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State of Environment Report 2022

Posted on June 7, 2022 by admin1  995

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  • 75% of river monitoring stations report heavy metal pollution according to the recent State of Environment Report 2022.
    • It is published by the environmental NGO, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).

Key observations of the report:

  • River Pollution:
    • Three out of every four river monitoring stations in India posted alarming levels of heavy toxic metals such as lead, iron, nickel, cadmium, arsenic, chromium and copper. 
    • In about a fourth of the monitoring stations, which are spread across 117 rivers and tributaries, high levels of two or more toxic metals were reported.
    • Of the 33 monitoring stations in Ganga, 10 had high levels of contaminants. 
      • The river has high levels of lead, iron, nickel, cadmium and arsenic.
    • India has 764 river quality monitoring stations across 28 states. 
      • Of these, the Central Water Commission tested water samples from 688 stations for heavy metals between August 2018 and December 2020.
  • Of the 588 water quality stations monitored for pollution, total coliform and biochemical oxygen demand were high in 239 and 88 stations across 21 States – an indicator of poor wastewater treatment from industry, agriculture and domestic households. 
  • India dumps 72% of its sewage waste without treatment. 
    • Ten States do not treat their sewage at all, as per the Central Pollution Control Board.
  • Coastline Erosion:
    • Over a third of India’s coastline that is spread across 6,907 km saw some degree of erosion between 1990 and 2018. 
    • West Bengal is the worst hit with over 60% of its shoreline under erosion. 
    • Twenty-five glacial lakes and water bodies in India, China and Nepal have recorded over 40% rise in their water spread areas since 2009. 
      • This has indicated a grave threat to five Indian states and two Union territories. 
    • While the global average of the Ocean Health Index, a measure that looks at how sustainably humans are exploiting ocean resources, has improved between 2012 and 2021, India’s score in the index has declined over the same period.
  • Forest Cover:
    • India’s total forest cover has registered a little over a 0.5% increase between 2017 and 2021. 
      • Most of the increase has taken place in the open forest category, which includes commercial plantations. 
    • This has happened at the cost of moderately dense forest, which is normally the area closest to human habitations. 
    • At the same time, very dense forests, which absorb maximum carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, occupy just 3% of total forest cover.
    • India has a forest cover of 77.53 million hectares. But recorded forests—the area under the forest department— with forest cover are only 51.66 million. 
    • This gap of 25.87 million hectares —a size bigger than Uttar Pradesh— remains unaccounted, the organisation noted.

River pollution:

Reasons

  

Solutions
  • The sewage treatment plants are major contributors of the Pollutants being discharged in the river.
  • Pollutants discharged from different types of industries is also a major issue.
  • Agricultural activities along the banks of the river contribute to river pollution.
  • Agricultural waste and pesticide discharge from the field also contribute to pollution.
  • The low volume of water flow in the river causes the pollutants to accumulate and raise the pollution level.
  • Spills or leaks from oil and chemical containers
  • Major River pollutants: 
    • Lead, iron, nickel, cadmium, arsenic, chromium and copper.
    • Organic pollutants, inorganic pollutants, pathogens, suspended solids, nutrients and agriculture pollutants, thermal, radioactive pollutants, heavy metals, etc,
  • Water conservation and Vegetation Planning:
    • Water management must go hand-in-hand with vegetation planning to improve the ability of soils to hold water, even in times of intense and prolonged heat.
  • Stopping discharge:
    • Industrial discharge and agricultural runoff is the major reason of river pollution and should be controlled with policy implementations and awareness generation campaigns.
  • Water Reuse:
    • Even the wastewater that is currently being left to flow down drain pipes should also be utilised.
  • Improved Infrastructure:
    • As extreme rains become the norm, the structures being created under MGNREGA will need to be redesigned so that they last over the seasons.

 

Coastline erosion:

Reasons

  

Solutions
  • The major reasons for coastal erosion include- 
    • An increase in frequency of cyclones and 
    • Sea-level rise 
    • anthropogenic activities- 
      • The construction of harbors. 
      • beach mining. 
      • building of dams.
  • Hydraulic action: Hydraulic action occurs when waves striking a cliff face compress air in cracks on the cliff face.
  • Attrition: Attrition occurs when waves cause loose pieces of rock debris to collide with each other, grinding and chipping each other, progressively becoming smaller, smoother and rounder.
  • Solution: Solution is the process in which acids contained in sea water will dissolve some types of rock such as chalk or limestone.
  • Abrasion: Abrasion, also known as corrasion, occurs when waves break on cliff faces and slowly erode it.
  • Hard-erosion control methods: 
    • Seawalls and groynes serve as semi-permanent infrastructure.
    • These structures are not immune from normal wear-and-tear and will have to be refurbished or rebuilt.
  • Soft erosion strategies:
    • These include Sandbag and beach nourishment.
    • These are temporary options slowing the effects of erosion.
  • Relocation:
    • Relocation of infrastructure any housing farther away from the coast is also an option.
  • Living shoreline:
    • It uses plants and other natural elements.
    • They are found to be more resilient against storms, improve water quality, increase biodiversity, and provide fishery habitats.

