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RFID tags must for commercial vehicles entering Delhi from today; all you need to know

Commercial vehicles will be fined and their licenses could be cancelled if they enter the national capital without RFID tags from August 31. The move from the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) is not a new one. The SDMC had barred the entry of commercial vehicles without RFID tags earlier this year when vehicles were forced to return. However, turning vehicles back caused pile-ups and traffic jams at toll plazas. "With effect from August 31, all commercial vehicles will be allowed to enter Delhi on payment of the toll tax/environment compensation charge (ECC) through RFID system only.... those vehicles that enter Delhi without paying through the RFID mode shall be liable to face legal action including penalty/cancellation of permit,” read the notice by the SDMC. What are RFID tags? Radio-frequency identification or RFID tags are identification devices that use electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and tag the objects they are attached to. In essence, their function is much like that of a barcode, where RFID tags can be quickly scanned to provide information about the vehicle. They are small devices, containing a microchip that stores the identification data and an antenna to transmit and receive the data from the RFID reader. Why are RFID tags used? RFID tags are being used so that the toll processing of vehicles is made automatic and faster. RFID devices allow drivers to pay their toll automatically without the hassle of stopping, taking out the cash and collecting the change or even swiping a card making the process faster and smoother. What is the ECC paid by commercial vehicle? The Environmental Compensation Charge (ECC) is a toll collected from commercial vehicles entering Delhi. The toll is collected as commercial vehicles create a large degree of pollution within the confines of the city, which contributes to the winter smog and poor air quality. Also Read | E-way bill integrated with FasTag, RFID; GST officers to get real-time data of commercial vehicles The charge expects to deter commercial vehicles from entering Delhi if the city is not their final destination. For those vehicles, whose final destination lies within Delhi, the collected ECC would be used by the SDMC. The ECC was imposed under the orders of the Supreme Court and the Commission for Air Quality Management after a study by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) found that 23 percent of commercial vehicles and 40-60 percent of heavy vehicles entering the city had a destination other than Delhi. Where do I get RFID? RFID tags can be acquired from 39 points of sale that have been set up around entry points near Delhi. The SDMC has also launched its app for recharging the RFID tags once they are installed. Tags are only issued at the point of sale since they require a physical installation. Where are RFID tags mandatory? All 124 of the entry points in Delhi which service commercial vehicles will require the vehicles to have the RFID tag set up along with sufficient funds for both the ECC and toll fees. Offenders will be fined and their vehicle permits can also be cancelled. Apart from Delhi, RFID tags are mandatory in Uttar Pradesh. Other states are also working on their implementation, and Maharashtra is said to be in advanced testing stages for RFID tags.

ओडिशा और तेलंगाना के प्रदूषण नियंत्रण बोर्ड की जानिये रेटिंग

अब आप ओडिशा, तेलंगाना, तमिलनाडु, मध्य प्रदेश और पश्चिम बंगाल की महत्वपूर्ण पर्यावरण संबंधी जानकारी आसानी से प्राप्त कर सकते हैं। जबकि अंडमान और निकोबार, अरुणाचल प्रदेश और मणिपुर को के बारे में पता लगाना ख़फ़ी मुश्किल है। यह महत्वपूर्ण खोज सेंटर फॉर साइंस एंड एनवायरनमेंट (सीएसई) द्वारा किए गए एक अनूठे अध्ययन, "पारदर्शिता सूचकांक: सार्वजनिक प्रकटीकरण पर प्रदूषण नियंत्रण बोर्डों की रेटिंग" से है। प्रदूषण स्तर, वेस्ट मैनेजमेंट और इकोलॉजी पर महत्वपूर्ण डेटा हमे हमारे पर्यावरण के बारे में जागरूक करता है और स्टेप्स लेने को उत्साहित करता है।

Freshwater-based coal power plants guzzle the most water: CSE

ven six years after the water consumption norms came into force, the water-guzzling coal power industry is ignoring water regulations and there is a high degree of non-compliance observed in the sector, a new report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) says. Counted among the most water-intensive industries in India, the coal power sector is responsible for nearly 70 per cent of the total freshwater withdrawal by all industries in the country. Indian power plants with cooling towers consume twice as much water as their global counterparts, said the report titled ‘Water Inefficient Power’. According to the 2015 norms (revised again in 2018), plants installed before January 1, 2017, were required to meet a specific water consumption limit of 3.5 cubic metre of water per MWh; plants installed after January 1, 2017 had to meet the norm of three cubic metre of water per MWh, apart from adopting zero liquid discharge.

