Researchers Create Genetically Modified Marine Bacterium to Degrade Plastic in Saltwater

Scientists have recently genetically modified a marine bacterium to break down polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic, addressing the issue of plastic pollution in marine environments.

Key Points

• Addressing Plastic Pollution: This breakthrough offers a potential solution to combat plastic pollution in oceans by breaking down PET, which contributes significantly to microplastic pollution.
• Reusability: The goal is to transform plastics into reusable products instead of merely removing them from the water and sending them to landfills.
• Environmental Impact: Reducing plastic pollution in marine environments can have a positive impact on ecosystems and marine life.
• Groundbreaking Achievement: This research marks the first successful expression of foreign enzymes on V. natriegens cells.
• Saltwater PET Degradation: It's the first genetically engineered organism known to break down PET microplastics in saltwater, overcoming challenges related to high salt concentrations.

World's First 100% Ethanol-Fueled Car Launched

On 29^th August, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari introduced the world's inaugural 100% ethanol-powered car in New Delhi, marking a significant step towards emission reduction and fuel efficiency enhancement.

Key Points

• Historic Ethanol-Fueled Car Launch: This step aims to combat carbon dioxide emissions and improve vehicle fuel efficiency.
• BS-VI Ethanol-Powered Vehicle: Minister celebrated this milestone as the launch of the world's first electrified flex-fuel vehicle, operating entirely on ethanol-based fuel. He emphasized the urgency of adopting sustainable measures to address pollution and reduce dependence on oil imports.
• Economic and Environmental Benefits: Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister emphasized the financial benefits of ethanol blending.
• A 20% ethanol blend in petrol could result in an annual import bill savings of 35 thousand crore rupees.
• India has surpassed its 10% ethanol blending target ahead of schedule, signifying successful progress.
• Global Biofuel Partnership: This collaborative effort aims to advance the adoption and integration of biofuels on an international scale.
• Flex Fuel Technology: The flex fuel technology enables engines to efficiently use ethanol-blended petrol or gasoline beyond a 20% threshold.
• The overarching goal is to minimize carbon emissions, promote sustainable mobility, and reduce reliance on conventional fuel sources.

Air Pollution in South Asia Reduces Life Span by 5.1 Years on Average

A recent report highlights that air pollution in South Asia, particularly in countries like Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, is cutting the average life expectancy of residents by 5.1 years.

Key Points

• Significant Impact: The Energy Institute published the 'Air Quality Life Index (AQLI) Annual Update 2023' report, indicating that air pollution in South Asia, particularly in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, is leading to a decrease in the average life span by 5.1 years.
• Indian Scenario: In India, poor air quality on average reduces an individual's life expectancy by 5.3 years.
• This surpasses the impact of cardiovascular diseases (4.5 years) and child/maternal malnutrition (1.8 years) on life expectancy.
• AQLI Report: The report analyzes the impact of particulate pollution on life expectancy using the Air Quality Life Index (AQLI).
• Highly Affected Region: South Asia, particularly countries like Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan, experiences a higher impact on life expectancy due to air pollution compared to other health threats like tobacco use, unsafe water and sanitation, and alcohol use.
• Elevated Exposure: The average person in these countries faces particulate pollution levels that are 51.3% higher than those at the beginning of the century.
• Impact on Life Years Lost: The report emphasizes that if pollution levels had remained constant since 2000, the residents of these countries would have been expected to lose 3.3 years of life expectancy.
• Pollution in Specific Countries: Bangladesh stands as the most polluted nation globally, facing 6.8 years of average life loss per person due to pollution.
• India follows closely, where all 1.3 billion people live in areas with particulate pollution exceeding WHO guidelines.
• Increasing Pollution Levels: Air quality levels in India have deteriorated significantly. From 1998 to 2021, average annual particulate pollution increased by 67.7%, shortening average life expectancy by 2.3 years. Moreover, from 2013 to 2021, India contributed to 59.1% of the global increase in pollution.
• Reasons behind Pollution Spike: The report attributes the increase in air pollution to rapid industrialization, economic development, population growth, and increased energy demand and fossil fuel usage across the region.
• Effects of Particulate Pollution: Particulate matter like PM 2.5, due to its tiny size, can easily enter the circulatory system, leading to chronic diseases such as asthma, heart attacks, bronchitis, and respiratory problems.

Indore Tops Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan Ranking

After being designated as a "non-attainment city" by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) six years ago, ‘Swachh Indore’ has recently risen to the forefront of cities making substantial strides in improving air quality, emerging as the leader in the 'over 10-lakh population category'.

Key Points:

• Indore Tops Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan: Indore secured the top position in the Swachh Vayu Sarvekshan ranking, part of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), with an impressive score of 187 out of 200 points.
• Non-attainment cities: These are the cities that have fallen short of the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for over five years.
• Diverse Rankings among Cities: In contrast, Gwalior scores 117 points, placing 43rd, while Bhopal secures the fifth position with 181 points, and Jabalpur claims the seventh position with 172 points.
• Evaluation Methodology and Criteria: The ranking is determined based on the evaluation of self-assessment reports submitted by cities on the PRANA portal.
• The assessment covers multiple domains, such as solid waste management, road dust management, vehicular emission control, industry-related emission abatement, and more.
• Indore's Initiatives and Progress: Indore's improvement initiatives include installing air quality monitoring stations, intensively sweeping roads at night, increasing green cover, and transitioning to cleaner public transport options like CNG/electric vehicles.

Air Pollution Linked to Alarming Surge in Antibiotic Resistance

Recently, a comprehensive global study has unveiled a disturbing connection between escalating air pollution and the rapid rise of antibiotic resistance, a grave threat to global public health.

Key Points:

• Widespread Antibiotic Resistance: The study's findings underscore a significant global concern, highlighting the correlation between mounting levels of air pollution and the alarming surge in antibiotic resistance observed across all continents and countries.
• Strengthening Link Over Time: As air pollution levels have risen, the instances of antibiotic resistance have shown larger increases.
• Air Pollution's Impact on Health: While antibiotic misuse and overuse remain primary drivers of resistance, the study suggests that air pollution exacerbates the problem, adding to the complexity of the issue.
• Mechanisms of Link Unclear: Although the study did not delve into the specific mechanisms underlying the link between air pollution and antibiotic resistance, evidence suggests that particulate matter PM2.5 could carry antibiotic-resistant bacteria and genes, potentially contributing to their inhalation and transmission.
• A Dual Menace: The study's lead author underscores the dual benefits of combating air pollution: mitigating its detrimental effects and potentially curbing the proliferation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
• Possible Pathways: The research highlights potential pathways through which antibiotic-resistant genes are disseminated via air pollution, including hospitals, farms, and sewage-treatment facilities that release antibiotic-resistant particles into the air, propagating them over significant distances.

Earth Witnesses First Plastic Overshoot Day

On July 28, 2023, the Earth experienced its first Plastic Overshoot Day, marking the point at which amount of plastics surpassed the planet's waste management capacity.

Key Points:

• Additional Plastic Waste: The 2023 Plastic Overshoot Day Report by Swiss-based research consultancy Earth Action (EA) estimated that an extra 68,642,999 tonnes of plastic waste would end up in the environment this year.
• Major Contributors to Plastic Pollution: India is one of the 12 countries responsible for 52% of the world's mismanaged plastic waste, along with China, Brazil, Indonesia, and others.
• Tripling of Global Plastic Pollution: Despite increased waste management capacity and pledges, plastic production is expected to triple global plastics pollution by 2040.
• Impact of Short-Life Plastics: Short-life plastics, including single-use plastics and plastic packaging, account for 37% of the world's total plastic consumption and pose a higher risk of environmental leakage.
• Highest Plastic Consumption Per Person: Iceland tops the list with 128.9 kg of plastic consumption per person, while India's per-person consumption is 5.3 kg, significantly lower than the global average of 20.9 kg.
• Mismanaged Waste Index (MWI): India ranks fourth in the MWI, with 98.55% of generated waste being mismanaged.
• Global Treaty on Plastic Pollution: India proposed a global ban on single-use plastics in 2019, and the world agreed to create a UN Plastic Treaty by 2024, aiming to combat plastic pollution effectively.

Batagaika Crater Pose a Warning Sign for Earth

Recent studies have revealed that the Batagaika crater, the world's largest permafrost crater, is rapidly expanding due to thawing permafrost, exacerbated by global warming.

Key Points:

• Permafrost: Permafrost is ground that remains frozen at or below 32°F (0°C) for at least two years and is common in high mountain regions and Earth's higher latitudes.
• Location: The crater, located in the Sakha Republic, has deepened up to 100 meters and expanded over the years due to the melting of underground permafrost after deforestation.
• Impact of Global Warming: Russia is warming about 2.5 times faster than the global average, leading to the melting of the country's long-frozen tundra, releasing potent greenhouse gases like methane.
• Thawing permafrost causes immediate infrastructural damage, including buckling roadways, splitting houses, and disrupting pipelines.
• Scientists warn that the soil beneath the slump in the Batagaika crater contains dangerous amounts of organic carbon, releasing into the atmosphere as permafrost thaws and contributing to further planet warming.

Radiation Levels in Kerala

According to a recent study, background radiation levels in parts of Kerala are nearly three times more than what had been previously assumed.

The radiation levels: The radiation levels discovered in the present study were measured to be higher than what was assumed before the study was conducted, highlighting the importance of updating and improving estimates on natural background radiation.

• The study found that the average natural background levels of gamma radiation in India was 94 nGy/hr, roughly 0.8 milli sievert/year.
• The higher radiation levels in Kollam, Kerala are attributed to monazite sands that are high in thorium.
• Southern India, because of the presence of granite and basaltic, volcanic rock, has higher levels of radiation from uranium deposits.
• Previous studies have checked for higher rates of cancer or mortality in areas with high radiation levels and have found nothing out of the ordinary.
• The higher levels of background radiation found in parts of Kerala do not translate to an elevated health risk.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Specification: Public exposure to radiation shouldn't exceed 1 milli-Sievert every year.

• Workers in nuclear plants or those exposed due to their occupation shouldn't be exposed to over 30 milli-Sievert every year.
• The authors of the study note that the body is accustomed to higher doses of radiation and that the limits set by the IAEA are extremely conservative and reflect abundant caution.

Gamma radiation: Radiation can come from anywhere, including inside our bodies or from the constituents of matter.

• Gamma rays, a type of radiation that can pass unobstructed through matter, are generally harmless unless present in large concentrated doses. (Note: Gamma rays are a type of electromagnetic radiation, with the highest frequency and energy in the electromagnetic spectrum. They are produced by the decay of atomic nuclei, nuclear reactions, and other high-energy processes in the universe).

World Bank Report on Air Pollution

On December 14, 2022, the World Bank released a report titled 'Striving for Clean Air: Air Pollution and Public Health in South Asia'.

Background

• Persistently hazardous levels of air pollution have caused public health crises in South Asia demanding urgent action.
• Using a modelling approach over South Asia as a whole, the WB report lays out multiple scenarios and costs involved in reducing the region’s exposure to particulate matter (PM).

Key Highlights of the Report

• Over 60% of South Asians are exposed to an average of 35 µg/m³ of PM2.5.
• In some parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) it spiked to as much as 100 µg/m³ – nearly 20 times the upper limit of 5 µg/m³ recommended by the WHO.
• According to a World Bank report, India has six large Airsheds, some of them shared with Pakistan, between which air pollutants move. They are:

1. West/Central Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP) that included Punjab (Pakistan), Punjab (India), Haryana, part of Rajasthan, Chandigarh, Delhi, and Uttar Pradesh.
2. Central/Eastern IGP: Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bangladesh
3. Middle India: Odisha/Chhattisgarh
4. Middle India: Eastern Gujarat/Western Maharashtra
5. Northern/Central Indus River Plain: Pakistan, part of Afghanistan; and
6. Southern Indus Plain and further west: South Pakistan, Western Afghanistan extending into Eastern Iran.

• When the wind direction was predominantly northwest to the southeast, 30% of the air pollution in Indian Punjab came from the Punjab Province in Pakistan and, on average, 30% of the air pollution in the largest cities of Bangladesh (Dhaka, Chittagong, and Khulna) originated in India.

Major sources of Air Pollution in South Asia

• Large industries, power plants and vehicles are dominant sources of air pollution around the world;
  • But in South Asia, other sources make substantial additional contributions.
  • These include combustion of solid fuels for cooking and heating, emissions from small industries such as brick kilns, burning of municipal and agricultural waste, and cremation.
• Air pollution travels long distances— crossing municipal, state, and national boundaries—and gets trapped in large “airsheds” that are shaped by climatology and geography.

Indian Efforts to curb Air Pollution

• The National Clean Air Campaign (NCAP) (2019) aims to reduce (40% over 2017 levels by 2025-26) air pollution in 131 of India’s most polluted cities.
• The government of India has set aside $1.7 billion to fight air pollution over the next five years, as per the recommendation of the 15^th Finance Commission.
• (SAFAR) Portal: SAFAR is a national initiative introduced by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) to measure the air quality of a metropolitan city.
• Air Quality Index: AQI has been developed for eight pollutants viz. PM2.5, PM10, Ammonia, Lead, nitrogen oxides, sulphur dioxide, ozone, and carbon monoxide.
• Parliament has approved to the establishment of the Commission of Air Quality Management in the National Capital Region and adjoining areas.
• The clean air action plan is implemented across the states with guidelines from WB.

India joins First Movers Coalition

At the World Economic Forum's (WEF) Annual Meeting 2022 taking place in Davos, India has joined the First Movers Coalition, a global initiative aimed at decarbonising the heavy industry and long-distance transport sectors responsible for 30 per cent of global emissions.

