INDIA'S CONTINUOUS ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION

India needs to cut its levels of air pollution to preserve and increase its productivity.

India is experiencing an economic surge after Prime Minister Narendra Modi entered office in 2014. Investors see India as a growth opportunity. Last year, capital expenditure projects attracted $23 billion of foreign investment. Yet the country’s potential is clouded by environmental problems, which have been caused by pollution.

Water pollution has been in focus because of the River Ganga. Air pollution is not featured as much as it should in the news, but noxious air is shortening the life expectancy of India’s citizens. The Environmental Protection Index (EPI) air quality ranking places India at 174 out of 178 countries on the population’s exposure to particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5). According to an article in the Economic and Political Weekly, particulate matter comprises small particles suspended in the air with a concoction of “acids (sulphate and nitrates), ammonia, sodium chloride, black carbon, water, and mineral dust.” PM2.5 is particularly egregious to health because it burrows deeper into the lungs and can cause pneumonia and cancer. Needless to say, this results in an unhealthier and less productive population apart from increasing pressure on an already overburdened health care system.

The World Health Organization’s (WHO) 2005 guidelines state that permissible exposure to PM2.5 should be an annual average of ten micrograms per cubic meter (μg/m3). The Central Pollution Control Board’s National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) set the rate at an average of 40μg/m3 per year. Around 660 million people live in cities with PM2.5 higher than 40μg/m3 each year, the NAAQS standard. Over a billion people, around 99.5% of the Indian population, live in places with PM2.5 levels over the WHO’s more stringent guidelines.

Increasing air pollution is causing lower labor productivity. It is also damaging agriculture. Crop yields have been falling. Tourism is likely to be affected with India’s legendary smog causing increasing problems to foreign visitors. The poor suffer disproportionately from air pollution. Those who work in or live near factories, drive auto rickshaws and work as traffic policemen breathe noxious fumes on a daily basis. According to the abovementioned article in the Economic and Political Weekly, life expectancy for 660 million Indians could be increased by an average of 3.2 years if pollution was limited to NAAQS standards.

Delhi government scheme for preventing air pollution in Delhi

Over the past month, there have been repeated calls from environmentalists and activists for drastic measures on part of the administration to clean the toxic air in Delhi, considered the world’s most polluted city. Studies have shown that vehicular emissions and dust from construction sites account for rising air pollution levels and smog in the city.

This year, the outcry has seen a slew of measures proposed by the state government as well as the Supreme Court of India so as to ensure that future generations are not harmed by the air.

The following are some of these measures:

1. The Delhi government has proposed the odd/even rule wherein cars with odd-numbered registration plates would ply on odd dates and those with even-numbered registration plates would do so on even dates. The idea is to reduce congestion as well as to reduce pollution resulting from vehicular emissions.

2. The top court has asked the Centre to supply the Delhi traffic police with proper masks. The court noted that the policemen, who stand for long hours at traffic signals, should be supplied with masks so that their health is not compromised.

3. The Supreme Court has also banned the registration of luxury SUVs and diesel cars above 2000cc in the national capital. Diesel cars are believed to be a major source of vehicular emissions. A bench headed by the Chief Justice had noted that it was not fair for rich people to buy luxury cars and thus pollute Delhi.

4. The green cess on commercial vehicles entering Delhi has been hiked by the top court by a whopping 100 per cent. The SC-appointed Environment Pollution Control Authority has directed the Delhi government to install boards notifying the new cess in 125 toll booths across Delhi.

5. The top court has ordered that all taxis plying in the city must convert to CNG from March next year. Also, commercial vehicles which are registered before 2005 won’t be allowed to enter the national capital.

6. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued directions to all authorities to strictly implement earlier orders regarding the ban on burning of waste and fine on emission of construction dust. The bench called for an action taken report as well as a “list of offenders” from all authorities on the next date of hearing.

