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 How
far are the concerns of environmentalists valid as far as global
warming goes? Global warming can also be a result of natural
conditions, not just volcanic eruptions. Sea land has risen somewhere
from four to ten inches over the past century. And apparently here at
home, every rupee added to the economy will mean 4-10 times increase
in pollution. And as we proceed towards the goals of our
industrialized neighbours, the amount of Carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere is expected to double in the next century. Indeed, experts
say that although the Earth’s complex climate must be acknowledged,
these higher levels of Carbon dioxide really do present a raft of
global warming that will cause significant climatic changes.
However, industrialization not
withstanding, it is heartening to see how much waste is recycled. Near
where I live, a ‘pavement’ couple has set up house by groping in
rubbish bins and heaps, and thus earning about Rs. 50/- per day. There
is also a waste dump nearby, to which rag pickers and others sell
their waste and I see a van that takes huge bags of waste material to
a recycle centre. Animals, too, are ‘learning to live’ with the
new environment and concrete jungle. Every morning, I am awakened to
various birdcalls such as koels, parakeets and others. Other birds are
not in the heart of the city, I must admit, but, nearby. I see our
little Indian striped squirrel scampering about by the trees that
border the roads of Chennai. Also in the heart of the city, under the
roofs and among old buildings, various birds and animals have adopted
to the environment.
For instance, when I was younger my father Harry
Miller, photojournalist of the Indian Express and also a zoologist
found a barn owl in the office buildings of the Indian Express. He had
taken me to work with him that day, and he got me to hold it, so that
he could photograph it.
I remember that it had such sharp talons that I needed a thick towel
over my hands to hold it with. It was a baby barn owl that is
distributed worldwide excepting in the Polar region. It is brown with
an attractive white face. It hunts on the darkest night, for which
even the keenest night vision is not enough. It does this by using its
hearing to locate small ground animals. It does not build a nest.
Instead it lays 4-6 eggs on a leap of pellets made of the fur and
bones of its prey. Both parents feed the young, which can fly after
about 9-12 weeks. To find this lovely creature right in the heart of
the city was exciting and heartening. My father also used to tell me
that there are mongooses under the Indian Express buildings.
Warming has occurred because the global air
temperature has risen in degrees (Fahrenheit) over the past hundred
years. And since 1980 the 13 hottest years on record have been
experienced. This could lead to an intensification of weather, causing
floods, droughts and the spread of insect borne diseases such as
malaria. Evidence shows that our use of fossil fuel is leading to
global warming. It is man who is the cause for most natural
calamities.
Nisha Miller
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