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ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

Pollution of Air, Water and Land

Hazardous Chemicals and Wastes

Land Degradation

Loss of Biodiversity

Ozone Depletion

Climate Change

Loss of natural and cultural resources

OR
E

Major Environmental Issues Worldwide

Major Causes of Environmental Issues

Rapid population growth and the effects of urbanization, industry and harvesting practices on the ecosystem

Rapid and wasteful use of resources

Degradation of the earths environmental systems

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Environmental Impact (I) (depends on three factors) - Paul Ehrlich

1.

The number of people (population size, P)

2.

The average number of units of resource each person uses (per capita consumption or affluence, A)

3.

The amount of environmental degradation and pollution produced for each unit of resource used
(destructiveness of the technologies used to provide and consume resources, T)
I = P x A x T (environmental impact)

Sustaining the Earth Learning as much as we can about how Earth sustains itself and adapts to ever-changing
environmental conditions and integrating such lessons from nature into the ways we think and act
The basic environmental beliefs of the world:
Nature exists for all of Earths species, not just for people

There is not always more

Some forms of economic growth are environmentally beneficial and should be encouraged, but some are

environmentally harmful and should be discouraged

Our success depends on learning to cooperate with one another and with the rest of nature to learn how
to work with the earth

Notes

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The key to creating a sustainable society:

Pollution - when harmful materials enter the environment

Sources of pollution usually fall into four main categories industrial, residential, commercial, and environmental.
Pollutants enter the environment through natural (volcanic eruption) or human activities
Sources of pollution may include

point source pollution from a clearly identifiable location

nonpoint source pollution that comes from many different places.

Sources of pollution may include

organic pollution decomposition of living organisms and their bi-products

inorganic pollution dissolved and suspended solids as silt, salts, and minerals

toxic pollution heavy medals and other chemical compounds that are lethal to organisms

thermal pollution waste heat from industrial and power generation processes

nuclear pollution - radioactive materials

OR
E

Harmful Impacts of Pollution three factors determine the severity of the harmful effects

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1. Chemical nature how active and harmful the pollutant is to living organisms
2. Concentration the amount of pollutant per unit of volume
3. Persistence (degradability) how long the pollutant stays in the air, water, soil, or body of the organisms

GS

Pollution can affect all areas of the environment and it is divided into the following:

Air Pollution - the emission of any impurity into the air, such as smoke (including tobacco smoke), dust,
cinders, solid particles, gases, mists, fumes, odors and radioactive substances.

Water Pollution pollutants being added to ground water, surface water environments and marine water
environments

Thermal Pollution changes in water temperature due to additions of hot or cold water to a natural water
system often heated water from cooling at power plants

Soil Pollution pollutants being added to soil by agricultural runoffs, unclean technology, waste disposal

Noise Pollution excess noise from industrial and urbanization activities

Light Pollution excess night lighting around urban areas which can impact life cycles or organisms

Radioactive Pollution radioactive waste and nuclear accidents

Types of Water Pollution and their Effects

Notes

If water pollution is from a single source it is called point-source pollution while pollution coming from many
sources is called nonpoint pollution.

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OR
E

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Environmental Threats to Freshwater and Ground Water Systems

The creation of dams and water-diversion systems blocks migration routes for fish and disrupts
habitats.
o

Dams are a major factor in water diversion.

Dams are built along rivers to produce reservoirs.

This affects the ecology of the river and the surrounding environment including Habitat Loss, Habitat
Fragmentation, and Loss of Biodiversity

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The Colorado River is a good example.

Water withdrawal for human use shrinks and degrades habitats.

Runoff from agricultural and urban areas hurts water quality.

Draining of wetlands for development depletes habitats.

Overexploitation and pollution threaten groundwater supplies.

Invasion of exotic species can harm native animals and plants.

Global warming may lead to devastating floods and droughts.

Thermal Pollution and Rising Ocean Temperatures

Change in the water temperatures of lakes, rivers, and oceans caused by made-man industries or practices

Water as coolant is warmed returned & to body of water

Ocean warming from climate changes can lead to problems like coral bleaching

OR
E

Eutrophication bodies of water becomes enrichedwith nutrients.

This can be a problem in marine habitats such as lakes as itcan cause algal blooms.
run-off from fertilizers, into nearby watercausing an increase in nutrient levels.

It causesphytoplankton to grow and reproduce more rapidly, resulting in algalblooms.