About First Movers Coalition

• The First Movers Coalition is a global initiative harnessing the purchasing power of companies to decarbonize seven “hard to abate” industrial sectors that currently account for 30% of global emissions: Aluminum, Aviation, Chemicals, Concrete, Shipping, Steel, and Trucking; along with innovative Carbon Removal technologies.
• ‘First Movers Coalition’ is an initiative of the World Economic Forum and the US government.

New Partners

• In addition to the US government, the coalition now has India, Japan and Sweden in the Steering Board, as well as Denmark, Italy, Norway, Singapore and the United Kingdom as government partners.
• These government partners will invite companies from their countries to join the coalition and pursue public policies to commercialise the green technologies corporate members commit to purchasing.

Purchase Commitment

• The coalition’s members have committed to purchasing – out of their total industrial materials and long-distance transport spending – a percentage from suppliers using near-zero or zero-carbon solutions, despite the premium cost.
• If enough global companies commit a certain percentage of their future purchasing to clean technologies in this decade, this will create a market tipping point that will accelerate their affordability and drive long-term, net-zero transformation across industrial value chains.

Two New Targets

• The coalition also announced two new target sectors: carbon dioxide removal and aluminium, which join the four existing sectoral pledges (aviation, shipping, steel and trucking) launched at COP26.

Resolution on Plastic Pollution adopted by 175 Countries

At the fifth United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA 5.2-held at Nairobi), a resolution was adopted by 175 countries to end plastic pollution.

• The resolution, based on three initial draft resolutions from various nations (one from India), establishes an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) which will begin its work this year, aiming to complete a draft legally binding agreement by the end of 2024.
• The resolution noted that “the high and rapidly increasing levels of plastic pollution represent a serious environmental problem at a global scale, negatively impacting the environmental, social and economic dimensions of sustainable development.”
• Vitally, the agreement addresses the whole lifecycle of plastic, from its production to its disposal.

(Image Source: downtoearth)

The Negotiation Process

• The basis for the negotiations was three draft resolutions, a joint one by Rwanda-Peru, which was endorsed by 60 countries, Japan and India.

India’s Text

• The Indian text proposed voluntary action, which remained a separate document throughout the negotiations, with a majority of countries favouring binding commitments. The term voluntary was retained as an option upon insistence by India.
• India was also keen on the insertion of the words “national circumstances and capabilities” in the text which is in alignment with its position of common but differentiated responsibility under the Paris agreement.

Carbon Capture and Storage

It involves the capture of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from industrial processes, such as steel and cement production, or from the burning of fossil fuels in power generation

3 Step Process

• Capture: The CO2 is separated from other gases produced in industrial processes, such as those at coal and natural-gas-fired power generation plants or steel or cement factories.
• Transport: The CO2 is then compressed and transported via pipelines, road transport or ships to a site for storage.
• Storage: finally, the CO2 is injected into rock formations deep underground for permanent storage.

Does it help in reducing global warming?

• If done on the scale required, it would definitely help reduce global warming.
• In 2019 (the pre-pandemic year), the world emitted 36.7 billion tons of carbon dioxide.
• Today, CCS projects are negligible in comparison with the emissions.

Where are carbon emissions stored in CCS?

• Possible storage sites for carbon emissions include saline aquifers or depleted oil and gas reservoirs.
• These typically need to be 1km or more under the ground. As an example, a storage site for the proposed Zero Carbon Humber project in the UK is a saline aquifer named ‘Endurance’, which is located in the southern North Sea, around 90km offshore.
• Endurance is approximately 1.6km below the seabed and has the potential to store very large amounts of CO2.

‘Forum for Decarbonizing Transport’ in India

On 23rd August 2021, NITI Aayog and World Resources Institute (WRI), India, jointly launched the ‘Forum for Decarbonizing Transport’ in India as part of the NDC-Transport Initiative for Asia (NDC-TIA) project.

Aim

• The project aims at bringing down the peak level of GHG emissions (transport sector) in Asia (in line with a well below 2-degree pathway), resulting in problems like congestion and air pollution.

Current Status of Emission from Transport in India

• India has a massive and diverse transport sector, which is also the third most CO2 emitting sector. Data from (IEA, 2020; Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change, 2018) suggests that within the transport sector, road transport contributes to more than 90% of the total CO2 emissions.

Govt. Initiatives

• Through various policy measures and initiatives, the Government of India is continuously working towards the decarbonisation of road transport, with a major focus on the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the country.
• NITI Aayog has been at the helm of the promotion of EVs and sustainable mobility through the National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage.

Focus Area of NDC-TIA India Component

• Multi-Stakeholder Platform: The NDC-TIA India component focuses on developing a coherent strategy of effective policies and the formation of a multi-stakeholder platform for decarbonizing transport in the country. Through this forum, the WRI India team, along with NITI Aayog and other project partners, will work in close coordination with all these stakeholders to formulate strategies and develop appropriate business models to accelerate electric mobility in India. The forum will also provide a platform to initiate dialogues for the development of uniform policies and help achieve specific results in reducing emissions from the transport sector.

About NDC Transport Initiative

• The NDC Transport Initiative for Asia (TIA 2020-2023) is a joint programme of seven organisations that will engage China, India, and Vietnam in promoting a comprehensive approach to decarbonizing transport in their respective countries.
• The project is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI). The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) support the initiative on the basis of a decision adopted by the German Bundestag.
• NITI Aayog is the implementing partner for the India component of the project.

India’s Single Largest Solar Park to come up at Rann of Kutch

NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd, a 100% subsidiary of NTPC will set up 4750 MW renewable energy park at Rann of Kutch in Khavada, Gujarat.

• This will be India’s largest solar park to be built by the largest power producer of the country.
• NTPC REL has plans to generate green hydrogen on a commercial scale from this park.

Other recent major Initiatives by NTPC

• Recently, NTPC has also commissioned India’s largest Floating Solar of 10 MW (ac) on the reservoir of Simhadri Thermal Power Plant, Andhra Pradesh.
• NTPC RE Ltd. has recently signed a MoU with UT, Ladakh and Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) for the generation of green hydrogen and deployment on FCEV buses.

UN Experts Flag Concerns On EIA Notification

• Recently, a group of Special Rapporteurs to the United Nations has written to the Centre expressing concern over the proposed Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) notification 2020.
• It has sought the government’s response on how the provisions of the notification were consonant with India’s “obligations under international law”.

Vital Concerns raised by UN Special Rapporteurs

• Under the Clauses 14 (2) and 26, the notification provide an exemption to a number of giant industries such as chemical manufacturing and petroleum merchandise, constructing, widening of nationwide highways, etc. from public consultation — as part of the environment impact assessment process.
• The rapporteurs argued that the exemptions were unwarranted, particularly when there was a serious gas leak from (LG Polymers) chemical plant in Visakhapatnam on May 12, 2020 and oil gas blowout in Assam’s Dibrugarh in June, 2020.
• The draft notification doesn’t require publication of data or holding of public session for tasks labelled by the Central authorities as ‘involving strategic concerns’.
• There is clause on “post-facto clearance” is worrisome. These are forprojects which began without acquiring the required environmental clearances or permissions.
• Overall, it contradicts fundamental ideas associated to the environmental rule of regulationthat obstructed people’s rights to a safe, clean and healthy environment.

Indian Government’s Response over the Concerns

• The government said that nothing in the proposed EIA, 2020 violated the UN Declaration of Human Rights and that the rapporteur’s concerns were “misplaced”.
• The proposed EIA is still a draft and issued for public consultation and that there were several imperfections in the existing EIA that were to be amended in the new notification.
• With regard to post-facto clearances, the violation of not taking prior approval would be punished as per law and projects that were already running would be considered only on merit.

Furore over Draft Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2020

The draft Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification 2020 proposed by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has met with massive opposition.

Contentious Clauses in Draft EIA, 2020

• Re-Categorisation of Projects: It re-categorises all the projects and activities related to the production of bulk drugs and intermediates for several ailments from ‘A’ category to ‘B2’ category.This re-categorisationwill seriously affect the environment, since these will be carried out without oversight.
• Post-facto Approval: The new draft allows for post-facto approval for projects. It means that the clearances for projects can be awarded even if they have started construction or have been running phase without securing environmental clearances.It implies that those projects can also seek clearance that violate the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (EPA).
• Reducing Public Participation: Numerous provisions of the new EIA also endanger the basic tenets of public participation. The period for public consultation has been reduced from 30 days to 20 days. Considering the socio-political context of the vulnerable population typically affected by ‘development’ projects, this reduction could literally exclude some groups of people from consultation.
• Exemption of Strategic Projects: The introduction of the category of “strategic projects’’, which has been clubbed with Defence projects, has also been a cause of concern — they do not require public consultation, and information need not to be made public.These points to excessive executive discretion.
• Compliance Report Issue: The 2006 EIA required that the project proponent submit a report every six months, showing that they are carrying out their activities as per the terms on which permission has been given.However, the new draft requires the promoter to submit a report only once every year.During this period, certain irreversible environmental, social or health consequences of the project could go unnoticed because of the extended reporting time.
• Exemption to Construction Projects up to 150,000 sq m: It also exempts up to 150,000 sq m construction projects from the assessment. These projects can now gain environment clearance after scrutiny by state-level expert appraisal committee. Earlier, the exemption was granted to construction projects of up to 20,000 sq. m or above.

Critical Analysis

• Though established to safeguard the environment, the EIA process, argue activists, often achieved the opposite by offering a facade of legal paperwork for a range of de facto concessions enjoyed by industries.
• For example, reports on project’s potential (damaging) impact on the environment — the bedrock of the EIA process — are frequently shoddy and consultant agencies that prepare those reports for a fee are rarely held accountable.
• Lack of administrative capacity to ensure compliance often renders long lists of clearance conditions meaningless.
• On the other hand, developers complain that the EIA regime dampened the spirit of liberalisation, leading to red tape and rent-seeking. Delay in project clearance during the UPA-II rule became an election issue in 2014 when then prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi hit out at the Congress by claiming that files did not move in the Environment Ministry till “Jayanthi tax” was paid.
• The 2020 draft offers no remedy for the political and bureaucratic stronghold on the EIA process, and thereby on industries. Instead, it proposes to bolster the government’s discretionary power while limiting public engagement in safeguarding the environment.
• The government’s actions on environmental regulation (as opposed to its bon mots and rhetoric) show that it considers it an impediment to the ease of doing business.

Conclusion

• India is a party to the Rio declaration adopted by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in 1992, which enunciated a catalogue of environmental principles including sustainable development, precautionary principle, and EIA.
• India is also party to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and United Nations Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which contain a requirement to have a prior EIA in situations having a significant threat to the environment.
• Weakening the EIA process is essentially anti-democratic. For affected communities, where seismic shifts in the local environment can threaten livelihoods, flood a valley or destroy a forest, public consultation is a referendum on existential threats.
• The Environment Ministry must make sure that the final EIA draft does justice to the complex relations between environment, development and local communities that the public consultation process has brought to light.
• The dilution of environmental standards in the EIA needs to be evaluated in the background of the robust environmental principles operating at the national and international levels.
• Also, decisions that will lock-in carbon-intensive infrastructure in the long term need to be scrutinised, particularly in light of India’s commitments under the Paris Agreement process.
• The Environment Ministry needs to be clear about its role — its mandate is to create and sustain a regulatory framework that prevents the plunder of our natural resources, not actively accelerate the pace of environmental devastation.
• As India is a highly vulnerable country, it should be the government’s priority to ensure that regulatory approvals do not make parts of the country more vulnerable or adversely impact the adaptive capabilities of communities.

Strict Conditions For Commercial Use Of Groundwater

• Recently, in a major revamp of regulations, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has set out stringent conditions for commercial groundwater use.
• The NGT order came while hearing a plea filed by a Haryana-resident alleging illegal extraction of groundwater and discharge of polluted water into drain by an industrial unit in Panipat (Haryana).
• In addition, NGT has also struck down the Central Ground Water Authority’s (CGWA) 2020 guidelines, saying they were against the law.
• The 2018 version of the guidelines had been struck down by the NGT last year.

Need for Conditions

• Extraction of groundwater has been liberalised, adding to the crisis, unmindful of the ground situation and likely impact it will have on the environment.
• India was at the bottom of the water quality index, at 120 among 122 countries.
• 54% of India’s groundwater wells have decreased in levels, with 21 major cities across the country expected to run out of groundwater by 2020.
• India accounted for 25 percent of the total annual global water extracted, with the extraction level steadily increasing.
• According to a report by the Central Water Commission (CWC), the annual replenishable groundwater resources in India (2017) are 432 BCM, out of which 393 BCM is the annual “extractable” groundwater availability.
• No state in India has shown any confidence inspiring attempt to regulate groundwater use or ensure that groundwater recharge mechanisms are protected and enhanced.
• If the present rate of groundwater depletion persists, India will only have 22% of the present daily per capita water available in 2050, possibly forcing the country to import its water.

New Conditions laid by NGT

• NGT has specifically banned the general permission for the withdrawal of groundwater, especially to the commercial entities without an Environment Impact Assessment (EIA).
• Industries must expect a complete overhaul in the manner in which the permits are issued for the extraction of groundwater for commercial activities. They must ensure that all the conditions are complied with.
• Permits must be for the specified quantity of water and must be monitored with digital flow metres and audited every year by the third parties.
• Strict actions, including prosecution and blacklisting, must be taken against those who will fail the audit.
• As per the new rules, the authorities are given three months to make water management plans for all the overexploited, semi-critical, and critical areas.

Impact and Associated Concerns

• The policy vacuum triggered by a NGT order on the use of groundwater has impacted businesses across sectors.
• These directions may put rigorous requirements on the businesses at a time when they have been trying to find their way amid COVID-19.
• Further, the restrictions make access of groundwater very difficult.
• The move by NGT has also been interfering with the legislative functions of the Jal Shakti Ministry.