Freshwater-based coal power plants guzzle the most water: CSE

New Delhi: Even six years after the water consumption norms came into force, the water-guzzling coal power industry is ignoring water regulations and there is a high degree of non-compliance observed in the sector, a new report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) says. Counted among the most water-intensive industries in India, the coal power sector is responsible for nearly 70 per cent of the total freshwater withdrawal by all industries in the country. Indian power plants with cooling towers consume twice as much water as their global counterparts, said the report titled ‘Water Inefficient Power’. According to the 2015 norms (revised again in 2018), plants installed before January 1, 2017, were required to meet a specific water consumption limit of 3.5 cubic metre of water per MWh; plants installed after January 1, 2017 had to meet the norm of three cubic metre of water per MWh, apart from adopting zero liquid discharge. Additionally, all freshwater-based plants were required to install cooling towers and subsequently achieve the norm of 3.5 cubic metre of water per MWh. All sea water-based plants were exempted from meeting the norms. The deadline to meet the water norms was December 2017 which has already passed. The water norms for coal power plants were introduced in 2015 along with the emission norms. Though emission norms timelines for the sector were revised twice by the Ministry of Coal once in 2017 and recently in 2021, the issue of compliance and implementation of water norms has been completely overlooked, the CSE said in a release. CSE’s programme Director for Industrial Pollution Unit, Nivit Kumar Yadav, said, “This is when many power producing regions of the country are facing acute water shortage. Also there is huge water pollution due to the effluent discharge by the power plants.” The CSE surveyed more than 154 GW of total coal power capacity and found nearly 50 per cent of the freshwater-based plants to be non-complying. Most of these plants belong to state-owned companies. The largest number of non-complying plants were from Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. belonging to MahaGENCO (Maharashtra’s power generation company) and UPRVUNL (Uttar Pradesh’s power generation company), a majority of these plants are old with inefficient practices which lead to water wastage. The CSE survey has found that old and inefficient once-through cooling water-based plants in India continue to operate without installing cooling towers. These plants are not just flouting water norms but also emission norms, the survey added. Built before 1999, all once-through-based power plants in India are old and polluting. Many of these plants were identified for retirement but have not yet been retired. They continue to operate with no plans to upgrade or install either emission control equipment or cooling towers. “Allowing these older plants to continue to pollute cannot be an option. Plants identified for retirement must be closed down immediately if they have no plans to retrofit or to install emission control technologies and/or cooling towers,” said Deputy Programme Manager, Industrial Pollution unit of CSE, Sugandha Arora. As per the CSE’s recent estimates, nearly 48 per cent of India’s existing coal power fleet is located in water-scarce districts like Nagpur and Chandrapur in Maharashtra; Raichur in Karnataka; Korba in Chhattisgarh; Barmer and Baran in Rajasthan; Khammam and Kothagudem in Telangana; and Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu. There have been reports of conflicts over water use between industries and local people. “This sector has a massive water footprint and therefore, all efforts must be made to mitigate this impact. There is huge scope of reducing the sector’s water demand by ensuring implementation of the 2015 standards and addressing the challenges related to accurate reporting of data, old inefficient once-through cooling plants and implementing zero discharge in newer plants.”

No respite from toxic air in sight as poll-bound states won’t penalise farm fires

Northern states that are heading for elections are unlikely to act against farm fires as the ruling party is unlikely to risk antagonising politically powerful farmers, who are already agitating against the new farm laws. Every year in October-November, agricultural fires become a major contributor to air pollution in north India. Air pollution in northern India is again expected to surge ferociously in the winter months as farmers will resume burning crop residue after the harvest, without any punitive action against the hazardous activity. Authorities are unlikely to punish the farmers who burn the crop residue that raises pollution to alarming levels in the Delhi-NCR region, because of upcoming elections in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, as well as the on-going agitation against the new farm laws. Sample this: On August 25, the Yogi Adityanath government of Uttar Pradesh announced it would drop legal proceedings against farmers accused of burning crop waste, in a move seen as ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) bid to placate farmers ahead of elections next year to the state assembly. The UP government is also considering waiving off fines imposed on farmers, an influential voting bloc, for burning crop wastes. The state goes to polls early next year, along with Punjab, where the practice of burning crop residue is rampant. A similar demand of withdrawing cases against farmers involved in stubble burning has emerged in Punjab from Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), one of the Opposition parties in Punjab, the state going to polls in a few months. Every year in October-November, agricultural fires become a major contributor to air pollution in north India, including the national capital region, triggering smog and extreme air quality situations. In 2020, stubble burning in Punjab increased of 44.5 percent despite getting 46 percent of the total funds from the central government for checking crop farm fires, the Centre told the Supreme Court in February this year. In the affidavit, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) said incidents of such fires in Punjab rose to 76,590 in 2020 from 52,991 a year ago, according to a PTI report. It said that in Haryana such events reduced by 25 percent to 5,000 from 6,652 over the same period. Also, read: Air pollution worries resurface as crop burning by farmers continues unchecked Further, the Centre has watered down the ordinance it promulgated last year that had penal provisions against farmers burning their fields. As per clause 14 of the Commission on Air Quality Management for the Delhi NCR and surrounding areas passed in Parliament earlier this month, any violation of the provisions/orders under this Act are punishable by imprisonment for a term of up to five years or a fine of up to Rs 1 crore or both, provided that these provisions shall not be applicable to any farmer for causing air pollution by stubble burning or mismanagement of agricultural residue. The stubble-burning exception was introduced as part of negotiations between the Centre and the farmers’ unions over the agitation against the farm-reform laws. Many farmers are already at odds with the BJP government at the centre over the laws, so the government would not want to annoy them any further, said a political observer. Experts said more systemic solutions should be implemented at a scale including steps to ensure that all farmers have affordable access to equipment that help to mix the stubble with soil. Also, read: Farmers lathi-charged by Police: Protests in Punjab, opposition attacks Khattar government “We need to scale up options of recycling stubble for producing other products so that farmers can earn from stubble sale. Also, we have to change the cropping pattern to reduce acreage under paddy besides scaling up these solutions at a scale and with speed across the region,” Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy at the Centre of Science and Environment, told MoneyControl. Farmers in Punjab and Haryana burn stubble as there is a short window between harvesting of summer-sown paddy and sowing of wheat. Growers cite the high cost of manual or mechanical management of straw as a reason behind their preference to burn stubble.

