruining several ecosystems.

Where do all the things we throw away go finally? Solid waste created by human beings which is non biodegradable ( does not easily decompose ) has to be filled into holes dug up in the ground. These ‘landfills’ as they are called may exist for centuries without completely getting integrated into the soil. The plastic toys that you are throwing away today, may exist in a landfill several generations after yours!

This is why to be able to conserve our natural environment it is important to

• Reduce : the amount of things we use
• Reuse : the things we have in different forms until we have absolutely no use for them
• Recycle : items that are no longer functional.

In addition we could add two more principles

• Rethink : the choices we make when deciding to buy something and
• Refuse : things that we do not need at all.
  

Before you buy something new this Diwali apply the above five principles and only then pay at the counter!

3. Energy Consumption

The festival of lights puts a considerably heavy load on electrical energy sources that are already overloaded. The use of electric lights to adorn homes, business establishments, monuments and roads requires a huge amount of electricity.

The older tradition of burning oil lamps is a possible alternative to electric lights – even though it does use oil, the duration of the lamps is shorter.

Festival of Diwali & Links with Nature

Diwali is one of the most widely celebrated festivals in India. It symbolises the victory of good over evil, and new beginnings. Diwali is celebrated over a period of five days namely - Dhanteras, Narakachaturdashi, Diwali, Padhwa and Bhai Dhooj.

Links with Nature

Did you know that Diwali actually falls on the darkest night of the year? The new moon night of the month of Ashwin ( of the Hindu calender) which may arrive either in October or November ( of the Gregorian calender) is considered to be the darkest night of the year by the Hindus. The tradition of lighting lamps on this night may have come from the need for light on this intensely dark night.

Diwali also celebrates the abundance of the autumn harvest. The autumn harvest (kharif) of rice for example, accounts for 53 percent of total production. It is sown between March and August and harvested between June and December. Seventy per cent of India's population lives in villages, and a vast majority solely depends on agriculture. As a result most of the festivals are related to the agricultural activities of the people. Farmers get ready to thank god, earth and their cattle for the wonderful harvest and celebrate the occasion with joyous festivities and rituals.

In Nepal, the first two days of Diwali are celebrated by worshipping animals. On the first day, cows are given offerings, in appreciation of the food they have given and agricultural work they have performed. On the second day, dogs and all living animals are revered and offered special food.

Eco sensitive Initiatives around Diwali

With the growing recognition of the impacts of Diwali on the environment, several groups have started to reinterpret the rituals and traditions to become more sensitive to nature, like - The children of NCL school, Pune celebrate a different Diwali, sharing clothes with the lesser privileged.

Harmful effects of chemicals used in crackers

The below give list is of the chemicals used in Fire Crackers and its effects on the human body:-

Copper	Irritation of respiratory tract
Cadmium	Anaemia and damage to kidney
Lead	Affects the nervous system
Magnesium	Dust and fumes cause mental fume fever
Sodium	Reacts violently with moisture and can attack skin
Zinc	Leads to vomiting
Nitrate	Could lead to mental impairment
Nitrite	Could lead to coma

Noise Pollution due to Fire Crackers

Crackers that make a noise of more than decibels upto a distance of metres are banned by the law.
Such noise pollution leads to:-

Hearing loss
High blood pressure
Heart attack
Sleeping disturbances
Sudden exposure to loud noise could also cause temporary deafness or permanent relative deafness

Eco Tourism

ECO-FRIENDLY PRACTISES AT RIVERTRAIL ECO CAMP, KOLAD

Sustainable Architecture

1. Accommodation consists of rustic eco cottages, safari cottages and huts made of natural materials that are designed to be small, low impact and which blend with the local environment.
2. Cement - The cement usage in the construction of Rivertrail Eco-Camp is minimal and baked mud bricks, stone, natural mortar, cultivated wood and bamboo have been used instead. 90% of materials used are renewable natural materials.
3. Furniture in the cottages are made of cane & cultivated bamboo and minimum wood, plastic and metal have been used. Bamboo saplings have been planted to replace the bamboo used during construction.
4. Natural Terrain Maintained - The natural terrain and topography of the Eco-Camp has been maintained and landscaping is minimal. Only native plants have been planted.
5. Solvent Paints - Red Oxide natural paints and natural plaster of Paris were used for interiors and exterior walls instead of solvent paints.
6. Televisions - Not used except for showcasing wildlife films
   

Energy Conservation & Management

Rivertrail has been designed and constructed keeping in mind maximum energy conservation.

