UPSC Environment Ecology PSIR

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#Environment ■ More concrete, more heat: Why our cities are hotter than ever- ✅A recently published report shows that rising temperatures is not the sole contributing factor to the heat stress being experienced in urban India. ● Key Highlights: ✅According to a report by the Centre for Science and Environment, the extreme discomfort of the summer months in Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata and Hyderabad over the last two decades is caused by a combination of : ✅air temperature, land surface temperature and relative humidity, as well as a rapid increase in built-up areas and concretisation. ✅It poses a grave risk to lives, especially among vulnerable groups like the elderly, babies, pregnant women, those who live in slums and work outdoors. ✅Thanks to climate change, temperatures have shot up, as has humidity. ✅changes in land use and the growing urban sprawl are other contributing factors . ✅This has resulted in the “urban heat island effect”: ✅The trapping of heat due to a dense concentration of buildings, paved roads and other surfaces made of materials like ✅concrete, glass and steel, results in higher temperatures in city centres than in the outlying areas. ● Way forward: ✅There is a growing consensus among experts that city-specific management plans, which take into account local factors, are a far more effective response to heat waves. ✅Such plans should prioritise green spaces and water bodies and target all heat generators, including vehicles, industries and concrete surfaces ✅An example is Ahmedabad’s Cool Roofs programme, which offers an affordable solution for the urban heat island effect. ✅Along with emergency steps to be implemented during a heat event, long-term planning can keep cities from heating up excessively and save lives. SOURCE - INDIAN EXPRESS

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#Environment ■ Where animals are dying by a thousand cuts- ✅Uttar Pradesh (UP) faces a major problem with abandoned cows, known as "chutta jaanwar." These animals, left behind due to disrupted livestock policies, are wreaking havoc on both farms and wildlife. ● KEY HIGHLIGHTS: ✅Agriculture in Peril: Millions of stray cattle are destroying crops and livelihoods across UP. These animals are a consequence of policies and vigilante actions that disrupted a previously functional livestock system. ✅Wildlife Under Threat: The Terai region, a biodiversity hotspot in UP, is seeing its wildlife impacted by the presence of stray cattle. Large numbers of cows in farmlands ✅and near forests create easy prey for tigers, leading to more conflict between humans and these big cats ✅Additionally, the potential spread of diseases from unvaccinated cattle to wild animals is a concern. ● Caught in the Middle: ✅Farmers' Dilemma: Farmers grapple with the issue of stray cattle, which damage their crops, while also holding beliefs in the sanctity of cows. ✅They recognize the practicality of buffaloes over cows but struggle to reconcile this with their religious beliefs. ✅Shifting Livelihoods: Changing times have made cattle rearing less practical. ✅Tractors, the loss of grazing lands, and rising costs have driven communities towards agriculture, leaving livestock rearing primarily for household needs. ● Seeking Solutions: ✅Cow Shelters: Farmers propose innovative solutions like government-built cow shelters, even within protected areas, to provide food and space for the stray cattle. ✅Government's Role: protected areas are already facing challenges like fragmentation and declining grasslands, crucial for endangered species. ✅Building cow shelters within these areas would further threaten these ecosystems. ● The Challenge Ahead: ✅Finding a solution for stray cattle in UP requires addressing the needs of both farmers and wildlife. ✅The government must find ways to manage the cattle population without compromising the delicate balance of the Terai ecosystem. SOURCE - THE HINDU

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#Environment ■ Warming climate intensifies flash droughts worldwide- ✅Sudden, severe dry spells known as flash droughts are rising in intensity around the world. ● Highlights: ✅Heat and changes to precipitation patterns caused by a warming climate are driving these trends, the study found. ✅The new study is the first to apply a systematic, quantitative approach to the global incidence of flash drought, mapping hotspots and regions of rapid increases in recent decades. ✅Many parts of the world have witnessed flash droughts extending over larger areas, for a longer time, with faster onset speed. ✅However, a notable exception in mountainous Central Asia was seen, where flash drought extent is shrinking, according to new research. ✅Climate-driven changes in precipitation, melting snowpack and a shift from snow to rain in the mountains have kept soils moist. ✅These changes can cause an increase in flash floods, which have been observed in the region. ✅The study analyzed 40 years of NASA’s MERRA-2 climate data, from 1980 to 2019, drawn from weather observations, satellite imagery and modeled root-zone soil moisture, with the aim of improving prediction and disaster preparedness. ✅South America, particularly southern Brazil and the Amazon, is experiencing strong intensification in all three dimensions of flash drought, aligning with deforestation patterns in the region, high temperatures and less rain. ✅Savanna and grasslands are more susceptible to flash droughts than other ecotypes, particularly in humid and semi-humid climates, the study found. ● Prelims Takeaway: ✅Flash Droughts ✅Climate Change SOURCE - THE HINDU

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#Environment ■ Going glacier gone: How Venezuela lost its last glacier, why this matters- ✅Venezuela, for instance, has likely become the first country - it certainly won’t be the last - in modern history to lose all its glaciers. Reason behind disappearance of Glacier: ✅Global Warming: The primary cause of glacier melt is global warming. It increases temperatures and leads to ice melting. ✅Human Impact: Since the Industrial Revolution, human activities, especially the burning of fossil fuels, have increased greenhouse gas emissions. These gases trap heat in the atmosphere, contributing to global temperature rises. ✅Recent Trends: Notable temperature increases in regions like the Andes have been documented, with rates up to 0.10 degrees Celsius per decade over the last seventy years. ✅Events like El Niño also exacerbate warming, leading to more rapid glacier melting. ● Prelims Takeaway: ✅El Niño SOURCE - INDIAN EXPRESS