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Environment management Scheme of study 3 YPTThe theoretical course contents will be covered in 7 SessionsEvaluation End Semester Exam - 30 marks Power point presentation 10 marks Quiz/ mid term test - 10 marksTotal - - 50 marks

List of Books 1. N.K. Oberoi, Environment Management Excel Book, New Delhi, 2000. 2.Chary & Vyasuslu, Environment Management3.Bala Krishna Murthy, Environment Management 4.Environ management Encyclopedia, 4 vols. 5.P. Khanna, Premier on Environment Management. 6.Jarry A. Nathanson, Basic Environment Technology, Prentice Hall India, INTRODUCTIONIn Historical times, population was less, society was largely agrarian and all people equally shared the gifts of nature (Lands, Forests, Water, Marine wealth, Clean air, etc) freely and equitably. The industrial revolution U.K. between 1733-1785 changed the complexion of society High production, High Mass consumption society chain of events leading to the degradation of Environment.

INTRODUCTIONEnvironment management : extremely vital yet most neglected subject closely linked with national development and economic growth. Gandhian concept of Greed v. NeedDeveloped countries (growth for luxury) v. Developing countries (growth to fulfill basic need) Significance of environ managementand the Indian environment movement Initially started by Boston Management School and few other institutes in USA. The situation is fast changing in India and several B-schools have introduced this subject in their curriculum.It is necessary to build up professional capabilities among managers to develop and adopt policies, measures and programs for environment management. Importance of study of environment Managers deal with industry, either directly or indirectly, hence a knowledge of latest environment protection services (such as environment rules and regulations for setting up new industry/ trade, production processes, handling of wastes, specially chemical/hazardous effluents; packaging and eco-lebeling, and environment protection equipments) is essential. Importance of study of environment Environment protection equipment industry is expending, especially, Water Treatment, Air cleaning, waste utilization and recycling equipments. Environment consultancy services, NGO, environment audit are growing rapidly. Importance of study of environment Business corporations, the world over are acknowledging the importance of environmentGood eco friendly practices improve corporate performance and savings, hence today a new breed of managers, equipped with skills to handle environmental issues, is needed. The Indian Environment Movement

Chary and Vyasulu have observed that .until a problem becomes a serious personal nuisance, Indians tend to ignore it.Env. awareness and debate in contemporary IndiaIn early 1973 there occurred three events within a space of few weeks, which laid the foundations of Env. awareness in India.In April 1973, the Govt. of India announced the launching of PROJECT TIGER with the assistance of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Environment movement Cont- This was the result of a meeting between Smt. Indira Gandhi, then Prime Minister of India and Guy Mountfort, President of IUCN, who succeeded in convincing the PM about the imminent threat to the Tiger population in India, which had plummeted from an estimated 40,000 at the turn of the century to less than 2000 in 1970.PROJECT TIGER called for a ban on hunting and setting up of sanctuaries (more than 20 today) to safeguard the Tiger habitat.

Environment movement Cont.- Subsequently, this model was also adopted for other endangered animals, such as the Elephant and the Indian one-horned Rhino (Kazironga: Assam, Manas-WB), the sole other such sanctuary being the Royal Chitwan National Park in Nepal.The Economic & Political Weekly, in its issue dated 31st March 1973, published a lengthy and impressive paper entitled, A Charter for the Land, by B.B. Vohra, a high official in the Ministry of Agriculture, drawing attention to the extent of erosion, water logging and other forms of land degradation in the country.

Environment movement cont-Vohra called for formulation of effective policy to address these problems, which was the first visible sign of official concern, leading eventually to the creation of the National Committee for Env. Protection & Control, in 1973,The Department of Environment, in 1980 and The Ministry of Environment & Forests, in 1985Environment movement cont-On March 27th, 1973 in Mandal, a remote Himalayan village in erstwhile Northern U.P. (now Uttaranchal), a group of villagers stopped a group of loggers from felling a stand of hornbeam trees on land owned by the Forest Dept. The villagers resented the fact that they were denied access to local natural resources.

Environment movement cont-Earlier the same trees had been denied to the villagers who wanted to use them to make agricultural implements, but now some government officials sitting in distant Lucknow had granted permission to a sports goods company to cut the trees for manufacturing badmintons racquets.The villagers led by a local nature activists, shri Sundar Lal Bahuguna adopted a novel Gandhian non-violant form of protest by hugging the trees to prevent them from being cut down. Thus, the CHIPKO MOVEMENT was born which focused on the issue of equality and justice and the natural resources conflicts.