1. Large Windows – Large windows not only let the cool breeze and nature in; they also allow ample natural light.
2. Natural Material Construction – Rivertrail is made of Mud, Stone, Grass, Bamboo and Social Forestry Wood that are breathable and have high thermal mass allowing the cottages to be warm in winter and cool in summer.
3. Minimum Lighting - Minimum lighting is being used with each unit having separate power connection.
4. Dimmers provided - Dimmers has been provided all over the camp to enable reduction in ambient light as per requirement.
5. Manual Control - the room lights and the air-conditioning are started only when the guest’s actually retires to their room from central control.
6. No Air-conditioning - No air-conditioning is used to save power and eliminate pollution caused by it. Fans are provided for cooling when the breeze dims.
7. Traditional Cooling - In summer wet mats made of Vetiver (Khus) grass is hung on the windows to considerable reduce the heat and at the same time a gentle pleasant scent of the khus creates a soothing environment.
8. Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFL) / Fluorescent Tubes which provide as much as light as ordinary bulbs but consume substantially less energy are used as primary means of lighting.
9. Diesel Generator – In case of load shedding, a small, efficient diesel generator is started only when the guests retire and during meal times.
10. Bio Gas - EcoMantra uses a sustainable approach to waste, sewage, recycling and water management with on-site managed waste disposal using Bio Gas plant to convert the human and animal waste into energy to heat water.
11. Own Electricity - The Camp has plans to generate its own electricity using scheffler solar for kitchen, convectional heaters for hot water and wind power for lighting.

Water Conservation

1. Water Management: The campsite takes its water from river Kundalika and it is filtered twice before it reaches your tap.
2. Soap water from Bathrooms –are used for plantation like banana etc. that are not affected by the alkali content of the waste feed.
   

Waste Management

1. The campsite has its own solid waste and sewage treatment systems for collection, recycling and disposal of the waste.
2. Bio- Gas - A policy of ‘zero garbage’ according to which all organic waste and night soil is utilized for the process of Gobar Gas Plant and transformed into bio gas, which is then used to heat water. Waste out of gobar gas is used to make fertilizer feed.
3. Organic Waste - The kitchen waste is used in ‘Vermiculture’ or Rapid Organic Compound.
4. Non Organic Waste: All non-organic waste is sold to scrap merchants.
5. Zero Disposable Items - No disposable items such as plastic cutlery, tissue paper or paper plates are used in any our Eco-Camps.
6. Recycle- The Eco-Camp uses 50% - 100% PC (post consumer) paper for all paper work.
7. Non-decomposable but combustible waste - Items like packing materials consisting of cardboard boxes and paper bags are bought back from the campsites.
8. Non-decomposable and non-combustible waste - Wastes like plastic bags, aluminum foils, glass bottles are as far as possible avoided or are carried back to the city where they are either recycled, destroyed or buried in garbage dumps.

Ecotourism and Community Tourism

1. Local Employment - EcoMantra hires only local people from the immediate community for its full time staff, even in management positions. Local guides - Locals are employed on full time and/or part time basis to inform guests of local customs, local flora and fauna, local architecture and cross-cultural issues.
2. Local Cuisine – Our village cooks cook local cuisine and minimum 2 local dishes are served at all meals. We purchase food locally for our operations as much as possible.
3. Volunteer and Reforestation Program - Volunteer reforestation program utilizing guests to plant native trees are practised.
4. The Clean Act: The Clean Act activity conducted while trekking cleans up the nature trail
5. Sponsoring Ecotourism for Underprivileged: We organize environmental education excursions for underprivileged children and senior citizens

Sustainable Operations

1. Minimum Impact - We ensure that there is zero or minimum negative impact on the local environment / communities in which we operate
2. Smaller Groups - There is a limit on the maximum number of clients that is compatible with the environmental sensitivity of the area visited.
3. Nature Awareness and Education - EcoMantra places great emphasis on educating guests, staff and locals on natural issues of India and the world.
4. Guest Participation Program - This allows the guest to voluntarily participate in the environment conservation programs. We reciprocate by giving free/ discounted camps in future. Photography and Wildlife interaction - We encourage wild life photography and viewing as long as it does not disturb the flora and fauna. However, personal interaction with the wild life is discouraged.
5. Potted Plants- The campsite does not use fresh cut flowers anywhere in the Eco-Camp and decorative potted plants have been used wherever required.
6. Stationary - All stationary used at the Eco-Camp is made from recycled products.
7. Zero Pesticide - Neither pesticides nor herbicides are used on the campsite.

