Report to the People on Environment and Forests 2009-2010
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REPORT TO THE PEOPLE ON ENVIRONMENT AND FORESTS 2009–2010 Annual Report to the People on Environment © Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India, 2010 Material from this publication may be used for educational purposes provided due credit is given.Material from this publication can be used for commercial purposes only with the permission from the Ministry of Environment and Forests. Over all guidance Shri R H Khwaja, Special Secretary, Ministry of Environment of Forests, Government of India Project Team Ministry of Environment and Forests Mr Nilkanth Ghosh, Statistical Advisor Ms Madhumita Biswas Mr Varad Pande Mr Muhammad A Khan TERI Dr Suneel Pandey Dr Nirmala Saraswat Dr Yogesh Gokhale Ms Shilpa Nischal Mr Anshuman Mr Sumit Sharma Ms Grace Lhouvum Mr Ankur Garg Ms Anju Goyal Layout & Printing Ministry of Environment and Forests TERI Press Cover design Yatindra Kumar Annual Report to the People on Environment i Contents Foreword i List of abbreviations v Executive Summary vii Chapter 1 Mandate of the Ministry of Environment and Forests 1.1 Need for the Report 1 1.2 Mandate of the Ministry 1 1.3 Key Achievements in 2009/10 1 1.3.1 Climate Change 1 1.3.2 Compensatory Afforestation Management (CAMPA) 2 1.3.3 Mission Clean Ganga 2 1.3.4 Coastal Regulation Zone 2 1.3.5 Initiatives for the rights of forest dwellers 3 1.3.6 Pollution Control 3 1.3.7 Issues of Genetically Modified Food Crops 3 1.3.8 Renewed Impetus to Science 3 1.3.9 Western Ghats 3 1.3.10 Himalayas 4 1.3.11 Sundarbans 4 1.3.12 Transparency in environmental and forestry clearances 4 1.3.13 Website 4 1.3.14 Wildlife 5 1.3.15 Finance Commission Grant 5 1.3.16 National Green Tribunal 5 1.4 Goals for the next year (2010-11) 5 Chapter 2 State of the Environment 2.1 Introduction 7 2.2 Air environment 7 2.2.1 Ambient air quality 7 2.2.2 Indoor air pollution 8 2.2.3 Policy and legal measures 8 2.2.4 Impacts and key issues 9 2.2.5 Issues for debate 9 2.3 Water environment 9 2.3.1 Impacts and key issues 9 2.3.2 Conservation of rivers 9 2.3.3 Water quality monitoring of rivers 9 2.3.4 Policy and legal measures 10 2.3.4.1 National River Conservation Plan 10 2.3.4.2 National Lake Conservation Plan 10 2.3.4.3 National Wetland Conservation Programme 10 Annual Report to the People on Environment 2.3.5 Recent initiatives 10 2.3.6 Issues for debate 11 2.4 Solid waste management 11 2.4.1 Policy and legal measures 11 2.4.2 Impacts and key issues 12 2.4.3 Recent initiatives 12 2.4.3.1 Treatment/disposal facilities 12 2.4.3.2 Co-incineration of high calorific value waste 12 2.4.3.3 Hazardous waste recycling 12 2.4.3.4 Clean technology initiatives 13 2.4.3.5 Waste minimisation circles 13 2.4.3.6 E-waste recycling facilities 13 2.4.3.7 Inventory of abandoned dumps 13 2.4.3. 8 Fly ash utilisation 13 2.4.3.9 Common biomedical waste treatment facilities 13 2.4.3.10 Awareness creation 13 2.4.4 Issues for debate 14 2.5 Forestry 14 2.5.1 Policy and legal measures 14 2.5.2 Externally aided projects 15 2.5.3 Impacts and key issues 15 2.5.3.1 Degradation of forests 15 2.5.3.2 Demand and supply gap of fuel-wood, fodder and timber 15 2.5.3.3 Forest fires 15 2.5.3.4 Livelihoods of forest-dependent communities 15 2.5.4 Recent initiatives 15 2.5.5 Issues for debate 16 2.5.5.1 Low productivity 16 2.5.5.2 Ownership and management 16 2.6 Biodiversity and wildlife 16 2.6.1 Policy and legal measures 17 2.6.2 Impacts and key issues 18 2.6.3 Recent initiatives 18 2.6.4 Issues for debate 18 2.7 Coastal resource management 18 2.7.1 Policy and legal measures 19 2.7.2 Recent initiatives 19 2.7.3 Issues for debate 19 2.8 Climate change and its impact 20 2.8.1 Observed changes in temperature and rainfall 20 2.8.2 Projections of temperature and rainfall over Indian region 20 2.8.2.1 Projected impacts 21 2.9 Education and awareness for conserving environment 21 2.9.1 Environmental Information System 22 Chapter 3 Need for inclusive growth 23 3.1 Introduction 23 3.2 Pre-requisites for meaningful participation 23 Chapter 4 Issues for debate 4.1 Introduction 25 4.2 Issues affecting the environment 25 4.3 Air environment 25 4.4 Water environment 25 4.5 Solid waste management 26 4.6 Forestry 26 4.7 Biodiversity and wildlife 26 4.8 Coastal resource management 26 4.9 Climate change 27 iv Annual Report to the People on Environment List of abbreviations ACA Additional Compensatory Afforestation IIT Indian Institute of Technology ALRI Acute Lower Respiratory Infection IPCC Intergovernmental Panel on Climate AR4 Fourth Assessment Report Change BMC Biodiversity Management Committee IT Information technology BMW Biomedical waste IUCN International Union for Conservation of BS Bharat Stage Nature CA Compensatory afforestation JFM Joint Forest