Environment management sustainable development The most common and simple definition of Sustainable Development is that a nation or society is able to satisfy its social, economic and other requirements without jeopardizing the interests of future generations.The concept of Sustainable Development was first brought into focus by the Brundtland (PM of Norway) Committee Report entitled Our Common Future, published by the world Conference on Environment & Development in 1987.It is pointed out that Nature had been offering itself, both as a resource and also as receptacle for absorbing wastes for too long a time. Nature is fragile and cannot be exploited indefinitely.Scientific evidence proves that a critical threshold has almost been reached, beyond which ecological decline could lead to disaster.There is no economic growth without Ecological costs. The element of resource regeneration has to be incorporated in developmental programs (e.g. Cutting of trees v/s planting of trees).A more comprehensive definition of Sustainable Development refers to three parameters stated in the Brundtland Report:First: concerns protecting the environment and avoiding depletion of non-renewable resources;18Second: justice and equitable distribution, i.e. equal access to resources (e.g. Antarctica). It is futile to talk about Environment problems and Sustainable Development if issues of poverty and inequality are ignored;

Third: concerns inter-generational distribution of resources; we must leave them with a heritage that will sustain them.

The international dimensions of Sustainable Development came to fore at the second UN Conference on Environment &Development (UNCED), popularly known as the Earth Summit at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. 178 nations adopted. The Rio Declaration on Environment & Development (Agenda 21), as also the Principles of the Convention on Climate change and Convention on Biodiversity. Earth Summit II was held in New York in 1997 to assess the progress made in the field of Development & Environment Protection by member countries in the last 5 years as also to outline their initiatives in future.Earth Summit III, known as Rio+10 conference, was held in Johannesburg, South Africa in September 2002.Important parameters on sustain developmentPOPULATION : Indias population has long crossed the 1 billion mark and we are adding more than one Australia in terms of population every year! This exploding population factor will contribute significantly toward degradation of the environment.1) More people means more pressure on resources,2) More consumption of energy, and3) More production of wastes (including Greenhouse gases), all having adverse effects on the environment.ENERGY : There is urgent need to improve the end-use energy efficiency:On the Demand side: Same energy service with less energy inputs and Greater energy service with same energy outputs.On the Supply Side : Energy production from primary/renewable sources and reduction in harmful emissions.Economy :GNP is the indicator of the economic performance of a nation, but it entails high rate of extraction, transformation and utilization of non-renewable resources leading to environmental degradation, hence area of conflict. Regeneration of natural resources is important.1) Poverty is a multi-dimensional problem and a major global challenge. Poor people directly depend upon natural resources for their livelihood. (e.g. cutting forests for firewood, poaching, sandalwood smuggling, etc.) Therefore, eradication of poverty and implementing income-generation schemes offer the only solution.2) Human Settlement issues : Needs of urban as well as rural poor must be recognized. Thrust should be onProviding shelter to all through low-cost, good quality housing; Slum Rehabilitation Schemes, TDR, etc.;Investments in infrastructure for clean water supply, as well as sewage and solid-waste management;iii) Providing sustainable energy (Bio-gas, solar power) and transport system (good all-weather roads) in rural areas.iv) Sustainable land-use management, avoiding soil degradation through over-exploitation and excessive use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, etc.Ecological deficitWhenever there is a budgetary deficit and economic crisis, the Economists try to offset it by taking loans from the IMF or the World Bank. It is implied that all these loans are to be returned when the economy improves.

Similarly, we are creating an environmental deficit of our non-renewable resources on account of production and other direct and indirect development programs. This is Ecological Deficit.

Ecological deficitWhat are the efforts in reducing this deficit?Unlike Economic discipline, there is no Ecological discipline in our Planning process - we have yet to develop strategies to ensure that there is no addition to the Ecological deficit on account of Economic growth. One strategy would be to make environmental management a statutory obligation of all developmental projects.History of Ecology gives us clear lessons: over 6000 years ago flourishing civilizations of Mediterranean, Babylon, Nile valley, Indus valley, Huang Ho valley and Mayan (Peru) crumbled because they were not concerned with the importance of environment, although they advanced our knowledge about Science, Architecture, Culture, Art, etc. Ancient Indian civilizations survived because respect for the env. was an integral part of the Indian ethos. However, of late, we seem to be forgetting this.

