MNS to 'clean up' Mumbai, article 3 :)

MUMBAI: After politicians got into Mumbai clean up drive in the backdrop of rising Malaria cases, MNS chief Raj Thackeray also asked his party men to take up the responsibility of cleaning the metropolis.
Raj today directed his partymen to clean the city with the help of civic officials and local people.
"Wherever you find garbage, clean it to control the diseases," he said.
He made it clear that this was not a publicity stunt. "Many (political leaders) have published their photographs cleaning Mumbai but it was a publicity stunt," he added.
He also warned his party men against their involvement helping in proliferation of slums.
"Slums and migrants are responsible for diseases. Slum areas where migrants live are unhygienic," he charged.
Raj also pointed that private land are free from slums but land belonging to the state government, centre and BMC are encroached.
"Corporators and government officials are responsible for this and you should control it," he told his party activists.

article 2, read it ppl :)

Dhobi Ghat, popular tourist spot, new look, civic administration, BMC Posted: Mon Mar 28 2011, 03:07 hrs Mumbai:

The iconic Dhobi Ghat in Mahalaxmi, a popular tourist spot for foreigners visiting Mumbai, will soon don a new look. While the civic administration has begun the revamp of the century-old washing and drying area spread over a 23-acre plot to provide better facilities for the launderers, the BMC is also planning to build a viewing gallery for tourists in the second phase of restoration.
“In the first phase, roofs will be built over the sheds of the kilns,” said Nutan Prakash Ghotge, municipal architect. “Most of the bhattis are in a dilapidated condition and we are putting new roofs and repairing the sheds. Earlier, the roofs were made of cement tiles and asbestos, but we will now use colourful tiles,” said another official.
The BMC has, however, decided to retain the British era flooring of the Dhobi Ghat because of its historical significance. “The plan to renovate Dhobi Ghat is primarily to provide better conditions for the washermen,” said BMC City Engineer D M Phase. The Rs 2.4-crore project, mooted in 2006, is expected to be completed in about two years.

Recent article, Quite interesting :)

Mumbai residents clean up Juhu beach after Ganpati Visarjan

Published: Monday, Sep 12, 2011, 22:57
With the ten-day long festival of Ganesh Chaturthi coming to an
end on Sunday with Ganpati Visarjan, scores of residents and college students gathered at the Juhu beach here today and actively participated in the clean-up drive.
Mumbai Congress President Kripashankar Singh, who also participated in the cleaning drive, expressed his gratitude to the environmentally conscious residents who had participated in the campaign.
"This was initiated by Sunil Dutt (veteran Bollywood actor and politician) and her daughter Priya Dutt, who is a lawmaker and she is carrying forward the tradition. We all, the Environment cell of Mumbai congress, youth congress and the college students are
spreading the awareness," said Singh.
"You can see that members of Municipal Corporation have just provided JCB and trucks for picking up and collecting the debris. Everybody, all young and old, Parikshit Sahni son of Balraj Sahni and a renowned Bollywood actor, has also supported the drive. So, I express my gratitude to everybody who has come on Juhu beach and has participated in this cleaning campaign," he added.
Meanwhile, Congress MP Priya Dutt Priya Dutt also expressed happiness at the fact that people were becoming aware of the importance of environment and its impact on the lives of people.
"Awareness about cleaning has spread widely. We feel happy to see that people have started believing how we can keep our environment clean and how does it affect us. This is why, it's good that the drive is going well and has spread extensively," she said.
Various Non-Government Organisations (NGOs), politicians and residents also joined the students in this cleaning up initiative.
The annual festival of ''Vinayaka Chaturthi'' as per Hindu almanac falls between the months of August and September.
It marks the birthday of Lord Ganesha as numerous rituals are performed while a colourful statue of the portly Hindu god marks the event.
The festival concludes with the Visarjan (immersion) of idols. The immersion of the idols signifies that the deity returns to their abode after being the guest of the devotees on the occasion of Ganesha Utsav and as such many devout families bid emotional farewell to Lord Ganesha.
For the past few years, civic authorities of the city have been requesting the devotees to dump Ganesh''s idols, made of toxic and non-soluble material, in dustbins kept specifically for the purpose so that it could be easily disposed off later.
Most of the debris comprise of flowers, plastic bags, garlands and sweet offerings made to the Hindu god by hundreds of devotees.

