|
December 6:
Air pollution in India causes as many as five million deaths every year, reports
Agence France-Presse. The World Health Organization [WHO] puts the safety cap of suspended particulates per cubic meter at less than 50 micrograms. New Delhi has between 350 to 800 micrograms, which
makes India’s capital one of the most polluted cities in the world. Environment and Forest Minister Namo Narayan Meena stated that sixty to seventy percent of India’s pollution is caused by motor vehicles. Seven million cars were bought in India last year, and nearly 10,000 cars have been added each month in New Delhi alone. Throughout the country, India’s air pollution has created an estimated 40 million asthmatic patients. Namo Meena said that, “realizing the urgent need to control vehicular pollution, a road map has been drawn for tighter emission norms and fuel quality improvement.”
December 7:
Bangladesh, situated in the low-lying Ganges River delta, is one of the most densely populated countries on earth and remains one of the most vulnerable countries to global warming, reports
BBC News. In the last century, sea levels have risen between nine to 20 centimeters, and scientists predict an increase of nine to 88 centimeters by the year 2100. Bangladeshis, who mostly live without electricity and motorized transportation, have contributed very little to the pollution that is blamed for climate change. Abdul Razzak, a villager in Bangladesh stated that, “We are angry with the people building these factories that will make us sink into the sea.” International tension
could escalate in neighboring
countries if millions of people are forced to migrate due to rising
sea levels.
December 8:
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered a special government task force to identify and prosecute major illegal loggers responsible for the deadly landslides that wiped out entire towns in the Philippines after two back-to-back storms, reports
Agence France-Presse. Arroyo said anti-illegal logging task force head Victor Corpus, Environment Secretary Michael Defensor, and Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez, were being given "one month from today to identify, investigate and prosecute the big-time illegal loggers, starting from the hardest hit disaster areas." The President stated that she would prosecute the illegal loggers "the way we do terrorists, kidnappers, [and] drug traffickers”, reports the
Sun Star.
Illegal loggers were "violators of the right to sustainable environment," stated Arroyo during a speech marking International Human Rights Day. "Health, education, and a sustainable environment dwell in human rights as well as in shared prosperity. Human rights are imperative for human survival and in the pursuit of the Millenium Development Goals."
Arroyo said she was "very grateful" for the quick response, which included seven raids on alleged illegal sawmills in Mauban town, Quezon province. "This morning, they filed cases against those caught," Arroyo said. Arroyo had suspended all logging activities in the country following the killer floods and landslides in Luzon that left some 1,500 people dead or missing. Officials have blamed widespread logging in the Sierra Madre mountain range for the deluge of mud, logs, and boulders that buried the majority of the three towns.
|