Village & Community involvement

India is a land of villages and no development is possible without the village and communitys involvement. In the olden days, the village grazing lands, forests, streams and ponds were common property and villagers enjoyed the benefits of these natural resources. They also played an important role in their mgmt.

The British nationalized these resources and brought them under the control of Govt. agencies (e.g., Social forestry). This alienated the villagers and without their support the survival rate of the trees would be poor. Same is true of village ponds and steams, which can be taken care of by villagers alone.

Village & Community involvement

Ecologically vital village resources cannot be maintained by the bureaucracy but by village community alone, since it is they who have a stake involved in their maintenance and welfare.

An excellent example of ecosystem regeneration may be seen in the case of the PROJECT ARAVALLI Instituted in the state of Haryana in the 1990s (N.K. Uberoi, 2nd Ed., pp. 32-34).

Case Study: Project Aravalli

BACKGROUND: Aravalli literally means wall of stones or rocks. Starting from Gujarat and traversing through Rajasthan, it extends to Haryana and the border of Delhi. The width of the Aravalli hill system varies from 10-100 kms and its height between 300-900 metres. The Aravalli hill system has always played an important role in shaping the ecology and environment of the surrounding region and serves as an important watershed for the area and rivers like the Chambal, Banas and Luni.

DEFORESTATION: Till about 50 years ago, the Aravalli and adjoining areas were thickly forested and home to a variety of animals and birds. Subsequently, large-scale felling of trees (mainly for charcoal, timber and firewood) as also the sudden increase in population and livestock led to significant loss of forest cover.

Large areas of forests were cleared for agriculture, and grazing pressures did not allow the remaining forests to survive and regenerate. This, in turn, led to water scarcity, falling water table, soil erosion and floods and overall degradation of the environment in the Aravalli region.

By the 1980s, it became evident that the Aravalli ecosystem was degrading fast. Life became difficult for the people and the worst affected were women. Traditionally, in this area, it had been their responsibility to procure fuelwood, fodder, water, etc. for the family. Women had to toil hard to meet these daily requirementsTHE PROJECT: In Haryana, most of the land in the Aravalli region belonged to the community as a result of certain legislation in the 1930s, subsequently amended in 1972. Therefore, in 1990, a project was launched in five districts of Haryana to restore/regenerate the ecosystem, and a Project Authority was constituted.

Village women were encouraged to start nurseries to raise saplings/seedlings needed for reforestation, which augmented their income. The European Union offered 82% finance, while the rest was borne by the Haryana govt.

VILLAGE FOREST COMMITTEES (VFCs): of 9-13 members were constituted, with the Sarpanch as chairman and a Forest Dept. official as member-secretary. It was mandatory to have at least 3 local women and representatives of SC/STs on each VFC, who were responsible for drawing up plans for the project.OPERATIONS:About 10.5 million seedlings were raised by 207 Mahila nurseries for which over Rs.55 lakhs were paid by the project.To encourage savings, women were helped to open accounts in banks and post offices; since 1993, about 3400 such accounts have been opened.VFCs were paid cash incentives to take care of the project areas and to sustain the interest of the villagers; so far Rs.41 lakhs have been disbursed to 184 VFCs by way of incentivesSTALL FEEDING OF LIVESTOCK: With plantations of saplings (for reforestation) on the community lands, traditional grazing could not be allowed or otherwise the saplings would not survive. Therefore, it was decided that: Instead of open grazing, stall feeding of livestock would be followed;Instead of keeping smaller animals like goats and sheep, farmers would switch to larger animals like buffaloes;To stall-feed the livestock, large quantities of folder would be required. Hence different types of grasses and legumes were sown in the open areas between saplings in the plantation areas. Women could now collect fodder from their own community lands instead of having to trudge for miles.

Initially, grass seeds were procured from the market; later villagers were encouraged to harvest grass seeds from community lands for purchase by the project authorities. Within two years, the fodder availability increased substantially and the villagers were encouraged to raise the size of their livestock population.FINAL OUTCOME: By the time the project was terminated in 1998-99, the Aravalli region had regained its lost ecosystem and glory. For example, about 34,600 hectares of land has been rehabilitated and supply of fuel, fodder, etc. has soared. Women have benefited immensely in the form of incentive, money, price of grass seeds, increased yield of milk and other livestock products and, above all else, less day-to-day hardships.

Environment ManagementConcepts of Ecology

Ecology Definitions The word Ecology comes from the Greek oikos meaning house or place to live. Taken literally, Ecology refers to the study of organisms in their natural habitat.

