4 August 2010, London, UNITED KINGDOM - Qatar Airways has been honoured by leading aviation industry figures for its wide-ranging global environmental initiatives.

The Doha-based carrier's well documented move into the research of alternative jet fuel as part of an overall mission to secure a cleaner and environmentally friendly future, helped win it the Environment accolade at the annual Airline Strategy Awards held in London.

The airline earned recognition among an illustrious judging panel made up of chief executives, aviation consultants, leading analysts and academics drawn from across the industry.

Now in their ninth year, the awards which are run by the leading monthly aviation magazine Airline Business, have established themselves as the sector's benchmark recognising boardroom leadership and strategic vision.

Success criteria for the award included demonstrating the creation and implementation of a company-wide environmental strategy; the creation, development and implementation of measures that produce environmental benefits; and the support of industry-wide initiatives through research.

The airline was acknowledged for its leadership in pioneering the use of alternative jet fuel having operated the world's first commercial passenger flight powered by a fuel made from natural gas. The flight from London Gatwick to Doha in October 2009 made headlines around the world.

Otherwise known as gas-to-liquids (GTL) fuel, the milestone flight was also seen as the first step in helping make the alternative synthetic fuel available to all airlines in the future.

Over the past two years, Qatar Airways has been instrumental in driving a number of environmentally-friendly projects designed to find ways to maximise fuel saving efficiency and explore the use of cleaner jet fuels.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said: "It is a great honour for the airline to be recognised with this prestigious award and it only demonstrates the commitment that we at Qatar Airways have towards a cleaner and environmentally-friendly crowded skies."

"At Qatar Airways, we don't just talk, but take positive action to produce results and these measures we have and will be adopting, will only help airlines around the world to fly the global skies with a cleaner and friendly environment at the forefront of their growth strategies."

The airline has implemented a company-wide five-pillar corporate social responsibility strategy that embraces change management and integrated fuel management for sustainable development.

Just months later, Qatar Airways joined forces with industry partners to establish the Qatar Advanced Biofuels Platform to research and develop the feedstock and capability to produce biomass-to-liquid fuel - otherwise known as BTL jet fuel.

With an ultimate aim to use a blend of GTL and biomass-to-liquid (BTL) jet fuel, this would help the airline be independent of conventional aviation jet fuel in the future.

"In a remarkably short time, Qatar Airways has gone from a relative laggard on the environment front to one blazing a trail for others to follow," said Mark Pilling, Editor of Airline Business.

"With increasing pressure to display its environmental credentials and emissions trading schemes, Qatar Airways' leadership knew the time had come to significantly boost its activities on the environment front."

Today, there is an increased awareness of environmental impacts of agriculture, with heavy criticisms made on the amount of inefficient water usage, as well as harmful pesticides, herbicides and fungicides used in farming. Many unsustainable farming methods are the source of eutrophication and soil degradation in the environment. On the other hand, farming is a necessity, and although it could be improved and made more sustainable, no one can say that we don't need farms.

However, many golf courses are currently coming under the same criticism; their construction may result in the destruction of wetlands and coastal habitats, and extensive pesticide and herbicide usage may cause eutrophication in water sources. The main problem however is the course's massive water consumption to keep the grass and trees green, and unlike farms, they are simply recreational.

Waterfalls may be seen as some of the most beautiful river formations in the world. They are essentially places where the river water drops sharply, due to a sudden change in the river gradient. There are many different types of waterfalls of various forms.

There are many notable waterfalls for tourists to visit, and they can be found across the globe. All it takes is a search of notable waterfalls to get a list hundreds of waterfalls worth visiting. For example, the world's tallest water fall, Angel Falls in Venezuela, named a UNESCO heritage site, with water from the Auyantepui Mountain plummeting more than nine hundred metres before continuing into the Kerep River.

There are also the world's most visited waterfalls; the Niagara falls, featured in multiple films. They are a source of hydroelectric power and a huge source of tourism every year, resting partially in Canadian territory, and partially in American territory. There are also the Boyoma falls in Congo, with the highest volume of flow, and ‘Mosi-oa-Tunya' - ‘smoke that thunders' also known as Victoria Falls in Zambia and Zimbabwe, forming what may be the largest waterfall in the world.

Other notable waterfalls include the Huangguoshu Waterfall in China, which can be viewed from multiple angles due to the ‘water curtain cave'. The tallest waterfall in Europe is located in Norway, the ‘Vinnufossen'.

The most one can do to ‘preserve' waterfalls, is not to litter and ruin its aesthetic value. The reality is that waterfalls are not permanent structures, over hundreds of years, they are known to naturally ‘cut back', essentially eroding its base at the plunge pool until a section of the top collapses, and the waterfall is ‘moved' further upstream. The process continues and can often result in the formation of an equally stunning gorge or valley.

It is common when travelling to areas with large numbers of insects, mosquitoes etc. to apply insect repellent. In fact, it is often advised; especially in areas where diseases such as typhus and malaria are prominent.

The key ingredient of many insect repellents seems to be a N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide, known mainly through its acronym, DEET. Although considered generally safe when used responsibly, it is considered ‘slightly toxic', and does cause damage to freshwater fish. Additionally, some regular uses of insect repellents with high concentrations of DEET (70% and above) were shown to have various negative side effects such as irritation and some pains; some effects can be more serious.