This bloom of algaedisrupts normal ecosystem functioning and causes many problems.

The algae may use upall the oxygen in the water, leaving none for other marine life. Thisresults in the
death of many aquatic organisms such as fish, which needthe oxygen in the water to live.

The bloom of algaemay also block sunlight from photosynthetic marine plants under the watersurface.

Some algae evenproduce toxins that are harmful to higher forms of life. This can causeproblems along
the food chain and affect any animal that feeds on them.

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SC

Threats to Marine Environments

Ocean Dead Zones

Eutrophication is magnified as rivers lead into larger rivers and eventually into the ocean as the
Mississippi River network.

This leads to ocean dead zones or regions where oxygen concentration is very low (hypoxia) to the
point where plants and animals either die or leave the zone.

TheMississippi River, which is the drainage area for 41% of the continental United States, dumps
high-nutrient runoff such asnitrogenandphosphorusinto the Gulf of Mexico.

The Dead Zone at the mouth of the Mississippi River in the Gulf of Mexico is the largest in the
US. In 2010 it was the size of New Jersey.

Oil spills and their ecological disasters

Notes

The BP Oil Rig Explosion in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010

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Chemical spills and dumping of waste in the oceans or near coral reefs and ocean shelf areas causes
major environmental problems.

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OR
E

Marine dumping of wastes plastic and other wastes

Climate Change - is warming the oceans and making them more acidic.

Sea Temperature Rise warming the oceans is causing problems like coral bleaching

Ocean acidification - caused by excess CO2 dissolving in the sea to form carbonic acid, has the potential
to literally dissolve the skeletons and shells of marine creatures such as corals leading to devastating
effects on marine ecosystems

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Habitat loss as mangroves and estuary regions causing population displacement

Bycatch marine wildlife unintentionally caught as sea turtles, porpoises, albatross, crabs, starfish & fish

Whaling is still a problem though strides are being make

Fishery: an industry devoted to the catching or selling of fish

Overfishing and Exploitation - depletes stocks of fish beyond their ability to recover, disrupting the
ecosystem and eliminating a valuable source of food and income.
Fish catch has risen from 20 million tons/year to over 90 million tons / year

Original fishing limit 12 miles out to sea

In 1960s changed to 200 miles due to lack of fish

Boats go out even further or rely on more technology-based systems to find huge numbers of fish

Driftnets: dragged through the water indiscriminately catching everything including turtles, dolphins,
sharks and whales

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Long-lining: using long lines that have baited hooks that will capture multiple fish

Bottom trawling: ocean floor is literally scraped by heavy nets for all bottom-dwelling fish leaving
a cared path of destruction.

47-50 % of major fish stocks of the world are fully exploited, 20 % are nearly over exploited, 10
% are depleted

Invasive Species are disrupting normal food chains and food webs within the ecosystem

Threats to Estuaries

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SC

OR
E

Estuaries receive the pollutants dumped into the streams and rivers that feed them

Residential and commercial development not only adds to pollution but eliminates some estuaries due to
land filling

Coastal development, introduction of invasive species, over fishing, dams, and global climate change have
led to a decline in the health of estuaries, making them one of the most threatened ecosystems on Earth.

A majority of pollutants find their way into estuaries from non-point sources

Threats to Coral Reefs

Chemical pollutants

Excess nutrients

Sedimentation

Coral bleaching

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Coral diseases

Climate change and ocean acidification

Overfishing

Climate Changes
Sea Level Rise
Temperature
Precipitation
Health Impacts
Weather-related Mortality

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Air Pollution and Climate Change Impacts

SC

OR
E

Infectious Diseases
Air Quality-Respiratory Illnesses
Agriculture Impacts
Crop yields
Irrigation demands
Water Resource Impacts
Changes in water supply
Water quality

Notes

Increased competition for water

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Impacts on Coastal Areas

Erosion of beaches
Inundate coastal lands
Costs to defend coastal communities
Species and Natural Areas
Shift in ecological zones
Loss of habitat and species
Acid Rain
A mixture of wet and dry deposition (deposited material) from the atmosphere containing higher than
normal amounts of nitric and sulfuric acids

Wet depositionrefers to acidic rain, fog, and snow

Dry deposition occurs where environment is dry and the arid chemicals are incorporated into the dust or
smoke sticking to surfaces of buildings, ground, cars and trees. As it is washed off by rain, it leads to
acidic runoff

About half of the acidity in the atmosphere falls back to earth through dry deposition

pH of acid rain is typically about 5.6

Effects of Acid Rain

SC

OR
E

Surface water in lakes, rivers, streams becomes more acid

Damages forests at high elevations

Damages building materials and paints

Affects human health

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Nuclear Pollution
Nuclear pollution is pollution that is radioactive.