Living Organism: Any form of life, includes all flora and fauna. Ecology deals with how individuals are affected by (and how they affect) the environment.

Habitat: Major habitats are Land (terrestrial, incl. subterranean), Water (both freshwater and marine), and Air (Biosphere, incl. trees and plants) where birds, insects, mammals, reptiles and amphibians (incl. Micro-organisms) live.

Community: Populations of different plants and animals living and interacting with one another in an area. The composition and structure of communities and natural resources affected by them is not constant. They are continuously changing due to interactions and disturbances caused by climatic and geological events, as well as by human activities.

Ecosystem: is the fundamental concept of ecology, which emphasizes relationships and inter-dependence of communities making up the ecosystem.

Remarkable aspect is self-maintenance, self-regulation and natural state of equilibrium present within the ecosystem.Human activities tend to disrupt the natural functioning and mechanisms and sometimes create an imbalanceOur country is blessed with a variety of ecosystems likeThe Mountains of the Himalayas, Nilgiris, etc.;Cold deserts (Ladakh) and Hot deserts (Thar, Rajasthan);The Indo-Gangetic plain - very fertile and highly productive;Areas with very low rainfall (Sivakasi, Kalahandi), and very high rainfall (Mawsynram, Meghalaya);Estuarine deltas (Sunderbans) and Wetlands (Chilika, Orissa), etc.Each of these ecosystems supports a large variety of life-forms. Therefore, the dynamics of each of these ecosystems need to be properly understood.

Food Chain: Transfer of food energy from its source in plants through a series of organisms where eating and being eaten is repeated a number of times. Each member feeds on the one below and, in the process, the pollutants also get transferred upwards and get more concentrated.

Biological clock: Natural rhythms or cycles that are in the nature of physiological mechanisms for measuring time in an organism in some fashion. It is an internal clock which operates through internal or external signals, e.g. in certain mammals, the reproduction cycle is regulated by the duration of light; hibernation by bears; migration by birds and animals; jet-lag in humans (controlled by the chemical, melotonin, secreted by the Pineal gland in the brain).

Biological Clock - Flamingos

Migratory birds/animals sometimes cross half the globe to reach their annual breeding grounds, guided by only their instinct and their biological clock (e.g. Siberian cranes, Whales, etc). More than 20,000 Flamingos migrate every year to feed in the Sewri and Uran mudflats near Mumbai, from their breeding grounds in the Rann of Kutch. However, of late there seem to be a big drop in their numbers, either due to urban and industrial pollution or active work on the Sewri-Nhava Transharbour link, which is a cause for major concern.

Carrying capacity: Maximum population of a particular species that a given habitat can support over a given period of time.Overloading due to excessive population leads to environment getting exhausted.

Limiting factor: Single factor that limits the growth, abundance and distribution of the population of a particular organism in an ecosystem. Any factor in short-supply or over-supply can become a limiting factor, e.g. Temperature, light, water, etc.

Case Study: Panthers of Sanjay Gandhi National Park, tOI, 7.3.2002Bittu Sahgal, Editor of Sanctuary magazine, said: Most panther cubs die before adulthood because their mothers cannot find enough food. This is natures way of regulating numbers of predators. In SGNP, people living on the periphery and in settlements inside generate huge quantities of edible garbage, which results in a large number of dogs, who are easy prey or panthers. This results in more cubs surviving to adulthood.The panther attacks are thus directly related to the human encroachments into the animals habitat, as also the stray dog population. Unfortunately, the panther soon discovers that man is the easiest prey.

Environment Management Global Environmental Problems I

Human interaction with a variety of resources and their excessive exploitation have resulted in many an irreversible damage to our environment.

Some of the anthropogenic changes have assumed global proportions and have become issues of great concern.

Problems I cont-Richard Welford and Richard Starkey (Business and the Environment, Ed., University Press) have observed: Humankind, and indeed the whole planet, is facing a severe environmental crisis, aspects of which include such global problems as:GLOBAL WARMING;ACID RAIN;OZONE DEPLETION;HAZARDOUS WASTES;CITES; andLOSS OF BIODIVERSITY.

Global WarmingThis is a gradual increase in world temperatures caused by the Greenhouse effect.GREENHOUSE EFFECT: --Heat is allowed in but cannot get out--. Solar radiation passes through the atmosphere and is absorbed at the Earths surface (except for a small portion that is reflected back into space). The Earths surface readily emits this heat as infra-red radiation.

