Super Eagles Camp Opens Ahead Of Maiden Clash With Central African Republic

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October 4, 2021

Ahead of the Group C World Cup qualifying match with the Central African Republic (CAR), players of the Super Eagles are expected in camp from Monday.

This is in preparation for Thursday’s match at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos. It will be first time both Nigeria and CAR will be engaged in a fixture at football’s highest level.

A top official of the NFF confirmed that most if not all the players in the list from the United Kingdom will form the early birds in camp while the rest of the players will come in on Tuesday for a full training session on Wednesday morning.

“Most of the players in United Kingdom are expected in camp on Monday morning because the arrangement was that after club engagement Sunday afternoon, they should start coming.

“All have confirmed flights to Lagos in the evening,” he remarked.

Expectedly, Kelechi Iheanacho who was on score sheet for Leicester FC 2-2 draw at Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon, Leon Balogun, William Ekong, Joe Aribo and captain Ahmed Musa who star for Fatih Karagumuk in Turkey are among the players expected on Monday morning.

Club With Highest Number Of Super Eagles Becomes First Premier League Side To Sack Coach This Season

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Emenike Agu

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October 4, 2021

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Watford, which parades six Nigerian players, has become the first English Premier League club to sack its manager.

Among the Nigerian players in Watford are Oghenekaro Etebo, William Ekong, Emmanuel Dennis and former junior internationals Isaac Success and Tom Dele-Bashir

The manager, Xisco Munoz was on Sunday sacked after just 10 months in charge following Saturday’s defeat to Leeds United.

The newly-promoted side are currently sat 14th in the table after recording two wins from their opening seven games.

But the club’s hierarchy have moved to remove Munoz from his post less than 24 hours after the 1-0 defeat to Leeds.

A club statement read: “Watford FC confirms Xisco Muñoz has left his post as the club’s Head Coach.

“The Board feels recent performances strongly indicate a negative trend at a time when team cohesion should be visibly improving.

“The Hornets will always be grateful to Xisco for the part he played in securing last season’s promotion and wish him well for his future career in football.

“No further club comment will be available until the imminent announcement of a new Head Coach.”Munoz only led Watford back to the Premier League via automatic promotion back in May and his team started the campaign superbly with a 3-2 win over Aston Villa.

However, three successive league defeats followed, to Brighton, Tottenham and Wolves respectively, with their only other victory coming against rock bottom Norwich City.

They did manage to earn a point at home to Newcastle, but the loss to Leeds – who were yet to record a top-flight victory this season – was seemingly the final straw.

Watford were also dumped out of the Carabao Cup last month to Championship side Stoke, having beaten Crystal Palace to progress to the third round.

Munoz becomes the latest short-term casualty by the club, who have developed a reputation for sacking their managers harshly and abruptly.

He was only appointed in December 2020 as a replacement for Vladimir Ivic and became Watford’s seventh manager in only three-and-a-half years.

Watford were somewhat unfortunate to be on the losing side against Leeds after having a goal controversially ruled out by the VAR.

But goalkeeper Ben Foster feels a draw would only have been hiding the shortcomings of their otherwise dismal performance.

“I thought if we would have [equalised] it would have been papering over the cracks,” said Foster. “We were very poor today. We didn’t have a shot on target, so can’t expect to come away with anything.

“They were very sharp and worked their socks off but if you allow them to do that it’s going to be a long day. If that goal had been given it would have been very unjust to the overall picture.

“I think we’re a better team than what we are showing. We were very poor today – miles away from it. We haven’t had a shot on target and didn’t lay a glove on them.”

The international break now gives the club time to find and appoint a successor, with Watford’s next fixture against Liverpool on October 16.

But it seems they have already got someone lined up, after stating there would be an “imminent” announcement.

World’s Longest Under-Sea Electricity Cable For Green Power Transfer Begins Operation

By

Angel Gimalo

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October 3, 2021

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The world’s longest under-sea electricity cable, transferring green power between Norway and the UK, has begun operation.

The 450-mile (725km) cable connects Blyth in Northumberland with the Norwegian village of Kvilldal.

At full 1,400 megawatt capacity it will import enough hydro-power to supply 1.4 million homes, National Grid said.

National Grid Ventures president Cordi O’Hara said it was a “remarkable feat of engineering”.

She added: “We had to go through mountains, fjords and across the North Sea to make this happen.

“North Sea Link (NSL) is also a great example of two countries working together to maximise their renewable energy resources for mutual benefit.”

National Grid said the €1.6bn (£1.37bn) joint venture with Norwegian power operator Statnett would help the UK reduce carbon emissions by 23 million tonnes by 2030.

It has four other power cables running to Belgium, France and the Netherlands and said 90% of energy imported in this way would be from zero carbon sources by 2030.

Image caption,The link from Blyth in Northumberland to Kvilldal in Norway took six years to build
Hydropower in Norway and wind power in the UK are subject to weather conditions and fluctuations in demand.

Using NSL, renewable power can be exported from the UK when wind generation is high and electricity demand low, or be imported from Norway when demand is high and wind generation low.