Monsoon rains fail to revive polluted Hindon in Noida

The monsoon has failed to revive the Hindon as pollution levels in the river have worsened in July as compared to June, according to the latest report of the state pollution body The monsoon has failed to revive the Hindon as pollution levels in the river have worsened in July as compared to June, according to the latest report of the state pollution body. The river continues being rated under category ‘E’, making it unfit for bathing or propagation of aquatic life, the report said. According to the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board’s (UPPCB’s) report for July, the river does not have presence of dissolved oxygen (DO) against the minimum requirement of 5 milligrams per litre (mg/l), while the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) levels have worsened since June. However, the low presence of coliform levels is the only positive takeaway, the report said. UPPCB analysis of the samples collected from downstream of Kulesra in Noida, for July 2021, found the BOD levels to be 54 mg/l (18 times higher than the permissible limit) as against 46 mg/l in June. At the same time, DO levels have been consistently zero throughout the year so far in Noida. The last spot where the river had some DO level (2.20 mg/l) was at Karhera village bridge, Ghaziabad, and Mohan Nagar Road Bridge, Ghaziabad (1.90 mg/l). However, soon after that the DO levels go nil as soon as the river reaches Chijarsi at Ghaziabad border and thereafter at Kulesra, Noida after which the river meets the Yamuna. The faecal coliform levels have reduced to 150,000 most probable number (MPN)/100 ml (against 1.1 million in June), the UPPCB report said. However, the coliform levels for July are still much higher than the max permissible limit of 2,500 MPN/100 ml. The higher level of coliform shows that high volume of sewage is flowing through the river, experts said. According to the data from the India Meteorological Department, Gautam Budh Nagar received about 100mm rainfall till July. “For a healthy river to support outdoor bathing, DO must be 5 mg/l. The BOD is the oxygen required to diffuse biological matter, and it must not exceed 3 mg/l,” says Sushmita Sen Gupta, senior programme manager (water pollution), Center for Science and Environment (CSE). Manoj Mishra, environmentalist and river pollution expert, said, “The rains can revive a river temporarily or do improve the water quality. But we have to understand that it’s the source of pollution that needs to be addressed. Monsoon would pass, but the pollution sources will remain there.” According to UPPCB officials, it’s the unauthorised and untapped sewer from illegal settlements along the river that pollutes it. “The sewage treatment plants are working properly and we are also keeping tabs on the industrial waste. However, the river receives untreated waste from a number of unauthorised settlements and some drains that fall into it untreated,” said Praveen Kumar, regional officer, UPPCB (Noida region). Hindon comes from Saharanpur and enters Greater Noida from Chijarsi border after passing through Meerut, Shamli, Muzaffarnagar, and Ghaziabad. After covering a length of 50km across Gautam Budh Nagar district, the river disappears in almost equally polluted Yamuna at Momnathal in Tilwara village of Greater Noida.

Sejarah Memilukan Asal Mula Istilah “Tree Hugger”