Way Forward

• In order to address various issues related to ground water, keeping in view the climatic change, there is a need to prepare a comprehensive road map with identified strategies for scientific and sustainablemanagement of the available ground water resources in the country so as to avert the looming watercrisis.
• The strategies should also focus on the imbalances in ground water development in the country, reasons thereof and suggesting measures including accelerated development of ground water in areas with low stage of ground water development.
• There is an urgent need to change the status quo with tough regulations. Besides appropriate pricing of groundwater, policies that promote judicious use of groundwater in every sector is required.
• Efforts also needed to institutionalise and strengthen community-based groundwater management.
• Generating awareness about the status of local groundwater resources, education and social mobilisation should form the core elements of community-based groundwater management.
• State governments need to take policy action to facilitate formation of Groundwater User’s Associations which possess the power to manage, maintain and distribute water resources efficiently.
• A groundwater literacy movement should be launched to highlight the irreparable consequences of its over-exploitation.

Microplastic Pollution In Atlantic Ocean

• Recently, a new study published in Nature Communications has estimated early 11.6-21.1 million tones amount of microplastic pollution in the Atlantic Ocean.

Key Findings

• In the study, scientists studied pollution of the Atlantic Ocean caused by three types of plastics: polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene, which were suspended in the top 200 metres of the ocean. These three types of plastic are most commonly used for packaging.
• Smaller plastic particles are a hazard, as it is easier for them to sink to greater ocean depths and some marine species such as zooplanktons show preferential ingestion of smaller particles, making them easier to enter the food chain.
• They also estimate that based on plastic waste generation trends from 1950-2015 and considering that the Atlantic Ocean has received 0.3-0.8 per cent of the global plastic waste for 65 years, the Atlantic waters could hold 17-47 million tonnes of plastic waste.
• Analysis of water and sediment worldwide indicates that microplastics are ubiquitous in freshwater, marine ecosystems and soils.

Microplastics

• These are plastic debris smaller than 5mm in length, or about the size of a sesame seed.
• These particles are mostly made from polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), polystyrene (PS), polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and polyesters.
• Microplastics come in a large variety of sizes, colours and chemical compositions, and include fibres, fragments, pellets, flakes, sheets or foams.

Categories

They can be divided into two main categories according to their source:

Primary Microplastics

• Directly released in the environment as small particles.
• Are estimated to represent between 15-31% of microplastics in the oceans.
• Main sources: Laundering of synthetic clothes (35% of primary microplastics); abrasion of tyres through driving (28%); intentionally added microplastics in personal care products, for example microbeads in facial scrubs (2%).

Secondary Microplastics

• Originate from degradation of larger plastic objects, such as plastic bags, bottles or fishing nets
• Account for 69-81% of microplastics found in the oceans.

How does plastic reach the oceans?

• Major sources of microplastics include:
• Agricultural runoff
• Aquaculture
• Cruise ships
• Ocean dumping
• Stormwater
• The shipping and fishing industries
• Urban runoff
• Waste management
• Wastewater treatment plants

 Impact

Impact on Marine Ecosystem

• Many persistent organic pollutants (for example, pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls-PCBs, DDT, and dioxins) float around the oceans at low concentrations, but their hydrophobic nature concentrates them on the surface of plastic particles.
• Marine animals mistakenly feed on the microplastics, and at the same time ingest the toxic pollutants. The chemicals accumulate in the animal tissues and then increase in concentration as the pollutants are transferred up the food chain.
• Besides the associated chemical loads, ingested plastic materials can be damaging for marine organisms, as they can lead to digestive blockage or internal damage from abrasion.
• Microfibres, which have been reported as the most abundant type of microplastics in wastewater and freshwaters, are of particular concern. They have been identified in the intestinal tract of zooplankton, river-bed organisms, and mussels. They can result in gut blockage and starvation.

Impact on Human Health

• For humans, too, marine plastic pollution is harmful if it reaches the food chain. For instance, microplastics have been found in tap water, beer and even salt.
• Plastic swallowed by fish, shellfish and crustaceans also ends up on our tables. So the effects are also felt by humans: the pollutants released by microplastics can be ingested and absorbed by humans. These can interfere with the human endocrine system and produce genetic modifications.
• Consumption of plastic by humans is harmful since several chemicals that are used to produce plastics can be carcinogenic.

Mitigation and Control Measures

Short-term Measures

• Regulation of production and consumption through bans or taxes of plastic products thatare harmful to the environment, without compromising public health or food safety.
• Reducing the consumption of plastics through removal of unnecessary packaging (e.g., double packaging), labelling, awareness, education, and by providing eco-friendlyalternatives to plastics when possible without unintended consequences.
• Increasing demand for recycled plastics through benefits, sanctions, or taxes on virgin plastics.

Mid-term Measures

• Implementation of waste collection systems that lead to reductions in waste production, improve recycling rates following the “pay-as-you-throw” principle, such as door-to-doorcollection and deposit-refund systems.
• Prioritizing recycling followed by feedstock and waste-to-energy that allow recovery of valuable chemicals and energy; landfill should only be used in waste produced in the previous processes.
• Reduction and recycling of waste formed during production and responsibility over wasteand impacts caused by products.

Long-term Measures

• Using renewable energy during collection of waste and recycling to reduce environmental impacts of recycled plastics.
• Implementing Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for each product and process to improve eco-design (including reuse, repair, and recyclability), taking into consideration expected end-of-life of products.
• Using bio-based plastics to reduce environmental impacts from fuel-based plastics; reducing production of degradable plastics that produce harmful fragments (microplastics);using biodegradable plastics in applications where composting is beneficial (e.g., agriculturalfilms) while providing specific collection and waste treatment (since biodegradation maybe slower or not possible in the environment).
• Improving recyclability of e-waste and in the interim, disposal through waste-to-energy.

Way Forward

• An integrated waste management system, focused on the four R’s hierarchy (reduce, reuse, recycle, recover) and improving the life-cycle of plastics is important to reduce energy and resources consumptions, avoid harmful emissions, and reduce quantities of mismanaged plastic waste reaching the oceans.
• These measures require command and control and economic measures created by governments, voluntary measures from industries, and changesin consumer behavior.
• Since plastic marine litter knows no boundaries, international cooperation is the need of the hour in order to improve waste management systems in all countries (or at least coastal countries).

Scrapping Of Jalyukta Shivar Abhiyan

• Recently, the Maharashtra Government scrapped the flagship water conservation project-Jalyukta Shivar.

Reasons for Scrapping the Project

• Corruption: One of the main corruption charges levied against the previous government in Maharashtra was against the Jalyukta Shivar project. The then CM had announced completion of 10,094 tasks in January, 2019. But in March, charges of discrepancies were levelled against 1,300 tasks carried out under the Jalyukta Shivar scheme, which the then government later accepted.
• Improper Fund Allocation: Another reason is improper fund allocation during the final leg of the scheme which led to the substandard quality of work being carried out during the last three years.
• Niti Aayog Report: According to the NITI Aayog’s Composite Water Management Index-2019, Maharashtra’s performance in preserving existing water sources, restoring encroached water bodies, water distribution through canals and irrigation management has worsened since 2015. Despite the Jalyukta Shivar programme, the state has performed poorly in the groundwater recharge. This emboldened government’s decision to scrap the project.

Jalyukta Shivar

• Launched in December 2014 after Maharashtra experienced consecutive droughts. The project was aimed at rolling out measures that could potentially mitigate water scarcity in the most drought-prone villages in a systematic manner.

Objectives

• To arrest maximum runoff in the village area
• To create Decentralized Water Bodies
• To increase the Groundwater Level in Drought areas
• Rejuvenation of the water storage capacity of various existing structures like Village Tank, Percolation Tank Cement Nalla Bandh (CNB) through repairs and renovations
• To increase storage capacity of water bodies by removing silt through people’s participation.
• To sensitize the concept of Water Budgeting

Need for Jalyukta Shivar

• Since 2014, hundreds of villages in Marathwada, Madhya Maharashtra and Vidarbha have experienced droughts for consecutive years.
• About 82 per cent area of Maharashtra falls is rainfed sector while 52 per cent of area is drought prone. This, when coupled with natural rainfall variability and long dry spells during the monsoons, severely hampers agricultural activities.

Key Features

• The project was targeted at strengthening and streamlining existing water resources like canals, bunds and ponds by arresting maximum run-off rainwater during monsoon.
• To widen and deepen natural water streams and connect them to nearby water storage facilities like earthen or concrete check-dams was proposed.

Success of Jalyukta Shivar

• By January 2019, the scheme had transformed 16,000 drought-prone villages of Maharashtra. The irrigation cover had been increased by 34 lakh hectares. In the process, thereby, increasing the crop yield each year, particularly the kharif crops. Until mid-2019, interventions resulted in stocking of water measuring 24 lakh trillion cubic metres.
• Villages that gained called the scheme a game changer, but critics raised issues like sustainability, the contractor-based model and even the lack of data gathering to show the utility of the scheme while the state-run ground water and survey development agency had submitted a report, saying water levels in 31,000 villages had drastically gone down.

Future of Water Conservation in Maharashtra

• Geologists and hydrologists, who worked on implementing the project, shared similar views and hailed Jalyukta Shivar programme. This was mainly due to the interventions undertaken in the existing water reserves, planned de-silting activities, among many others.
• However, experts agreed that the scheme was not appropriately implemented. Now with Jalyukta Shivar no longer in existence, focused efforts of the past five years, in most likelihood, will go down the drain unless a similar scheme is introduced.
• With rainfall variations getting more pronounced, in addition to depleting groundwater reserves, the state will need concrete interventions to tackle its future water requirements.

European Green Deal

• On 11^th December, 2019, European Commission presented European Green Deal- the most ambitious package of measures, which will enable European citizens and businesses to benefit from sustainable green transition.
• The Deal covers all sectors of the economy, notably transport, energy, agriculture, buildings, and industries such as steel, cement, ICT, textiles and chemicals.

Aim

• To transform the European Union (EU) into a fair and prosperous society, with a modern, resource-efficient and competitive economy.
• To protect, conserve and enhance the EU's natural capital, and protect the health and well-being of citizens from environment-related risks and impacts.

Need

• The European Union, which consists of 28 member countries, is together the third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world after China and the United States.

Key Points of European Deal

Climate Neutral Europe

• This is the overarching objective of the European Green Deal. The EU will aim to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, a goal that will be enshrined in a ‘Climate Law’ to be presented in March 2020.

Increase Emission Reduction Target

• In its climate action plan declared under the Paris Agreement, the EU was committed to making a 40 percent reduction in its emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. But now it has decided to increase this reduction to at least 50 percent and work towards 55 percent.

Circular Economy

• A new circular economy action plan will be tabled in March 2020, as part of a broader EU industrial strategy. It will include a sustainable product policy with “prescriptions on how we make things” in order to use less materials, and ensure products can be reused and recycled.

 Building Renovation

• This is meant to be one of the flagship programmes of the Green Deal. The key objective there is to “at least double or even triple” the renovation rate of buildings, which currently stands at around 1%.

Zero-pollution

• Whether in air, soil or water, the objective is to reach a “pollution-free environment” by 2050. New initiatives there include a chemical strategy for a “toxic-free environment”.

Revamping Ecosystems & Biodiversity

• A new biodiversity strategy will be presented in March 2020, in the run-up to a UN biodiversity summit taking place in China in October, 2020.
• It includes measures to tackle soil and water pollution as well as a new forest strategy.
• New labelling rules will be tabled to promote deforestation-free agricultural products.

Farm to Fork Strategy

• To be tabled in Spring 2020, the new strategy will aim for a “green and healthier agriculture” system. This includes plans to significantly reduce the use of chemical pesticides, fertilisers and antibiotics.

Transport

• Electric vehicles will be further encouraged with an objective of deploying 1 million public charging points across Europe by 2025.
• Sustainable alternative fuels – biofuels and hydrogen – will be promoted in aviation, shipping and heavy duty road transport where electrification is currently not possible.

Green Investment

• TheEuropean Investment Bank (EIB), the EU's lending arm, decided to cease funding fossil fuel projects at the end of 2021 for the Europe's Climate Bank.
• It requires funding parts of the European Green Deal policies with a Sustainable Europe Investment Plan in coming years.

Transition Fund

• To “leave no-one behind,” the Commission proposes a Just Transition Mechanism to help regions most heavily dependent on fossil fuels. It plans to mobilise €100 billion precisely targeted to the most vulnerable regions and sectors.

Impact

• Providing a Roadmap: The Deal provides a roadmap with actions to boost the efficient use of resources by moving to a clean, circular economy and stop climate change, revert biodiversity loss and cut pollution.
• Improving Environment: Initiatives to halt biodiversity will also bring indirect benefits by improving nature through restoration of ecosystems, planting trees, safeguarding carbon-rich ecosystems.
• Improving Health & Well-Being: It contains specific actions that will directly improve the health and well-being of the public. The first of these are the actions to tackle pollution of air and water and pollution caused by hazardous chemicals.
• Benefits to Consumers: Consumers will benefit from more sustainable products that are designed to be repairable, durable, recycled and use less energy. This can help reduce the lifetime costs of the products they buy. Additional and more accurate consumer information will also allow consumers to make better-informed decisions and thereby help to drive the transition to cleaner products and a healthier environment.
• Boost to Business: The transition depicted in the Deal is an opportunity for business to modernise and become more competitive. With support from within the investment and innovation programmes of the Multi-annual Financial Framework, industry will be encouraged to develop new market-leading environmentally friendly technologies and sustainable solutions.