7. The NGT has asked the central and state government not to buy diesel vehicles for its personnel. It also asked public administration departments and municipal bodies to take efforts to gradually phase out diesel vehicles.

8. In a separate order, the NGT directed the state governments of Delhi, Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to immediately ban the burning of crop residue. In earlier orders, the NGT had noted that the practice was contributing to the rising air pollution in the NCR.

9. To give alternative modes of transport to people during the odd-even rule, the government said it would add 1,000 more buses in three months. Also, 9,000 CNG contract carriages will be roped into Delhi to augment public transport.

10. The Delhi government has imposed an environment compensation penalty of Rs 50,000 on 38 major projects across the city for causing dust pollution. Officials said notices have been sent to all the projects. While a few of the projects have replied asking for ‘reconsideration’ of the compensation fee, 26 of them are yet to file their replies.

Prevention of Water Pollution

Things You Can Do To Reduce Water Pollution

• DO NOT pour fat from cooking or any other type of fat, oil, or grease down the sink. Keep a “fat jar” under the sink to collect the fat and discard in the solid waste when full.
• DO NOT dispose of household chemicals or cleaning agents down the sink or toilet. 
• DO NOT flush pills, liquid or powder medications or drugs down the toilet. For recommendations on proper disposal for all types of medical wastes, visit the CT DEP publication here.
• Avoid using the toilet as a wastebasket. Most tissues, wrappers, dust cloths, and other paper goods should be properly discarded in a wastebasket. The fiber reinforced cleaning products that have become popular should never be discarded in the toilet.
• Avoid using a garbage disposal. Keep solid wastes solid. Make a compost pile from vegetable scraps.
• Install a water efficient toilet. In the meantime, put a brick or 1/2 gal container in the standard toilet tank to reduce water use per flush.
• Run the dishwasher or clothes washer only when you have a full load. This conserves electricity and water.
• Use the minimum amount of detergent and/or bleach when you are washing clothes or dishes. Use only phosphate free soaps and detergents.
• Minimize the use of pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers. DO NOT dispose of these chemicals, motor oil, or other automotive fluids into the sanitary sewer or storm sewer systems. Both of them end at the river.

Effect of chlorofluorocarbon on environment

What is it?

Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are a group of compounds which contain the elements chlorine, fluorine and carbon. At room temperatures, they are usually colourless gases or liquids which evaporate easily. They are generally unreactive and stable, non-toxic and non-flammable. CFCs are also a part of the group of chemicals known as the volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

What is it used for?

The properties of CFCs make them useful for a variety of commercial and industrial purposes: as a propellant in aerosol sprays (now banned in the US and Europe), in refrigeration and air conditioning systems, in foams, in cleaning solvents and in electrical components.

Where does it come from?

Most CFCs have been released to the atmosphere through the use of aerosols containing them and as leakages from refrigeration equipment. Other releases may occur from industry producing and using them and other products containing them. There are not thought to be any natural sources of CFCs to the environment.

How might it affect the environment?

CFCs are unlikely to have any direct impact on the environment in the immediate vicinity of their release. As VOCs, they may be slightly involved in reactions to produce ground level ozone, which can cause damage to plants and materials on a local scale. At a global level however, releases of CFCs have serious environmental consequences. Their long lifetimes in the atmosphere mean that some end up in the higher atmopshere (stratosphere) where they can destroy the ozone layer, thus reducing the protection it offers the earth from the sun's harmful UV rays. CFCs also contribute to Global Warming (through "the Greenhouse Effect"). Although the amounts emitted are relatively small, they have a powerful warming effect (a very high "Global Warming Potential").

Effects of Pesticides on Human Health

Introduction

Pesticides are designed to kill and because their mode of action is not specific to one species, they often kill or harm organisms other than pests, including humans. The World Health Organization estimates that there are 3 million cases of pesticide poisoning each year and up to 220,000 deaths, primarily in developing countries. The application of pesticides is often not very precise, and unintended exposures occur to other organisms in the general area where pesticides are applied. Children, and indeed any young and developing organisms, are particularly vulnerable to the harmful effects of pesticides. Even very low levels of exposure during development may have adverse health effects.