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Fallout can lead to radiation sickness and death.

Nuclear fallout can destroy environmental features and animal life.

Fukushima Daiichi Disaster (2011)

Climate Change Issues

Greenhouse Effect - warming that results when the atmosphere traps heat radiating from Earth toward space.
The Earth gets energy from the sun in the form of sunlight.

The Earths surface absorbs some of this energy and heats up.

Thats why the surface of a road can feel hot even after the sun has gone downbecause it has absorbed
a lot of energy from the sun.

The Earth cools down by giving off a different form of energy, called infrared radiation.

But before all this radiation can escape to outer space, greenhouse gases in the atmosphere absorb some
of it, which makes the atmosphere warmer.

As the atmosphere gets warmer, it makes the Earths surface warmer, too.

The earths temperature is dependent upon the greenhouse-like action of the atmosphere, but the amount
of heating and cooling are strongly influenced by several factors just as greenhouses are affected by various
factors.

GS

SC

OR
E

In the atmospheric greenhouse effect, the type of surface that sunlight first encounters is the most
important factor.

Forests, grasslands, ocean surfaces, ice caps, deserts, and cities all absorb, reflect, and radiate radiation
differently.

Sunlight falling on a white glacier surface strongly reflects back into space, resulting in minimal
heating of the surface and lower atmosphere.

Sunlight falling on a dark desert soil is strongly absorbed, on the other hand, and contributes to
significant heating of the surface and lower atmosphere.

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Cloud cover also affects greenhouse warming by both reducing the amount of solar radiation reaching
the earths surface and by reducing the amount of radiation energy emitted into space

Atmospheric gases water vapor (H2C), carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide
(N2C, all act as effective global insulators

The negative concerns are related to the possible impacts of anenhancedgreenhouse effect caused
by excess pollutants going into the air.

Terrestrial Issues

Desertification

Deforestation

Soil pollution

Waste Disposal

Mining

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SC

OR
E

Ozone Depletion - ozone layer is deteriorating due to the release of pollution containing the chemicals chlorine
and bromine (chlorofluorocarbons or CFCs)

Desertification
Desertification is an expansion of arid conditions into a non-arid environment.

Major causes of desertification include

Notes

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Overgrazing & poor grazing management

Cultivation of marginal lands

Deforestation

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Destruction of vegetation in arid regions

Expanding human population

Urbanization

Incorrect irrigation practices leading to

salinization

Environmental protection as a low priority

Most endangered regions are near the worlds five

main deserts
o

Sonoran
Desert
which
lies
in
NorthwestMexicoand the SouthwestUnited
States

Atacama Desert inSouth America

Kalahari Desert in Southern Africa

most of Australia

the large desert mass made up by the Sahara, Arabian, Great Indian, Taklimakan, Gobi and the
deserts of Iran and the former Soviet Union.

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Deforestation

OR
E

Deforestation the permanent destruction of indigenous forests and woodlands for agricultural or exportation.
Causes include

Conversion of forests to agricultural land to feed people Development of cash crops and cattle raising esp.
in tropical countries

Commercial logging that is not regulated

Poor soils in humid tropics do not support agriculture for long so more clearing becomes necessary

Forest Terminology

GS

Old Growth Forest: one that has never been cut down

Second Growth: area previously harvested

Plantations or Tree Farms: remaining forests

Silviculture: management of forest plantations to harvest lumber

Clear-Cutting: removal of all trees in a n area significant environmental problems

Selective-Cutting: removal of selected trees leaving majority of habitat in place

Shelter-Wood Cutting: cutting only mature trees and leaving younger trees to reseed the forest.

Agroforest: trees and crops are planted together for symbiotic relationships

Green-Belts: open forested areas where no one is permitted to build

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Types of Forest Fires

Surface Fires: burn only forests underbrush but dont damage trees

Crown Fires: damage canopies of trees and spread quickly

Ground Fires: smoldering fires that take place in bogs or swamps and can burn under ground for days

Deforestation Rates in the US US Forest Service

The United States lost an average of 384,350 hectares (949,750 acres) of forest each year between 1990
and 2010.

