Month: July 2025

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has raised serious concerns about the hidden threat of toxic chemicals resurfacing during floods, in its latest Frontiers 2025: The Weight of Time report. The report highlights how rising river and coastal flooding can disturb long-buried pollutants in sediments posing renewed health and ecological risks worldwide. These “legacy chemicals” include heavy metals such as lead and cadmium along with persistent organic pollutants (POPs) like banned pesticides and industrial by-products. Despite regulations and bans in place for decades, these substances remain lodged in riverbeds, lakes, estuaries, and coastal zones refusing to degrade and continuing to accumulate. During flood events, these pollutants can be resuspended and transported across ...

Byrnihat a small industrial town on the Assam-Meghalaya border, has recorded the highest air pollution levels in India during the first half of 2025, according to a new analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA). With PM2.5 concentrations averaging 133 micrograms per cubic meter, Byrnihat has overtaken Delhi, which recorded 87 µg/m³ in the same period. The spike in pollution levels has drawn national attention, especially since Byrnihat is not traditionally known as an air quality hotspot. CREA attributes the city's toxic air to a combination of unregulated industrial activity, vehicular emissions, and biomass burning. Unlike metropolitan areas that have stricter monitoring and regulatory mechanisms, smaller towns like Byrnihat often lack robust pollution control...

The Delhi government has unveiled a major initiative to rejuvenate the pollution-choked Yamuna River, announcing plans to nearly double the city’s sewage treatment capacity within two years. The move signals a renewed push by the newly elected administration to tackle one of the capital’s most persistent environmental crises. Led by Water Minister Parvesh Verma, the project includes upgrading 18 of the city’s 37 existing sewage treatment plants, installing new large-scale and decentralized systems, and tightening oversight on key pollution sources like the Najafgarh drain, long identified as a critical hotspot for untreated wastewater discharge. At a high-level meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, officials outlined a 45-point action ...

The European Union is pushing to finalize a sweeping new climate target by September 2025 aiming for a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 compared to 1990 levels. But behind closed doors, tensions are mounting as political and economic concerns divide member states. While Denmark holding the EU rotating presidency is championing swift consensus, countries like Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic have raised objections over the proposed timeline and its potential economic impact. These nations argue that rushing into an agreement could harm industries still reliant on fossil fuels and strain national budgets. The proposed deal includes a provision allowing countries to meet part of their emissions goals by purchasing international carbon credits, offering flexibilit...

Southwestern China is facing a worsening flood crisis as more than 25 rivers have surged past safe levels, prompting the evacuation of over 10,000 residents and triggering widespread alarm over aging infrastructure and agricultural vulnerability. The floods were fueled by a combination of monsoon rains and remnants of Typhoon Danas which brought intense rainfall across the region. Meteorologists have linked the extreme weather to climate change pointing to increased rainfall intensity and more frequent typhoon remnants merging with seasonal systems. The Ministry of Water Resources has warned that ten major rivers, including the Longyan River in Chongqing, are at risk of overflowing, with embankments under strain and multiple regions placed on high alert. In Guizhou province the Chish...

A stark new report by the United Nations has revealed that heat-related deaths among people aged 65 and above have surged by 85% since the 1990s an alarming indicator of the escalating climate crisis. Titled The Weight of Time, the UNEP’s Frontier report, released on July 10, 2025, draws urgent attention to the vulnerability of older adults amid rising global temperatures, especially in urban centres and low- to middle-income countries. The findings point to a grim future. If global temperatures rise by 2°C, heat-related deaths among the elderly could increase by a staggering 370% by 2050. Already, in India, people over 65 are facing 2.1 to 4 additional heatwave days per year compared to earlier decades, underlining the growing risks in tropical and densely populated regions. Accordi...

In a troubling revelation Byrnihat a small industrial town on the Assam-Meghalaya border, has been declared the world’s most polluted city in 2024 by Swiss air monitoring agency IQAir. Once a sleepy outpost, Byrnihat has rapidly transformed into a major industrial and logistics hub but this economic surge has come at a severe environmental and health cost. According to IQAir, Byrnihat recorded an average PM2.5 level of 128.2 micrograms per cubic meter last year over 25 times the World Health Organization’s safe limit. The town surpassed even Delhi, long known for its dangerous air quality, and now wears the unfortunate crown of global pollution capital. A Town Choking on Progress Over the past three decades, Byrnihat proximity to the coal-rich hills of Meghalaya and the urban center...

The Indian Army has intensified its relief and rescue operations in Himachal Pradesh’s flood-devastated Mandi district, where continuous monsoon rains have led to massive infrastructure breakdowns and a rising death toll. In partnership with the SDRF, NDRF, and local authorities, Army columns are delivering essential aid and restoring connectivity to isolated regions. Personnel have been deployed across severely affected areas such as Thunag, Bagsiad, and Pandoh. At Thunag, Army teams provided medical aid and distributed ration kits to displaced families. Remote villages like Degi, Rushad, and Chapad, which were cut off due to floodwaters, have also started receiving supplies after days of isolation. A crucial mule track between Bagsiad and Thunag was cleared, enabling the movement o...

New Zealand is facing another bout of severe weather as a cold front unleashes torrential rain and damaging winds across the country. The northern regions of both the North and South Islands are at heightened risk of flooding and landslides, prompting urgent warnings from the national weather bureau. In response to worsening conditions, the Nelson Tasman region has declared a state of emergency for the second time in just two months. With rivers already swollen from previous rainfall, authorities fear the saturated ground could lead to sudden overflows and dangerous mudslides. Wind gusts of up to 120 kph have been forecast in exposed areas, accompanied by the threat of severe thunderstorms. As the storm system intensifies, emergency services are on high alert, and local officials are...

Continuous heavy rainfall has led to a dramatic rise in the River Ganga’s water levels, submerging Varanasi’s iconic ghats and riverside temples. The situation has disrupted daily life, with blocked roads and rising floodwaters becoming an annual ordeal for residents. Local voices like Sonu Sahani highlight a familiar pattern each day brings the water a step higher, leaving little time to adapt. “This happens every monsoon. Roads get blocked, and everything stalls,” he told sources. Neighbouring districts such as Prayagraj are facing similar conditions, with ghats also going underwater. The Indian Meteorological Department has warned that heavy rain will likely continue in West Uttar Pradesh and other parts of North India, heightening concerns of prolonged flooding.   &nbs...