Latest news with #healthhazard
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Duck feeders asked to stop over 'health hazard'
Residents have been told that feeding ducks and geese at a lake in Didcot is contributing to a "health hazard". Didcot Town Council asked people to stop feeding the birds at Ladygrove Lake. It said it encouraged more to come to the area, increasing droppings - and that the number of geese was becoming "unsustainable". One parent said he did not see the number of ducks and geese as an issue, adding that people should be able to keep feeding them. Resident Matt Booker said he took his son to feed the ducks at the lake, and was surprised by the request to stop. "It seems a bit strange to me... Apparently there are too many ducks," he said "I don't see it as an issue, to be honest. "Particularly for our little son - he likes feeding them and seeing them." Marta Rudnicka said she regularly brought the geese and ducks food, and does not intend to stop. "I don't think they will put a policeman here, guarding the ducks," she said. "The issue is that [the geese] don't have better places to nest. "I don't think geese would choose to nest in a residential area if they had better places. "It's just there is so little of the natural environment left and it's being eroded." Tony Worgan is the deputy leader of Didcot Town Council and said people tended to feed the birds bread, which made them ill. "Excess bread actually attracts rats and it means our water quality in the lakes is affected," he said. "There are lots of complaints about the bird mess. "People come home with ruined clothes, ruined trousers, kids fall over. "The mess and the number of geese is becoming unsustainable." You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram. Case quacked: Flying duck caught by Swiss speed camera is repeat offender Vending machine for ducks to tackle bread feeding 'Our lake is barren because of too many ducks' Didcot Town Council
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Geese numbers "unsustainable" at Didcot lake, residents told
Residents have been told that feeding ducks and geese at a lake in Didcot is contributing to a "health hazard".Didcot Town Council asked people to stop feeding the birds at Ladygrove said it encouraged more to come to the area, increasing droppings - and that the number of geese was becoming "unsustainable".One parent said he did not see the number of ducks and geese as an issue, adding that people should be able to keep feeding them. Resident Matt Booker said he took his son to feed the ducks at the lake, and was surprised by the request to stop."It seems a bit strange to me... Apparently there are too many ducks," he said"I don't see it as an issue, to be honest. "Particularly for our little son - he likes feeding them and seeing them."Marta Rudnicka said she regularly brought the geese and ducks food, and does not intend to stop."I don't think they will put a policeman here, guarding the ducks," she said."The issue is that [the geese] don't have better places to nest. "I don't think geese would choose to nest in a residential area if they had better places. "It's just there is so little of the natural environment left and it's being eroded." Tony Worgan is the deputy leader of Didcot Town Council and said people tended to feed the birds bread, which made them ill."Excess bread actually attracts rats and it means our water quality in the lakes is affected," he said."There are lots of complaints about the bird mess. "People come home with ruined clothes, ruined trousers, kids fall over."The mess and the number of geese is becoming unsustainable." You can follow BBC Oxfordshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
South China Morning Post
5 days ago
- Climate
- South China Morning Post
New South Wales battered by hazardous dust storm in wake of record floods
Australians in New South Wales are facing yet another extreme weather challenge even as thousands are still reeling from days of storms and unprecedented flooding. Massive dust clouds blanketed parts of the state, including the capital of Sydney, on Tuesday, creating conditions which experts warn are hazardous to health. Authorities warned of 'extremely poor' air quality in some suburbs, with PM10 particle levels exceeding 600 – far above the 'good' threshold of 40, according to environmental standards. PM10 refers to particles with a diameter of 10 micrometres or fewer, which are 'small enough to pass through the throat and nose and enter the lungs', according to NSW Health. Short-term exposure to them can exacerbate pre-existing health conditions such as asthma and lung or heart disease. Particles in the air may include dust, sea salt, and by-products from fires, vehicles and industrial sources, according to Air Quality NSW. 'These particles can pass into the lungs,' the agency said, adding they can trigger breathing difficulties, eye and throat irritation, or worsen chronic bronchitis and asthma. The dust storm originated in South Australia and swept across Victoria, reducing visibility to as little as 300 metres (1,000 feet) before moving into central and southeastern New South Wales, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
The Guardian
19-05-2025
- Climate
- The Guardian
‘The fans just circulate hot air': how indoor heat is making life unbearable in India's sweltering cities