A total of almost 4 million hectares (10 million acres) of timber is harvested each year, but most of that
timber regenerates and remains classified as forested land, albeit at a different successional stage.

The deforestation here refers to lands that are converted from forest to some other purpose.

Deforestation could increase in the future because tree pests and diseases such as bark beetles are becoming
more prevalent in the face of climate change.

OR
E

GS

SC

Soil Pollution

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

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Solid waste seepage

Most common chemicals involved in causing soil pollution are:

Petroleum hydrocarbons

Heavy metals

Pesticides

Solvents

Negative Effects on Human Health

Effects on Growth of Plants

o

Ecological Balance is affected

Soil Chemistry changes

Fungi and bacteria found in soil decline

Nitrogen fixing bacteria decline

OR
E

Effects of Soil Pollution

Decreased soil fertility and decrease soil yield

Toxic Dust from landfills pollute the environment

Changes in Soil Structure death of soil organisms as earthworms lead to alteration in soil structure

SC

Farming Practices

Negative environmental impacts from unsustainable farming practices include:

Land conversion & habitat loss

Wasteful water consumption

Soil erosion and degradation

Pollution

Climate change

Genetic erosion

GS

Fertilizers and Pesticides

Insects, weeds, and plant
diseases are serious
threats that destroy
crops

Drainage of fertilizers
and pesticides into water
supplies has negative
environmental effects

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Nitrogen fertilizers in lakes and oceans causes euthrophication and dead zones

Use of artificial fertilizers can eventually deplete soil of organic matter reducing their ability to hold water
and making them subject to erosion

Pesticides can have negative effects on human health from over-exposure

Effects of pesticides can be compounded as you go up the food chain as with DDT

Herbicides used in agriculture can be highly toxic to wildlife

Organic methods of farming do not use chemical pesticides and fertilizers

There are plants which remove the pollutants from the soil

There are organisms which can control pests

Waste Disposal
Waste, or rubbish, trash, junk, garbage is an unwanted or undesired material or substance.

It may consist of the unwanted materials left over from a manufacturing process (industrial, commercial,
mining or agricultural operations,) or from community and household activities.

The material may be discarded or accumulated, stored, or treated (physically, chemically, or biologically),
prior to being discarded or recycled.

Waste Categories

Solid Waste or Municipal Waste commonly known as trash

Regulated Medical Waste (RMW) potentially infectious or biohazardous waste

RCRA Hazardous Waste - hazardous pharmaceuticals, bulk chemotherapeutic agents, mercury, xylene
and other solvents, some paints, aerosol cans etc

Nuclear Waste radioactive materials

Universal Waste batteries, pesticides, mercury-containing equipment, bulbs or lamps

Recyclables - paper, cardboard, beverage and food containers, metal and glass

Construction and Demolition Debris as ceiling tiles, plumbing fixtures, carpeting, concrete, bricks, fill
dirt, etc.

Composting material as grass, weed clippings, tree limbs, branches, waste from vegetable produce,
bread and grains, and paper products as napkins and paper plates

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SC

Methods of Waste Disposal

Notes

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E

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Landfill

Incineration

Recycling Methods

Biological Processing

Energy Recovery

Avoidance and Reduction Methods

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Mining - Environmental Risks

Mining: excavation of the earth for the purpose of extracting ore or minerals

Metallic minerals: zinc, copper

Non-Metallic minerals: salt, precious gems

Mineral Deposit: where a particular mineral is concentrated

Surface Mining: starting from the top down and mining for minerals or oil deposits results in permanent
scaring of the land and changing land features

Tailings: a waste created from mining operations (usually consists of acids, sulfur compounds)

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SC

OR
E

Population Growth Issues

Urbanization

Habitat Destruction

Farming Practices

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Fertilizers & Pesticides

Urbanization

Public Health

Food Supply

Freshwater

Coastlands and Oceans

Forests

Biodiversity and Habitat Destruction

Global Climate Change

Habitat Fragmentation & Destruction:

OR
E

Concerns:

Habitatdestruction and fragmentation is a process that describes the emergences of discontinuities (fragmentation)
or the loss (destruction) of the environment inhabited by an organism. Causes include:
Conversion to human-made uses: urbanization, deforestation, etc.

fragmentationnatural geographic ranges are cut up due to construction, farming, etc

Simplificationclearing and cleaning up land areas of natural debris; stream channelization, etc.

