● `color{violet}("Irreparable computers")` and `color{violet}("other electronic goods")` are known as `color{brown}("electronic wastes (e-wastes).")`

● `color{violet}("E-wastes")` are buried in landfills or incinerated.

● Over half of the `color{violet}("e-wastes")` generated in the developed world are exported to developing countries, mainly to China, India and Pakistan, where metals like `color{violet}("copper, iron, silicon, nickel")` and `color{violet}("gold")` are recovered during `color{violet}("recycling process.")`

● Unlike developed countries, which have specifically built facilities for `color{violet}("recycling")` of `color{violet}("e-wastes, recycling")` in developing countries often involves `color{violet}("manual participation")` thus exposing workers to toxic substances present in e-wastes.

● Eventually `color{violet}("recycling")` is the only solution for the treatment of `color{violet}("e-wastes")` provided it is carried out in an `color{violet}("environment-friendly manner.")`

● In the wake of green revolution, use of `color{brown}("inorganic fertilisers and pesticides")` has increased manifold for `color{violet}("enhancing crop production.")`

● `color{violet}("Pesticides, herbicides, fungicides,")` etc., are being increasingly used.

● These incidentally, are also `color{violet}("toxic to non-target organisms")` ,that are important components of the `color{violet}("soil ecosystem.")`

● We know what the addition of increasing amounts of `color{violet}("artificial fertilisers")` can do to `color{violet}("aquatic ecosystems vis-à-vis eutrophication.")`

● The current problems in `color{violet}("agriculture")` are, therefore, extremely `color{violet}("grave.")`

● `color{brown}("Integrated organic farming")` is a cyclical, `color{violet}("zero-waste procedure,")` where `color{violet}("waste products")` from one process are `color{violet}("cycled")` in as `color{violet}("nutrients")` for other processes.

● This allows the maximum utilisation of resource and increases the `color{violet}("efficiency of production")`.

● `color{brown}("Ramesh Chandra Dagar,")` a farmer in Sonipat, Haryana, is doing just this.

● He includes bee-keeping, dairy management, water harvesting, composting and agriculture in a chain of processes, which support each other and allow an extremely `color{violet}("economical")` and `color{violet}("sustainable venture")`.

● There is no need to use `color{violet}("chemical fertilisers")` for crops, as cattle excreta (dung) are used as manure.

● `color{violet}("Crop waste")` is used to create `color{violet}("compost,")` which can be used as a `color{violet}("natural fertiliser")` or can be used to generate `color{violet}("natural gas")` for satisfying the `color{violet}("energy")` needs of the farm.

● Enthusiastic about spreading information and help on the practice of `color{violet}("integrated organic ") `farming, Dagar has created the `color{violet}("Haryana Kisan Welfare Club,")` with a current membership of `color{violet}("5000 farmers")`.

● Initially, `color{brown}("nuclear energy")` was hailed as a `color{violet}("non-polluting")` way for generating`color{violet}(" electricity.")`

● Later on, it was realised that the use of `color{violet}("nuclear energy")` has two very serious inherent problems.

● The first is `color{brown}("accidental leakage,")` as occurred in the `color{violet}("Three Mile Island")` and `color{violet}("Chernobyl incidents")` and the second is `color{brown}("safe disposal")` of `color{violet}("radioactive wastes.")`

● `color{violet}("Radiation")`, that is given off by `color{violet}("nuclear waste")` is extremely damaging to `color{violet}("biological organisms,")` because it causes mutations to occur at a very high rate.

● At high doses, `color{violet}("nuclear radiation")` is lethal but at lower doses, it creates `color{violet}("various disorders,")` the most frequent of all being cancer.

● Therefore, `color{violet}("nuclear waste")` is an extremely `color{violet}("potent pollutant")` and has to be dealt with utmost caution.

`star` `color{green}("Storage:")`

● It has been recommended that storage of `color{violet}("nuclear waste,")` after sufficient `color{violet}("pre-treatment,")` should be done in suitably shielded containers buried within the rocks, about 500 m deep below the earth’s surface.

● However, this `color{violet}("method of disposal")` is meeting stiff opposition from the public.