Ways to Stop Littering

As public attention to the state of our environment remains front and center--and will likely stay that way for the next few decades--stopping littering should be a new priority among law makers in local communities and on up the political ladder. In 2009, a survey revealed that 75 percent of Americans admitted to littering in the last five years. While laws with fines already prohibit littering, more can be done to deter people from throwing any piece of trash--this includes cigarette butts--on the ground.

1. Bigger Penalties

   • While there are already fines associated with littering, the fines could be steeper, hitting offenders directly where it hurts them the most. Perhaps $5 - $10 per ounce of garbage littered, on top of the offense of littering itself, which will carry a hefty fine. A class could be required for littering offenders--just as defensive driving can be required after moving violations--forcing people to learn what littering does, how often people litter and why. Fines could double for people who don't take this class.

   More Trash Cans

   • While there are a good number of trash cans in major cities, there should be twice as many, targeted in locations where trash cans are needed, like outside restaurants and stores where people gather and collect little pieces of trash. Perhaps the nearby businesses could pay a nominal fee for their regular upkeep and emptying. Trash cans should be big and covered but easy to deposit things inside, so that they don't smell, but aren't overflowing with garbage.

   Smoking Bans

   • Smoking bans help to curb littering in certain areas, as people won't smoke cigarettes there and carelessly leave their butts on the ground. Cigarette butts take 12 years to fully biodegrade, which means they pile up significantly if left in one particular area, poisoning the ground and the area around it. Smokers also often create more garbage when it comes to the cigarette pack itself--empty cardboard or paper packs, cellophane on the packs--so keeping them and their practices out of the area will help to reduce littering in general.

Stop littering one of our national treasures

I take great pleasure in writing this article that should have been written long ago by myself or even by someone else to identify the significance of keeping our prestigious No. 63 beach, an international natural tourism attraction pristine clean by drawing the line and advocating, “Do not litter our precious beach anymore.”
In order to do so, I am taking the opportunity in this article to identify how we could prevent dumping of waste in public places of great concern like the beach. One of my ideas for now is to let the public be aware that the beach belongs to all of us and we should cherish what we are so fortunate to have and treat it with care by taking all of our trash back home after having a lovely, refreshing day of picnicking and partying on the beach. You will have to dispose of your trash when you get home, in your private area, in a garbage bag in a barrel in front your home ready to get picked up by the garbage truck, or take it to your nearby dumpsite for disposal. Hopefully, the spot you choose to dispose your trash is a non-residential area so that it doesn’t create pollution, stench or health hazards in that area as well. Whatever you bring to the beach, please take back home with you so we could maintain a clean, healthy and beautiful environment. Walk with a bag: black plastic, garbage or even the re-usable rice ones and pile your garbage into this then park it in a corner of your trunk and dispose of it when you reach home in your trash collection bin.
People have to learn to take ownership of their trash that they leave on the beach. It belongs to you and don’t spread it around for everyone to meet an untidy surrounding of scenic beauty.  This unfortunate practice has been going on for years now and has really got to my nerves and no one seems to care or to say anything about this or teach the public what to do.
I am tired along with my family to see people’s sanitary cups, plates, glass bottles and plastic ones too etc. being scattered along the beach and blown in all directions with the Atlantic winds causing a filthy atmosphere instead of a spotlessly clean one.
Dumping on our 63 Beach is wrong and shouldn’t happen! Even in public places along the roadside and frequently visited areas we see clogged drains with empty plastic bottles and this nonsense should abruptly stop, with reference to my last article on littering dated August 20, 2010.
Do we want to chase and scare away tourists when they see the condition of the beach with shards of glass strewn along the sand caused by broken bottles that could cut one’s feet, puncture your car or bicycle tyre and are seen as dangerous obstacles along our pretty path in life? Don’t we want to encourage our visitors to stay and watch the sunrise on 63 Beach, walk along the clean, golden brown sand and wade in the navy blue river waters, have fun and frolic in the sun then relax on a lay-back chair on the beach absorbing the re-invigorating Atlantic breeze cruising over the land seemingly hesitant to depart from such a pleasant milieu?
We must be able to feel a positive ambience, something that is advocated in clean air according to the Chinese Sheng Fue. With this feeling you can breathe clean air and good actions will come out of you and around you. Parents, I am surprised how some of you come and litter our magnificent beach and do hope you will stop and teach your children who are out of school and on vacation to dispose of solid waste in the proper way.