Intrusioninterference with species: telecommunication lighted towers attracting migrating birds, casing
collisions and entanglement in wires, etc.

It results in

SC

Loss of resident species

Loss of food sources

Loss of ecosystem functions provided by the habitat

Biodiversity Threats

GS

Types of Biodiversity:
o

Genetic diversity varies in the genetic make-up among individuals within a single species

Species diversity variety among the species or distinct types of living organisms found in different
habitats of the planet

Ecological diversity variety of forests, deserts, grasslands, streams, lakes, oceans, wetlands, and
other biological communities

Causes:
Habitat loss & Fragmentation

Climate Change

Over use and exploitation

Notes

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o
o

nonsustainable agricultural practices: over-cultivation, etc.

overfishing

excessive hunting

illegal poaching

illegal exotic species trade

Construction, farming, etc.

o

simplificationclearing and cleaning up land areas of natural debris; stream channelization, etc.

intrusioninterference with species: telecommunication lighted towers attracting migrating birds,

casing collisions and entanglement in wires, etc.

Human population explosion

Pollution
o

land and water pollution: pesticides, toxic waste, oil spills, eutrophication of water, pathogens from
human waste

air pollution and related issues: NO2, SO2, acid deposition; ozone depletion, GHG (Greenhouse
gases)

SC

OR
E

deforestation

Exotic (invasive alien) species introduction can be accidental or deliberate (ornamentation, horticulture,
aquaculture) can take over an area, competing with native species for resources.

Steps taken by India:

National Lake Conservation Programme:

Recognizing the importance of urban lakes in particular, the Ministry of Environment and Forests launched
a National Lake Conservation Programme in 2001, exclusively aimed at restoring the lakes in different
parts of the country.

The objective of the scheme is to restore and conserve the urban and semi-urban lakes of the country
degraded due to waste water discharge into the lake and other unique freshwater eco-systems, through an
integrated ecosystem approach.

The scheme operates on a funding pattern of 70:30 cost-sharing between the Central and the participating
State Governments.

GS

1.

Activities Covered Under NLCP

In situ measures of lake cleaning such as de-silting, de-weeding, bioremediation, etc.

Catchment area treatment which may include afforestation, storm water drainage, silt traps etc.

Strengthening of bund, lake fencing, shoreline development, etc.

Lake front eco-development, including public interface.

Solid waste management & provision of dhobi ghats is generally not covered under NLCP.

Prevention of pollution from non-point sources by providing low-cost sanitation.

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Public awareness and public participation.

Capacity building, training and research in the area of Lake Conservation.

Any other activity depending upon location specific requirements.

2.

National Ganga River Basin Project (NGRBA)

The proposed World Bank assisted National Ganga River Basin Project (NGRBP) envisages two main
components.
Component One: Institutional Development (US$ 200 million)
Objectives
The objectives of this component are to:
build functional capacity of the NGRBAs operational institutions at both the central and state levels; and

provide support to associated institutions for implementing the NGRBA programme.

OR
E

The activities financed under this component are grouped under the following sub-components:

NGRBA Operationalization and Programme Management

Technical Assistance for ULB Service Providers

Technical Assistance for Environmental Regulators

Objective

SC

Component Two: Priority Infrastructure Investments (US$ 1,270 million)

The objective of this component is to finance demonstrative infrastructure investments to reduce pollution
loads in priority locations on the river.

The majority of investments are expected to be in the wastewater sector, particularly in wastewater
treatment plants and sewerage networks.

Investments will also be supported in industrial pollution control and prevention (e.g. common effluent
treatment plants), solid waste management (e.g. collection, transport and disposal systems), and river front
management (e.g. improvement of the built environment along river stretches, improvement of small
ghats and electric crematoria, and the conservation and preservation of ecologically-sensitive sites).

Many investments are likely to combine elements of more than one of these sectors.

3.

National Mission For Green India

The National Mission for a Green India was announced by the Prime Minister as one of the eight
Missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).

The Green India Mission puts the greening in the context of climate adaptation and mitigation, aiming
to enhance ecosystem services like carbon sequestration and storage (in forests and other ecosystems),
hydrological services and biodiversity; along with provisioning services like fuel, fodder, timber and NTFPs.