Brazil Amazon’s September Fires Drop Lowest For First Time In 2 Decades

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Angel Gimalo

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October 3, 2021

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The number of fires in Brazil’s Amazon during September dropped to the lowest for the month in two decades, according to data from the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research.

September is historically Brazil’s worst month for forest fires and, while the data is positive, environmental experts question whether the trend will be confirmed by coming months.

The number of Amazon fires was just over half the level recorded in September last year, according to the data.

That helped push down the nationwide total, along with a sharp drop in the amount of fires in the Pantanal wetlands.

Fires in September retreated to the lowest number for the month since 2018, several months before President Jair Bolsonaro took office.

Since taking office, Bolsonaro has encouraged development within the Amazon and dismissed global complaints about its destruction as a plot to hold back the nation’s agribusiness.

His administration also weakened environmental authorities and backed legislative measures to loosen land protections, emboldening land grabbers.

More recently, he has sought to demonstrate heightened environmental commitment in the face of criticism from the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden and troubled institutional investors.

At the United Nations this month, he credited his administration’s redoubled efforts for the plunge of Amazon deforestation alerts in August, which followed a year-on-year decline in July.

September results will be released in the coming week.

European-Japanese Space Mission Sights Mercury For First Time

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Angel Gimalo

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October 3, 2021

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A joint European-Japanese spacecraft got its first glimpse of Mercury as it swung by the solar system’s innermost planet while on a mission to deliver two probes into orbit in 2025.

The BepiColombo mission made the first of six flybys of Mercury at 11:34 p.m. GMT (7:34 p.m. EST) Friday, using the planet’s gravity to slow the spacecraft down.

After swooping past Mercury at altitudes of under 200 kilometers (125 miles), the spacecraft took a low resolution black-and-white photo with one of its monitoring cameras before zipping off again.

The European Space Agency said the captured image shows the Northern Hemisphere and Mercury’s characteristic pock-marked features, among them the 166-kilometer-wide (103-mile-wide) Lermontov crater.

The joint mission by the European agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency was launched in 2018, flying once past Earth and twice past Venus on its journey to the solar system’s smallest planet.

Five further flybys are needed before BepiColombo is sufficiently slowed down to release ESA’s Mercury Planetary Orbiter and JAXA’s Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter.

The two probes will study Mercury’s core and processes on its surface, as well as its magnetic sphere.

The mission is named after Italian scientist Giuseppe ‘Bepi’ Colombo, who is credited with helping develop the gravity assist maneuver that NASA’s Mariner 10 first used when it flew to Mercury in 1974.

Carbon Tax System To Curb Greenhouse Gas Emissions – Austria

By

Angel Gimalo

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October 3, 2021

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The Austrian government has announced plans to reform the country’s tax system in an effort to curb greenhouse gas emissions.

The government said Sunday that it will introduce a new carbon tax beginning on July 1, 2022, and will return that money to residents in the form of a “climate bonus.”

Starting next year, Austrians will find themselves having to pay 30 euros (almost $35) per ton of CO2 — a cost that’s likely to be added to consumer bills by companies.

That will rise to 55 euros ($64) per ton in 2025.

The government expects to generate about 5 billion euros ($5.8 billion) from the tax by 2025.

Each resident in Austria will get an annual reimbursement, with the exact amount determined by where they live to ensure those in rural regions without good public transport don’t lose out.

Children are entitled to half their parents’ amount — so a family of two adults and two children in Vienna could expect to get 300 euros ($358) for example.

The goal is to encourage people to opt for climate-friendly forms of transportation and heating by making carbon-intensive choices more expensive, without adding to the overall tax burden.

The governing coalition of Chancellor Sebastian Kurz’s conservative People’s Party and the environmentalist Greens also announced income tax cuts, a reduction in some health insurance charges and other measures that mainly benefit families and low-and-medium income groups.

It also plans to reduce taxes for companies, particularly those in energy-intensive industries that will be hit hardest by the new carbon tax.

Spanish PM Sánchez Announces Aid Package Of €206m For La Palma Residents

By

Angel Gimalo

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October 3, 2021

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Spain’s prime minister Andre Sánchez vowed Sunday to rebuild the island of La Palma, where a volcanic eruption has spewed molten lava and a thick cloud of pyroclastic ash for the past two weeks, destroying houses and banana crops.

The eruption is giving no indications it will end soon.

Lava flowing from vents in the Cumbre Vieja volcano range has destroyed over 900 buildings and displaced about 6,000 people so far, and new vents opened just days ago.

The island of 85,000 people lies in Spain’s Canary Islands archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of Africa.

Returning for the third time since the volcano eruption began on Sept. 19, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced Sunday an aid package of 206 million euros ($238 million) for the affected islanders.

According to Sánchez, the money will rebuild crucial infrastructure for the island´s economy, mainly irrigation networks for the important banana export industry and other agricultural crops, as well as roads that serve the hiking trails and beaches that attract tourists.

The funds also aim to create jobs and cut taxes for La Palma residents.