Article By Michael Barber, renonmed author

STOP LITTERING!

by Michael Barber

Every ten seconds people litter in the world!  Also, sewage still gets dumped in the Atlantic Ocean...that is killing a lot of fish, sea turtles, coral and sea life. The o-zone is made up of layers, and each layer protects us from the sun. The more we litter, the more o-zone we destroy.  So, that means the sun gets to us easier and we get burned easier.  Right now there are really bad holes in the ozone that are causing Brazil's people to get really bad sunburns. If you want to stop killing animals, destroying the ozone, dumping sewage into the Atlantic Ocean, and destroying the environment for the animals...Stop Littering!

Perfect City... Ideology

My "Perfect" City

I. Utilities

The city I propose as a perfect city, would be as close to an ecocity as possible, although have some differences.   For example, for electrical needs, I would suggest the city have a solar power plant, but on those desperate times, energy would be bought from other electrical plants from nearby towns or states.
                      Water purification and a wastewater treatment plants would be necessary in order to provide the citizens and visitors with clean healthy water. To prevent flooding, this city was built on flood plains.
Solid waste pickup services will exist, preventing litter and garbage accumulations. Large fines will be issued if improper garbage and recycling activities are noticed and reported. Almost everything will be recyclable and taken to nearby cities to their recycling plants. Garbage will also be sent out to a nearby dump.

II.   Transportation

For people tomove around the city I've come up with several ideas. Electric cars would create less pollution than gas cars so those would highly be encouraged. More encouraged than that would be bikes, walking, and a city trolley system. Certain streets would be blocked off from cars, allowing only city trolleys and bikes through. Also, some streets would be narrower and bike paths would be mandatory along any new street that is built and in front of any new home. Motorboats and wave runners would be prohibited in the lake and river, but a ferry would be present for commuting purposes. Paddleboats would be popular in the lakes and river. Walking and biking would be the most influenced form of transportation. Neighborhood stores would be encouraged, promoting bike and walk transportation. No mass transportation systems will be found running through the city.

III. Density of Homes

Understandably, some people enjoy large lawns. For every 1 home that is built on an acre property, 2 homes have to be built on ½ acre property. The homes will be made out of eco-friendly materials causing no harm to the atmosphere, being acquainted by impeccable sewage systems

My students Essays On Importance of Cleanliness :)

IMPORTANCE OF CLEANLINESS.

Good morning.
Respected Sister, Teachers and my friends,
I would like to discuss a few things about the “Importance of Cleanliness”.

We hear a lot about cleanliness. This is the topic talked every day and everywhere. After all “What is this Cleanliness?” In simple words, Cleanliness is the opposite of Dirty. It has got high importance. Failing to keep cleanliness can be danger to our life. That is the reason, why cleanliness is taught in every one’s life. Cleanliness starts from each of us. It can be personal cleanliness, cleanliness of our Room, Home, School, Street or our City.

Personal cleanliness means keeping our body clean. Brushing our teeth, washing our face etc are few examples of this personal hygiene. Washing and bath are the best ways for personal cleanliness.

Cleanliness in our home and surrounding includes removal of dust, dirt and garbage.We should remember that removal of our garbage does not mean to put the same into our neighbour’s yard. We need to cooperate with our neighbours too for this. We should dispose our garbage in the specified dust bins provided by the municipality.