GS

Mission Objectives
Increased forest/tree cover on 5 m ha of forest/non-forest lands and improved quality of forest cover on
another 5 m ha (a total of 10 m ha).

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Improved ecosystem services including biodiversity, hydrological services and carbon sequestration as a
result of treatment of 10 m ha.

Increased forest-based livelihood income of about 3 million households living in and around the forests.

Enhanced annual CO2 sequestration by 50 to 60 million tonnes in the year 2020.

Key Elements of Mission Strategy

Holistic view to greening (broader than plantations): The scope of greening will go beyond trees and
plantations to encompass both protection and restoration. Emphasis will be placed on restoration of
degraded ecosystems and habitat diversity, for example, grassland and pastures (more so in arid/semi-arid
regions), mangroves, wetlands and other critical ecosystems. The greening will not only strive to restore
degraded forests, but will also contribute in the protection and enhancement of forests with relatively
dense forest cover.

Vulnerability and Potential as criteria for intervention: Criteria for selection of project areas/sublandscapes/sub-watersheds under the Mission will include projected vulnerability to climatic change,
potential of areas for enhancing carbon sinks and the significance of the area from ecosystem services
angle, such as biodiversity and hydrological services.

Integrated cross-sectoral approach to implementation: The Mission will foster an integrated approach
that treats forests and non-forest public lands as well as private lands simultaneously, in project units/
sublandscapes/ sub-watersheds. Livelihood ependencies, for example firewood needs and livestock grazing,
will be addressed using inter-sectoral convergence (e.g. livestock, forest, agriculture, rural development, and
energy).

Significance of the Mission

SC

OR
E

Ameliorating climate: Over the past decades, national policies of conservation and sustainable management
have transformed the countrys forests into a net sink of CO2. From 1995 to 2005, carbon stocks stored
in our forests were estimated to have increased from 6245 million tonnes to 6622 m tones thereby
registering an annual increment of 37.68 million tones of carbon or 138.15 million tonnes of CO2
equivalent.

Food security: Forests are essential for maintaining favourable and stable conditions needed for sustained
agricultural productivity. Also, forests provide food directly in the following categories: fruits, flowers,
leaves, stems, seeds, roots, tubers, mushrooms, etc.

Water security: Forests are vital for maintaining the hydrological cycle and regulating water flows and subsoil water regimes, recharging the aquifers and maintaining the flow of water in rivers and rivulets.

Livelihood security of local communities: Forests provide a range of provisioning services, particularly
fuel-wood, fodder, small timber, NTFP and medicinal plants, and artisanal raw material like canes and
bamboo that are crucial to livelihood security of forest-dependent communities. Nearly 27% of the total
population of India, comprising 275 million rural people, depends on forests for its livelihood. This
number includes 89 million tribal people, who constitute the poorest and most marginalized section of the
country.

4.

Coastal Regulation Zone

GS

Notes

To protect and conserve the coastal environment the Ministry of Environment and Forests has issued Coastal
Regulation Zone Notification on February 19, 1991 under Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. Some of the
major issues with regard to the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, 1991 are-

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Stipulates uniform regulations all along the 5500 kms of the coastline of the mainland and 2000 kms of
the coastline of islands of Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep.

The Indian coastline, including that of the Islands of Andaman & Nicobar and Lakshadweep are highly
diverse in terms of geomorphological and geological features, hydrodynamics conditions, demographic
patterns, biodiversity and natural resources.

This fragile coastline is under severe pressure due to increased developmental economic activities and also
impacts of climate change i.e. increased frequency of cyclones, floods, etc. and sea level rise.

The Coastal Regulation Zone Notification is a land based Notification which regulates developmental
activities in the inter tidal area and 500mt on the landward side. Whereas, the coastal area and the
ecosystems such as coral reefs, mangroves, fisheries, etc. are dependent upon the coastal waters.

The Coastal Regulation Zone Notification does not provide for steps to be taken in view of the natural
hazards such as cyclones, storms, surges, etc.

No concrete steps are indicated in the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification with regard to the pollution
from land-based activities that has serious impacts on the coastal and marine environment.

Several stretches of the coastline is undergoing serious to moderate erosion because of various anthropogenic
activities and natural events. The Coastal Regulation Zone Notification does not take into account these
issues.