“We are facing a test of resistance, because we don’t know when the volcano’s eruption will end,” Sánchez said in a televised press conference. “But citizens should know that when it does end, the government of Spain will be there to help with the enormous task of rebuilding La Palma and offer a horizon of prosperity.”

The government already approved a separate 10.5 million euro ($12.2 million) emergency fund last month to purchase housing and basic goods for those who have seen their houses buried by molten rock.

Rivers of lava have meandered downhill for over 6 kilometers (nearly 4 miles) and after reaching the island’s shore are now tumbling into the Atlantic Ocean, where a peninsula of more than 28 hectares (70 acres) is growing and stretching into the sea.

On Sunday, the Canary Islands’ volcanology institute, Involcan, said the explosive activity in the vents of the volcano had intensified, while several medium-range earthquakes were recorded by the country’s geographic institute, IGN.

Despite the eruption’s spectacular images and its damage to property, no casualties have been reported, mainly due to speedy evacuations.

Villagers In Namibian Village Demand Halt In Sand Mining Activity

By

Angel Gimalo

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October 3, 2021

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Villagers of Ondado C in Oniipa are demanding a complete halt to the sand mining activities in the area.

The community has further lashed out at the Ondonga Traditional Authority as well as environment minister Pohamba Shifeta after an appeal meeting on the sand mining activities was postponed at the eleventh hour.

This is the second time that the meeting is suddenly postponed. The meeting sought to iron out a long standing conflict between the OTA that was granted a mining licence to extract sand at Ondado C against the wishes of the community.

In June, that licence was revoked following complaints from the community, of which the environmental commissioner Timoteus Mufeti found that the OTA has transgressed after the extraction activities interfered with underground water.

The OTA was then given until August 30 to rectify the issue. However, this was not done, forcing the line minister to intervene and mediate in seeking a lasting solution. The first meeting a few months ago also failed to materialise after none of the representatives from the OTA turned up. The latest meeting was postponed

LASPARK Celebrate Principal Officers With Tree Planting

By

Angel Gimalo

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October 3, 2021

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The Lagos State Parks and Gardens Agency (LASPARK) has held the third quarter commemorative birthday tree planting exercise for Permanent Secretaries in the public service.

According to a statement issued by the Agency, the exercise is done quarterly and its LASPARK’s way of celebrating the principal officers for their selfless service to the State.

The practice also creates an avenue to propagate tree planting as the cheapest nature-based solution to mitigate the effects of climate change.

It noted that the five Permanent Secretaries, whose birthdays fell within the third quarter of Y2021 participated in the exercise.

They are Mr. Owodiran Olowoshago (Ministry of Transportation); Mr. Olujimi Ige (Debt Management Office); Ms. Titilayo Shitta-Bey (Ministry of Justice); Mr. Ajose Sangowawa (Office of the State Surveyor-General) and Mr. Olabode Agoro (Lands Bureau) represented by Mrs. Olusegun Yetunde, Director Land Services.

Waterways Transportation: Lagos Lawmakers Seek Private Investors

By

Angel Gimalo

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October 3, 2021

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More work is needed to attract private investments to the Lagos waterways transportation sector, lawmakers at the State House of Assembly have said.

The lawmakers, who belong to the House Committee on Transportation, made the position known during a recent visit to the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) and the Lagos State Ferry Services (LAGFERRY).

Led by its chairman, Hon. Temitope Adewale, the committee agreed that the government had to improve the environment that would enable such business thrive.

Hon. Adewale noted the interest of the House of Assembly in the success of waterways transportation as an alternative to the ever-growing traffic challenges faced by residents of the state.

To this end, the lawmaker urged LASWA to ensure the security of the state’s waterways through effective collaboration with security agencies.

Adewale expressed belief that securing the waterways would help increase public confidence and boost chances of Public Private Partnership (PPP).

Commending the agency for the success so far recorded, the committee chairman appealed for more efficiency while advising that the waterways must not become escape routes for criminals.

He, therefore, urged for more patrol boats to monitor waterways in the state.

Describing LAGFERRY as one of the agencies that had added value to the governance of the state and the transportation sector, Adewale pleaded for more activities that would help attract investors.

He also promised that the House would continue to assist in areas that would ease the job of the agency and help it meet its goals.

Speaking earlier, Mr. Oluwadmilola Emmanuel, General Manager of LASWA, enumerated the achievements of the agency to include the creation of a control room to monitor the various routes on the waterways.

According to him, this strategy has helped to keep the waterways safe and secured just as he added that the agency currently has two patrol boats for the patrol of waterways to avoid criminal activities on the waterways.

He said the agency had provided 294 life jackets and was expecting 845 more.

The agency, Emmanuel said, also collaborates with security agencies for the protection of the waterways.

He, however, said the Marine Police can be equipped further for effective enforcement.

On his part, the Managing Director of LAGFERRY, Hon. Ladi Balogun, said his agency with a mandate to provide ferry services to ease pressure on road transportation, currently has a fleet of 20 boats.