Istilah “Tree Hugger” [pemeluk pohon] diciptakan pada pertengahan abad ke-18. Para pemeluk pohon pertama adalah 294 laki-laki dan 69 perempuan dari cabang Hinduisme Bishnoi, yang pada 1730, meninggal ketika mencoba melindungi pohon-pohon di desa mereka agar tidak diubah menjadi bahan baku untuk membangun sebuah istana. Ajaran Bishnoi sangat menghormati kesucian dan kesakralan semua bentuk kehidupan, dan prinsip mereka termasuk juga larangan membunuh hewan dan menebang pohon hidup. Kisah nyata abad ke-18 itu menginspirasi kisah lain, jauh setelahnya. Tepatnya di tahun 1970-an. Saat itulah aktivis lingkungan dan sosial Gandhian Chandi Prasad Bhatt, pendiri organisasi koperasi Dasholi Gram Swarajya Sangh, memimpin gerakan Chipko pertama di dekat Desa Mandal tahun 1973. Gerakan mereka menjelaskan kepada orang-orang India, bahwa bukan kemiskinan, tetapi ekonomi ekstraktif dan eksploitatif yang menjadi pencemar lingkungan terbesar. Ketika mendengar istilah “pemeluk pohon” apa kira-kira yang terlintas di benak kita? Bisa jadi adalah orang-orang yang dianggap ‘terlalu’ bersemangat melindungi alam, agar sang pohon tak diganggu. Atau mungkin, terbayang Leonardo DiCaprio yang begitu aktif berkampanye menyelamatkan hutan Amazon dan Leuser. Ternyata, istilah “Tree Hugger” [pemeluk pohon] diciptakan jauh sebelum era kita, tepatnya pada pertengahan abad ke-18. Para pemeluk pohon pertama adalah 294 laki-laki dan 69 perempuan dari cabang Hinduisme Bishnoi, yang pada 1730, meninggal ketika mencoba melindungi pohon-pohon di desa mereka agar tidak diubah menjadi bahan baku untuk membangun sebuah istana. Ajaran Bishnoi sangat menghormati kesucian dan kesakralan semua bentuk kehidupan, dan prinsip mereka termasuk juga larangan membunuh hewan dan menebang pohon hidup. Mereka pun menyembah pohon Khejri, Prosopis cineraria, yang dianggap sebagai kekuatan komunitas yang hidup di gurun ini. Dalam perkembangannya, Raja Jodhpur, sebagaimana dikutip dari Women’s Earth Alliance, mengirimkan tentara ke Desa Bishnois untuk menebang pohon hijau guna membangun istana barunya. Saat tentara mulai menebang pohon Khejri dengan kapak, seorang wanita Bishnoi bernama Amrita Devi berlari untuk menghentikan penebangan. Dia memeluk pohon Khejri untuk melindunginya dan memohon para tentara untuk berhenti. Para prajurit awalnya meminta suap sebagai ganti menghentikan penebangan, namun Amrita Devi tidak tergerak, dan memberi tahu mereka bahwa suap menyuap merupakan penghinaan terhadap kepercayaannya. Para tentara itu melakukan kekerasan dan memukulnya dengan kapak hingga tewas. Ketika ketiga putrinya menyaksikan kebrutalan sang tentara dan melihat sang ibu tewas, mereka bergegas dan memeluk pohon juga, tanpa ampun, para tentara pun membunuh mereka saat masih memeluk pohon. Berita kejadian itu menyebar cepat dan membuat banyak masyarakat bergabung, memeluk pohon dalam protes tanpa kekerasan. Para prajurit terus membunuh orang tanpa ampun, baik tua maupun muda, yang meninggal melindungi pohon suci yang mereka cintai. Mereka benar-benar memeluk pohon, menempel dan tak melepaskannya, bahkan hingga nafas terakhir. Kematian mereka tidak sia-sia. Ketika sang raja mengetahui pembantaian itu, dia begitu terpukul, lalu bertobat dan melarang membunuh hewan dan menebang pohon di wilayah kaum Bishnois. Bahkan sampai hari ini, orang dapat melihat Black Buck yang terancam punah, burung merak dan kehidupan liar lainnya serta tutupan pohon tempat komunitas Bishnois tinggal di Rajasthan. Tidak mengherankan bahwa Bishnois dianggap sebagai salah satu konservasionis paling awal di dunia. Kisah nyata abad ke-18 itu menginspirasi kisah lain, jauh setelahnya. Tepatnya di tahun 1970-an. “Tanah adalah milik kita. Air adalah milik kita. Hutan-hutan ini milik kita. Nenek moyang kita membesarkan mereka. Kitalah yang harus melindungi mereka.” Sebuah lagu dari Gerakan Chipko di India, yang begitu terkenal liriknya. Gerakan Chipko adalah contoh bagus dari gerakan Gandhi yang didasarkan pada prinsip-prinsip satyagraha tanpa kekerasan. Chipko berarti memeluk [cling], dan gerakan ini identik dengan gambaran abadi tentang wanita pedesaan yang memeluk pohon untuk menghentikan deforestasi yang merajalela. Di