The restrictive nature of the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification has caused hardships to the communities/
people living in certain coastal stretches which includes the slum dwellers and people living in unsafe
buildings in Mumbai, communities living in islands within backwaters of Kerala, local communities along
Goa and the traditional inhabitants living within ecologically sensitive areas.

The Coastal Zone Management Plan is critical to the implementation of the Coastal Regulation Zone
Notification. Lack of clarity and non-availability of the Coastal Zone Management Plans to the communities
has been instrumental in causing hardship to the communities. In addition, this has been one of the
reasons for increase in violation of the Notification.

The Ministry of Environment and Forests has issued the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, 2011
which takes into account all the above issues in a comprehensive manner, including the recommendations
made in Final Frontier and the outcome of the eleven consultations held in various coastal States and
Union territories.

GS

SC

OR
E

Objectives of Draft CRZ Notification, 2011

to ensure livelihood security to the fisher communities and other local communities, living in the coastal
areas,

to conserve and protect coastal stretches, its unique environment and its marine area, and

to promote development through sustainable manner based on scientific principles taking into account the
dangers of natural hazards in the coastal areas, sea level rise due to global warming.

The current notification has several new positive features:

It widens the definition of CRZ to include the land area from HTL to 500 m on the landward side, as
well as the land area between HTL to 100 m or width of the creek, whichever is less, on the landward
side along tidal-influenced water bodies connected to the sea.

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The CRZ also includes, for the first time, water area up to 12 nautical miles in the sea and the entire water
area of a tidal water body such as creek, river, estuary without imposing any restrictions of fishing
activities. Thus, the main change in the scope of regulation has been to expand the CRZ to include
territorial waters as a protected zone.

The concept of a hazard line has been introduced. While the notification merely states that the hazard
line will be demarcated by the Ministry of Environment and Forests MoEF through the Survey of India,
by taking into account tides, waves, sea level rise and shoreline changes, this concept owes its introduction
to the realisation of natural disasters such as tsunami and floods that may take place in this zone.

In May 2010, the MOEF signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Survey of India for undertaking
this exercise over a period of four-and-a-half years, at an estimated cost of Rs 125 crore.

The concept of classification of CRZ into four zones has continued in the 2011 notification with the
following delineation:
CRZ I- ecologically sensitive areas such as mangroves, coral reefs, salt marshes, turtle nesting ground
and the inter-tidal zone.

2.

CRZ II- areas close to the shoreline, and which have been developed.

3.

CRZ III- Coastal areas that are not substantially built up, including rural coastal areas.

4.

CRZ IV- water area from LTL to the limit of territorial waters of India

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1.

A new category called areas requiring special consideration has been created which consists of (i) CRZ
areas of Greater Mumbai, Kerala and Goa, and (ii) Critically vulnerable coastal areas such as Sunderbans.

With respect to the list of prohibited activities, one of the most important changes has been that of
expanding the list of exceptions to the rule prohibiting setting up of new industries and expansion of
existing industries. While the earlier exception was limited to those activities which required access to the
water front, four other exceptions have been now incorporated which include:

SC

Projects of Department of Atomic Energy;

2.

Facilities for generating non-conventional energy sources and desalination plants, except for CRZ-I
zones on a case-by-case basis after doing an impact assessment study;

3.

Development of greenfield airport permitted only at Navi Mumbai; and

4.

Reconstruction, repair works of dwelling units of local communities, including fishers in accordance
with local town and country planning regulations.

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1.

Project Tiger

Project Tiger Scheme has been under implementation since 1973 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of
Government of India.

The impetus behind Project Tiger is to ensure a viable population of tiger in India for scientific, economic,
aesthetic, cultural and ecological values and to preserve for all time, areas of biological importance as a
natural heritage for the benefit, education and enjoyment of the people.

Main objectives under the scheme include wildlife management, protection measures and site-specific ecodevelopment to reduce the dependency of local communities on tiger reserve resources.

Initially, the Project started with 9 tiger reserves, covering an area of 16,339 km2, with a population of
268 tigers.

Notes

5.

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At present, there are 39 tiger reserves covering an area of 53,547 km2, with a population of 1706 tigers.
This amounts to almost 1.63% of the total geographical area of the country. Project Tiger is undisputedly
a custodian of major gene pool. It is also a repository of some of the most valuable ecosystem and
habitats for wildlife.

