Algae and mining: A new frontier in sustainable site rehabilitation

Algae might seem an unlikely candidate to help transform Australia’s post-mining landscapes, but a new CSIRO -led project suggests these tiny aquatic organisms could provide sustainable futures for mine sites, surrounding ecosystems, and local communities. Looking down the microscope at the microalgae Nannochloropsis Australia’s mining sector is approaching a crossroads—where economic legacy and environmental responsibility must find common ground. A new CSIRO -led study, supported by the Cooperative Research Centre for Transformations in Mining Economies (CRC TiME), suggests that one of the most promising bridges between these imperatives may come from an unexpected source: algae. Though small in stature, algae are emerging as giants in their potential to transform post-mining landscapes. The study, developed in partnership with the University of Queensland and Murdoch University , proposes that algae-based technologies could reduce mining’s environmental footprint while seeding new...

India cooperates to jointly buld major new coal-fired power plant in Bangladesh

Bangladesh's state-owned Power Development Board (PDB) has signed a $1.5 billion, 50:50 joint venture deal with India's state-owned National Thermal Power Company (NTPC) to build a 1,320 MW coal-fired power plant, the country's biggest, to provide electricity to Bangladesh's grid. The plant is scheduled to be operational by 2015 and will be located at Bagerhat's Rampal.

"Coal will be imported to run the plant from Indonesia, Australia and South Africa to run the plant, we'll use local coal if we get supply as per the demand of the plant," PDB chairman A S M Alamgir Kabir said, as quoted by Times of India.