Fortunately however, this infra-red radiation cannot escape the atmosphere as easily as the solar radiation can enter. Instead, some of it is trapped by a number of gases. Without this Greenhouse effect the Earth would be at least 30 degrees cooler and life as we know it would not exist.

Unfortunately, recent human activities such as burning fossil fuels to run automobiles, heat homes and businesses, and power factories are causing increased concentrations of greenhouse gases, thereby resulting in more heat being trapped. The planet is losing less heat and, as a result we are beginning to experience Global Warming.

GREENHOUSE GASES:

Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is the main Greenhouse Gas (GHG), arises from burning fossil fuels and as a result of Deforestation.

Methane (CH4): Also called Marsh Gas, it is responsible for about 20% Greenhouse effect.

Methane arises from:a) Rice Paddies; b)Wetlands (areas of land waterlogged in winter and slightly dry in summer; these are major habitats for rare animals, plants and wildlife); c) enteric (Intestine) fermentation in cattle; (d) burning of wood; and (e) Landfills.

GREENHOUSE GASES cont-Chloro-Fluoro-Carbons (CFCs) and their replacements: (15%) are 1000 times more heat absorbent than CO2. They reach the atmosphere from a) Refrigeration & Air-conditioning; b) Aerosol sprays; and c) Foam packaging industry.Nitrous Oxide (NO2): (5%) arises from a) Coal burning; b) Bio-mass burning; c) breakdown of Chemical fertilizers.

GREENHOUSE GASES cont-Estimates indicate there has been a 25% increase in CO2 concn. in the last 100 years and this is expected to double in the next 50 years, e.g., Brazil alone contributes billions of tons of CO2, every year due to deforestation.

Effects of Global Warming

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has estimated:Earths temperature will rise by 1-3 C in next few decades, leading to extreme weather changes (heat waves, hurricanes and severe winters), changes in ocean currents and marine biology.

Effects of Global WarmingIf CO2, concentration doubles, Earths temperature may rise by 3-5C, Coastal areas will see a rise in water levels by 0.5 - 5.0 feet due to melting of mountain glaciers, polar ice-caps, etc.Islands like Maldives would get submerged. In 1999, two uninhabited islands in the South Pacific (Tebua Tarawa and Abanuea) were submerged by rising sea levels, and two neighbouring inhabited islands (Kiribati and Tuvalu) are on the brink of submersion as well.

Effects of Global WarmingThe biggest glacier in the Peruvian Andes was retreating by 5 metres/year 20 years ago; today it is shrinking by 33 metres/year. The second largest glacier on Earth - the Greenland ice sheet - is thinning at an unprecedented rate of one metre each year.The Arctic Sea ice has thinned by 40% in the last two decades, while Mount Everest is losing height at the rate of 1.5 metres/year.

Global Warming - Mountain glaciers

The largest glacier chain in the tropics is melting fast because of rising temperatures and peaks are turning brown. This trend is endangering future water supplies. Glaciers serve agriculture, hydel plants and feed rivers that supply water to the sprawling cities and shantytowns on Perus bone-dry Pacific coast. Quelccaya in southern Peru, the worlds largest tropical ice-cap, is retreating at about 200 feet/year, up from 20 feet/year in the 1960s.

Global Warming - Mountain glaciersLonnie Thompson, a leading glacier expert at Ohio State University, monitoring glacier retreat on the Andes, Himalayas and Kilimanjaro, said that the rate of ice loss in glaciers all over the world is actually accelerating.Steps to combat Global Warming

At the Rio Summit (1992), 153 nations signed the Convention on Climate Change and agreed to reduce emissions of CO2 and other Greenhouse gases.Burning coal produces twice as much CO2 per unit of heat, as burning Natural gas and three times more than burning Oil, USA with 6% of the World population contributes 25% of World CO2 emissions.

FOLLOWING STEPS ARE SUGGESTED BY EXPERTSCleaning up and gasification of coal (for which technology is available) will result in lesser pollution.Increased use of Natural Gas: contains only half the Carbon and no Sulphur.

FOLLOWING STEPS ARE SUGGESTED BY EXPERTSRenewable energy sources, such as Wind, Solar, photo-voltaic and fuel cells, tidal, etc.Manufacture of fuel-efficient vehicles,Reversal of Deforestation (Afforestation): requires help from social, political and financial institutions.

Acid Rain

Acid rain is broadly used to describe several ways that acids fall out of the atmosphere. The term was first coined in 1872, after a link was established between SO2 emissions from the burning of coal in Manchester and acidification of nearby rainfall. Normal rainfall is slightly acidic (pH 5.6) because CO2 dissolves in water to form Carbonic acid. Rainfall with PH less than 5.6 is called Acid rain.

