The Department of Environment (DoE) yesterday fined an illegal steel re-rolling mill Tk 15 lakh for polluting air with toxic smoke at Rupganj in Narayanganj.

DoE Director M Munir Chowdhury fined AK Majumder Steel Mills Ltd and ordered its closure as per the environment preservation law, says a press release.

The factory, which had been operating without environmental clearance for the last one and a half years, emitted toxic smoke containing metal elements including sulphur dioxide, carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.

British Airways, Qantas and other airlines are calling on governments to find a swift resolution to a political dispute over the European Union's carbon scheme, because the deadlock may create competitive distortions.

Since the start of 2012, EU law obliges all airlines using EU airports to be included in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS), the 27-nation bloc's main policy to fight global warming as it caps emissions on over 11,000 power and industrial plants.

The UK's greenhouse gas output climbed 3.1 percent in 2010 as people used more gas to heat their homes amid colder weather and more nuclear plants were closed for maintenance, according to final government estimates published Tuesday.

The country emitted 590.4 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent of the six greenhouse gases (GHGs) covered by the Kyoto Protocol, up from 572.5 million tonnes in 2009, said the government report, revising an initial estimate made last year of 582.4 million.

The European Union could suspend parts of a new law requiring airlines to account for their greenhouse gas emissions if countries were to make clear progress this year toward establishing a global emissions control system, a senior official said Tuesday.

The comments, by Jos Delbeke, the director general for climate action at the European Commission, came the day after China announced that its carriers would be forbidden to pay any charges under the European emissions system without Beijing’s permission.

The European Commission said Monday that it would continue charging airlines for their greenhouse gas emissions, despite an announcement from China that its carriers would be forbidden to pay without its permission.

The E.U. program, which began Jan. 1, requires airlines to account for all emissions on flights using European airports and represents the Union’s boldest move to protect the environment.

Across the country, activists with ties to the Tea Party are railing against all sorts of local and state efforts to control sprawl and conserve energy. They brand government action for things like expanding public transportation routes and preserving open space as part of a United Nations-led conspiracy to deny property rights and herd citizens toward cities.

Many are suspicious of environmental initiatives. Ed Elswick, a county supervisor, voiced criticism at last month's meeting.