Dwindling water level and inadequate treatment of water for recycling have resulted in an unbearable stench emerging from the Mahamaham Tank in Kumbakonam.

Continual poor rainfall in 2012 and 2013 is threatening to force a drinking water scarcity in Karur district. Geologists warn that groundwater level is plummeting to unprecedented danger levels in the district.

The annual average rainfall in the district is 652.20 mm, with southwest and northeast monsoon being the main contributors. However, in the last two years, the average rainfall has been below normal.

Filing of a criminal complaint by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board against a dyer of Karur marks a critical phase in law enforcement against polluting unit owners and consequently has rattled

Farmers of Punnam happy over decision to drop dyeing park plan

The public of Punnam are ecstatic at the shelving of the plan to establish an integrated dyeing park in their neighbourhood. At the same time, home textile exporters and professional dyers in the town are dejected that their painstaking effort, kept under wraps for a long time, to establish the facility has come to a naught.

The units have sunk open wells on the Amaravathy riverbed; the activity has been going on unchecked

Many dyeing units in Karur have been illegally siphoning off groundwater from the parched Amaravathy riverbed. The unlawful activity has been going on unchecked under the very nose of the officials. Scores of dyeing units are situated at Sellandipalayam, Sukkaliyur and Rayanur on the southern banks of the river in Karur. Though a ban is in place on operating dyeing units without zero liquid discharge systems, many units are operating on the sly. The officials have taken token action against some units but many continue to operate unimpeded in the region.

A gut wrenching odour emanating from the greenish yellow coloured “water” flowing down the Popular Mudaliar channel hits the nostrils forcing one to back off the channel banks.

To be labelled with FSC logo highlighting the PSU’s environmental concerns

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has granted certificates in Forest Management and Chain of Custody to Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers Limited (TNPL). This could enable TNPL products to be labelled with the FSC logo highlighting the PSU’s social and environmental concerns and contributions. FSC is an independent, non-governmental, non-profit organisation established by leading social, environmental and economic players to promote responsible management of forests. FSC issues certificates in Forest Management (FM) and Chain of Custody (CoC).

Civic and local body authorities have intensified the drive to eradicate plastic menace in the district since the beginning of the month by launching awareness campaigns and concrete field action to check use of plastic carry bags especially in eateries, restaurants and petty shops.

People have welcomed the anti-plastic drive though they say it might take some more time to get accustomed to the emerging situation, in particular when visiting the hotels.

All seven functioning quarries ordered to be closed in Karur district

Sand quarries in the river Cauvery that are more than five years old have remained shut since Saturday following the Madras High Court directive. Through Friday night, vehicles awaiting their turn to load sand were hurriedly cleared and excavators at the quarries withdrawn on orders from PWD officials. Field officials visited the quarries on Saturday and erected road blocks and dug trenches across the entrance to prevent truck movement.

Demand for freshwater fish caught at Mayanur increases

The blanket ban on deep sea fishing along in the State, to facilitate breeding, has jacked up inland and sea-fish prices in the district where people relish sea food delicacies. Karur being an industrial town has people from regions including the northern states. Not just during weekends but also during the week demand for meat and seafood is high.

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