Ecotourism Training

1. Environmental training - All Ecomantra Eco-Camp managers and staff undergo ‘Environment training’ to understand different eco-friendly operations of the Eco-Camp and how to protect the environment.
2. The Eco-Camp managers and staff are encouraged to give their ideas to improve the eco-friendly initiatives of the Ecomantra Camps.
3. Environment Workshops - Eco-Camp managers and staff undergo regular classes and workshops to update their knowledge about the environmental practices of the Eco-Camp.

Find out more at
http://www.ecomantra.org

B'lore techies launch fight against e-waste

From Mumbai Mirror >

Bangalore: With more and more IT companies setting up shop in Bangalore, e-waste generated is a major concern. Hoping to increase aware­ness about e-waste disposal and its impact on society, a recent initiative by a group of techies seems to have evoked a response from people. Two teams of software engineers from Oracle India recently flagged off a campaign to mobilise people to safe­guard the city from the threat of e-waste.

With more than 40 software pro­fessionals in each team, the group in­tends to impart knowledge about the ill-effects of e-waste and scientific methods of disposing it.

Hardik Shah, a software engineer and the group leader said, "We are importing electronic products from all over the world but do not have a clear policy for disposal. We use com­puters, batteries and other e-stuff im­ported from Japan, Korea and China. We found that proper segregation and clear disposal policy could be the right thing."

Wilma Rodrigues, an e-waste awareness activist said, "In Bangalore, with more than 1,200 software and BPO companies, we get about 8,000 tonnes of e-waste per annum. With the recycling technology we have, it is impossible to recycle the entire heap of e-waste and the prob­lem will only increase. The best way is to educate people about methods to dispose e-waste, like segregation."

Vinuta Narayan, a software engi­neer said, "Just about everyone uses CDs and other electronic equipment today but none of us know any dis­posing methods. Besides, e-waste from software firms and residences, other toxic waste such as plastic and bio-medical waste are also posing problems. A company with 1,000 staff produces around 5,000 plastic or paper cups and around 500 kg of tissue papers a day in the city.

The techies' groups in association with e-waste recycling units have set up collecting points at malls and other commercial establishments in the city to collect e-waste and plas­tic. The techies also enact a street play, detailing the impact of e-waste on human society, at select spots around the city.

As an alternative to plastic bags, the group is advocating the use of jute bags and gunny bags for grocery shopping and other commercial ac­tivities.

"People are hesitant to use gunny or cloth bags for many reasons. But they should think about the future of the city and use them" added Hardik Shah.

‘Feel good’ versus ‘do good’ on climate change

After looking at one too many projections of global-warming disasters — computer graphics of coasts swamped by rising seas, mounting death tolls from heat waves — I was ready for a reality check. Instead of imagining a warmer planet, I traveled to a place that has already felt the heat, accompanied by Bjorn Lomborg, the Danish political scientist and scourge of environmentalist orthodoxy.

It was not an arduous expedition. We went to an old wooden building near the Brooklyn Bridge that is home to the Bridge Cafe, which bills itself as “New York’s Oldest Drinking Establishment.” There’s been drinking in the building since the late 18th century, when it was erected on Water Street along the shore of Lower Manhattan.

Since record-keeping began in the 19th century, the sea level in New York has been rising about a foot per century, which happens to be about the same increase estimated to occur over the next century by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The temperature has also risen as New York has been covered with asphalt and concrete, creating an “urban heat island” that’s estimated to have raised nighttime temperatures. The warming that has already occurred locally is on the same scale as what’s expected globally in the next century.

The impact of these changes on Lower Manhattan isn’t quite as striking as the computer graphics. The effect of the rising temperatures is more complicated to gauge. Hotter summer weather can indeed be fatal. But there are a couple of confounding factors explained in Lomborg’s new book, Cool It: The Skeptical Environmentalist’s Guide to Global Warming.

The first is that winter can be deadlier than summer. About seven times more deaths in Europe are attributed annually to cold weather (which aggravates circulatory and respiratory illness) than to hot weather, Lomborg notes, pointing to studies showing that a warmer planet would mean fewer temperature-related deaths in Europe and worldwide.