Similarly, we need to keep clean our school, street. We should be highly aware of the cleanliness all the time. We shouldn’t throw anything in the street. In turn, it should be put in the dust bin. This way, we can help to keep our city clean.

Cleanliness is not just limited to these few things. Hospitals, where lot of patients are treated for varieties of diseases, require high degree of attention when it comes to cleanliness. Otherwise, these places can be source of diseases.

Industries generate various types of wastes everyday. It is mandatory to have waste management systems to avoid pollution. This way the air, water and our environment can be kept clean.


atleast answer to the crying Vail of this 8year old..????

Untidy City also harms water storage, heres a article :)

The Clean Water Act has made advances to our society that have helped
our environment to flourish with life. The objective of the Act when it was
enacted in 1972 was to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and
biological integrity of the Nation's water. This objective was accompanied by
other statutory goals to eliminate the discharge of pollutants into waters used
by boats by 1985 and to attain waters deemed "fishable or swimmable" by 1983. So
far, the Act has done exactly what it was meant to do. Its purpose is being
served and we our benefiting with clean water.

No where in the context of the Clean Water Act does it say anything
about respecting the convenience of businesses wishing to dump their toxins into
our waters. The Act was not meant to please everyone, but it was meant to clean
our water, and that should please a wide majority. We should not have to
sacrifice our health for a business that does nothing for us. Clean water ismuch more of a priority to us citizens than is the well being of a company that
we probably have never heard of and never will.

If the Clean Water Act Amendments of 1995 are passed, all that we have
worked for since 1972 will be lost. It will take all of the advances made to
clean our water and totally reverse them. This bill will take apart the National
Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, leaving loopholes for businesses
desiring to pollute our waters. This bill also demonstrates a flagrant disregard
for the state of scientific and technological knowledge in the area of water
quality. It will corrupt our water in such a way as to totally abolish the Clean
Water Act, rendering it obsolete.

The intent of the of the Clean Water Act Amendments of 1995 is to
increase flexibility on businesses, States, local governments, and landowners.
This increase in flexibility is meant to relax some regulations dealing with the
discharge of wastes and stormwater into waterways etc







Lets be the change, it can really be fatal :(

Globalization, Round-a-bout involved ;P

In this era of globalization, man is facing air pollution which is the most serious environmental problem in this world. As the world moves more into the modern age, more pollutants are spewed into the air. Politicians environmentalists and the general public have expressed their concern about this issue. Air pollution is caused by a wide variety of factors. This essay will discuss the causes, effects and measures to overcome air pollution.

Air pollution has wide adverse effects on the environment and man in general. One of the effects of air pollution is health hazard. The polluted air contains one or more hazardous substance, pollutant or contaminant that creates a hazard to the general health causing aliments such as asthma, bronchitis and other respiratory diseases. According to research in USA, each year about 30 000 premature deaths occur. And it is estimated that in the most polluted cities, lives of residents are shortened by one to two years. Global warming is another effect of air pollution. It refers to the gradual increase of the temperature of the earth. Global warming affects our earth by destroying the ecosystem and melts polar ice caps. Furthermore, it will raise the sea levels that cause coastal floods. Besides, air pollution can cause acid rain. This does not only harm man but also animals, fish and plants. Moreover, acid rain also affects the ground by making the soil toxic thereby poisoning many animals and plants. In addition, air pollution causes the ozone layer to become thinner and thinner. Thus, it reduces its ability to shield us from ultraviolet (UV) radiation. All this not only can cause skin cancer but also will damage the wildlife and plants.

Some of major causes of air pollution are open burning, emission of toxic wastes by factories and unpredictable natural disaster. Open burning is practised by irresponsible people who burn things such as plastic and garbage which introduces carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

India being TRASHED..!!