Way Forward

• The EU is the largest economy in the world, so the decisions it makes as a collective reverberate throughout the world. The Deal is an integral part of Commission’s strategy to implement the United Nation’s 2030 Agenda and the sustainable development goals
• To deliver the European Green Deal, there is a need to rethink policies for clean energy supply across the economy, industry, production and consumption, large-scale infrastructure, transport, food and agriculture, construction, taxation and social benefits.
• However, the deal seems to be inadequate in itself to achieve the emission reductions that scientific assessments say would be required to save the world from catastrophic and irreversible impacts of climate change.
• There has been nosignal from other big emitters, including large developing countries like China and India that they were considering immediate scaling up of their climate actions.
• As long as many international partners do not share the same ambition as the EU, there is a risk of carbon leakage, either because production is transferred from the EU to other countries with lower ambition for emission reduction, or because EU products are replaced by more carbon-intensive imports.
• If this risk materializes, there will be no reduction in global emissions, and this will frustrate the efforts of EU and its industries to meet the global climate objectives of the Paris Agreement.

Torrefaction Technology

• Pollution from stubble burning in winter is the key contributor to the sharp decline in air quality in northern India. In order to curb the menace of stubble burning, India is currently testing a Swedish technology — Torrefaction, that can convert rice stubble into bio-coal.
• The Government of India, in association with Bioendev, (Swedish company) has funded a pilot project to set up a pilot plant at the National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute in Mohali, Punjab to evaluate the feasibility of the technology.

What is Torrefaction Technology?

• Torrefaction is a thermochemical pretreatment process at 200–300 °C in an environment with low oxygen, which transforms biomass into a relatively superior handling, milling, co-firing and clean renewable energy into solid biofuel (coal-like pellets).

Torrefaction technology enables processing various kinds of biomasses:

• Woody biomass
• Forrest residuals
• Saw mill residuals (e.g. saw, dust, chips, bark)
• Straw, grass

Parameters

• The different parameters that influence the torrefaction process are (a) reaction temperature, (b) heating rate, (c) absence of oxygen, (d) residence time, (e) ambient pressure, (d) flexible feedstock, (e) feedstock moisture, and (f) feedstock particle size.

Process

• Torrefaction carries devolatilisation, depolymerization and carbonization of lignocellulose components in order to generate bio-coal.
• During this process, 70% of the mass is retained as a solid product, and retains 90 % of the initial energy content.

End Products of Torrefaction

Three different products are produced:

• Brown to black uniform solid biomass, which is used for bioenergy applications
• Condensable volatile organic compounds comprising water, acetic acid, aldehydes, alcohols, and ketones
• Non-condensable gases like carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and small amounts of methane.

Advantages

Economic

• Torrefied biomass is believed to be a superior solid fuel for combustion, especially when co-fired with coal due to its higher energy density and coal-like handling proper-ties. Typically during torrefaction, 70% of the mass is retained as a solid product, containing 90% of the initial energy content.
• Torrefaction releases combustible gases that can be used to generate the required heat, making the process self-powering.
• It addresses some of the difficulties which have hindered the large-scale utilisation of biomass feedstock, namely: low energy density and high water content.
• Torrefied product is stable, brittle, easier to grind than the parent biomass material and less liable to biological degradation in storage.
• These can be transported economically due to their high energy density. Compaction through pelletizing is suitable forlong hauls via open rail car and ocean vessel, reducing the transportation cost.

Environment

• The main advantage of the torrefaction process is that obtained (in the form of pellets torrefied product on the main thermo technical characteristics is similar to coal, and can be used to coal replacement in different energy units. According to the content of harmful components and, above all, sulfur and heavy metals, from the total ash content and etc., torrefied product is preferable than modern energy coal.
• Therefore, it provides an opportunity to replace a significant portion of the coal by torrefied product, thereby reducing the total ecological impact on the environment.

Way Forward

• The potential of biomass as a replacement to fossil fuels leads to a number of issues, such as the increase in their price and environmental consequences due to their excessive harvesting and plantation, which leads to deforestation and a consequent decrease in biodiversity.
• Widespread consumption of biomass could affect various ecosystems by creating negative impacts on the quality of water and soil and affecting food chains.
• However, the torrefaction of biomass has proved to be an ideal process for improving the biomass characteristics as this energy source has proved to be a good alternative to theuse of fossil fuels.

Read: Stubble Burning

UNEP Emissions Gap Report – 2019

• Recently, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released a report under the title- United Nations Gap Emissions Report-2019, which presents a grim assessment on the yawning gap between 'what countries have committed and what they actually require to do to limit greenhouse gas(GHG) targets'.

About the Report

• The Report, tenth in series, provides an independent scientific assessment of how countries’ climate pledges and actions are affecting the global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) trend, comparing it with the emission reductions necessary to limit global warming in accordance with the Paris Agreement.
• This year’s report emphasizes the energy and transport sector, arguing that renewables and energy efficiency, together with electrification of end uses are key to driving down energy-related CO2 emissions.
• It identifies six entry points for progressing towards closing the emissions gap through transformational change in the following areas:

1. Air pollution, air quality, health
2. Urbanization
3. Governance, education, employment
4. Digitalization
5. Energy- and material-efficient services for raising living standards
6. Land use, food security, bioenergy

Major Findings

GHG Emissions Continue To Rise

• GHG emissions have risen at a rate of 1.5 percent per year in the last decade, stabilizing only briefly between 2014 and 2016. Total GHG emissions, including from land-use change, reached a record high of 55.3 Gt carbon dioxide(CO₂) emission in 2018.
• By 2030, emissions would need to be 25 percent and 55 percent lower than in 2018 to put the world on the least-cost pathway to limiting global warming to below 2˚C and 1.5°C respectively.

Top Emitters

• The top four emitters (China, EU28, India and the United States of America) contributeto over 55 percent of the total GHG emissions over thelast decade excluding LUC, the top seven (including Japan,Russia and international transport) account for 65 percent, while G20 members contribute 78 percent.
• Sectors that are the largest emitters- Energy>Industry>Forestry>Transport>Agriculture>Building.

Net Zero Emission

• Although the number of countries announcing net zero GHG emission targets for 2050 is increasing, only a few countries have so far formally submitted long-term strategies to the UNFCCC.
• Five G20 members (the EU and four individual members) have committed to long-term zero emission targets, of which three are currently inthe process of passing legislation and two haverecently passed legislation. The remaining 15G20 members have not yet committed to zeroemission targets.

Large Emission Gap

• The emissions gap is large. In 2030, annual emissions need to be 15 GtCO2e lower than current unconditional NDCs imply for the 2°C goal, and 32 GtCO2e lower for the 1.5°C goal.

Strengthening the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)

• Dramatic strengthening of the NDCs is needed in 2020. Countries must increase their NDC ambitions threefold to achieve the well below 2°C goal and more than fivefold to achieve the 1.5°C goal.

What is Emission Gap?

• The Emissions Gap (also Commitment Gap), measures the gap between what we need to do and what we are actually doing to tackle climate change.
• The gap is the difference between the low levels of emissions that the world needs to drop to, compared with the projected level of emissions based on countrie’s current commitments to decarbonization.

Why is it important?

• The gap is important because if we can’t close it and meet the emissions reduction target, the world is going to face increasingly severe climate impacts worldwide.
• It is important that policymakers, and their citizens, know what the gap is so that the commitments countries are making are sufficient to close the gap.

Way Forward

• However, the report points thatclimate change can still be limited to 1.5°C. For this, the countries must increase their ambition immediately to close the emissions gap by strengthening emissions-reduction targets, as well as sectoral targets such as those related to renewable energy.Countries can commit to implementing their NDCs in line with achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
• Countries must realize the role of ‘non-state actors’ (such as companies and NGOs) and sub-nationals (state governments and city administrations) in achieving the global warming targets. It also calls for taxing of carbon to dissuade CO2 emitting activities.
• If the multiple co-benefits associated with closingthe emissions gap are fully realized, the requiredtransition will contribute in an essential way toachieving the United Nations 2030 Agenda with its17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Wastelands Atlas – 2019

• Recently, Ministry for Rural Development released the fifth edition of Wastelands Atlas – 2019, eight years after the last edition was published in 2011.
• The Atlas has been prepared by the Department of Land Resources in collaboration with National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC).
• The changes in wastelands between 2008-09 and 2015-16 have been presented in the Atlas. Earlier, the Wasteland Atlas was published in the year 2000, 2005, 2010 & 2011.

Key Findings

• India with 4% of total land area of the world is supporting 18% of the world’s population.
• The per capita availability of agriculture land in India is 0.12 ha whereas world per capita agriculture land is 0.29 ha.
• The effort has resulted in estimating the spatial extent of wastelands for entire country to the tune of 55.76 Mha(16.96 % of geographical area of the country i.e. 328.72 Mha) for the year 2015-16 as compared to 56.60 Mha (17.21%) in the year 2008-09. During this period 45 Mha of wastelands are converted into non wastelands categories.
• Majority of wastelands have been changed into categories of croplands (0.64 Mha),forest-dense / open (0.28 Mha), forest plantation (0.029 Mha),plantation (0.057 Mha) and industrial area (0.035 Mha)
• Positive changes can be seen in wastelands in the states of Rajasthan, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Mizoram, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and West Bengal.
• There is a net conversion of 0.84 Mha (0.26%) of different wasteland categories in the country during 2008- 09 to 2015-16.
• A reduction in wasteland area was observed in the categories of land with dense scrub, waterlogged and marshy land, sandy areas, degraded pastures / grazing land and gullied and / or ravenous land.

Significance

• Providing Data about Unmapped Area: The Wastelands Atlas-2019 provides district and state wise distribution of different categories of wastelands area including mapping of about 12.08 Mha unmapped area of Jammu &Kashmir.
• Boost to Wasteland Reclamation Schemes: Robust geospatial information on wastelands assumes significance and effectively helpful in rolling back the wastelands for productive use through various land development programmes.
• Contribution to International Efforts: It can contribute to the globalresearch agenda operative in India on the implementation of the conservationagriculture and preservation of our natural resources and environment.
• Tool to Climate Studies: Land degradation and data on the wastelands can also be used as an effective indicator in the climate change studies at the regional and global scales.

Wasteland

• Wasteland is a degraded land which can be brought under vegetative cover, with reasonable effort, and which is currently under utilised and land which is deteriorating for lack of appropriate water and soil management or on account of natural causes.

Categories

• Culturable Wasteland- The land which is has potential for the development of vegetative cover and is not being used due to different constraints of varying degrees, such as erosion, water logging, salinity etc.
• Unculturable Wasteland- The land that cannot be developed for vegetative cover, for instance the barren rocky areas and snow covered glacier areas.

Wasteland based on Causative Agent

Cause of Increasing Wasteland

• Increasing biotic pressure
• Absence of adequate investments and appropriate management practices
• High rate of Population growth and high incidence poverty in rural areas
• Over-exploitation of National Resources
• The break-down of traditional institutions for managing common property resources and failure of new institutions to fill the vacuum
• Faulty land use practices

Government Initiatives

National Wastelands Monitoring Project (NWMP)

• Launched by the Ministry of Rural Development in 2006, it aims to providespatial information on wastelands with respect to their nature, magnitude of degradation, extent, spatial distribution of wasteland across the country.

Integrated Wastelands Development Programme (IWDP)

• The basic objective IWDP is an integrated wastelands development based on village/micro watershed plans. These plans are prepared after taking into consideration the land capability, site condition and local needs of the people. The thrust of the scheme continues to be on development of wastelands.
• The scheme also aims at rural employment besides enhancing the contents of people's participation in the wastelands development programmes at all stages, which is ensured by providing modalities for equitable and sustainable sharing of benefits and usufructs arising from such projects.

Drought Prone Area Programme(DPAP)

• It focuses on the non-arable land and drainage lines for in-situ soil and moisture conservation programmeincludes agro- forestry, pasture development, horticulture and alternate land use.
• The objective is of environmental protection and restoration of ecological balance through appropriate natural resource management technologies.

Desert Development Programme (DDP)

Objectives

• To mitigate the adverse effects of desertification and adverse climatic conditions on crops, human and livestock population, combating desertification.
• To restore ecological balance by harnessing, conserving and developing natural resources i.e. land, water, vegetative cover and rising land productivity.
• ​To implement developmental works through the watershed approach, for land development, water resource development and afforestation/pasture development.

Way Forward

• The relentlessly increasing pressure of human and livestock population and the demands of urbanization and economic development have put a severe strain on our limited land resources with the result that the quality of land resources has been deteriorating threatening the ecological balance.
• There is need to develop policies, which would result in the best use and sustainablemanagement of land and water resources so as to prevent land becoming degraded and waste in the light of country’s food and livelihood security.
• Addressing the threat will entail thinking outside the box, which could include focusing on wasteland reclamation to offset anticipated crop production losses.
• Besides augmenting production, investments in wasteland reclamation can also help restore ecosystem services such as climate regulation and aesthetics, and also increase biodiversity.
• In order to accelerate the progress under various schemes there is need for initiating actions, viz. peoples’ participation and community organization need to be made very effective by building their capacity through structured training programs to ensure proper planning, implementation and monitoring that can achieve quantitative and qualitative objectives of the programmes.

Second Phase Of LOTUS-HR Project Launched

• On 14^th October, 2019, India and Netherlands launched the second phase of the Local Treatment of Urban Sewage streams for Healthy Reuse(LOTUS-HR) plant as a part of joint collaboration in New Delhi.
• The launch programme was held during the visit of Netherlands King and the Queen to the India-Netherlands water laboratory at the Barapullah drain in Delhi.

Aim

• To develop universal water management and risk assessment strategies that are applicable for megacities all around the world
• To demonstrate a novel holistic waste-water management approach that will produce clean water that can be reused for various purposes (e.g. industry, agriculture, construction etc.)
• To recover nutrients and energy from the urban waste water, thus converting drain into profitable mines

Need for the Project

• The Barapullah drain, where the pilot of the program is being implemented, witnesses the flow of 1.6 million litres of waste water produced by New Delhi which eventually drains in to the Yamuna River polluting it severely.
• New Delhi is also dependent on the water from the Yamuna thereby further contributing to water scarcity and treatment costs.

