Volume no. 13, for the quarter ending March, 2015 Green Files Newsletter on Environment audit and sustainable development issues International Centre for Environment Audit and Sustainable Development (iCED) Green Files is a quarterly newsletter compiled by iCED Jaipur. This newsletter highlights issues on environment and sustainable development which can enable audit offices identify areas of audit concern. It comprises results of recent environmental conferences-national & international; “state in focus” where environment issues in a state are highlighted; critical appraisal of national environmental acts; snapshots of recent news on environment ; Supreme Court judgements on environment issues as well as recent national and international audit reports pertaining to environment and sustainable development. We look forward to your suggestions to make Green Files more relevant. Contributions to the newsletter are also welcome. These can be mailed to [email protected]. Contents I. 2015 UN-Water Annual International Zaragoza Conference: Water and 2 Sustainable Development: From Vision to Action, January 2015 II. M.C. Mehta v. Union of India, Tanneries Case: (Calcutta) 1996 4 III. Critical discussion of rules/laws: Guidelines for Ecotourism in and 6 around Protected Areas, 2011 IV. Environment news snapshots 10 V. State in Focus: Kerala 14 VI. Audit Report: Report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India 20 on Controls and Systems for Sustainable Mining in Karnataka (Government of Karnataka Report No. 2 of the year 2012) VII. International Audit Report: Performance Audit Report Of The Office of 22 The Auditor General of The Republic of Fiji: Managing Sustainable fisheries Volume no. 13, for the quarter ending March, 2015 I. 2015 UN-Water Annual (2) Objectives of the conference International Zaragoza Conference: The overall aims of the Zaragoza Conference Water and Sustainable Development: were: From Vision to Action, January 2015 To identify the specific pending issues that (1) Background need to be tackled in relation to the main implementation challenges related to Water, More than 300 participants from United Sanitation and Hygiene, Water Resources Nations Agencies and programmes, experts, Management, Water Quality and Risks. representatives of the business community, governments and non-governmental To analyze the main opportunities and organizations met from 15 to 17 January 2015 challenges for the different means of in Zaragoza, Spain, to discuss the tools for implementation to advance the post-2015 implementing the post-2015 agenda for agenda. water. This is also the last year of the To analyze how lessons learned by the UN International Water for Life Decade, so it is during the International Decade for Action can be especially important for taking stock of and used in the post-2015 agenda, specifically in learning from achievements as well as relation to water cooperation, and women planning the next steps. The Conference dealt engagement. with some of the main implementation challenges related to four main themes (3) Issues discussed (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, Water Water and sustainable development Resources Management, Water Quality and Over 1.7 billion people live in river basins Risks) in relation to the targets recommended where water use exceeds recharge, leading to the by the Open Working Group on Sustainable desiccation of rivers, depletion of groundwater Development Goals and UN-Water. The and the degradation of ecosystems. Conference also dealt with some of the main implementation challenges related to the five Two-thirds of the world’s population will main targets recommended by the UN-Water live in water-stressed countries by 2025 if current proposal on the global goal for water. These consumption patterns continue. are: Demand for water will increase by 55% by A. Achieve universal access to safe drinking 2050. water, sanitation and hygiene; Economic losses from inadequate delivery B. Improve (% to be defined) the sustainable of water and sanitation amounts to 1.5% of GDP use and development of water resources in all of the countries included in a WHO study on countries; meeting the MDGs. C. All countries strengthen equitable, Some estimates suggest over 80% of participatory and accountable water governance; wastewater is discharged without treatment. D. Reduce untreated wastewater (% to be Water shortages have been identified by defined), nutrient pollution (% to be defined) and industry, government, academia and civil society increase wastewater reuse (% to be defined); as one of the top three global risks of highest concern to them. E. Reduce mortality (% to be defined) and economic loss by (% to be defined) from natural Since the original Rio Earth Summit in 1992 and human-induced water-related disasters. floods, droughts and storms have affected 4.2 billion people (95% of all people affected by 2 Volume no. 13, for the quarter ending March, 2015 disasters) and caused US$ 1.3 trillion of damage diseases and combat hepatitis, water-borne (63% of all damage). diseases, and other communicable diseases. Implementing improvements in water By 2030 substantially reduce the number of quality and protecting ecosystem services deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water, and soil pollution and By 2030, improve water quality by reducing contamination. pollution, eliminating dumping and minimizing release of hazardous chemicals and materials, By 2030 achieve universal and equitable halving the proportion of untreated wastewater, access to safe and affordable drinking water for and increasing recycling and safe reuse. all. By 2020 protect and restore water-related By 2030 achieve access to adequate and ecosystems, including mountains, forests, equitable sanitation and hygiene for all, and end wetlands, rivers, aquifers and lakes. open defecation, paying special attention to the needs of women and girls and those in vulnerable By 2030, expand international cooperation situations. and capacity-building support to developing countries in water and sanitation related By 2030 expand international cooperation activities and programmes, including water and capacity-building support to developing harvesting, desalination, water efficiency, countries in water and sanitation related wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse activities and programmes, including water technologies. harvesting, desalination, water efficiency, wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse By 2020 achieve environmentally sound technologies. management of chemicals and all wastes throughout their life cycle in accordance with Support and strengthen the participation of agreed international frameworks and significantly local communities for improving water and reduce their release to air, water and soil to sanitation management. minimize their adverse impacts on human health Implementing Risk Management in Water and the environment. and Sanitation By 2020 ensure conservation, restoration By 2030 significantly reduce the number of and sustainable use of terrestrial and inland deaths and the number of affected people and freshwater ecosystems and their services, in decrease the economic losses relative to GDP particular forests, wetlands, mountains and caused by disasters, including water-related drylands, in line with obligations under disasters, with the focus on protecting the poor international agreements. and people in vulnerable situations. By 2020 introduce measures to prevent the By 2030, expand international cooperation introduction and significantly reduce the impact and capacity-building support to developing of invasive alien species on land and water countries in water and sanitation related ecosystems, and control or eradicate the priority activities and programmes, including water species. harvesting, desalination, water efficiency, Implementing Water, Sanitation and wastewater treatment, recycling and reuse Hygiene--Sustainable Development Goals: technologies. By 2030 end the epidemics of AIDS, Support and strengthen the participation of tuberculosis, malaria, and neglected tropical local communities for improving water and sanitation management. 3 Volume no. 13, for the quarter ending March, 2015 Implementing Water Resources concerned with the tanneries located at Management Tangra, Tiljala, Topsia and Pagla Danga the four adjoining areas in the eastern fringe of By 2030, substantially increase water-use the city of Calcutta (the Calcutta tanneries). efficiency across all sectors and ensure These areas accommodate about 550 sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater tanneries. The status of the four tannery clusters to address water scarcity, and substantially in Calcutta, according to the NEERI Report was reduce the number of people suffering from that no appropriate waste water drainage and water scarcity. collection systems were available in any of the By 2030 implement integrated water tannery clusters. The untreated waste water resources management at all levels, including flows through open drains causing serious through trans-boundary cooperation as environmental, health and hygiene problems. appropriate. No waste water treatment facilities existed in (4) Outcomes any of the four tannery clusters. The tannery units were located in highly congested A toolkit for implementation; habitations, offering little or no scope for Learning and knowledge exchange among future expansion, modernisation or Conference participants through interdisciplinary installation of Effluent