The environmental problems in India are growing rapidly. The increasing economic development and a rapidly growing population that has taken the country from 300 million people in 1947 to more than one billion people today is putting a strain on the environment, infrastructure, and the country’s natural resources. Industrial pollution, soil erosion, deforestation, rapid industrialization,  urbanization, and land degradation are all worsening problems. Overexploitation of the country's resources be it land or water and the industrialization process has resulted environmental degradation of  resources.  Environmental pollution is one of the most serious problems facing humanity and other life forms on our planet today.
   India's per capita carbon dioxide emissions were roughly 3,000 pounds (1,360 kilograms) in 2007, according to the study. That's small compared to China and the U.S., with 10,500 pounds (4,763 kilograms) and 42,500 pounds (19,278 kilograms) respectively that year. The study said thate European Union and Russia also have more emissions than India. | | |

  On 11 March, 2010 Mr Jairam Ramesh Minister of State for Environment and Forests informed the Rajya Sabha that the Central Pollution Control Board has done a nation wide environmental assessment of Industrial Clusters based on CEPI and 43 such industrial clusters having CEPI greater than 70, on a scale of 0 to 100, has been identified as critically polluted.  
   A Comprehensive environmental assessment of industrial clusters, undertaken by IIT Delhi and the CPCB, found that the environmental pollution levels in 10 major industrial hubs had reached a “very alarmingly high” level. This list includes Ankleshwar and Vapi in Gujarat , Ghaziabad and Singrauli in UP, Korba (Chhattisgarh), Chandrapur (Maharashtra), Ludhiana (Punjab), Vellore (Tamil Nadu), Bhiwadi (Rajasthan) and Angul Talcher (Orissa).
  The World Bank Group has sanctioned two loans worth around Rs1,185 crore for environment...lets hope it will play a crucial role :)

Environmental Problems..

Environmental Problems

            In today's environment Palm Beach County alone faces many environmental problems, which can turn disastrous if not taken care of.   Included in these problems are air pollution, water contamination, and urban explosion.
Air pollution is a major factor threatening our health and our environment. Due to the pollutants that circulate in the air, many people can come into contact with cancer causing gases. Atmospheric contaminants are derived from human practices, such as gas from automobiles, factories, and even chimneys. Pollutants do not only cause damage to our health, but they cause damage to the health of plants and animals as well.   Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide cause damage to leaves of crop plants and trees when they enter leaf pores. Exposure of leaves to air pollutants can also break down the waxy coating that helps prevent excessive water loss and damage from diseases, pests, drought, and frost.
Waterpollution is another problem our county faces. There are many causes for water pollution but two general categories exist: direct and indirect contaminant sources. Direct sources include effluent outfalls from factories, waste treatment plants etc., which emit fluids of varying quality directly into urban water supplies. Although these practices are regulated, this doesn't mean that pollutants can't be found in these waters. Indirect sources include contaminants that enter the water supply from soils/groundwater systems and from the atmosphere via rainwater. Soils and groundwater contain the residue of human agricultural practices (fertilizers, pesticides, etc.) and improperly disposed of industrial wastes. The effects of water pollution are varied and can be severe. They include poisonous drinking water, poisonous food animals, unbalanced river and lake ecosystems that can no longer support full biological diversity, deforestation from acid rain, and many other effects. These effects are harmful to everyone either...
Its time for action now, its time to shine... and dump the junk...

Time to start :)

Here are just a few of the things that I do to clean my city, with city meaning my local living area:

I recycle all paper, paperboard, cardboard, glass, aluminum, and plastic that I use. This includes junk mail and food packaging materials, which those two make up the bulk of my recyclables.
I grow plants in and around my living space. Not only do these convert carbon dioxide into oxygen they have " grown on me " become part of my daily routine and bring a smile to my face.
I drive a LEV, "Low Emission vehicle" and try to drive as smart as possible. This does not always happen because I have a bit of the lead foot syndrome but I try.
I choose water for 90% of my beverage intake. Creating a lot of benefits inside of my body.
I set up a recycling program at my day job, and now it literally keeps 5 to 8 tons of cardboard and paper a month out of the landfills, it has also saved the company waste disposal fees because it has freed up so much space from the dumpsters. Win Win situations are always good..

Try it, Feels good :)