About LOTUS-HR Project

• The project was started in 2017 at the Sun Dial Park, New Delhi as part of collaboration between the governments of India and the Netherlands.
• The project is jointly supported by the Department of Biotechnology of the Indian government's Ministry of Science and Technology and Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research/STW of the government of the Netherlands.
• IIT-Delhi and The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) are partners in this project.
• The programme consists of 3 research line-
  1. Water Reuse Safety Plans and their socioeconomic and legal impact in combination with quantitative risk assessments of the produced water qualities.
  2. Focus on the pre- and post-treatment of wastewater from the Barapullah drain, to make it available for safe reuse.
  3. Special attention will be paid to pathogen removal and removing conventional and emerging pollutants.

• A Hybrid Anaerobic Reactor is being used to the waste water. The idea behind it is that is that these bacteria not only eat away the pollutants but also generate methane gas which can be used later for feeding a Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC), compact wastewater treatment and anaerobic digestion followed by flotation, high production photobioreactors(PBR) and compact easy replaceable wetlands, based on innovative filling material (e.g. Hydrorock).
• Plant has capacity to convert 10 lakh litres of sewage to 3 tonne of bio-fuel per day.

Significance

• Sustainable Business Model: The Indo-Dutch collaboration would pave new ways to create techno entrepreneurship and encourage a sustainable business model to convert sewage water into clean water for healthy re-use.
• Market Development for Water Reuse Strategies: Thiswill leadto development of reliable technologies, tools, models and approaches for local stakeholders enabling market development for water reuse strategies and solutions for other Indian Mega Cities.
• Tool-Box Treatment Technology: This pilot scale facility will employ multiple technologies so that the data generated at the pilot scale becomes a tool-box of treatment technologies for replication at other sites in Delhi as well as other parts of India where similar drains exist.
• Ground water Recharge:This collaborationwill help in the revamping of drains and will play an important role in aiding ground water recharge which in the long run will provide water for potable and non-potable purposes.
• Boost to Swachh Bharat Abhiayaan: This initiative will provide a boost to the attempt to meet the goals set by the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan and contribution of the Department of Biotechnology, “Swachhta Hi Seva” movement launched by Prime Minister recently.

Way Forward

• Wastewater treatment infrastructure available is highest in the metropolitan cities; even there the gap between wastewater generated and treated is considerable with the population and wastewater generated increasing day by day. The existing treatment capacity is not fully utilized in most cities because of lack of sewage pipe lines bringing sewage to the treatment plants
• Thus, there is a need for new wastewater infrastructure construction and improvement of the existing wastewater treatment systems. Upgrading of the wastewater treatmenttechnologies also needs to be undertaken, for better treatment of the sewage.
• There is also a need for renovation of the sewer system from time to time. New wastewater treatment systems need to be constructed with more focus on economic viability and environmental sustainability. Importance should also be given to create awareness on sanitation and pollution issues among users so that their cooperation in maintaining their own environments can be assured
• Given the magnitude of the problem, wastewater treatment in India cannot be just government responsibility. The truth is that the government simply does not have the resources to meet the massive demand. The obvious solution is to look for private-public partnership. By inviting private partnership in wastewater and sewage management, we can take advantage of better technology and localized systems and find efficiency.
• An integrated approach needs to be evolved balancing infrastructural and socio-economic measures for water quality management.
• Further success of the ongoingSwachh Bharat campaign will beensured only if water is available in the toilets constructed and if the wastewater generated isalso treated and the treated water reused or disposed-off in a sustainable manner.

India’s First E-waste Clinic

• On 5^th October, 2019, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and the Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to set up the country’s first e-waste clinic in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
• Initially, it will be a three-month pilot project and being successful, it would be replicated elsewhere in the country.
• The clinic is being conceived in compliance with the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016.

Objective

• The initiative would enable segregation, processing and disposal of waste from both household and commercial units.

Mode of Action

• Under this, electronic waste will be collected door-to-door or could be deposited directly at the clinic in exchange for a fee.
• Door-to-door collection will happen in two ways.-
• Separate carts for the collection of e-waste will be designed
• Separate bins will be attached to existing ones meant for solid and wet waste.

Significance

• In the absence of a safe disposal mechanism, electronic waste at present is being disposed of along with other waste. The new initiative would ensure scientific handling, disposal and recycling of e- waste leading towards more sustainable e- waste management system in the country.

Electronic-waste Scenario in India

• Electronic waste (e-waste) typically includes discarded computer monitors, motherboards, mobile phones and chargers, compact discs, headphones, television sets, air conditioners and refrigerators.
• According to the Global E-Waste Monitor 2017, India generates about 2 million tonnes (MT) of e-waste annually and ranks fifth e-waste producing countries, after the US, China, Japan and Germany.
• In 2016-17, India treated only 0.036 MT of its e-waste.
• In India, among top ten cities, Mumbai ranks first in generating e-waste followed by Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmadabad, Hyderabad, Pune, Surat and Nagpur.

Source: Department of Information Technology

Impact of e-waste

Effect on Human Health

• In India, 90 percent of the recycling and disposal of e-waste is done by the informal/ unorganised sector. Additionally, the amount of human health issues increases significantly the closer these people are to informal e-waste recycling areas.
• Many of the workers are children who work with their bare hands, dealing with enormous quantities of toxic metals. The heavy metals present in e-waste are known to cause neurological and skin diseases, genetic defects and cancer in workers who handle them.
• The cathode ray tubes (CRTs) present in computer monitors, with heavy metals like lead, barium and cadmium, may be harmful during the improper processing and cause an adverse impact on the human nervous and respiratory systems.
• Lead and cadmium present in the printed circuit boards, beryllium of the motherboards, mercury in switches and flat-screen monitors, cadmium in the computer batteries, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in the cable insulation and bromine in plastic housing may cause damage to the human body parts such as nervous system, kidney and liver, lungs and skin, heart, lever and muscles, brain and skin, kidney and liver, immune system and endocrine system respectively.

Source: electronicsforu

Impact on Environment

• Effects on air
  • One of the most common effects of e-waste on air is through air pollution. These wastes are often burned in open air in order to extract valuable metals from the.(for ex. Copper metal), which can release hydrocarbons into the air.
• Effects on soil
  • Due to unscientific recycling methods, toxic heavy leaches out into the soil, leading to soil contamination. These chemicals are not biodegradable—they persist in the environment for long periods of time, increasing the risk of exposure.
• Effects on water
  • When electronics containing heavy metals such as lead, barium, mercury, lithium (found in mobile phone and computer batteries),are improperly disposed, these heavy metals leach through the soil to reach groundwater channels which eventually run to the surface as streams or small ponds of water, leading to serious health issues.

Government Initiatives

E-Waste management Rule, 2016

• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has notified the E-Waste Management Rules, 2016 in supersession of the e-waste (Management & Handling) Rules, 2011.
• It now includes Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) and other mercury containing lamps, as well as other such equipment.
• It brings the producers under Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), along with targets. Producers have been made responsible for collection of E-waste and for its exchange.
• The ministry is also implementing a scheme called the ‘Creation of Management Structure for Hazardous Substances’, which includes an awareness programme about the new Rules and its implementation.

Awareness Programme on Environmental Hazards of Electronic Waste

• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has initiated a pilot project ‘Awareness Program on Environmental Hazards of Electronic Waste’ under the ‘Digital India Initiative’.
• The Scheme aims to provide financial support to Societies, Academic Institutions, Industry Associations and professional organisations for organizing workshops/ seminars for schools/ colleges/ Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)/ Bulk Consumers/ Regulatory bodies, media engagement etc. and making campaign material for wide circulation on ill-effects associated with e-waste.
• Besides awareness, the programme would also undertake inventory study for estimation of the quantum of e-waste in few selected cities.

International Initiative

Basel Convention

• The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Waste and their Disposal controls the international trade in hazardous wastes.
• The Convention was adopted in 1989 and entered into force in 1992. Under the Convention's provisions, trade in hazardous wastes generally cannot take place:
• without the importing country's written consent to a particular export
• where the exporting country has reason to believe that the particular wastes will not be handled in an environmentally sound manner.

Objective

• To protect human health and the environment against the adverse effects of hazardous wastes.

 Aim

• Reduction of hazardous waste generation and the promotion of environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes, wherever the place of disposal
• Restriction of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes except where it is perceived to be in accordance with the principles of environmentally sound management
• A regulatory system applying to cases where transboundary movements are permissible.

Way Forward

• E-waste generation in India is estimated to increase by 500 percent by 2020. Producers, recyclers and policy-makers need to work together simultaneously to cover this gap in waste-management.
• Lack of awareness at all levels including corporate is a major challenge that hampers or slows down the collection.
• Governments should assist producers in driving awareness of proper disposal options and should also promote awareness of current and pending legislation as well as of available producer recycling programs.
• Legislation should require recycling standards equivalent with globally-recognised standards to ensure those materials are managed in a socially and environmentally sound manner, ensuring a level playing field for all recyclers.
• Apart from better implementation of existing policies, a need for strengthening of existing infrastructure through public-private partnership can play a pivotal role in balancing the deficit in recycling capabilities. Recycling infrastructure need huge boost and attention from the Government as well as from electronic and electrical product manufacturers.
• Immense potential is there in augmenting e-waste recycling in the country. There are some forward movements in this direction, however, lots of ground has to be covered through awareness campaign, skill development, building human capital and introduction of technology while adopting adequate safety measures in the country’s informal sector.

IPCC Special Report On The Ocean And Cryosphere

• On 25^th September, 2019, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report under the name- ‘Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate(SROCC)’ which highlights the adverse changes taking place in oceans, glaciers and ice-deposits on land and sea due to the climate change.
• The was prepared following an IPCC Panel decision in 2016 to prepare three Special Reports and follows the Special Reports on Global Warming of 1.5°C (SR1.5) released in October 2018, and on Climate Change and Land (SRCCL), released in August, 2019.

Major Findings of the Report

• Sea level Rising:Global mean sea-level had increased by 16 cm between 1902 and 2015, and that the rate of increase had doubled of late. Between 2006 and 2015, global mean sea level recorded an average rise of 3.6 mm per year, which was more than double of 1.4 mm per year recorded in the first 90-year-period of the 20th century.
• Shrinking Cryosphere:Over the last decades, global warming has led to widespread shrinking of the cryosphere, with mass loss from ice sheets and glaciers, reductions in snow cover and Arctic sea ice extent and thickness.Mass loss from the Antarctic ice sheet over the period 2007– 2016 tripled relative to 1997–2006.
• Increasing Ocean and Marine Heat:Global ocean has warmed unabated since 1970 and has taken up more than 90% of the excess heat in the climate system.Since 1993, the rate of ocean warming has more than doubled. Also, the marine heat waves have doubled in frequency since 1982 and are increasing in intensity.
• Ocean Acidification:The Ocean has taken up between 20–30% of total anthropogenic CO2 emissions since the 1980s causing the acidification of oceans.
• Ocean Deoxygenation: A loss of oxygen has occurred from the surface to 1000 m due to climate change.

Impact

• Food and water security have been negatively impacted by changes in snow cover, lake and river ice, and permafrost in many Arctic regions.
• Glacier retreat and snow cover changes have contributed to localized declines in agricultural yields in high mountain regions, including Hindu Kush Himalaya and the tropical Andes.
• Negative impacts of cryosphere change on human health have included increased risk of food- and waterborne diseases, malnutrition and mental health challenges especially among Indigenous peoples.
• Increasing ocean acidification and oxygen loss are negatively impacting two major upwelling systems: the California Current and Humboldt Current.
• Decrease in oxygen level hasaltered ecosystem structure, with direct negative impacts on biomass production and species composition.
• Ocean warming has contributed to an overall decrease in maximum catch potential, impacting the fishery sector round the world.
• Marine heatwaves have already resulted in large-scale coral bleaching eventscausing worldwide reef degradation.
• Coastal communities are exposed to multiple climate-related hazards, including tropical cyclones, extreme sea levels and flooding, marine heat waves, sea ice loss, and permafrost thawing.

Significance of the Report

• It provides new evidence for the benefits of limiting global warming to the lowest possible level – in line with the goal that governments set themselves in the 2015 Paris Agreement.
• SROCC provides the best available scientific knowledge to empower governments and communities to take action, embedding that scientific knowledge on unavoidable change and plausible futures into their own context, to limit the scale of risks and climate impacts.
• It is a key scientific input for world leaders gathering in forthcoming climate and environment negotiations, such as the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference (COP25) in Chile in December, 2019.

Way Forward

• Over the 21^st century, the ocean is projected to transition to unprecedented conditions with increased temperatures, greater upper ocean stratification, further acidification, oxygen decline and altered net primary production.
• Extreme El Nino and La Nina events are projected to likely increase in frequency in the 21st century with intensified drier or wetter responses in several regions across the globe.
• Integrated water managementand ecosystem-based adaptationapproaches lower climate risks locally and provide multiple societal benefits.
• Networks of protected areas help maintain ecosystem services, including carbon uptake and storage, and enable future ecosystem-based adaptations.
• Restoration of vegetated coastal ecosystems, such as mangroves, tidal marshes could provide climate change mitigation through increased carbon uptake.
• Ocean renewable energy can support climate change mitigation, and can comprise energy extraction from offshore winds, tides, waves, thermal and salinity gradient and algal biofuels.
• Education and climate literacy, monitoring and forecasting, use of all available knowledge sources, sharing of data, information and knowledge, finance, addressing social vulnerability and equity, and institutional support are essential in mitigating climate change.
• Utilization of multiple knowledge systems and regional climate information into decision making, and the engagement of local communities, Indigenous peoples, and relevant stakeholders will help in reducing the climate related changes.
• Intensifying cooperation and coordination among governing authorities across scales, jurisdictions, sectors, policy domains and planning horizons can enable effective responses to changes in the ocean, cryosphere and to sea level rise.
• Regional cooperation, including treaties and conventions can support adaptation actions, mitigating the effect of climate change.
• The United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are all connected to varying extents with the ocean and cryosphere. Climate action (SDG13) would help limit the future ocean and cryosphere changes and reduce the associated risks including life below water, and clean water and sanitation.Limiting greenhouse gas emissions opens more options for effective adaptation leading towards the sustainable development.