Management CAMPA Compensatory Afforestation JFMC Joint Forest Management Committee Management and Planning Authority JICA Japan International Cooperation Agency CBD Convention on Biodiversity LCS Low-cost sanitation CBWTF Common biomedical waste treatment LPG Liquefied petroleum gas facility MAB Man and the Biosphere CEPI Comprehensive Environmental MAI Mean annual increment Pollution Index MoEF Ministry of Environment and Forests CITES Convention on International Trade in MoU Memorandum of understanding Endangered Species MSW Municipal solid waste CNG Compressed natural gas NAAQS National Ambient Air Quality Standards CPCB Central Pollution Control Board NAMP National Air Quality Monitoring CREP Corporate responsibility for Programme environment protection NAPCC National Action Plan on Climate Change CRZ Coastal Regulation Zone NBA National Biodiversity Authority CSS Central sector scheme NCR National Capital Region EIA Environmental impact assessment NEAC National Environmental Awareness ENVIS Environmental information system Campaign ETP Effluent treatment plant NEP National Environment Policy E-waste Electronic waste NEPA National Environmental Protection FDA Forest development agency Authority GAP Ganga Action Plan NGC National Green Corps GEAC Genetic Engineering Approval NGO Non-government organization Committee NGRBA National Ganga River Basin Authority GM Genetically Modified NLCP National Lake Conservation Programme GMO Genetically Modified Microorganism NPV Net present value HMO Hazardous microorganism NRCP National River Conservation Programme Annual Report to the People on Environment NTFP Non-timber forest products SFM Sustainable forest management NWCP National Wetland Conservation SME Small and medium enterprise Programme SPCB State Pollution Control Board PA Protected area SSFE Small-scale forest enterprises PAH Poly-aromatic hydrocarbons STP Sewage treatment plant PBR People’s biodiversity register TDI Toluene Di-isocyanate PCA Penal compensatory afforestation ToR Terms of reference PET Poly-ethylene Terapthalate TSDF Treatment storage and disposal facility PIL Public interest litigation UNESCO United Nations Educational Scientific PPP Private-Public Partnership and Cultural Organisation PRI Panchayati Raj Institutions UT Union territory PVC Poly-vinyl chloride WLS Wildlife sanctuary RFD River front development WMC Waste minimisation circle SBB State Biodiversity Board WQM Water quality monitoring vi Annual Report to the People on Environment Executive summary The vision of a country includes pursuing a fourth chapter presents issues for debate for each of development process that is environmentally these themes in detail. sustainable. The Ministry of Environment and Forests The key issues for the air environment are increase (MoEF) has sought to achieve this aim of conserving in ambient air pollution in urban areas and indoor and protecting the environment by implemening air pollution due to use of biomass as cooking fuel in various policies and programmes. rural areas. MoEF as a response to check air pollution The present report aims to generate greater levels has introduced the new National Ambient Air awareness and environmental consciousness amongst Quality Standards (NAAQS) in 2009 for the extended our citizens. The objective of the report, therefore, list of 12 pollutants which are more closely related is to generate a national debate among various to health. The Ministry is also working towards stakeholders on the key environmental issues and development of monitoring protocols for indoor air challenges that must be addressed to ensure a rapid pollution. and sustained economic growth. The key issue for water environment is pollution The Annual Report to the People on Environment is of surface water sources, including rivers and lakes. presented in four chapters. The first chapter sheds The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has light on the mandate of the MoEF and explains the identified 150 polluted stretches of rivers in the need for this report. The chapter also includes major country in five priority categories depending upon policies and programmes of the Ministry and its the risk, that is, degree/ frequency of violation with achievements for 2009-10 and goals for 2010-11. respect to water quality criteria for drinking water The second chapter presents the State of the source. To tackle the pollution of water bodies, the Environment covering: Ministry is facilitating setting up of sewage treatment P Air environment plants to capture untreated sewage under river and P Water environment lake conservation programmes. The most recent P Solid waste management initiative of the Ministry includes setting up of the P Forestry National Ganga River Basin Authority (NGRBA) to P Biodiversity and wildlife tackle pollution of River Ganga.