wilayah Uttarakhand di Garhwal Himalaya pada 70-an, terjadi degradasi lingkungan yang cepat karena penebangan komersial. Menjadi jelas, terutama bagi perempuan, bahwa penebangan merusak hutan mereka dan mengancam akses mereka ke sumber daya hutan utama yang dibutuhkan untuk kelangsungan hidup mereka sehari-hari. Gerakan Chipko terjadi di Garahwal Himalaya, sebuah wilayah dengan hutan lebat yang sejak lama menjadi sumber penghidupan masyarakat lokal. Masyarajat di daerah itu memiliki tradisi budaya kuat menghormati alam, dengan ritual keagamaan yang ditujukan untuk pohon, sungai, gunung, dan dewa desa setempat. Penduduk desa mengumpulkan kacang-kacangan, buah-buahan, dan umbi-umbian, serta bahan bakar, kayu untuk rumah, dan pakan ternak. Mereka juga mengakui hutan sebagai kunci untuk konservasi air dan tanah. Hutan-hutan di India telah lama menjadi salah satu sumber daya paling penting di negara itu, menjamin mata pencaharian masyarakat yang tinggal di hutan dan pedesaan serta menjaga keseimbangan ekologis. Di bawah pemerintahan kolonial Inggris, undang-undang diperkenalkan – dikenal sebagai Undang-undang Hutan India tahun 1878 dan 1927- untuk memungkinkan pemerintah mengelola sumber daya alam. Undang-undang ini memberikan hak kepada negara untuk secara eksklusif mengontrol penggunaan kawasan tertentu, yang berdampak sangat negatif terhadap masyarakat secara tradisional, bergantung pada hutan untuk kelangsungan hidup mereka. Gerakan terbesar dimulai pertengahan 1973. Penebangan hutan yang makin tak terkendali membuat penduduk desa mulai mengorganisir gerakan dalam kelompok-kelompok kecil untuk melawan penebangan. Masyarakat makin marah atas kebijakan pemerintah saat itu, yang tidak mengizinkan petani dan penggembala setempat menebang pohon untuk kayu bakar atau untuk pakan ternak demi tujuan tertentu. Namun, di saat yang sama sebuah perusahaan manufaktur olahraga diberi izin untuk menebang pohon dan menggunakannya untuk membuat peralatan olahraga secara massal. Hal inilah yang memicu gerakan tersebut. Saat itulah aktivis lingkungan dan sosial Gandhian Chandi Prasad Bhatt, pendiri organisasi koperasi Dasholi Gram Swarajya Sangh, memimpin gerakan Chipko pertama di dekat Desa Mandal tahun 1973. Dia bergabung dengan ratusan perempuan, yang berada di garis depan perlawanan, berkumpul untuk melindungi hutan komunitas mereka dan membentuk rantai manusia untuk memeluk pohon-pohon tua yang menjulang tinggi. Lingkungan seperti ini secara inheren terkait dengan kelangsungan hidup mereka; para wanita tersebut menyadari bahwa mata pencaharian dan kesejahteraan mereka terkait perlindungan ekologis. Para demonstran memeluk pohon agar tidak ditebang, memberi nama gerakan “Chipko,” yang dalam bahasa Hindi berarti “memeluk”. Tak menunggu lama, demonstrasi mulai menyebar ke seluruh India. “Gerakan perempuan miskin ini bukanlah gerakan konservasi semata, tetapi gerakan untuk menuntut hak masyarakat lokal atas sumber daya lokal mereka. Para wanita menginginkan hak pertama atas pohon, yang menurut mereka adalah dasar untuk kelangsungan hidup mereka sehari-hari. “Gerakan mereka menjelaskan kepada orang-orang India, bahwa bukan kemiskinan, tetapi ekonomi ekstraktif dan eksploitatif yang menjadi pencemar lingkungan terbesar,” tulis Sunita Narain, Direktur Pusat Sains dan Lingkungan di New Delhi. Gerakan Chipko mendapatkan publikasi luas saat dipimpin Sunderlal Bahuguna, seorang aktivis lingkungan, yang menghabiskan hidupnya mengadvokasi para penduduk desa untuk memprotes perusakan hutan dan pegunungan Himalaya. Usahanya itulah yang membuat Perdana Menteri Indira Gandhi melarang penebangan pohon. Bahuguna paling diingat untuk slogan “ecology is the permanent economy” [ekologi adalah ekonomi yang permanen]. Dampak dari gerakan Chipko telah menyebar jauh dan luas di luar negara bagian Uttarakhand dan menyebabkan pemerintah mengeluarkan larangan penebangan pohon selama 15 tahun sampai tutupan hijau yang habis oleh deforestasi dipulihkan. Dan warisan memeluk pohon terus berlanjut hingga hari ini, begitu pula dengan tantangan akses masyarakat terhadap hutan kemasyarakatan dan ancaman dari degradasi hutan yang berkelanjutan. [Berbagai sumber]

