Update, Jan. 25, this post includes new reporting: Since the Jan. 8 judgement, new reports have called Monsanto’s “patent victory”—and the media’s reporting of it—into doubt. It appears that the Supreme Court reversed the case to a single judge of the Delhi Hight Court for trial, which will determine the validity of Monsanto’s patent for […]
From ear infections to loss of intelligence, it’s become increasingly clear that air pollution can affect more than just our lungs. Now, a study from University of Southern California researchers suggested that early exposure to traffic pollution increases the risk of childhood obesity in later life, adding more evidence that dirty air is a public […]
International Peace Day is Sept. 21. Mekela Panditharatne, attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, submitted the following op-ed to EcoWatch in commemoration. In drought-ravaged East Africa, the cracks in the plains echo the fault lines splitting tribes. Across the globe, the devastation of deadly brawls is being exacerbated by tensions over access to water. […]
In a summer marked by air quality alerts as wildfires rage in the western U.S., a study has been published finding that air pollution lowers the average lifespan by one year worldwide. The study, published in Environmental Science and Technology Letters Aug. 22, was the first to assess the impact of particulate matter pollution smaller […]
Flooding in India‘s southern state of Kerala has killed 39 and left more than 60,000 homeless as of Monday, The Times of India reported, in what India Today called the region’s “worst flood crisis” since 1924. Kerala, a popular tourist destination, has already seen heavy flooding this monsoon season, but the most recent inundation began […]
by Jake Johnson Despite India’s law barring genetically modified (GM) foods from being produced or sold in the country without government approval, a study by the New Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) found that thanks to lax enforcement, a deeply flawed labeling system and corporate deception, Indian supermarkets are inundated with GM foods. […]
Flooding and heavy rains associated with India‘s monsoon season have killed 537 people so far, The Times of India reported Saturday. The number of deaths was reported by the country’s National Emergency Response Center, which recorded 139 deaths in Maharashtra, where Mumbai is located, 126 in the southwestern state of Kerala, 116 in West Bengal […]
A study published in Science Advances Wednesday offers a potential solution to India‘s growing nutritional and water needs: replace rice with less thirsty, more nutrititious cereals. The study found that by replacing the rice grown in each district with the grain that required the least water for irrigation, India could decrease water demand by 33 […]
The Indian state of Maharashtra—which encompasses the fast-paced and densely populated city capital of Mumbai—imposed a statewide ban on single-use plastics over the weekend. The protocol, first introduced on March 23, prohibits the manufacturing, use, sale, distribution and storage of materials such as plastic grocery bags, cutlery, plates, PET and PETE bottles and foam takeaway […]