 

Forest Cover Reduction:

Reasons

  

Solutions
  • Deforestation:
    • Conversion of forests for other land uses, including plantations, pastures, settlements, roads and infrastructure.
    • Worldwide, the 420 million hectares of forests have been lost between 1990 and 2020, due to deforestation.
  • Climate Change:
    • As a critical factor of earth’s ecosystem, vegetation is sensitive to climate change and its feedback has a pronounced effect on climate, hydrology, and ecology, etc.
  • Wood based fuel: 
    • Approximately 124 million more people fell into extreme poverty after COVID-19 and this may have longer-term impacts on wood-based fuel, as there is evidence of increased wood-based fuel use in some countries during the pandemic.
  • Population:
    • Increases competition for land, as the demand for food for this large population.
    • The demand for food is predicted to rise by 35 to 56 per cent by the 2050s.
  • Biomass extraction:
    • Demand for forest-based biomass is expected to rise further, mainly due to construction and packaging.   
  • Land use planning:
    • Better and more responsible land-use planning to address the underlying drivers of forest cover reduction.
  • Policy framing:
    • Directing funding for recovery towards long-term policies aimed at creating sustainable and green jobs and further mobilising private-sector investment.
  • People’s participation:
    • Empowering and incentivizing local actors, including women, youth and Indigenous Peoples, to take a leading role in the forest pathways.
  • Maximising synergies: 
    • Maximising synergies among the three forest pathways and between agricultural, forestry, environmental and other policies and minimising trade-offs.
  • Global Warming solutions:
    • We need to act now to keep the global temperature rise below 1.5°C, reduce the risk of future pandemics, ensure food security and nutrition for all, eliminate poverty, conserve the planet’s biodiversity and offer young people hope of a better world and a better future for all.

 

Government Initiatives

  • National River Conservation Plan for abatement of pollution: 
    • The plan has identified stretches of various rivers and undertaken conservation activities like interception & diversion of raw sewage, construction of sewerage systems, setting up of sewage treatment plants, low cost sanitation facilities, education and awareness creation, community participation, electric/improved wood crematoria and riverfront development. 
  • Namami Gange Programme:
    • It is an Integrated Conservation Mission, approved as ‘Flagship Programme’ by the Union Government.
    • It aims to accomplish the twin objectives of effective abatement of pollution, conservation and rejuvenation of National River Ganga.
    • The programme has also been assisted by World Bank.
  • Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS):
    • INCOIS has prepared and published an atlas of Coastal Vulnerability Index (CVI) maps for the entire coastline of India at a 1:100000 scale.
    • It uses data on sea level rise, coastal slope, shoreline change rate, coastal elevation, coastal geomorphology, tidal range and significant wave height.
  • Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project (ICZMP):
    • It is a World Bank supported project that aims to build national capacity for implementation of comprehensive coastal management approach in India
    • To implement ICZMP project, Ministry of Environment has established Society of Integrated Coastal Management (SICOM).
  • Declaration on Forests and Land Use:
    • More than 140 countries have pledged, through the Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use, to eliminate forest loss by 2030 and to support restoration and sustainable forestry.
    • An additional $19 billion has been allocated to help developing countries achieve these objectives.

World Environment Day

  • World Environment Day (WED) is celebrated annually on 5 June.
  • It was first held in 1973.
  • It has been a platform for raising awareness on environmental issues such as 
    • Marine pollution, 
    • Alien overpopulation(invasive alien species), 
    • Global warming, 
    • Sustainable consumption and 
    • Wildlife crime.
  • It is a global platform for public outreach, with participation from over 143 countries annually. 
  • Each year, the program has provided a theme and forum for businesses, non government organizations, communities, governments and celebrities to advocate environmental causes.
  • The theme of World Environment Day 2022 is Only One Earth, focusing on “Living Sustainably in Harmony with Nature”.

Source: PIB

 
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