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The traditional lifestyle of the Appalachian peaks of West Virginia is under threat from mining companies who blow the summits off mountains to reach the coal deposits that lie beneath the surface. "They are killing off the culture of the mountain people," said Maria Gunnoe, who lives on a hillside which has had its insides dug out to expose a huge mine called Jupiter. "We are fighting not only for now but also for yesterday and tomorrow," she said. Mountaintop removal mining, or MTR, is not only affecting traditions, but also polluting drinking water and air in the region.

The Faridpur town is under threat of erosion by the River Padma as the authorities concerned could not complete construction of the river protection dam before the current monsoon. The river is advancing fast, and it is now only 250 metres away from the district town, creating panic among the residences in the town and adjacent areas. In the last few days, several points of the newly built five-kilometre embankment in Vajondanga area under Alibad union of sadar upazila has been eroded by the river, sources at the Water Development Board, Faridpur said.

District Nazim Kanwar Naveed Jamil has said that from now on the city effluent and waste will not be disposed of into the Phulelli canal

THE Goulburn River has been found to have the poorest health of any of the 23 rivers in the Murray-Darling basin

Faridkot/Harike - TOXIN UNLEASHED: Sirhind and Rajasthan feeder canals become deathbed of aquatic life Mohan, who sells ice-cream near the banks of Sirhind and Rajasthan feeder canals in the periphery of Faridkot, has a choice to put up his mobile stall elsewhere. But, a few metres away along the banks, Mool Chand, the railway gateman at crossing number C-29 has no alternative but to live with the foul smell emanating from the canals and see perished aquatic life floating on the filthy waters.

DDA bans concrete construction on Yamuna banks Some more good news: Away from the Yamuna riverfront, renovation work under way at the ancient Humayun's Tomb in Delhi on Wednesday. In a development that has come as a big relief to environmentalists and conservationists in the Capital, the Delhi Development Authority has decided not to allow any new proposal for concrete construction on the Yamuna banks in view of the upcoming 2010 Commonwealth Games in the city.

Efforts to save the Ganga got another fillip on Wednesday, with sadhus from Rishikesh and Haridwar, including yoga guru Baba Ramdev, joining the fight and declaring the formation of the Ganga Raksha Manch. Ramdev, while launching his nationwide movement to save the Ganga, warned:

The Lieutenant Governor has directed the Delhi Development Authority not to allow any construction for recreational use on the Yamuna river front (Zone

Our rivers are in a bad state, have been for a long time. That is not surprising, seeing that we have been concerned about the situation for years. What now appears to give it a new twist is the result of a survey carried out on some of the rivers, 25 in total. Predictably, the quality of the water in the rivers has dwindled to a precarious state. Worse is the knowledge that some of these rivers may actually have reached a point where they are no longer capable of nurturing or supporting aquatic life forms in them.

Missile man and former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, in the role of an environmentalist, has called upon Delhites to be involved in cleaning of the city's lifeline, Yamuna river. The ex-president is a man of his own stature and thinks very deeply. These days Dr Kalam is busy in social works. As regards the river Yamuna, it has been polluted from whereever it is flowing, near Kanpur, Allahabad and Agra by industrial units established there as also the people living there. Near Kanpur Dehat, the dirty water from leather factories is drained in the river.

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