UN Climate Action Summit-2019

• On 23^rd September, 2019, United Nation (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres convened the Climate Action Summit in New York, to ramp up climate actions worldwide at the highest levels that will enable implementation of many of the goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Objective

• To boost ambition and accelerate actions to implement the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

Rising Concerns

• Global emissions are reaching record levels.The last four years were the four hottest on record, and winter temperatures in the Arctic have risen by 3°C since 1990.
• Sea levels are rising; coral reefs are dying with the life-threatening impact of climate change on health, through air pollution, heatwaves and risks to food security.
• The impacts of climate change are being felt everywhere and are having very real consequences on people’s lives.

Key Highlights of the Summit

• The Summit focused on to develop ambitious solutions in six areas:
  • energy transition
  • climate finance and carbon pricing
  • industry transition
  • nature-based solutions
  • cities and local action
  • resilience
• UN urged the world leaders to come with realistic plans to enhance their nationally determined contributions by 2020, in line with reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent over the next decade, and to net zero emissions by 2050.

Action Portfolios

The UN has prioritized the following action portfolios in order to ensure that the transformative actions in the real economy:

• Finance: mobilizing public and private sources of finance to drive decarbonization of all priority sectors and advance resilience.
• Energy Transition: increasing the effort in order to shift away from fossil fuels towards the renewable energy.
• Industry Transition: Transforming industries such as oil and gas, steel, cement, and information technology
• Nature-Based Solutions:To reduce emissions, increasing sink capacity and enhancing resilience within and across forestry, agriculture, oceans and food systems which can be done through biodiversity conservation, leveraging supply chains and technology.
• Cities and Local Action: Advancing mitigation and resilience at urban and local levels, with a focus on new commitments on low-emission buildings, mass transport and urban infrastructure; and resilience for the urban poor.
• Resilience and Adaptation: Advancing global efforts to address and manage the impacts and risks of climate change.
• Mitigation Strategy: To generate momentum for ambitious Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and long-term strategies to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement.
• Youth Engagement and Public Mobilization: To mobilize people worldwide to take action on climate change and ensure youth representation across all aspects of the Summit, including the six transformational areas.
• Social and Political Drivers: To advance commitments in areas that affect people’s well-being such as generating decent jobs, and strengthening climate adaptation strategies and protect workers and vulnerable groups.

Source: United Nations

New Initiatives by India

• The Indian Prime Minister announced following two international initiatives at the UN Summit-

1. Leadership Group

• India along with Sweden and supported by World Economic Forum launcheda platform- Leadership Group, which will provide opportunities for cooperation in the area of Technology innovation. This will help to develop low carbon pathways for industry.

2. Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI)

• India launched the global CDRI, which is an international partnership that will support countries- developed and developing- to build climate and disaster resilient infrastructure.

Aim

• It aims to work towards a common goal of developing infrastructure that is resilient to climate change and disaster.

Need for CDRI

• Increasing frequency of disasters underlines the urgency of investing in resilient infrastructure for low and middle income countries and not just high income countries.
• Rising population and less predictable hazard patterns are putting both existing and new infrastructure under stress.
• According to the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR),every $1 spent in disaster risk reduction leads to gain of $7.The role of improved disaster resilience, especially of infrastructure is a key towards sustainable development.

About CDRI

• Establishment of an International Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) was approved by the Cabinet in August, 2019 along with its supporting Secretariat Office in New Delhi.
• It will serve as a platform where knowledge is generated and exchanged on different aspects of disaster and climate resilience of infrastructure.
• The CDRI will have following functions:
• Technical support and capacity development
• Research and knowledge management
• Advocacy and partnerships

Significance of CDRI

• Common Platform for Capacity Building: It will bring together technical expertise from a multitude of stakeholders by creating a mechanism to assist countries to upgrade their capacities and practices, with regard to resilient infrastructure development in accordance with their risk context and economic needs.
• Protection to Vulnerable Sections: This initiative will benefit all sections of society especially economically weaker sections of society, women and children, are the most vulnerable to the impacts of disasters.
• Benefit to Disaster Prone Areas: It will also benefit all areas with high disaster risk such as thenorth-eastern and Himalayan regions which are prone to earthquakes, coastal areas to cyclones and tsunamis and central peninsular region to droughts.

Way Forward

• Changes in Earth's atmospheric composition are a serious cause of concern for humanity as they impact weather and climate, human and ecosystem health, water supply and quality, agricultural production, and many socio-economic sectors.
• Climate change is the defining issue of our time and now is the defining moment to do something about it. There is still time to tackle climate change, but it will require an unprecedented effort from all sectors of society.
• The only realistic manner of limiting global warming to 5 degrees C is for developed countries to radically increase their goals and ambitions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to adhere to their commitments on climate financing. They must shoulder their historical responsibility and meet the needs of developing countries.

International Day For The Preservation Of The Ozone Layer

• On 16^th September, 2019, World Ozone Day was celebrated under the theme- 32 Years and Healing, to mark the day back in 1987 when the Montreal Protocol was signed.
• World Ozone Day has been celebrated since 1994 and was established by the United Nations General Assembly. The day is mainly intended to spread awareness of the depletion of the Ozone Layer and search for solutions to preserve it.

Ozone Timeline

Vienna Convention

• The Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer which is considered precursor to the Montreal Protocol was adopted in 1985.
• It aimed to protect human health and the environment against the adverse effects resulting from modifications of the ozone layer.
• It was followed shortly afterwards by the adoption of its Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer in 1987.

Montreal Protocol

• Signed in 1987, it was the first step in international efforts to protect stratospheric ozone.
• Under this, all parties have specific responsibilities related to the phase out of the different groups ozone depleting substances(ODS), control of ODS trade, annual reporting of data, national licensing systems to control ODS imports and exports, and other matters. Developing and developed countries have equal but differentiated responsibilities, but most importantly, both groups of countries have binding, time-targeted and measurable commitments.
• The substances controlled by the treaty are listed in Annexes A (chlorofluorocarbons(CFCs)halons), B (other fully halogenated CFCs, carbon tetrachloride, methyl chloroform), C (Hydrochlorofluorocarbons, HCFCs), E (methyl bromide) and F (hydrofluorocarbons, HFCs).

Aim

• With 197 nations party to the accord, it aims to protect the ozone layer by taking measures to control total global production and consumption of ODS, with the ultimate objective of their elimination on the basis of developments in scientific knowledge and technological information.

Universal Ratification

• On 16th September 2009, the Vienna Convention and the Montreal Protocol became the first treaties in the history of the United Nations to achieve universal ratification.

Amendments to the Montreal Protocol

• The London Amendment (1990): It changed the ODS emission schedule by requiring the complete phase out of CFCs, halons, and carbon tetrachloride by 2000 in developed countries, and by 2010 in developing countries. Methyl chloroform was also added to the list of controlled ODSs, with phase out in developed countries targeted in 2005, and in 2015 for developing countries.
• The Copenhagen Amendment (1992): It significantly accelerated the phase out of ODSs and incorporated HCFCphase out for developed countries, beginning in 2004. Under this agreement, CFCs, halons, carbon tetrachloride, and methyl chloroform were targeted for complete phase out in 1996 in developed countries. In addition, methyl bromide consumption of methyl bromide was capped at 1991 levels.
• The Montreal Amendment (1997): It included the phase out of HCFCs in developing countries, as well as the phase out of methyl bromide in developed and developing countries in 2005 and 2015, respectively.
• The Beijing Amendment (1999):It tightened controls on the production and trade of HCFCs. Bromochloromethane was also added to the list of controlled substances with phase out targeted for 2004.
• The Kigali Amendment (2016):It extended controls to phase down the production and consumption of HFCs because these substances were adopted by industries in moving away from ozone-depleting substances and they are potent greenhouse gases damaging to the earth’s climate.

Impact of Montreal Protocol

• It has helped successfully curbed 98% of ozone-depleting substances over the last three decades.
• It has successfully put a stop to the use and emission of CFC (Chlorofluorocarbons) and other harmful gases that continuously worked on thinning the layer of ozone above Earth.
• A very significant co-benefit is that it has - during period 1989-2013 - reduced cumulative CO2-eq. emissions by 135 billion tonnes.
• HFCs replaced the CFCs, predominantly used in cooling appliances. Though the HFCs did not affect the ozone, they have actively added to global warming.

Ozone Layer

• Ozone is created in the atmosphere when the sun's rays split oxygen molecules into single atoms. These atoms combine with nearby oxygen to form a three-oxygen molecule, called ozone.
• The ozone layer is a region of high ozone concentration in the stratosphere, 20 to 30 kilometres above Earth's surface.
• Ozone concentrations are measured in Dobson Units (DU).

Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS)

• Manmade chemicals containing halogens were determined to be the main cause of ozone loss. These chemicals are collectively known as ozone-depleting substances (ODSs).
• The most important are chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), which at one time were widely used in air conditioners, refrigerators and aerosol cans. Other chemicals, such as hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), halons, sterilants, carbon tetrachloride and methyl bromide also deplete the ozone layer.

How ODS is causing Harm to Ozone Layer?

• When a CFC molecule reaches the stratosphere, it eventually absorbs UV radiation, causing it to decompose and release its chlorine atoms. One chlorine atom can destroy up to 100,000 ozone molecules.
• Too many of these chlorine and bromine reactions disrupt the delicate chemical balance that maintains the ozone layer, causing ozone to be destroyed faster than it is created.

Importance of Ozone layer

• Ozone in the stratosphere absorbs some of the Sun’s biologically harmful ultraviolet radiation. Because of this beneficial role, stratospheric ozone is considered good ozone.
• In contrast, excess ozone at Earth’s surface that is formed from pollutants is considered harmful because it can be harmful to humans, plants, and animals.
• The amounts of "good" stratospheric and "bad" tropospheric ozone in the atmosphere depend on a balance between processes that create ozone and those that destroy it. An upset in the ozone balance can have serious consequences for life on Earth.

UN Conference On Desertification

• On 2^nd September, 2019, the 14^th Conference of Parties (COP-14) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) started in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh with the theme ‘Restore Land to Sustain life’.
• India, for the first time, being the global host fora 12 day (September 2 - September 13) COP-14, took over the COP Presidency from China for the next two years till 2021.
• India is privileged to be among the select few countries to have hosted the COP of all three Rio conventions on climate change, biodiversity and land.
• The COP 13 took place in September, 2017 in Ordos, Inner Mongolia, China.

Aim

• It aims to help countries achieve Land Degradation Neutrality(LND) by delivering tools and resources that are fit for purpose.

Issues to be discussed

• The conference will deliberate on the actions that the 197 partner countries need to take to combat desertification, reverse land degradation and to mitigate the effects of drought.
• At the end of the conference, the member countries will sign the ‘New Delhi Declaration’, which will provide the pathway for future actions to meet the UNCCD goals for 2018-2030.

Rising Concerns about Land Degradation

• Three out of every 4 hectares of land have been altered from their natural states and the productivity of about 1 in every 4 hectares of land is declining.
• According to recently released report of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) on Climate Change and Land, an estimated 23% of total anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions derive from Agriculture, Forestry and Other Land Use (AFOLU).
• Globally over 1.3 billion people are trapped on degrading agricultural land.
• Land degradation working in tandem with climate change and biodiversity loss may force up to 700 million people to migrate by 2050.
• Over 1 million species on earth are on the verge of extinction, threatening global food security, largely due to habitat loss and land degradation.

Indian Scenario

• India faces a severe problem of land degradation, or soil becoming unfit for cultivation. Nearly 30% of its land area, as much as the area of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra put together, has been degraded through deforestation, over-cultivation, soil erosion and depletion of wetlands, according to a 2016 study by the Indian Space Research Organisation.
• India has lost 1.6 million hectare of forest cover over 18 years to 2018, about four times the geographical area of Goa.

India’s Commitment

• At the previous edition of the COP, India had committed to restore 13 million hectares of degraded and deforested land by the year 2020, and an additional 8 million hectares by 2030.
• India became part of the “Bonn Challenge”, a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded land into restoration by 2020, and 350 million hectares by 2030.
• In June, 2019, the environment ministry had launched a flagship project on enhancing capacity on Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) and Bonn Challenge in India through a pilot phase of 3.5 years. The project, launched in partnership with Internationals Union for Conservation of Nature(IUCN), is being implemented in Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland, and Karnataka.

Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN)

• LDN has been defined by the Parties to the Convention as: A state whereby the amount and quality of land resources, necessary to support ecosystem functions and services and enhance food security, remains stable or increases within specified temporal and spatial scales and ecosystems.
• In 2015 the UNCCD introduced the new concept of Land Degradation Neutrality (LDN), which was later adopted as a target of Goal 15 of the SDGs.
• It represents a paradigm shift in land management policies and practices. It is a unique approach that counterbalances the expected loss of productive land with the recovery of degraded areas.
• It strategically places the measures to conserve, sustainably manage and restore land in the context of land use planning.
• The objectives of LDN are to:
• maintain or improve the sustainable delivery of ecosystem services
• maintain or improve productivity, in order to enhance food security
• increase resilience of the land and populations dependent on the land
• seek synergies with other social, economic and environmental objectives
• reinforce responsible and inclusive governance of land.

LDN indicators

• The minimum set of indicators recommended for tracking progress towards LDN against a baseline are:
• land cover
• land productivity (metric: net primary productivity)
• carbon stocks above and below ground (metric: soil organic carbon)

Impact

Increasing Drought:

• By 2025, 1.8 billion people will experience absolute water scarcity, and 2/3 of the world will be living under water-stressed conditions.
• By 2050, the demand for water is expected to increase by 50 percent. As populations increase, especially in dryland areas, more and more people are becoming dependent on fresh water supplies in land that are becoming degraded.