At noon, Khustabi Begum is sitting on the steps leading to her three-room home, trying to escape the stifling April heat indoors. But respite is hard to come by in Rajendra Nagar, a slum in south Bengaluru. 'It's just as hot outside, but it feels worse indoors. It's been really hot for the past five or six days, but at least there's an occasional breeze outside,' says the 36-year-old. Inside Begum's dimly lit living room, ceiling fans whir. One corner is stacked with sacks of onions and just outside their home is a vending cart. 'My husband sells erulli, belluli [onions, garlic],' she says. The couple moved to Bengaluru more than a decade ago, hoping to give their three children a better education. With a nostalgic smile, Begum recalls her green and breezy village in Kishanganj district in Bihar state. 'It's actually hotter in our village, temperature-wise,' she says. 'But when it got unbearable, we would go and take a stroll by the river. Here, there's nowhere to go, just up and down this street.' While the government's heat advisories urge people to stay indoors between noon and 3pm, it's pointless advice for most families in Rajendra Nagar. 'The fans just circulate hot air,' she says. 'We keep drinking matke ka paani [chilled water from clay pots] and step outside from time to time, but there's nothing else to do to escape the heat inside.' Indoor heat is recognised as a serious health hazard for vulnerable groups. Among them are low-income families in informal settlements where poorly ventilated homes are built of heat-trapping materials, and have irregular electricity and water supply. Outdoors, there's little relief on offer because of limited access to green, open spaces. Bengaluru, a city of lakes and gardens, has seen a steady rise in temperatures in recent years, challenging its longstanding reputation for clement year-round weather. According to the Bengaluru Climate Action and Resilience Plan, the city's average temperature has risen by approximately 0.23C per decade since 1975, with a sharper increase of nearly 0.5C since 2009. In April, Bengaluru recorded temperatures of about 35C (95F). In Rajendra Nagar and nearby slums such as LR Nagar and Ambedkar Nagar, most homes are built on compact plots of roughly 300 sq ft, and each household typically has five to seven members. There are power cuts several times a week, lasting from a few hours to a few days, and water is available only on alternate days or even every third day. Running fans or cooling the body with 'spray bottles, damp cloths [or] ice towels', as a government heat advisory suggests, can be challenging for people in these neighbourhoods. Begum's home has one window, facing a quiet side road. However, the municipality recently began road building work and is widening the sewers. 'We open the window only during long power cuts,' her daughter Noor Nagina, 14, says. 'Otherwise, we have to deal with mosquitoes and dust from all the work.' Researchers at the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS), Bengaluru, point out that most heat action plans (HAPs) in India have overlooked indoor heat, especially in low-income and informal settlements. A review of 10 city-level HAPs, published in the journal Plos Climate, revealed that only two cities – Rajkot and Bhubaneshwar – explicitly acknowledged indoor heat vulnerability. 'Overall, while a few plans highlight indoor heat risks … there is a significant gap in comprehensive, scalable strategies to address these challenges,' says Swati Surampally, one of the review's authors. Poor ventilation does not help, says Radha N, who works with Rajendra Nagar-based NGO Swabhimaan. 'Most houses in the area have narrow, tunnel-like entrances, with rooms arranged one behind the other in a straight line. This leaves little to no space for air to circulate indoors and as a result, the concrete walls heat up,' she says. 'Children sometimes wake up crying because of the heat, power cuts and the mosquitoes. As a result, their parents, who spend most of the day working outdoors, are unable to get enough rest at night.' This, she adds, badly affects their ability to function the next day. Allamelu John, 39, a domestic worker, only cooks early in the morning and late at night in her home to avoid the smoke and heat that builds up in the afternoon. 'Our kitchens are small and lack exhaust fans, so it becomes very difficult,' she says. At night, her family sleeps on a bedsheet spread over a charpai (a traditional woven bed) on the floor, which, she says, is cooler than sleeping on mattresses. Across the city, in Kattigenahalli in north Bengaluru, Zakia Begum, 28, sits in a one-room shelter with a tarpaulin roof. She is seven months pregnant and the insufferable indoor heat in her previous tin-roofed home was one of the reasons she and her husband moved here. Sign up to Global Dispatch Get a different world view with a roundup of the best news, features and pictures, curated by our global development team after newsletter promotion Originally from the Cooch Behar district of West Bengal, Zakia has lived in Bengaluru for nine years. Her husband works as a truck driver with a contractor transporting the municipality's waste. Zakia quit her job as a domestic worker to look after herself during her pregnancy. Their room is part of a cluster of shanties built on open land among scattered heaps of waste. 'This summer feels different; there's no breeze,' she says as a small table fan whirs beside her. 