Collapse of two dams upstream of the coastal Derna city in NE of Libya, the North African Mediterranean country in the night of Sept 10, 2023, leads to deaths of 5200 and over 10000 missing. This is the worst ever flood disaster of Northern Africa in last 130 years of recorded history. The storm had a climate change footprint, but the city of Darna suffered this fate largely due to dam collapses. This underlines the threat that the dams pose in changing climate. (Feature image above: Remains of a damaged dam upstream of the Derna city in Libya, N Africa in Sept 2023 disaster.)
Continue reading “Floods worsened by Dams collapse lead to deaths of thousands in Libya”Tag: Climate Change
DRP 110923: Another independent institution-CEC destroyed
(Feature Image: Ramganga River near Marchula. SANDRP 08 Sept. 2023)
The Govt of India’s Sept 5 2023 notification reconstituting the Central Empowered Committee completely destroys the independent nature of this institution of accountability and course correction. This institution, set up by the Supreme Court in 2002 and reconstituted in 2008, worked as eyes and ears of the Supreme Court on environmental issues. The new committee has no independent members, it will be constituted by the MoEF, MoEF itself has such an abysmally poor track record.
The notification, reports said, diluted the CEC’s autonomy on four key counts: the committee will report to the ministry, instead of the SC; the ministry will pick all the members and the SC will have no role in the process; the ministry, and not the court, will fund the committee; the provision of having two NGOs in the committee has been done away with.
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DRP 280823: Defund nature destroying activities
(Feature Image: Construction work of World Bank funded 444Mw Vishugad-Pipaltkoti hydro dam project is going. The Developer have been found dumping muck in massive amount in river and carrying out blasting work evening during monsoon time. Image Source: Social Media)
This is indeed the key message if we are serious about tackling climate change with any sincerity. The adverse impacts of mindless activities in the name of development, are acting as force multipliers for climate change impacts as we are experiencing first hand, latest example being in Himachal Pradesh and Punjab.
Particularly when the “development” activities are done without credible project specific and cumulative impact assessment, genuine public consultation process and confidence inspiring monitoring and compliance processes, as is the norm.
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DRP 140823: A year after Karam dam disaster: people suffer, engineer set free, contractor building more dams
(Feature Image: Breach in Karam dam, Madhya Pradesh. Source:- Social Media)
It was on Aug 13, 2022, a year ago when the Karam dam wall in Dhar district in Madhya Pradesh started leaking water. Two days later it collapsed. The people who suffered during the disaster continue to suffer. The engineers who were supposed to ensure proper construction of the dam, following all the norms, did not do that, were supposed to be suspended, but got reinstated elsewhere. They kept quiet in the courts. The black listed contractor continues to build more dams.
A clearer evidence of the nexus that supports unwanted, destructive, costly, corruption ridden and disastrous dams would be difficult to find. As the destruction due to dams and such other unaccountable infrastructure development plays out in Himachal Pradesh & elsewhere this year, the nexus that thrives on opaque, unaccountable and non-participatory governance continues to happily grow even as the changing rainfall patterns bring greater disasters before our eyes.
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DRP 070823: Forests & Biodiversity amendments: Gap between intent & application
(Feature Image: Dense Dudhatoli forest range near Peethsain in Thalisain block of Pauri Garhwal. Feb. 2023/ SANDRP)
As editorial comments in two different national newspapers given below shows, the biodiversity and forest conservation amendment bills passed by the Parliament last week weaken the cause of biodiversity and forest conservation, when it is most pressingly required to strengthen them.
Both amendments pave the way for ease of doing business and reducing role of local communities, both in terms of legal norms and practical implications.
The need for conservation of these resources was never more urgent than now considering the impacts of climate change on them and their importance for not only livelihood security of vast millions, but also for hydrological implications, food security, protection against increasing frequency and intensity of disasters, but also for adaptation in the context of changing climate. We hope against hope that better sense will prevail sooner rather than later to ensure the amendments do not lead to destruction of forest and biodiversity resources.