Food Insecurity:

• 12 million hectares of productive land become barren every year due to desertification and drought alone, which is a lost opportunity to produce 20 million tons of grain
• Climate change could cause food insecurities in countries by affecting crop yields, decreasing their nutrient content and affecting the growth and productivity of pastoral animals. Cereal prices could rise up to 23% by 2050 due to climate change making it unaffordable for the poor

Water Insecurity

• The increase in droughts and flash floods that are stronger, more frequent and widespread is destroying the land – the Earth’s main fresh water store. Droughts kill more people than any other single weather-related catastrophe and conflicts among communities over water scarcity are gathering pace.
• Over 1 billion people today have no access to water, and demand will increase by 30% by 2030.

Increasing Migration:

• The number of international migrants worldwide has continued to grow rapidly over the past fifteen years reaching 244 million in 2015, up from 222 million in 2010 and 173 million in 2000.
• Behind these numbers is the links between migration and development challenges, in particular, the consequences of environmental degradation, political instability, food insecurity and poverty and the importance of addressing the push and pull factors, and the root causes of irregular migration.
• In rural areas where people depend on scarce productive land resources, land degradation is a driver of forced migration.

Threat to National Security:

• 40% of all intrastate conflicts in the past 60 years are linked to the control and allocation of natural resources. The exposure of more and more poor people to water scarcity and hunger opens the door to the failure of fragile states and regional conflicts.

Suggestive Measures

• There are two types of solutions: One is conservation of wetlands, rangelands and mangroves which absorb huge stocks of GHGs like CO2 from the atmosphere.Second one is planting of trees, reforestation and afforestation.
• Avoiding, reducing and reversing desertification would enhance soil fertility and increase carbon storage in soils and biomass while benefiting agricultural productivity and food security. Prevention of desertification is, however, preferable to attempts to restore degraded land.
• Over 30% of food is wasted or lost globally, which contributes to 10% of total greenhousegases (GHG) emissions from human activities. A number of response options such as increased food productivity, dietary choices and food losses and waste reduction can reduce the demand for land conversion. This could free land and create opportunities for enhanced implementation of other strategies listed here.
• Creation of windbreaks through afforestation, tree planting and ecosystem restoration programmes that can function as “green walls” and “green dams” that reduce dust and sandstorms and sand dune movement.

Way Forward

• Protecting of land is a continuous process and this needs the involvement of all stakeholders. Land provides a host of ecosystem services like support for agriculture. It just means that land-related ecosystem services need to be sustained.
• Our future economic growth, prosperity and well-being depend on protecting and restoring working landscapes.It is also necessary to recognize the role of women as agents of positive change. Evidence shows that when women are given equal opportunities and access to resources and decision-making, communities become more prosperous and more peaceful. Women’s transformative potential can become the cornerstone for achieving LDN and fulfilling the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

World Bank Report On Water Quality

Why is it in News?

• On 20^th August, 2019, the World Bank published a report according to which, one-third of the potential economic growth will be affected in heavily water polluted areas leading to invisible crisis of water quality.
• The report, titled 'Quality Unknown: The Invisible Water Crisis' is the biggest-ever database assembled on global water quality using monitoring stations, satellite data, and machine learning models.

Key Findings of the Report

• Deteriorating Water Quality across the Globe: Water quality challenges are not unique to developing countries but universal across rich and poor countries alike. High-income status does not confer immunity with pollutants grow alongside GDP.As countries develop; the mixture of chemicals and biological vectors from fecal bacteria to nitrogen to pharmaceuticals and plastics makes the quality of water worse.
• Overhauling Waste Water Treatment Infrastructure:Standing assumptions about wastewater treatment infrastructure need to change, investments must be scaled up but also need to become more effective. More than 80 % of the world’s wastewater and more than 95 % in some developing countries is still being released into theenvironment without treatment.
• Huge Investment Required in Treatment Plant: There is an urgent need for greater investment in wastewater treatment plants, especially in heavily populated areas.
• Poor Water Quality Hinders Economic Growth: Water pollution endangers economic growth. The release of pollution upstream acts as a headwind that lowers economic growth downstream. Poor water quality stalls economic progress, stymies human potential and reduces food production severely affecting the development of any nation in the world.
• Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD): When BOD, a measure of how much organic pollution is in water and a proxy measure of overall water quality, passes a certain threshold, GDP growth in downstream regions is lowered by a third.
• BOD & Middle Income Countries:In middle-income countries - where BOD is a growing problem because of increased industrial activity - GDP growth downstream of highly polluted areas drops by half.
• Microplastics in Fresh Water: Pollutants of emerging concern such as microplastics and pharmaceuticals illustrate the complex nature of water quality issue with no immediate or obvious solutions. These are found in nearly 80% of global freshwater sources, 81% of municipal tap water, and even 93% of bottled water. Removal of plastics, once in water, is difficult and costly.

Factors Contributing to Poor Water Quality

Nitrogen

• Nitrogen which is applied as fertilizer eventually enters rivers, lakes and oceans where it transforms into nitrates.
• Nitrates in water are responsible for fatally inflicting Blue Baby Syndrome, which starves infants’ bodies of oxygen.

Salinity

• Salinity diminishes agricultural productivity. Saline waters and soils are spreading throughout much of the world because of increasing rates of water extraction, droughts and rainfall shocks, sea-level rise, and poorly managed irrigation systems.
• The agricultural yields fall almost exactly in line with increased salt concentrations in water.
• Enough food is lost due to saline waters each year to feed 170 million people every day – that’s equivalent to a country the size of Bangladesh. Such a sizable loss of food production to saline waters means food security will continue to be jeopardized unless action is taken.
• Other factors responsible for water quality deterioration:
  • Intensification of agriculture
  • land use changes
  • more variable rainfall patterns due to climate change
  • growing industrialization

Suggestions to Improve Water Quality

• The report recommends a set of actions that countries can take to improve water quality. These include:
  • Environmental policies and standards
  • Accurate monitoring of pollution loads
  • Effective enforcement systems
  • Water treatment infrastructure supported with incentives for private investment
  • Reliable, accurate information disclosure to households to inspire citizen engagement

Way Forward

• Poor water quality threatens growth, harms public health and imperils food security. The world needs reliable, accurate, and comprehensive information so that policy makers can have new insights, decision making can be evidence based, and citizens can call for action.
• With water scarcity expected to increase as populations grow and the climate changes, the world cannot afford to waste and contaminate its precious water resources.
• The large gap in public sector resources need for new action models that attract private investments, accompanied by appropriate incentive structures that monitor performance, penalize profligacy, and reward the success.

India Now Largest Emitter Of Sulphur Dioxide

• On 19^th August, 2019, environmental NGO Greenpeace released a report according to which India overtook China to become the largest emitter of Sulphur Dioxide (SO₂) in the world, contributing more than 15 per cent of global anthropogenic emissions.
• The analysis is based on hotspots detected by NASA’s Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) satellite data that captured more than 500 major source points of SO₂ emissions across the globe including natural sources such as volcanoes.

Key Points of the Report

• India was found at the top position in emitting SO₂ as it has the maximum hotspots as per the nation-wise rankings.
• Major Hotspots in India: This includes Singrauli (Madhya Pradesh), Neyveli and Chennai (Tamil Nadu), Talcher and Jharsuguda (Odisha), Korba (Chhattisgarh), Kutch (Gujarat), Ramagundam (Telangana) and Chandrapur and Koradi (Maharashtra).
• Hotspots across the Globe: It also highlights other hotspots across the globe, with the Norilsk smelter complex in Russia being the largest SO₂ emission hotspot in the world, followed by Kriel in Mpumalanga province in South Africa and Zagros in Iran.
• Individual Hotspots: The Norilsk smelter site in Russia continues to be the largest anthropogenic SO₂ emission hotspot in the world, followed by the Kriel area in Mpumalanga province of South Africa, Zagroz in Iran, and Rabigh in Saudi Arabia. Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh is at number five.

Reasons for India’s Emission

• Expansion of Coal Based Electric Plants:The primary reason for India’s high emission output is the expansion of coal-based electricity generation over the past decade.Five of the top 10 SO2 emission hotspots from coal/power generation industry across the world are in India.
• Lack of Flue-Gas Desulfurization(FGD) Technology: The vast majority of plants in India lack flue-gas desulfurization technology to reduce the pollution from the sulphur.

Impact of Sulphur Emission

Effect on Environment

• When SO₂ combines with water and air, it forms sulfuric acid, which is the main component of acid rain.Acid rain can:
• acidify water sourcesaffecting badly the aquatic life
• corrode building materials posing a significant danger to human
• It is absorbed by soils and plants, affecting our land and water ecosystems, and it can even be captured within and below clouds, which increases the chance of acid rain.
• Even small amounts of SO₂can harm plants and trees and slow down their growth and development.
• It can form secondary particles (sulphates) that cause haze and reduce visibility.

Effect on Health

• SO₂ can cause various health issues which include respiratory problems such as bronchitis, irritation nose, and throat. It has been linked to cardiovascular disease.
• Sensitive groups such as elderly, children or asthmatics will notice strongest symptoms and effects. They are also more susceptible to develop diseases, in case they do not have them yet.
• High concentrations of SO₂ in the atmosphere commonly create other sulphur oxides, which reacts with other compounds to form particulate matters(PM). As a result, long-term exposure can seriously damage lungs since PM can penetrate deeply into living organisms.

Government’s Initiative against Sulphur Emission

• The Government in September, 2016, mandated Bharat Stage VI (BS-VI) mass emission standards for various classes of motor vehiclesdirectly from BS-IV norms, throughout the country from April 1, 2020.
• The level of sulphur is the most significant difference between Bharat Stage IV and Bharat Stage VI norms.BS-IV fuels contain 50 parts per million(ppm) sulphur, the BS-VI grade fuel only has 10 ppm sulphur.
• In December 2015, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, had introduced for the first time SO₂ emission limits for coal power plants with an initial deadline to retrofit technology to control SO₂ emissions from power generation by December 2017.
• However, this was later extended till December 2019 for power plants in Delhi-NCR and till 2022 for some other power plants across the country through a Supreme Court order.

Way Forward

• Of the world’s major emitters, China and the United States have been able to reduce emissions rapidly by switching to clean energy sources. China, in particular, has achieved success by dramatically improving emission standards and enforcement for SO₂
• India should accelerate implementation of the emission standards and stop any new investment on coal and move aggressively towards renewable energy sources which are not just environment friendly but are overall sustainable and cheaper than polluting coal.

Significant Decline In Stubble Burning: ICAR

• According to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), there was 41 percent reduction in crop residue burning in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi-NCR,North India in 2018 compared with that in 2016.

Reduction in Incidents of Crop Residue Burning

• The incidents of crop residue burning have reduced by 40-45% in Haryana, 25% in western Uttar Pradesh and 14-15% in Punjab after farmers switched to happy seeder machine that helps them to earn more while also reducing air pollution.
• So far, 4,500 villages (covering 8 lakh hectare) in Punjab, Haryana and UP have been declared as ‘zero stubble burning’ during 2018 as not a single crop burning incident was reported from these villages during the year.
• This significant success was achieved due to the various efforts under the Central Sector Scheme on ‘Promotion of Agricultural Mechanization for In-Situ Management of Crop Residue in the State of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and NCT of Delhi’. Under which the farmers switched to happy seeder machine that helps them to earn more while also reducing air pollution.

Impact of Stubble Burning

Impact on Environment

• The burning of one tonne of paddy straw releases 3 kg particulate matter, 60 kg CO, 1460 kg CO2, 199 kg ash and 2 kg SO2, increasing the air pollution.
• In addition, a large number of toxic pollutants like methane, volatile organic compound and carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are released in the burning process giving rise to the formation of smog. Smog, further, increases the level of air pollution in nearby cities and completely wrecking the air quality index, hampering the atmospheric visibility, further impacting the reasons for climate change.

Impact on Soil Fertility

• Stubble burning destroys the existing minerals present in the soil which adversely hampers the cultivation of the next crop. The on field impact of burning includes removal of a large portion of the organic material, making it less fertile.
• The heat from burning paddy straw penetrates 1 centimetre into the soil, elevating the temperature to 33.8 to 42.2 degree Celsius. This kills the bacterial and fungal populations critical for a fertile soil, thus adversely affecting the soil ecology.
• Due to the loss of friendly pests, the impact of harmful pests increases and as a result, crops are more prone to disease. The solubility capacity of the upper layers of soil is also reduced drastically.
• In addition to these, other soil properties like soil temperature, pH, moisture, available phosphorus are greatly affected due to burning.

Impact on Human Health

• Burning crops release particulate matter(PM) 2.5 thatis easily carried away along the wind, causing numerous health issues.These particles are tiny enough to get trapped deep inside the lungs, increasing the risk of lung cancer by 36 percent.
• The smog-formation and poisonous gases arising from the stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana turns Delhi and other regions of the Gangetic plains into a gas chamber.
• Children (below 5 years) and elderly (above 59 years) in urban areas are at high risk of acute respiratory infection (ARI) associated with crop burning, compared to those living in rural areas.

Impact on Economy

• According to a report published by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in January, 2019, India loses $30 billion every year from crop fires.
• The estimated the economic cost of exposure to air pollution from crop residue burning at USD 35 billion or nearly Rs. 2.35 lakh crore annually for the three north Indian states of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi.
• Further, it warns that in next five years economic loss because of burning of crop residue would be $190 billion.

Possible Alternatives to Stubble Burning

• Subsidizing the stubble collecting machines at rent
• Provision of reasonable labor to reap the paddy to refrain from stubble generation
• To let cattle graze or feed upon to clear away husk and stubble
• Decomposing stubble in the farm field and turning it into the useful manure
• Making fodder for livestock out of collected stubble
• Setting up Bio-mass fuel plants to generate fuel using paddy husk.