Poor report card likely by India at IUCN World Conservation Congress

Biodiversity loss accelerates as government dilutes environmental laws Historically blessed with one of the richest biodiversities in the world, India is fast losing its natural heritage as businesses and government cast environment aside to push through their agenda, destroying forests and biodiversity hotspots already facing degradation due to climate change and global warming. When the Indian delegation reaches the historical port city of Marseille on the famed French riviera next week to participate in the IUCN World Conservation Congress, it would have little to be proud of and a lot to hide due to poor performance in conservation of the immense natural heritage that the country has been endowed with. For long, population explosion, combined with industrialisation and construction has been mainly responsible for the biodiversity loss in the country. But of late, especially in the past decade or so, biodiversity has also been under severe attack due to climate change and global warming that have ravaged the country, causing significant damage not just to the human settlements but also forests, water bodies and mountains, severely impacting the flora and fauna across the entire country. A report recently published by the New Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment said that India had lost as much as 90 pc of the area under its four biodiversity hotspots, hitting the Indo-Burma hotspot taking the most. There are four biodiversity hotspots in India – the Himalayas, the Western Ghats, the Indo-Burma region and the Sundaland. The report, State of India’s Environment in Figures 2021, went on to say that as many as 16 of 29 states in India had recorded a significant rise in number of forest fires as well as warmer than usual winter, monsoon and post-monsoon seasons. The report said that in the Indo-Burma hotspot, the spread of vegetation has dropped dramatically from almost 2.4 million sqkm to a measly 118653 sqkm, representing a fall of 95 pc. The CSE report also said that at least 25 species have become extinct in the hotspots and 12 pc of India’s 1212 animal species that are monitored by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List have been registered as endangered. Flaws of feebler laws Despite large-scale evidence and hundreds of reports raising alarm over the non-stop degradation of Indian environment and the degradation, unfortunately since the arrival of government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in power at New Delhi in May 2014, a number of laws governing the environment have been significantly diluting, all in the name of promoting business and people’s prosperity. Thus, the Indian government has passed a flurry of new laws, often without any discussion within the Parliament or even outside it, as part of public consultations, the hallmark of a functioning democracy. Most of these laws strike at the very heart of environmental regulations, taking away practically all the checks placed on businesses to ensure that the environmental norms were being properly followed. At home and overseas, Modi and his ministers make all the right noises about the importance of environmental protection and reiterate their ‘commitment’ to it. But in reality, practically all the laws related to the environment have either been diluted to render them ineffective or simply abolished. Take the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) that banned all construction within 500 m of the high tide line on the coast or in the riverbeds. In one stroke, in a notification in 2019, the environment ministry removed numerous restrictions on building activities in coastal areas and allowed development of airports in the ‘wastelands’ of rural areas near the coast as well as allowing a dramatic growth coastal population just at the time when the climate change and global warming are leading to rising sea levels as well as a sharp growth in extreme weather events like cyclones or intense rainfall, leading to floods and large-scale devastation. Similarly, in yet another highly controversial move, the central government floated draft rules doing away with the necessity for companies to submit Environmental Impact Assessment reports or conduct consultations with the people likely to be impacted by their activities. It also decided to do away with public hearings for large projects like factories or dams and allowed devastating activities like mining or building factories in the heart of the densest forests in the country. The list of such laws is too long to be put in an article, but the impact of the government’s approach towards the environment and its real commitment to conservation is to be seen not just in the report prepared by the CSE but many other global studies as well. Take the Yale University’s report on Environmental Performance Index that ranks countries across the globe on their environmental condition and the changes occurring therein. The report shows India at 168 out of 180 nations worldwide in terms of its environmental protection performance, calculated on various indicators, including environmental health, climate, air pollution, sanitation and drinking water, ecosystem services and biodiversity. In another index as part of the EPI 2020, India ranked 172 in the environmental health category, an indicator of how well the Indian government has been protecting its population from environmental health risks. In category of biodiversity and habitat, which assesses countries’ actions toward retaining natural ecosystems and protecting the full range of biodiversity within their borders, India figured at 148. Incidentally, India ranked at the bottom of countries in the G20 as well as in South Asia, barring war-torn Afghanistan and in practically all the indices, India was in company of countries like Lesotho, Haiti or Chad. Pandemic propels plunder of biodiversity To add to the government’s proactive destruction of the environment, the coronavirus pandemic did not help India’s biodiversity either as there was a sharp rise in poaching of a wide range of animals, including the one-horned rhinoceros, tigers as well as exotic animals like pangolin. The sharp increase in wildlife poaching was not just because of cutback in the number of forest rangers due to budgetary cut, but also because thousands of rural and tribal people joined poaching gangs in sheer desperation, just to be able to survive. Studies have shown that poaching rose sharply in various parts of the world, ranging from Nepal, Pakistan and India, but also Tanzania, South Africa, Kenya and Uganda, as greed of poachers was duly aided by the need of poorer sections of these societies as they found themselves on the verge of starvation in absence of any assistance by the governments in most developing nations. It was not just the wildlife that felt the heat of need-driven poaching, there were also reports of rise in smuggling of exotic herbs and plants from these regions as the local populations, mainly tribals, tried desperately to eke out a living amidst the pandemic. India is all set to cut a sorry figure at the Marseille meet. But it may not yet be too late to change things for the better in the medium term, especially as the country’s population is increasingly aware and vocal about environmental protection. If the government fails to do its job, perhaps the citizens will step up and take the task of biodiversity preservation as their own.