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DRP 310723: Disastrous SHORT TERMISM in Urban India
(Feature Image: Earthmovers on restoration work as massive landslide damaged buildings at Shamti after heavy monsoon rainfall, in Solan district, on July 11, 2023 | Photo Credit: PTI/The Hindu)
The Supreme Court’s notice on Shimla development plan that lacks balance between development and environment is welcome and one hopes the apex court takes the issue to its logical conclusion. The consequences of unplanned and ill planned urban developments are a clear invitation to major disasters, including floods, landslides, traffic congestions, air and water pollution, health hazards and also water shortages. The Shimla Master plan also violates the NGT directions with complete impunity.
This is exactly what the EDIT in the Times of India on Mussoorie misery, dangerous short termism that pervades across sectors in Urban India with no policy to guide Urban Water sector or for that matter any other sector.
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DRP 240723: Urgently need parameters that will truly reflect rainfall pattern
(Feature Image: – IMD’s District Wise Cumulative Rainfall Map for 01 June to 23 July 2023)
India received 389.2 mm rainfall till 0830 hrs on July 23, 2023 in SW monsoon. This being 5% above the normal rainfall till this date of 370.9 mm, India Meteorological Department and with it, the whole nation calls it Normal Monsoon. But anyone who is familiar with the rainfall pattern across India will not call it Normal.
We must urgently develop new parameters for describing the monsoon that also take into account spatial (across states, districts, Tehsils, blocks) and temporal variability. These parameters should take into account the departure from normal for each unit of space for each day and combine such departures to arrive at a figure that will better describe the monsoon for each unit of space. It can also take into consideration the high intensity rainfall events as also the longer dryer patches. This will help us understand not only the nature of monsoon rainfall, but also alert the farmers and everyone else but also help us understand how this pattern is changing over the years. This should not be so difficult for IMD to initiate and accomplish quickly. When aggregated at river basin level, this will also help us understand the actual rainfall pattern in each river basin but also how it is changing. Is this too much to ask?
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July 2023 Bhutan Hydro Project Disaster: 23 Dead and missing
At least seven people were killed and 16 others missing in Bhutan after flash floods and landslides triggered by heavy rains washed away a section of a hydroelectric plant on July 20 2023[i]. They were washed away by the sudden burst at the residential area next to the worksite at Ungar village, according to a press release from the Prime Minister’s Office. Prime Minister Dr Lotay Tshering, who is in Lhuentse, said the devastating flashflood presented one of the biggest loss of lives and properties in recent memory, and shook the core of the nation.
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DRP 170723: Man-Made Reasons That Make Flood A Disaster
(Feature Image: At Bhuntar, the Beas in spate claimed more than 20 shops, several houses and a major chunk of the road. PTI/The Tribune)
Over the past 10 days, several Himalayan and North Indian states including national capital Delhi have been battling severe flood disaster which has already taken a heavy toll of human lives apart from displacing people in large numbers and causing massive scale and still unfolding destruction to public-private infrastructure which is still unfolding.
While at macro level the impact of climate change induced excessive and abnormal rainfall patterns is seen as a major culprit but the micro level analysis reveals the deep connection of human activities behind the devastation on ground.
For example, in Himachal and Uttarakhand it is increasingly becoming clear that the large-scale construction and widening of improperly designed and poorly executed highways projects have started proving a double whammy for the fragile hills and river systems.
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DRP 030723: Peak Hour Tariffs to be implemented from April 2024
(Feature Image: Vyasi HEP power station at Hathyari, Dehradun. SANDRP, June 2023)
This announcement by the government is indeed much belated but welcome step that India plans to increase peak hour power tariff compared to non-peak hour power tariff, beginning with commercial and industrial consumers from April 2024 a year later for others excluding agriculture consumers. The notification mentions it as daytime tariff (during solar hours) and night time power use, but this essentially also helps peak management.
This will not only put a premium on peak hour power consumption and hence generation, but also hopefully ensure that assessment of impacts of the peak hour power generation including at hydropower projects is done and done in a credible way, along with compensating those affected. It will also hopefully ensure that existing hydro capacity is used optimally for peak hour power generation before going for new hydro projects in the name of increasing peak our power generation.
One also hopes that it will lead to better peak hour power management and also considering all the options for such power generation rather than pushing hydro projects blindly in the name of peak hour power generation.
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