Category: News

How Southeast Asian Countries Could Drive the Future of Coal Technology

Poised to drive the future of coal power, many Southeast Asian countries are considering new coal plants with high-efficiency, low-emissions (HELE) technologies, a new report suggests.

According to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) December-released World Energy Outlook 2017, Southeast Asia, along with India and other developing economies in Asia, will drive global coal demand. The region’s coal consumption is expected to grow two-and-a-half times to 385 million tonnes of coal equivalent (Mtce) in 2040, even as demand remains sluggish in the rest of the world compared to other fuels. Demand growth will clearly be driven by power plants, which are expected to account for nearly 75% of additional coal use in the coming 25 years, the agency noted.

“Electricity demand grows by 3.7% per year over the period and the region’s power system planners need to mobilise all sources of power generation to keep pace. Coal is a fuel of choice not only because it is markedly cheaper than natural gas in the long term but also because coal projects are in many cases easier to pursue as they do not require capital-intensive fuel delivery infrastructure (unlike gas),” it said. Read more

Courtesy: Power

In Kerala’s Adivasi belt, women are protesting to save a project for the poor that transformed lives

Adivasi women in Attappady tribal block in Kerala’s Palakkad district are protesting against what they view as attempts by the state government to scuttle a poverty alleviation programme that was launched in 2014 with financial assistance from the National Rural Livelihood Mission.

Since July 2, braving heavy rain and inclement weather, women have been assembling at a spot in Agali town both day and night to protest against any move to bring the Attappady Comprehensive Tribal and Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups Development Project under the control of gram panchayats by delinking it from the National Rural Livelihood Mission. Read more

Courtesy: Scroll.in

7 years later, govt refuses to recover Goa’s looted wealth

Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s justification for calling the Shah Committee report flawed was that the survey was done using hand held GPS devices and that these devices have an error margin of 300-500 meters. Parrikar claims that the government has used latest technology, and based on this the actual area is not 578 hectares as reported by Shah Commission but a mere 10 hectares.
Interestingly, such discrepancies did not arise in other States which were under investigation by the Shah Commission. Also, the company that did the survey is Turbosketch from Fatorda. This company had also provided similar technical assistance while preparing the Regional Plan 2021, land use plans and has been involved in many other government contracts. Read more

Courtesy: Herald

Environment undermined as coal comes more and more from opencast mines

Environment undermined as coal comes more and more from opencast mines

Shatrughan Sinha and Amitabh Bachchan toiling in the dark caverns of a deep coal mine in the 1979 hit Kala Patthar has more or less come to represent life in the Indian coal industry.

The image now needs a makeover, as underground (UG) mining, once the mainstay and a relatively environment-friendly option, has become rare in India.

In FY18, the nation’s two commercial miners — Coal India Ltd (CIL) and Singareni Collieries Co Ltd (SCCL) — produced 629 million tonne of fuel. Of this, barely 39 mt, or 6 per cent, came from underground sources, down from 16 per cent in FY05 and nearly 9 per cent in FY14. Among the top coal-producing nations, only Indonesia has a lower UG share. Considering 25 per cent of India’s coal assets are deep-seated, UG should ideally contribute a quarter of production. Read more

Courtesy: Business Line

Tradies contracting lung disease from deadly practice

Sick tradies are taking their fight to the government, urging a crackdown on deadly practices in the stonemasonry industry.

Gary Moratti, 49, has worked with stone for 35 years – mostly artificial since it was introduced to Australia 15 years ago.

He said the artificial stone was brought in “without telling anybody how dangerous it really is”.

Mr Moratti was diagnosed with silicosis in 2017. Symptoms include coughing, shortness of breath, chest pain and skin lesions. Read more

Courtesy: Yahoo

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