Acid RainSO2 and NO2 are formed during burning of fossil fuels like coal and oil. These gases react in the atmosphere, often in the presence of sunlight, with oxygen, water and other chemicals to form dilute solutions of H2SO4 and HNO3. 2SO2 + O2 SO3 + H2O H2SO4

Acid RainWhen this acidic water flows over and through the ground, it affects a variety of plants and animals. It damages buildings, both historical and modern: eroding away limestone and marble (e.g., the monument of Taj Mahal), and penetrating concrete structures to corrode the steel reinforcement within (e.g., old Vashi bridge).CaCO3 + H2SO4 CaSO4 (soluble) + H2O + CO2 (gas)

Acid RainAcid rain has a potent acidifying effect on lakes, rivers and streams. Toxic metals like Aluminum, leached by the acid in the soil, have a direct effect on the respiratory systems of fish, clogging up their gills. It causes slow death of forests and also causes permanent damage to automotive paints and other surface coatings.

Global environment OZONE DEPLETION-Ozone (O3) is a gas found throughout the atmosphere, between 10-25 km above the sea level, where it is known as Ozone Layer.This ozone layer forms a protective shield for the earth fromthe harmful ultra-violet radiation from outer space, particularly UV-B rays which affects DNA molecules, causing damage to the outer surface of plants and animals and also marine life. In humans it causes skin cancer, eye-cataracts and is a general immune-suppressant. Ozone HolesOzone Holes were first discovered over Antarctica by the British Antarctica Survey in 1983. Levels of O3 are dropping very fast, resulting in parts of the layer becoming thin and holes developing because only a small percentage of O3 gets naturally replenished every year.

Ozone depleting substances: In 1974, Mario Molina and Sherwood Roland of the University of California discovered that a group of synthetic chemical substances known as CFCs and HCFCs destroy O3 in the stratosphere.

Ozone depleting substancesCHARACTERISTICS AND SOURCES:

These chemicals are inert, non-flammable, non-toxic, lighter than air and can remain intact for years. They contain Chlorine and Fluorine, common being CFC-11, CFC-12, CFC-22 and CFC-113. Halons, containing Bromine and used in the fire-fighting industry, are 100 times more potent than CFCs.

CFCs are commonly used in Air-conditioners and the Refrigeration industry (Freon gas), aerosol propellants (in perfumes and deodorants), in the foam-packaging industry (Styropor, Thermocol) and as solvents for greases and glues.

Compounds like Carbon Tetrachloride (CCl4) and Methyl Chloroform (CH3-Cl3) are also found to release Chlorine (Halogens) which ultimately destroy the stratospheric Ozone.

Alternatives: Du Pont (USA) and ICI (UK) have developed certain substitutes like HFC (HydroFluoroCarbons) and HCFC (HydroChloroFluoroCarbons), e.g. HCFC-123 which contain less Chlorine than CFC, but these are not effective, permanent solutions.

Cheaper alternatives for refrigeration being developed are Propane and Ammonia as coolants, which are completely environment-friendly.

The Montreal Protocol

In view of the serious concerns posed by the Ozone hole, the United Nations Env. Program (UNEP) convened a meeting at Montreal in 1987 where 24 countries, and later by 1990 most of the nations, signed the MONTREAL PROTOCOL calling for:Freeze on CFC production to 1986 levels by 1989, and 50% reduction in CFC production by 1998;Developing countries given 10 years grace period over above deadline.

In the International Conferences in UK (March 1989), followed by Helsinki (May 1989), 80 nations agreed to ban CFC totally by the end of the century (2000).

The Dissenters: India and China did not agree to sign because of inequities and unfair trade practices built into the document. It was heavily weighted in favour of the developed countries, which use CFC in car airconditioners, hairsprays, paints, deodorants and Styrofoam cartons for hamburgers.

Developing countries, on the other hand, need it for food refrigeration & air-conditioning; both crucial for hot, temperate climates. In addition, there were also certain export restrictions imposed.

THE DEVELOPING COUNTRIES SCENARIO

For the developing countries (chiefly Brazil, Mexico, India & China), the main issues remain, namely Money and Technology, e.g.

India will use during the entire 1990s (i.e. in 10 years)

less than 4% of all CFCs already emitted by the US by 1985, andless than 66% of USAs CFC and Halon use in just one year, 1985.