Additionally, farmers can also manage crop residues effectively by employing agricultural machines like:

• Happy Seeder(used for sowing of crop in standing stubble)
• Rotavator (used for land preparation and incorporation of crop stubble in the soil)
• Zero till seed drill (used for land preparations directly sowing of seeds in the previous crop stubble)
• Baler (used for collection of straw and making bales of the paddy stubble)
• Paddy Straw Chopper (cutting of paddy stubble for easily mixing with the soil)
• Reaper Binder (used for harvesting paddy stubble and making into bundles)

Way Forward

• Despite efforts from the Indian government, farmers continue to burn crop residues due to lack of convenient and affordable alternatives. Therefore, educating the farming community and other related stakeholders is crucially important to bring them out of generational thinking that they are used to that the waste management is not their responsibility. It is even more important to empower them with technical as well as socioeconomic assistance.
• The government needs to design effective policy interventions, agricultural cooperatives, farmer unions, even individual farmers have to work collectively to ensure successful implementation of policies, leading to development of the country, both economically as well as environmentally.

Protest Over Uranium Mining In Nallamala Hills

• On 11^th August, 2019, a protest was staged again by the Joint Forum for People’s Democratic Rights against the Uranium mining in the ecologically fragile area of Nallamala hills of Andhra Pradesh.
• Andhra Pradesh, and more recently Telangana, is the other state where uranium deposits have been found. The Cuddapah basin in Telangana has been found to have the potential for high grade and extensive uranium deposits.
• The Department of Atomic Energy(DAE) has zeroed-in on the lush forest of the Amrabad Tiger Reserve for the mining of the Uranium.

Reasons for Protest

Environmental Issues:

Threat to Forest Ecology:

• The uranium mining in the forests would inevitably damage the delicate ecology of the protected areas. Further, the construction of roads and other infrastructures will fragment and degrade the dry forests, which may never recover after such a massive exercise

Water Pollution:

• The exploration will expose and pollute surface water, groundwater and leech minerals and dangerous chemicals into the Krishna River as well as Nagarjunasagar Dam. Improper toxic waste management will further aggravate the situation giving rise to serious health issues.

Social Issues:

• The exploration in the region has particularly triggered concerns about the Chenchus, a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG) in Telangana, who already are witnessing a decline in their population. Most of them reside deep in the Nallamala forest.
• First this PVTG may face relocation problem and second the uranium mining will affect livelihood of these people, who solely dependon the forest for their living. The major concern is that they will be exposed to uranium contamination, resulting in serious health related problems.

Wildlife Protection Issues:

• The Nallamala Hills comprises of Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam and the Amrabad Tiger Reserves. Mining here will adversely impact its variety of wildlife thriving in both the reserves. The project seems poised to destroy the entire ecology of both the tiger reserves.

Way Forward

• Given the rising demand of energy across the country, the nuclear energy will definitely provide a long lasting solution to country’s energy scenario but at what cost. Despite large investment of money and resources, nuclear energy remains a small blip on India’s energy horizon, providing barely 3% of the electricity produced in the country.
• Of course the uranium mining will benefit country’s people and economy but destroying entire ecosystems and scarce water bodies can hardly be compensated. Uranium mining which provides fuel for the nuclear energy can be substituted with other renewable sources of energy such as solar, wind, geothermal, etc., to meet both the public and country’s energy demand.

MGNREGS To Focus On Water Conservation

Ministry of Rural Development on 1^st July 2019 said that at least 75% of the work under MGNREGS would be geared at water conservation.

Reforming the MGNREGS:

• The government is reorienting the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) towards water conservation by reserving at least 75% person days during 2019-20 to boost water storage and agricultural activities in the country.
• This is an 8% increase from the previous year when 67% work was devoted to this sector.
• In terms of funds, 74% of MGNREGS funds have been earmarked for water management this year, up from 63% last year.
• The Centre has also targeted completing one million natural resource management (NRM) projects linked to water during its first 100 days. These projects include both individual and community assets such as farm ponds, dug wells, check dams and trenches.
• Emphasis of MGNREGS is especially geared on water conservation in the states of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand.

Looming Water Crisis:

• India has only 4% of the world’s water resources and 16% of the global population, according to the National Water Policy 2012.
• The country’s per capita availability of usable fresh water is about 1,123 cubic metres, down from about 4,000 cubic metres in 1947, and against the current global average of 3,000 cubic metres.
• According to McKinsey, India will be one of the largest centres of agricultural demand for water by 2030. This will require a doubling of its usable water generation. About 90% of India’s available water goes into agriculture, according to government data.

UNCCD COP Meet Scheduled In India In September 2019

For the first time, India will host the 14th session of the Conference of Parties (COP-14) of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in September 2019.

Relevance of the News: UNCCD is an important convention of the UN to combat desertification which is a major concern in India also. The meeting will help India to highlight its concerns in this area and to steer the global debate on desertification.

Details of the Proposed Meeting:

• To be held between September 2 and 14, 2019 in Delhi, at least 5,000 delegates from nearly 197 countries will be participating in COP-14.
• India will take over the COP presidency from China for two years until the next COP in 2021.
• Before the COP meeting the Union Environment Ministry has launched a flagship project, which is a part of a larger international initiative called the Bonn Challenge, to enhance India’s capacity for forest landscape restoration (FLR).
• Bonn Challenge is a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the world’s deforested and degraded land under restoration by 2020, and 350 million hectares by 2030.
• At the previous edition of the COP, India had committed to rehabilitate 13 million hectares of degraded and deforested land by the year 2020, and an additional 8 million hectares by 2030.

The Flagship Project:

• The project launched by the Environment Ministry will aim to develop and adapt the best practices and monitoring protocols for the country, and build capacity within the five pilot States.
• It will be implemented during a pilot phase of three-and-a-half years in Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland and Karnataka, which will be scaled up across India eventually.

Desertification in India:

• India faces a severe problem of land degradation, or soil becoming unfit for cultivation.
• A 2016 report by the Indian Space Research Organisation found that about 29% of India’s land (in 2011-13) was degraded, this being a 0.57% increase from 2003-05.

UNCCD:

• Established in 1994, the UNCCD is the only legally binding international agreement linking environment and development issues to the land agenda.
• The permanent secretariat of the Convention has been located in Bonn, Germany since January 1999.
• The Convention addresses specifically the arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, known as the drylands, where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and peoples can be found.
• The United Nations has three major Conventions: the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).

India’s Waste Dumping Proposal

Relevance of the news: The news highlights the developments in the field of global waste management and India’s role in it.

Why is it in News?

A proposal by India to avert developed countries from dumping their electronic and plastic waste onto developing countries was defeated at a meeting of the Basel Convention in Geneva.

The Basel Convention:

• Basel Convention lays down the guidelines on the movement of hazardous waste in the world.
• The text of the agreement, in the current form, still allows countries to export various categories of plastic waste and countries continue to ship different kinds of plastics and e-waste to Indian ports. They may not make it to the mainland but they end up becoming India’s problem as we have to spend money and recycle or dump it.
• India and Nigeria were the only countries that had strongly opposed the guidelines, pushed by the European Union, to dilute safeguards against the trans-boundary movement of e-waste.
• Indian laws currently don’t allow electronic and plastic waste to be imported into the country. Plastic and electronic waste recyclers in Special Economic Zones were permitted to import waste for recycling. However, they will not be allowed to do so after August 31 this year.
• A key outcome of the meeting was an amendment to the Convention that includes plastic waste in a legally-binding framework which would make global trade in plastic waste more transparent and better regulated, whilst also ensuring that its management is safer for human health and the environment.
• Pollution from plastic waste has reached epidemic proportions with an estimated 100 million tonnes of plastic now found in the oceans, 80%-90% of which comes from land-based sources.
• India, too, grapples with the problem of having piles of electronic and plastic waste that aren’t recycled or treated.

Basel Convention on the Control of Trans-boundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal:

• Adopted in 1989 in Basel, Switzerland, the Convention came into force in 1992. It aims to reduce the movement of hazardous waste between countries and especially focuses on preventing transfer of hazardous waste from developed to less developed countries.
• It provides for cooperation between the parties, including exchange of information on issues relevant to the implementation of the Convention.

Ambient Air Quality Standards In India

Why is it in News?

In a study undertaken by IIT Delhi, it has been found that use of kerosene, fire woods and coal in household contribute to 40% of the PM2.5 level in Gangetic basin districts of India.

National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS):

• Ambient air quality refers to the condition or quality of air surrounding us in the outdoors.
• National Ambient Air Quality Standards are the standards for ambient air quality set by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) that is applicable nationwide.
• The CPCB has been conferred this power by the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
• The current National Ambient Air Quality Standards were notified on 18 November 2009 by the Central Pollution Control Board. It consists of 12 pollutants namely- PM10, PM2.5, NO2, SO2, CO, O3, NH3, Lead (Pb), Benzene, Benzopyrene, Arsenic and Nickel.

If India already has NAAQS, then why was National Air Quality Index (AQI) launched in 2014?

• National Air Quality Index (AQI) was launched by the government under Mission in 2014.
• NAAQS becomes a little tedious for the common man to comprehend the air quality, so the government decided that they should come up with a mechanism in which the common man is able to comprehend the air quality in his/her vicinity.
• The AQI was launched to simplify the things with ‘One Number-One Colour-One Description’ for the common man to judge the air quality within his vicinity.
• The AQI considers eight pollutants (PM10, PM2.5, NO2, SO2, CO, O3, NH3, and Pb) for which short-term (up to 24-hourly averaging period) National Ambient Air Quality Standards are taken for calculation.
• There are six AQI categories, namely Good, Satisfactory, Moderately Polluted, Poor, Very Poor, and Severe depending upon the eight pollutants level.

Related Facts:

• Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is not considered as a pollutant in NAAQS & AQI.
• It is important to note that CO2 is greenhouse gas, but is not a pollutant.

System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting (SAFAR):

• Ministry of Earth Sciences has unveiled state of the art air quality and weather forecasting system SAFAR in Chandni Chowk, Delhi. Such systems are to be implemented in other cities like Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Pune too.
• SAFAR was developed indigenously by Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune and operationalized by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
• In addition to regular air quality parameters like PM2.5, PM10, Sulfur Dioxide, Ozone, Nitrogen Oxides, Carbon Monoxide, the system also monitors the existence of Benzene, Toluene and Xylene.
• It also measures Sun’s UV Index and Mercury levels.
• SAFAR also monitors the weather parameters like temperature, humidity, wind speed, wind directions etc.

Source: PIB, cpcb.nic.in, TH

Periyar River

Why is it in News?

Periyar River has witnessed extensive discoloration of its water due to eutrophication.

About Periyar River:

• Periyar (means big) is a perennial river of Kerala that originates from Sivagiri Hills of the Western Ghats.
• It is 2^nd largest river of Kerala that flows through Periyar National Park and finally drains into the Arabian Sea.
• Periyar River is the backbone to the economy of Kerala as its water is used for agriculture, drinking purposes etc. and so it is referred to as the ‘Lifeline of Kerala’.
• The largest hydroelectricity project - Idukki Hydro Project - is built on this river.

Tributaries of Periyar River:

Its major tributaries are - Muthirapuzha River, Mullayar River, Cheruthoni River, Perinjankutti River and Edamala River.

Causes of Discoloration of Water of Periyar River:

• Reduced water flow to the river led to the stagnant streams of water in few pockets leading to algal boom.
• Discharge of pollutants from industries and sewage from households.
• The main cause for discoloration is ‘Eutrophication’.

Eutrophication:

• Eutrophication is the process through which lakes, streams, or bays become overloaded with nutrient-rich water.
• When this occurs, large blooms of algae and aquatic plants occur, fed by the excess nitrogen and phosphorus.
• When the algae dies, microorganisms in the water begin feeding on the remains as part of the decomposition process and consequently use up the available oxygen in the water.
• This leaves little oxygen for fish and other aquatic animals, resulting in the suffocation of aquatic life which finally leads to death of the water body itself.

Sources of Nutrients to the Water Body:

• Sources of excess nutrients to these systems include agricultural runoff, overuse of synthetic fertilizers, septic tank or sewage leaks, and erosion etc.

Source: Down to Earth, Livemint, IE

Municipal Solid Waste

Why is it in News?

According to an analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment, nearly half of India’s waste-to-energy (WTE) plants, meant to convert non-biodegradable waste, are defunct. Further, the country’s inability to segregate waste has resulted in even the existing plants working below capacity.

Waste to Energy Plants in India:

Since 1987, 15 WTE plants have been set up across the country. However, seven of these plants have since shut down. Apart from Delhi, these include plants at Kanpur, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Vijayawada and Karimnagar.

Reason for Inefficiency of these Plants:

• The key reasons for closure are the plants’ inability to handle mixed solid waste and the high cost of electricity generated by them that renders it unattractive to power companies.
• Another reason is the quality and composition of waste. MSW (municipal solid waste) in India has low calorific value and high moisture content. As most wastes sent to the WTE plants are unsegregated, they also have high inert content. These wastes are just not suitable for burning in these plants. To burn them, additional fuel is required which makes these plants expensive to run.
• Moreover, the plants are expensive because they produce power at nearly Rs.7 per unit, which is more than the Rs.3-5 offered by thermal as well as solar sources.
• The Smoke coming out from plants due to the burning of the wastes have the traces of Furan /Dioxins which are carcinogenic. These smokes must be treated before discharging into the atmosphere, which further adds upon the cost of production.

Government Schemes/ Proposals related to Municipal Solid Waste:

• The NITI Aayog, as part of the Swachh Bharat Mission, envisages 800 megawatt from WTE plants by 2018-19, which is 10 times the capacity of all the existing WTE plants put together.
• It also proposes setting up a Waste-to-Energy Corporation of India, which would construct incineration plants through PPP models. Currently, there are 40-odd WTE plants at various stages of construction