Hindu Notes from General Studies-01

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Wind, solar farms could bring rains to Sahara Desert.

News

• A massive wind and solar installation in the Sahara Desert would increase precipitation and vegetation in the world’s largest hot desert.

Findings

• The study is among the first to model the climate effects of wind and solar installations while taking into account how vegetation responds to changes in heat and precipitation.
• The wind and solar farms simulated in the study would cover more than nine million square kilometers and generate, on average, about three terawatts and 79 terawatts of electrical power, respectively.
• In 2017, the global energy demand was only 18 terawatts, so this is obviously much more energy than is currently needed worldwide.
• The model revealed that wind farms caused regional warming of near-surface air temperature, with greater changes in minimum temperatures than maximum temperatures.
• The greater nighttime warming takes place because wind turbines can enhance the vertical mixing and bring down warmer air from above.
• Precipitation also increased as much as 0.25 millimetres per day on average in regions with wind farm installations.
• Solar farms had a positive effect on temperature and precipitation, the team found. Unlike the wind farms, the solar arrays had very little effect on wind speed.
• They found that the large-scale installation of solar and wind farms can bring more rainfall and promote vegetation growth in these regions.
• The rainfall increase is a consequence of complex land-atmosphere interactions that occur because solar panels and wind turbines create rougher and darker land surfaces.
• The increase in rainfall and vegetation, combined with clean electricity as a result of solar and wind energy, could help agriculture, economic development and social well-being in the Sahara, Sahel, Middle East and other nearby regions.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-02

India is asking for a trade deal due to our tough policies: Trump

News

• India has asked for a trade deal with the U.S. due to his tough policies, President Donald Trump told his supporters.

Beyond News

• India and the U.S. are negotiating several trade issues, and the talks are in a stalemate as U.S Trade Representative (USTR) has demanded a commitment from India to make additional purchases worth $10 billion annually for the next three years.
• Just as U.S Secretaries of State and Defense, Mike Pompeo and James Mattis respectively, left New Delhi after the first 2+2 dialogue that sought to reiterate the strategic convergence between the two countries after in the face of assertive China, the President put China and India in the same bracket, yet again.
• Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asia told reporters on the conference call that the U.S was working with India, Japan and Australia to keep Asia safe and secure.

Hindu Notes from General Studies-03

China launches new marine satellite

News

• China launched a marine satellite to help improve understanding of maritime waters and climate change.

Beyond News

• The HY—1C satellite will help monitor ocean colour and water temperatures, providing basic data for research on the global oceanic environment.
• Its data will also be used in the survey of the resources and environment of China’s offshore waters, islands and coastal zones, marine disaster relief and the sustainable utilisation of ocean resources, said the administration.
• HY-1C is expected to improve China’s ocean remote sensing capability, along with HY—1D, which is planned to be launched in 2019.
• HY—1C can detect chlorophyll and suspended sediment concentrations and dissolved organic matter, which can affect ocean colour, as well as temperatures on the sea surface.

Alien, Invasive and thriving: Native plants choked in Western Ghats

News

• Last week, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court, hearing a public interest litigation petition seeking the removal of invasive trees from over 22,000 hectares in the Western Ghats,directed the National Board for Wildlife to look into the issue and pass appropriate orders.

Beyond News

• While invasive species of flora like eucalyptus, wattle, pine and cypress trees, as well as Lantana camaraplants, are proliferating across the Nilgiris upper slopes, Prosopis juliflora, parthenium and eupatorium have spread ón the biosphere’s lower slopes, forest officials said.
• Weeds like scotch broom (Cytisus scoparius) and gorse have also begun to spread profusely in habitats like Avalanche, Upper Bhavani and the Mukurthi National Park, home to the endangered Nilgiri tahr, the State animal.
• The Forest Department has taken measures to deal with the spread of the invasive flora over the last few years, with mixed results.
• Mudumalai Tiger Reserve too has been impacted by the spread of invasive plants, especially Lantana camaraand parthenium. Deputy Director of the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) , said that around 70% of the tiger reserve has been taken over by lantana, leading to a diminishing fodder base for herbivores within the reserve.
• While invasive species of flora have had an impact on biodiversity in the Nilgiris, restoration ecologists and experts who have worked in the region for many years have urged caution in dealing with their removal.
• The Forest Department has been working to eradicate invasive species in the Nilgiris and elsewhere in the State for many years now. The department needs funds, manpower and persistence.
• Wildlife continues to thrive in the Western Ghats, including the Nilgiris biosphere, despite the invasive species, said a forest official. But he admitted that the benefits to the native system from the alien species was low.
• Invasive species in the forest ecosystems of Tamil Nadu have resulted in a loss of biodiversity, with an adverse impact on the ecology and economy.