'Sometimes, I sit by the door hoping for some air, but that's rare now. The only thing I can do is drink lots of water.' Most families in Zakia's neighbourhood depend on tankers for water or buing in limited supplies. While Begum washes her face and hands often to stay cool, she knows she must use water carefully. Migrant women's experiences of indoor heat have come up in research by the IIHS and its partners. The project, Climate Change Local Adaptation Pathways (Claps), found that indoor heat disproportionately affects women, who shoulder paid work and unpaid domestic responsibilities. 'Women face a triple burden: they manage paid work alongside domestic chores, endure prolonged exposure while cooking in unventilated spaces, and often eat last or inadequately, heightening fatigue and health risks. Together, these factors make indoor heat a deeply gendered and under-recognised health challenge,' says Surampally, a senior research associate at IIHS, also working with Claps. Kavita G, a social health activist who works in Rajendra Nagar, says: 'Women often come to us with problems like itching, skin infections and a burning sensation while urinating, especially during periods of extreme heat.' Older people are particularly vulnerable to heat-related illnesses – including severe dehydration and heatstroke. Researchers at IIHS say responses to extreme heat must address the structural vulnerabilities that migrant workers face – in their homes and at work. Surampally emphasises the need for heat-resilient housing through subsidies for cool roofs and improved ventilation; access to reliable electricity and water; enforcement of labour protections such as rest breaks and hydration for outdoor workers; and multilingual campaigns tailored to migrant communities. 'Many migrants compare Bengaluru's heat to their even hotter native towns and, therefore, underplay its risks,' Surampally says. 'This perception, along with limited financial resources, means that the urgency to adapt is low, even when physical discomfort is high.' After spending on rent, daily expenses and the children's schooling, Khustabi Begum's family might be able to save a little in a month when the profits are healthy. But this doesn't happen often, given the fluctuating prices of vegetables. 'We cannot afford a cooler or a fridge because we have to prioritise our children's education,' she says. To escape the heat, small children in Rajendra Nagar often roam around naked and Begum laments the unfairness of how her husband and two boys sleep with their shirts off – a comfort not afforded to her and her daughter. 'Women do not have that option,' she sighs. This story first appeared in the Migration Story, India's first newsroom to focus on the country's vast migrant population. The reporting was supported by People First Cities which is undertaking a project on rising heat in informal settlements
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
'Stinky tip still making me very sick', says resident
A couple who say they are in a "living nightmare" because of a "terrible smell" coming from a landfill site have rejected the findings of an official report which stated it was not a health hazard. Ian Durn and his partner Christine Butterworth, who suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), said they feared returning to their Fleetwood home after spending a month at a family property in Scarborough, North Yorkshire. Last week the Environment Agency (EA) said the site in Jameson Road met safety standards. "I don't know where they have got that idea from," said 73-year-old Mr Durn, who stressed there were some days when the stench got so bad that his partner "just can't breathe". Earlier this year, he said: "We are dreading going back if we have more hot weather as we won't be able to have the windows open. "We have a house [that] is difficult to live in but we still have all of our bills." Campaigner Alison Roe, who wants more research to be carried out on the site, was also sceptical of the EA's findings. "I don't believe it," she said. "People are still being made ill by the stench coming from the landfill site. "People are still having headaches, people are still feeling nauseous." While Ms Roe said the smell was not as bad as it once, she added: "It is still there – different parts of town at different parts of the day are still being affected. "So they are telling us all the sickness people have had is just imaginary? "They just want us to believe in averages, not on the daily data. "We are not scaremongers." The EA said levels of hydrogen sulphide, sulphur dioxide and methane were all within World Health Organization limits. A spokesman said: "We completely understand the impact this landfill [site] has had on the community and we'd like to reassure them that we are maintaining our increased regulatory response. "This includes frequent odour checks and regular site inspections. "We have made it clear that we expect significant improvements to gas infrastructure and close control over the types of waste accepted for operations at the site to continue." A Wyre Council spokeswoman added: "Whilst many residents have reported experiencing unpleasant symptoms as a result of odours from the Jameson Road site, the council has not received confirmation from either the NHS or the UK Health Security Agency that the symptoms reported are sufficient to meet the threshold for action under statutory nuisance." 'Rotten eggs' landfill site meets safety standards Waste ban lifted at 'smelly' landfill site 'Landfill smell means I can't breathe properly' Waste firm blames landfill stink on Storm Eowyn Landfill work has not stopped stink, residents say Egg stench from landfill makes us ill - residents Environment Agency