Climate change is the tipping point driving migration — building local resilience is key

Sunita Narain is director general of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE). Speaking to Srijana Mitra Das at Times Evoke, she discusses internally displaced people propelled by climate change in India — and mitigations which can turn this situation around: How would you describe climate migration in India currently? At present, we haven’t got much statistical data on climate migration — but we know with surety that huge internal migration is happening across India. This reflects in the informal settlements of people we see growing in India’s cities. During the pandemic’s early months, we saw an exodus of migrant labour, which otherwise forms ‘invisible workers’, returning to their original homes. These instances give a sense of the enormous internal movement of people. This is caused by multiple reasons — but I’d argue that the tipping point propelling migration now is climate change. Of course, people also leave their original locations because they want better opportunities available elsewhere. That’s part of aspirational human nature and the simplest reason for migration. But there is a very large section of migrants now which isn’t leaving because of pull migration but instead, push migration — people are being pushed out of their homes by agrarian failure and growing economic distress. With this comes climate change — extreme weather events are causing droughts, floods, infestations and crop losses. This is becoming the last straw on the long-suffering camel’s back. When we hear of a natural disaster, we think of it as an event which strikes a location but then recedes. However these disasters actually cripple livelihoods over a long duration — and when this happens repeatedly, people lose their ability to survive in such harsh conditions. Climate change adversity is now destroying people’s ability to continue living in their own homes which is driving climate-induced migration. Such migration has a very complex and intertwined nature. Many migrants aren’t moving only because of climate change but instead, due to a combination of hard economic circumstances, further sharpened by climate change. There is a combination of the old economics with an entirely new economics impacting people’s lives. Scientists find that contemporary displacement is very different from the past. Earlier, displacement was caused largely by wars and conflict — now, we find more economic refugees whose difficulties have been exacerbated by climate change. We’ve heard recently of Raini village in Uttarakhand, home of the iconic Chipko movement, facing displacement. Does this reflect climate migration? This reflects a broader truth — we haven’t planned an economic future for the Himalayas. When I began visiting the Himalayas 30 years ago, men were leaving then too, seeking work in the plains or the army. But even since then, we haven’t developed a vision based on the ecological situation of the Himalayas that benefits its own people. The mountains offer amazing biodiversity, large forests, numerous water sources and high-value nutritive crops — yet, we haven’t built an economic life for local communities drawing from these factors. Consider hydroelectric power. Instead of using this sustainably and to provide energy and livelihoods first of all to the people of the Himalayas, for decades, we’ve been treating the hills as a place where we can build multiple hydroelectric plants, as if placing malls across cities. We should be thinking about how to re-engineer existing plants to optimise river usage and create an economic future for Himalayan communities. Instead, we’ve re-engineered the rivers with back-to-back hydroelectric projects — that has made the Himalayan ecosystem even more fragile. Added to this, we now have climate change bringing more cloudbursts, glacial lake formations and landslides, intensifying the recent floods impacting Chamoli where Raini is located. Our inability to plan sustainably around a fragile ecosystem is causing more ecological setbacks. This explains a much higher scale of migration from the hills now, with entire ghost villages or empty habitations scattered across the Himalayas. Raini village itself asked to be relocated. Imagine the birthplace of the Chipko movement and its determined people now saying, ‘We simply can’t live here anymore.’ These people are facing an environmental crisis, worsened by climate change. What are the most important solutions you would suggest? It is essential to invest in building local climate resilience and protecting community economies. One of the most powerful tools for doing this is the MGNREGA program, which has a stated aim to invest in ecological infrastructure. In an extensive study across 15 states, CSE and Down To Earth found that wherever such an investment had been made, it brought well-being to villages and migration halted — in fact, in villages where water harvesting was organised and ecological resources, from trees to ponds, used for local wellbeing, reverse migration started. This shows that you can change the future. It doesn’t have to be a story of climate distress driving migration — but, for this, we must invest in ecological infrastructure which safeguards local economic well-being. We found such a sustainable use of MGNREGA only in a few villages. In most places, it was used to provide daily employment for labour. But the value of MGNREGA and such schemes is to invest in ecological infrastructure that bolsters local livelihoods and community resilience, crucial in the era of climate change.

Freshwater-based coal power plants guzzle the most water: CSE

Even six years after the water consumption norms came into force, the water-guzzling coal power industry is ignoring water regulations and there is a high degree of non-compliance observed in the sector, a new report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) says. New Delhi: Even six years after the water consumption norms came into force, the water-guzzling coal power industry is ignoring water regulations and there is a high degree of non-compliance observed in the sector, a new report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) says. Counted among the most water-intensive industries in India, the coal power sector is responsible for nearly 70 per cent of the total freshwater withdrawal by all industries in the country. Indian power plants with cooling towers consume twice as much water as their global counterparts, said the report titled 'Water Inefficient Power'. According to the 2015 norms (revised again in 2018), plants installed before January 1, 2017, were required to meet a specific water consumption limit of 3.5 cubic metre of water per MWh; plants installed after January 1, 2017 had to meet the norm of three cubic metre of water per MWh, apart from adopting zero liquid discharge.