The Montreal Protocol was amended after 2 years of discussions (1988-90) and India agreed in principle to sign the document once the amended provisions were incorporated.

India and China want clear assurances on Transfer of Technology and additional funds to cover the cost of switch-over. The Americans constantly blocked efforts on such aid but finally in 1991 committed a sum of USD 240 million to be shared by India and China over 3 years.

This amount was clearly inadequate because India estimated a cost of more than USD 250 million to cover the loss of profit, loss of employment, compensation for closure as well as cost of dismantling/destruction of existing plant and machineries.

Also, transfer of technology from Du Pont was not forthcoming, thereby forcing India towards perpetual dependency on the West.

Hazardous WastesTHE NIMBY DOCTRINE Several scandals broke in the late 1980s on dumping of toxic wastes worldwide. The Third World Network (1989) and Greenpeace International reported incidents of dumping hazardous wastes in unsuspecting developing countries, and unscrupulous deals made by northern exporters/shipping agents with southern companies, governments and/or coastal villages.

The NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) movement in the north led producers to seek ways to dispose off these wastes as far away as possible, using the developing countries as most convenient dustbins.

The worst affected is the African continent with a so-called invisible pipeline built into Africa, sweetened with much-needed foreign cash, in convenience with corrupt local officials or private businessmen. Other locations are some of the members of the erstwhile USSR in central and eastern Europe, with Poland and vast expanses of Russia and Siberia becoming the fastest growing dumping grounds, for the same reasons.

GARBAGE IMPERIALISM: During the tenure of President Daniel Arap Moi of Nigeria, workers unloading 3000 tons of Italian material, including radioactive wastes, started vomiting blood. This led to a bitter diplomatic row with Italy. The Nigerian government impounded the ship, arrested the involved businessmen and threatened to execute the culprits. The Italians took the waste home, only to encounter angry crowds who refused to allow unloading of the wastes on Italian soil.

The Basel Convention

In order to deal with this menace, the United Nations had to intervene and international negotiations began on the Transboundary Movement of Hazardous Wastes, at Basel, in 1989.

Unfortunately, the convention was flawed. It does not call for an outright ban of the trade. It simply requires that the exporting state seek the consent of the importing state, and any transit state, before transboundary movement may take place.

The convention requires environmentally sound disposal of waste, although the terms have not been defined. The convention does not discourage waste generation, nor does it provide measures for waste prevention.

According to Greenpeace: The Basel Conventions greatest danger is that it creates the illusion that the international waste trade is now under control.Disillusioned African nations came together in 1991 at the Bamako Convention on Ban of the Import into Africa and the Transboundary Movement & Management of Hazardous wastes within Africa, to close the continent to all hazardous wastes.

The Garbage trade

Greenpeace estimates that between 1986 and 1988, more than 3 million tons of wastes were shipped and this is the tip of the iceberg because it is largely unmonitored.

The trade has boomed primarily to cut the costs of disposal by evading stringent and expensive environmental legislation in developed countries, (e.g. cost of buying 1 ton hazardous waste in the US increased from USD 1 in 1980 to USD 250 in 1989). USA produces approx. 275 million tons of hazardous wastes every year, almost 1 ton per American citizen.

THE SCENE IN INDIA: In 1993, Australia exported 346 tons of used Lead Batteries and USA exported 917 tons of Lead-ash into India. In addition, Copper, Tin and Zinc wastes and Plastics were also imported into India, although recovery from recycling is very poor.India has become the dumping ground for Computers from USA, which are exported to India under the guise of donations to rural schools. They become obsolete and unserviceable within a few years, thereafter disposal of the slightly radioactive components is our problem.

Another Rs.2000 crore annual business is ship breaking along the Gujarat coast at Alang by 40,000 poorly equipped men. More than 20 people die annually from exposure to working conditions and hazardous wastes such as lead, heavy metals, asbestos (Clemenceau), lethal chemicals, polychlorinated biphenyis, toxic oil sludge, etc.

Environment ManagementGlobal Environmental

CITES, 1973The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species was held at Washington DC, USA, and the resolution signed by 80 nations under the aegis of the IUCN in 1973. It came into force from July 1, 1975 with 145 countries as members.

With globalization, the trade in exotic species of flora and fauna and their products - for the pets markets, in ivory, tortoise shells, tiger body parts, rhino horns, reptile skins (snake, alligator, lizard), musk deer for perfume, and fur - has reached huge proportions. This is extremely profitable for traders but has led to decreasing numbers of exotic species.CITES concerns wild flora and fauna and prohibits trade in species threatened with extinction and restricts trade in species not yet threatened but may become threatened.