The second factor is that the weather matters a lot less than how people respond to it. Just because there are hotter summers in New York doesn’t mean that more people die — in fact, just the reverse has occurred. Researchers led by Robert Davis, a climatologist at the University of Virginia, concluded that the number of heat-related deaths in New York in the 1990s was only a third as high as in the 1960s. The main reason is simple, and evident as you as walk into the Bridge Cafe on a warm afternoon: air-conditioning. The lesson from our expedition is not that global warming is a trivial problem. Although Lomborg believes its dangers have been hyped, he agrees that global warming is real and will do more harm than good. He advocates a carbon tax and a treaty forcing nations to budget hefty increases for research into low-carbon energy technologies.

But the best strategy, he says, is to make the rest of the world as rich as New York, so people elsewhere can afford to do things like shore up their coastlines and buy air conditioners. NYT NEWS SERVICE

The weather matters a lot less than how people respond to it

Wash the waters

About an artist who is inspired by the Mithi River ...


Atul Bhalla belongs to the generation that falls on the crusp of India’s economic liberalization. Here was a lot that saw India’s socialist agenda conclude rather abruptly; a rapid two weeks after Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination, a new India began to unfold. To Bhalla, this new India has also transformed our environment into a junkyard.

In his first Bombay solo titled Remarking the River, Bhalla focuses on the Yamuna River, our capital’s version of the Mithi. Environmentally, the world is in its worst era currently, and nothing epitomizes this degradation more that our urban centres. Until 26/7 happened, there was no concept of Mithi as a river; it was a swamp that passed through Mahim with copious effluents to feed the Arabian Sea. Moreover, plans to reduce the degradation of our coastline by treating sewerage water will only materialise by 2025.

That doesn’t sound like a very urgent plan by any stretch.


Remarking the River is the artist’s attempt to re-establish a link with the Yamuna, to re-anchor a relationship with something as basic as water, an element that has been horrifically violated in our nation thanks to corporate greed and political corruption. Aside from photographs, installations features ‘plastic’ bottles made out of sand borrowed from the Yamuna and immersed into a water tank.

The artist’s photographs in a way celebrate the naivete of our relationship with nature, an instinctive reaction one would have to lakes, mountains, streams as we once knew them. In reclaiming his rapport with a defiled geography in such times, Remarking the River comes across as a meditative (even if somewhat haunted) response to the gravely endangered ecology of Hindustan.

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The Eco Responsive Team
ecoresponsive (at) aliagroup.com

The great pollution fest

http://www.mesn.org/articles/index.php?art/id:389
Manoj R Nair

Mindless extravagance first killed the spirit behind our festivals. Now it may be killing you and me.

Studies have shown an alarming rise in pollution levels during festivals in Mumbai -- oxygen levels in the sea and major lakes fell by 50 per cent in the aftermath of the 10-day Ganeshotsav festival this year; sound pollution was up almost 100 per cent during Diwali, while the level of Respirable Suspended Particulate Matter, fine pollutants that can enter our lungs as we breathe, was 70 per cent above the danger mark.

While doctors have reported a worrying increase in the number of people complaining of bronchitis and asthma after Diwali, environmentalists believe the large number of dead fish washing ashore in Thane creek and found floating in Powai lake recently was directly linked to the immersion of giant Ganpati idols made of plaster of paris and carrying toxic colours.

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Green Gods

http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=62145

Snehal Fernandes and Vijay Singh

With bhajans in the background and rich red-gold paper makhars on display, devotees of Ganesha thronged at Lalbaug’s Hirmani supermarket to choose the best paper makhar to house their Lord. Makhar have dominated the scene since 2001, the year they were introduced, but this year, there are trees, birds and monkeys too—all with a new entrant, Vanashree.

“Since we all have grown up among trees and birds, I decided to innovate Vanashree,” says Nana Saheb Shendkar, who pioneered paper makhars. Vanashree makhar depicts a wild jungle with birds and monkeys, and a tiny Ganpati idol placed in the middle it. Conceptualised by Shendkar, it took two months to design and manufacture the ‘green temple’. These paper makhars travel as far as Nashik, Indore and Bahrain.

A 30-year-old business in thermacol makhars, Shendkar experienced a huge blow when his thermacol factory went up in flames in 1999. That’s when he decided to go eco-friendly.

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