Freshwater-Based Coal Power Plants Guzzle Large Amount of Water: CSE

Even six years after the water consumption norms came into force, the water-guzzling coal power industry is ignoring water regulations and there is a high degree of non-compliance observed in the sector, a new report by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) says. Counted among the most water-intensive industries in India, the coal power sector is responsible for nearly 70 per cent of the total freshwater withdrawal by all industries in the country. Indian power plants with cooling towers consume twice as much water as their global counterparts, said the report titled 'Water Inefficient Power'. According to the 2015 norms (revised again in 2018), plants installed before January 1, 2017, were required to meet a specific water consumption limit of 3.5 cubic metres of water per MWh; plants installed after January 1, 2017, had to meet the norm of three cubic metres of water per MWh, apart from adopting zero liquid discharge. Additionally, all freshwater-based plants were required to install cooling towers and subsequently achieve the norm of 3.5 cubic metres of water per MWh. All sea water-based plants were exempted from meeting the norms. The deadline to meet the water norms was December 2017 which has already passed. The water norms for coal power plants were introduced in 2015 along with the emission norms. Though emission norms timelines for the sector were revised twice by the Ministry of Coal once in 2017 and recently in 2021, the issue of compliance and implementation of water norms has been completely overlooked, the CSE said in a release. CSE's programme Director for Industrial Pollution Unit, Nivit Kumar Yadav, said, "This is when many power producing regions of the country are facing acute water shortage. Also, there is huge water pollution due to the effluent discharged by the power plants." The CSE surveyed more than 154 GW of total coal power capacity and found nearly 50 per cent of the freshwater-based plants to be non-complying. Most of these plants belong to state-owned companies. The largest number of non-complying plants were from Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. Belonging to MahaGENCO (Maharashtra's power generation company) and UPRVUNL (Uttar Pradesh's power generation company), a majority of these plants are old with inefficient practices which lead to water wastage. The CSE survey has found that old and inefficient once-through cooling water-based plants in India continue to operate without installing cooling towers. These plants are not just flouting water norms but also emission norms, the survey added. Built before 1999, all once-through-based power plants in India are old and polluting. Many of these plants were identified for retirement but have not yet been retired. They continue to operate with no plans to upgrade or install either emission control equipment or cooling towers. "Allowing these older plants to continue to pollute cannot be an option. Plants identified for retirement must be closed down immediately if they have no plans to retrofit or to install emission control technologies and/or cooling towers," said Deputy Programme Manager, Industrial Pollution unit of CSE, Sugandha Arora. As per the CSE's recent estimates, nearly 48 per cent of India's existing coal power fleet is located in water-scarce districts like Nagpur and Chandrapur in Maharashtra; Raichur in Karnataka; Korba in Chhattisgarh; Barmer and Baran in Rajasthan; Khammam and Kothagudem in Telangana; and Cuddalore in Tamil Nadu. There have been reports of conflicts over water use between industries and local people. "This sector has a massive water footprint and therefore, all efforts must be made to mitigate this impact. There is a huge scope of reducing the sector's water demand by ensuring implementation of the 2015 standards and addressing the challenges related to accurate reporting of data, old inefficient once-through cooling plants and implementing zero discharge in newer plants."

PM10 remains lead pollutant in Delhi’s air this month

New Delhi: PM10 has been the lead pollutant for the past five days due to higher dust concentration in Delhi’s air and no rain. Delhi’s overall Air Quality Index was 134 in the ‘moderate’ category on Friday. System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting And Research (SAFAR) said on Thursday that the contribution of coarser particles in PM10 increased to around 65% as compared to the long-time normal of 50%. Gufran Beig, founder project director, SAFAR, said, “In the monsoon period, PM2.5, which are fine particles, mostly remain high. However, in August, it was found that PM10 was the main pollutant on most of the days, which is not common.” He added the reason behind higher concentration of PM10 could be transportation of dust from arid region to Delhi and construction activity happening in and around the capital. Central Pollution Control Board’s data shows that PM10 remained the major pollutant from August 23 to August 27. The city has not recorded any intense rain activity in the past few days. Anumita Roy Chowdhury, executive director, research and advocacy, Centre For Science and Environment, said, “Due to the washout effect of the rains, overall particulate pollution is normally lower during monsoon. However, the level of coarse particles can vary, especially during short dry spells when dust can become the lead pollutant. Persistent elevation and increase in its ratio can also indicate some dust event in the region.”