Pesticide exposure can cause a range of neurological health effects such as memory loss, loss of coordination, reduced speed of response to stimuli, reduced visual ability, altered or uncontrollable mood and general behavior, and reduced motor skills. These symptoms are often very subtle and may not be recognized by the medical community as a clinical effect. Other possible health effects include asthma, allergies, and hypersensitivity, and pesticide exposure is also linked with cancer,hormone disruption, and problems with reproduction and fetal development.

Pesticide formulations contain both "active" and "inert" ingredients. Active ingredients are what kill the pest, and inert ingredients help the active ingredients to work more effectively. These "inert" ingredients may not be tested as thoroughly as active ingredients and are seldom disclosed on product labels. Solvents, which are inert ingredients in many pesticide formulations, may be toxic if inhaled or absorbed by the skin.

Children are at greater risk from exposure to pesticides because of their small size: relative to their size, children eat, drink, and breathe more than adults. Their bodies and organs are growing rapidly, which also makes them more susceptible; in fact, children may be exposed to pesticides even while in the womb.

SOIL POLLUTION

Soil pollution is defined as the build-up in soils of persistent toxic compounds, chemicals, salts, radioactive materials, or disease causing agents, which have adverse effects on plant growth and animal health.

There are many different ways that soil can become polluted, such as:

• Seepage from a landfill
• Discharge of industrial waste into the soil
• Percolation of contaminated water into the soil
• Rupture of underground storage tanks
• Excess application of pesticides, herbicides or fertilizer
• Solid waste seepage The most common chemicals involved in causing soil pollution are:
• Petroleum hydrocarbons
• Heavy metals
• Pesticides
• Solvents

Environmental Long Term Effects of Soil Pollution

When it comes to the environment itself, the toll of contaminated soil is even more dire. Soil that has been contaminated should no longer be used to grow food, because the chemicals can leech into the food and harm people who eat it. If contaminated soil is used to grow food, the land will usually produce lower yields than it would if it were not contaminated. This, in turn, can cause even more harm because a lack of plants on the soil will cause more erosion, spreading the contaminants onto land that might not have been tainted before. In addition, the pollutants will change the makeup of the soil and the types of microorganisms that will live in it. If certain organisms die off in the area, the larger predator animals will also have to move away or die because they've lost their food supply. Thus it's possible for soil pollution to change whole ecosystems

Effects of soil pollution in brief:

• pollution runs off into rivers and kills the fish, plants and other aquatic life
• crops and fodder grown on polluted soil may pass the pollutants on to the consumers
• polluted soil may no longer grow crops and fodder
• Soil structure is damaged (clay ionic structure impaired)
• corrosion of foundations and pipelines
• impairs soil stability
• may release vapours and hydrocarbon into buildings and cellars
• may create toxic dusts
• may poison children playing in the area 

WHY RAIN WATER HARVESTING

Rain water harvesting, particularly in urban areas, as a technological solution that can be adopted by all to decrease the groundwater layer. We have to promote water harvesting began with its in-depth research on India’s rich traditions in using rainwater harvesting for a sustainable, participatory and equitable management of water. People have to know how rainwater harvesting is done. In order to create awareness among people and decision-makers, how policy options can be developed and implemented.

Wetlands are vital sponges in the city. In cities most of the rain water is wasted. Minimum use of plastic materials and reuse of plastic can help to increase the groundwater layer. Govt. of India should take a major initiative for rain water harvesting.

The reasons for using rainwater harvesting systems answer three questions:

What: Rainwater harvesting will improve water supply, food production, and ultimately food security.

Who: Water insecure households or individuals in rural areas will benefit the most from rainwater harvesting systems.

How: Since rainwater harvesting leads to water supply which leads to food security, this will greatly contribute to income generation.