Although Indias conservation policies were initially quite successful in the 1970s and 1980s, there is now a booming illegal industry since the 1990s. Tiger population is down from 4250 in 1989 to 2750 in 1993 (Sariska case, 2006). Tiger bone/parts exports go mostly to Korea, China and Taiwan.In 1992, reportedly one Rhino was killed per week, and ivory export business has led to decrease in Elephant population. Bears and their body parts are also exported illegally (for, inter alia, gourmet meals!).

In the flora category, sandalwood, rosewood, orchids and medicinal plants are smuggled heavily due to lack of good enforcement measures in India.

BIODIVERSITY means the variety and variability of all living organisms that constitute the biological wealth of a nation.

Biodiversity is at 3 levels, which are all linked and constitute the gene pool.Genetic Biodiversity: Variation of genes within a species, each variety with its own genetic makeup (e.g. Asian/White Rewa/Siberian Tiger). Diversity of genes within a species increases its ability to adapt to disease, pollution and other changes in the environment.

Species Biodiversity: Varieties of species within a region, e.g. Lions, deer, elephants, zebra, giraffe, hyena, gorilla in Africa. More species means more biological wealth.

Ecosystem Biodiversity: Variety of ecosystems in a particular region or zone, e.g. forests, mountains, wetlands, arid zones, deserts, coastal regions, etc.

CONVENTION ON BIODIVERSITY (CBD): During the Rio Summit in 1992, Biological Diversity was put on the International agenda to address various issues ranging from forests, agriculture to Intellectual Property Rights. CBD is now ratified by 165 countries and the MEF, Govt. of India, has recently finalized the National Policy & Action Strategy for Biodiversity.

The Biodiversity problem refers to a) the extinction of a large range of species because of human intrusion into their habitats; b) protection to developing/least developed countries w.r.t. their forests, skills, indigenous processes and germ-plasm under domestic and international Patents & IPR Laws.

Loss of Biodiversity

According to WWF, scientists have identified about 1.40 million living species (1.03 million animals and 248,000 higher plants). However, this may be only 85% of the total species of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians & fishes. Numerous other insects, invertebrates, lower plants and micro-organisms exist, but have yet to be identified.

There is now an extraordinary rate of species loss - many thousands of species will disappear even before they are found and described by biologists. In 1988, the IUCN listed:

4,589 threatened animal species;20,000 plant species; and by 2050, upto 60,000 plant species will become either extinct or threatened.

HISTORICAL ACQUISITION OF BIOLOGICAL WEALTH started with Columbus who brought back Maize from Central & South America. Others brought back potatoes, squash, cassava, peanuts and common beans.

Rubber was smuggled from Brazil to Kew Gardens in Britian, and thence to the botanical gardens in Singapore. From here rubber plantations were set up in South East Asia and different colonies of the British empire.

It was only in the 1970s that the developing countries slowly began to realize the scale of biological appropriation that has taken place at their cost: over 55% of the worlds collected germ-plasm is banked with the north, with the USA alone holding 22%, often without compensating or even informing the host country.Biodiversity in the South

Biodiversity in the South

The worlds biodiversity exists mainly in the countries of the south, in its tropical forests, wetlands and other ecosystems. Tropical forests are said to contain at least half the worlds living species, e.g. one hectare contains 50 - 150 tree species as against only upto10 in temperate forests.

Madagascar has between 10,000 - 12,000 plant species, out of which 8,000 occur nowhere else in the world!

The age-old farms of the south have an extraordinary variety of valuable food crops and other useful/commercial/therapeutic species, established by people in ancient agricultural societies, e.g. Neem, Turmeric, Tulsi, Sandal, long-grained, fragrant, Indian Basmati rice, etc. (Texmatiin USA).

Today, genetic capital leaves the country free of charge, only to return in the form of expensive new seeds, drugs and other patented items (e.g. Monsanto Terminator seeds).

The Brazilian Foundation for Medicinal Plants estimated that annual sales of just three plant products in USA were:Digitalis (*Dhatura*- heart disease), USD 85 million;Reserpine (Rauwolfia Serpentina, Sarpagandha - nervous disorders), USD 42 million; and Pilocarpine, USD 28 million.

Southern countries now wish to assert sovereign rights over their biological resources, opposing the concept of unconditional free access to the north.