 A lowdown on the threat posed by them:

• Invasive species do not allow any shrub or local species of grass to grow around them.
• They grow in dense fashion, leaving little space for wildlife to pass through.
• A resin oozes from some species during the monsoon, which turns the soil acidic.
• Invasive species like Lantana spread all over an area and create a mat-like structure. They lead to retrogression and a change in the original vegetation in the longer run, degrading and destroying biodiversity. In the proce3ss, herbivores such as the Indian gaur, spotted deer and sambar do not get the required grass, shrubs and plants they feed on. If the herbivores are affected, carnivores like tigers and panthers also suffer.
• Some of the invasive trees are not deep rooted and get easily uprooted during storms and fall on roads, creating problems for users.
• Apart from other factors, monoculture plantation of eucalyptus and wattle could endanger the Nilgiri tahr as it could affect the heart of its habitat, the grasslands.
• They can lead to the movement of wildlife. The Indian gaur population from the wild has started migrating to Kodaikanal town in search of fodder. It is a major problem in areas such as Thadiyankudisai, Thandikudi, Pannaikkadu and Kmbarayur as well.

Google wants more time to meet data storage norms

News

• Technology giant Google has sought two more months from the Indian government to comply with RBI guidelines mandating storing of data by digital payment services providers locally.

Beyond News

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in April this year, had directed payment system operators to store all data, including full end-to-end transaction details and information collected, within India. The service providers were given six months till October 15 to comply.
• Soaring data flows generate more economic value and hence the socio-economic impact of restricting data flows must be thoroughly considered while framing any policy. There is a need to find practical and contemporary solutions to policy issues in line with global best practices.
• Google CEO, in a letter to the Minister after his visit, had also pitched for free flow of data across borders.
• Free flow of data across borders with a focus on user privacy and security will encourage start ups to innovate and expand globally and encourage global companies to contribute to India’s digital economy, Google CEO said.

Plans to generate 10,000 MW solar power in State by 2022

News

• The Andhra Pradesh State government has chalked out plans to add 10,000 MW solar power in the State by 2022, to help bring down tariff as well as make Andhra Pradesh a power-surplus State.

Beyond News

• The government has already taken up 4,000 MW ultra solar power projects at Kurnool, Anantapur and Kadapa.
• The government has been promoting renewable energy, including solar, in a big way since 2014.
• The price per unit has come down to ₹2.75 due to solar power generation. The solar power tariff has come down after taking up the 750 MW solar power project in the Kadapa ultra mega solar park.
• The solar power capacities have been consistently added and generation is poised to reach 5,000 MW by 2019-20.
• The solar policy was announced in 2015 to attract investments in the renewable energy sector.

NCESS study finds natural, man-made causes for floods in south Kerala

News

• A study by an expert team of the National Centre for Earth Science Studies (NCESS) has found that the recent floods in south Kerala were the combined effects of natural and man-made processes.

Findigs

• Heavy precipitation, release of ‘hungry water’ from dams or water that is generated in the sediment-starved river channels in high gradient terrains, riverbeds in the midlands and lowlands with deep pits, caused by indiscriminate sand-mining, had played their role in the deluge.
• The cumulative density of the hungry water released from dams, loaded with silt and clay (mud), would be double that of clear water.
• The water level had risen by 6 to 15 m with respect to the present river water level along various stretches during the floods.
• Scenario at Pampa was quite different. Huge accumulation of heterogenous-type bed materials containing a wide spectrum of particles such as sand, gravel, cobbles and boulders were seen, along with huge uprooted trees, at Pampa-Triveni in the foothills of Sabarimala.
• More than 75 % of this was construction grade sand and gravel. Accumulations of alluvial placer minerals, rich in ilmenite, were noticed in the present flow channel of the Kakki river.
• Hungry water, which was sediment-starved, had transported huge volumes of bed materials to the downstream, depositing them in front of various constructions in the river channel. Evidence showed that the water level had risen to over 12 m at this station, submerging many buildings.
• At Ranni the flood level had risen to nearly 15 metres with disastrous intensity.

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