Sep 2018

VOLUME 102 | ISSUE 108 | SEPTEMBER 2018 Page 4Kerala:How a rooftop solar power plant saved lives Established by H.H. Dr. Syedna Environment Wellness & Lifestyle Monthly Newsletter Mohammed Burhanuddin (RA) in 1992It was five years ago that Dr. A.P.Sreekumar,a staunch environmentalist, installed a rooftopsolar power plant at his house in Chengannurin Kerala's Alappuzha district. Little did heknow then that one day it would help savelives during the devastating floods in the state.When the electricity board had turned off Dr. A.P.Sreekumar and Dr. Lakshmi The Ecology of Biogas Energypower distribution at Chengannur to preventfurther danger following the unprecedented Biogas is known as an environmentally-friendly energy source because it alleviatesrain and deluge, Sreekumar's house in the two major environmental problems simultaneously:locality remained lit up. 1. The global waste epidemic that releases dangerous levels of methane gas daily 2. The reliance on fossil fuel energy to meet global energy demandIt sheltered five families from the neighbourhood. It became a centre from where By converting organic waste into energy, biogas is utilizing nature’s elegantthe refugees sent SOS messages, everyone charged their phones and remained tendency to recycle substances into productive resources. Biogas generationconnected to the outside world. \"Even though we had enough power, we tried our recovers waste materials that would otherwise pollute landfills; prevents the usebest to reduce the usage as we did not know how long the uncertainty would of toxic chemicals in sewage treatment plants, and saves money, energy andprevail,\" Sreekumar said. The doctor could also alert the local youths, who were material by treating waste on-site. Biogas takes methane, a problematic gas,carrying out rescue operations along with police, fire and rescue personnel, and present in decomposing waste and converts into carbon dioxide. Methane gas hassave the lives of an elderly man and his son stranded in the neighbourhood. approximately 20 to 30 times the heat-trapping capabilities of carbon dioxide.Fortunately, the house was not submerged as it is located on a higher plane. What are Biogas Digesters ?Indukantham Hospital run by Sreekumar, which is again solar powered, had Biogas digesters are the systems thatsheltered five other families, including that of two in-patients. Sreekumar and wife process waste into biogas, and thenDr Lakshmi Sreekumar had administered first aid to many fishermen who were channel that biogas so that the energyinjured in rescue operations. After the flood waters receded, the couple joined the can be productively used.medical camp at Chengannur. Biogas digesters receive organic (Source-TOI Report) matter, which decompose in a digestion chamber.Burhani Foundation (India) The digestion chamber is fully submerged in water, making it an anaerobic has partnered with environment. The anaerobic environment allows for microorganisms to break down the organic material, and convert it into biogas. Animal manure, foodRecycled Paper Used scraps, wastewater and sewage are all examples of organic matter that can Recycled Paper Used produce biogas by anaerobic digestion. BURHANI FOUNDATION (INDIA)Amatullah Manzil, 65 Bazargate Street, Fort, Mumbai-1.Phone: 22678480 / 22634326 Youtube: Burhani Foundation India ChannelWebsite: burhanifoundationindia.org Facebook: Burhani-Foundation-IndiaEmail: [email protected] Twitter: BFI_environment Instagram: burhani.foundation [email protected]

Page 2 Page 3 Houseplants That Can Help Repel Bugs Environment NewsNature provides its own insect repellants. They can be extremely effective at You may live longer if India achieves its air quality standardsshooing bugs plus, they smell nice, too. Remember to keep them out of reach ofsmall children and pets. People in Delhi will live six years longer if air quality meets national standards, says a study by researchers from the University of Chicago and Harvard University. “ThisSage Bush: You may have heard about sage smudging number would increase to four years if India were to meet the WHO norms. Some ofrituals to clear your house of negative energy, but it turns the greatest gains would be seen in the country’s largest cities such as Delhi, acrossout the smoke created by burning sage is super effective the Indo-Gangetic plain, including in the rural areas,” said The Energy Policyagainst bugs like mosquitoes, too. Keep a sizable sage bush Institute at the University of Chicago in a study titled A Roadmap Towards Cleaningaround the house and take cuttings from it but remember India’s Air.that sage has to be dried before it can be burned. India is now the biggest emitter of greenhouse gases after the US and China, and among countries most vulnerable to climate change. India plans to reduce its carbon Basil: Basil may smell delicious to us when it's used in a footprint by 33-35% from its 2005 levels by 2030, as part of its commitments to the zesty tomato sauce, but it smells terrible to bugs, according United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted by 195 countries to Gardening Know How. \"The intense scent and oil in basil in Paris in 2015. and many other herbs are often used to deter common household pests,\" the site reported. \"The pungent herb - Edited from Live Mint news website seems to repel flies and basil pest control has been used since ancient times.\" Contact lenses contribute to micro plastic pollutionChives: Like many of the other plants on this list, chives A new study from researchers from Arizona Stateare also known for their non-insect-repelling qualities, University suggests contact lens wearers are not verynamely how good they taste. But chives, which can be good at dealing with lenses once they’re done withgrown virtually anywhere, from an outdoor garden to a them. All those tiny discarded plastic discs are addingtabletop mini-greenhouse, repel carrot flies, Japanese up to a big environmental problem.beetles, and aphids, according to Mother Nature Network,making them effective at keeping bugs out of your house According to the findings, anywhere from 6 to 10 metric tons of plastic lenses endand away from your other plants. up in wastewaters annually. Because of the way wastewater is treated, all that plastic ends up contributing to micro plastic pollution currently building up in Lavender: Lavender may become your best bug waterways, which eventually makes its way into the food chain. repelling plant. Livestrong reported in her book The Unable to be filtered out and being denser than water, they can sink to the bottom Complete Book of Essential Oils and Aromatherapy of aquatic zones and become gobbled up by bottom feeders. that lavender oil can help you slay infestations of fleas, black beetles, and several types of flies. - Edited article from Inverse websiteMarigolds: Lining your windows with boxes of marigoldscan help spread their \"distinctive smell,\" which accordingto Eartheasy is highly, highly disliked by mosquitoes.Marigolds also contain pyrethrum, a compound used inmany insect repellants.\"Recycled Paper Used Recycled Paper Used