Tiger Reserves In India (State wise)

2. Kaziranga (Assam)

3. Nameri (Assam)

4. Nagarjunasagar (Andhra)

5. Namdapha (Arunachal)

6. Pakke (Arunachal)

7. Valmiki (Bihar)

8. Indravati (Chhattisgarh)

9. Undanti-Sitandadi (Chhattisgarh)

10. Achanakmar (Chhattisgarh)

11. Palamau (Jharkhand)

12. Periyar (Kerala)

13. Parambikulam (Kerala)

14. Bandipur (Karnataka)

15. Bhadra (Karnataka)

16. Dandeli-Anshi (Karnataka)

17. Nagarhole (Karnataka)

18. Tadoba-Andhari (Maharashtra)

19. Pench (Maharashtra)

20. Melghat (Maharashtra)

21. Bandhavgarh (M.P)

22. Kanha (M.P)

23. Satpura (M.P)

24. Panna (M.P)

25. Sanjay-Dubri (M.P)

26. Pench (M.P)

27. Dampa (Mizoram)

28. Satkosia (Orissa)

29. Simlipal (Orissa)

30. Ranthambhore (Rajasthan)

31. Sariska (Rajasthan)

32. Mudumalai (TamilNadu)

33. Kalakad-Mundanthurai (Tamil Nadu)

34. Anamalai (Tamil Nadu)

35. Corbett (Uttarakhand)

36 Dudhwa (Uttar Pradesh)

37. Buxa (West Bengal)

38. Sunderbans (West Bengal)

39. Sahyadri (Maharashtra)

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1. Manas (Assam)

Tiger Reserves are constituted on a corebuffer strategy. The core area is kept free of biotic disturbances
and forestry operations, where collection of minor forest produce, grazing, human disturbances are not
allowed within. However, the buffer zone is managed as a multiple use area with twin objectives of
providing habitat supplement to the spillover population of wild animals from the core conservation unit,
and to provide site specific eco-developmental inputs to surrounding villages for relieving their impact on
the core.

Except for the National Parks portion if contained within, normally no relocation of villages is visualised
in the buffer area, and forestry operations, NTFP collection and other rights and concessions to the local
people are permitted in a regulated manner to complement the initiatives in the core unit.

India is one of the thirteen tiger range countries and has the largest number of source sites with wild tigers.
As far as the scale of implementation of Project Tiger and the diverse habitats under its coverage are
concerned, the project has no parallel in the contemporary world.

GS

What have been the Major Achievements?

Project Tiger has saved the endangered tiger from extinction, and has put the species on an assured path
to recovery by improving the protection and status of its habitat.

The core buffer strategy of Project Tiger has provided scope for eliciting local public support through sitepecific eco-development in the buffer/fringe areas.

The Project has contributed towards several intangible environmental benefits to society, such as absorption
of carbon dioxide, improvement of micro climate, rainfall and river flow.

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The Project has generated considerable wages for the benefit of fringe-dwelling communities, who are
deployed as local work force for protection.

While conserving the flagship species, the Project has saved several other species of plants and animals
from extinction.

The local communities are benefiting from eco-tourism apart from eco developmental inputs in fringe
areas.

Recent Initiatives
Strengthening of anti-poaching activities, including special strategy for monsoon patrolling, by providing
funding support to tiger reserve states, as proposed by them, for deployment of anti-poaching squads
involving ex-army personnel/home guards, apart from workforce comprising local people, in addition to
strengthening of communication/ wireless facilities.

Declaration of nine new tiger reserves and in-principle approval accorded for creation of four new reserves
- Biligiri in Karnataka, Pilibhit in Uttar Pradesh, Ratapani in Madhya Pradesh and Sunabeda in Orissa.

The revised Project Tiger guidelines have been issued to states for strengthening tiger conservation, which
apart from ongoing activities, include funding support to states for enhanced village rehabilitation package
for people living in core or critical tiger habitats (from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 10 lakh per family), rehabilitation
of communities involved in traditional hunting, mainstreaming livelihood and wildlife concerns in forests
outside tiger reserves and fostering corridor conservation through restorative strategy to arrest habitat
fragmentation.

A Global Tiger Forum of Tiger Range Countries has been created for addressing international issues
related to tiger conservation.

As part of active management to rebuild Sariska and Panna tiger reserves where tigers have become locally
extinct, reintroduction of tigers have been done.

6.

Project Elephant

Asian elephants were believed to be widely distributed-from Tigris - Euphrates in West Asia eastward
through Persia into the Indian sub-continent, South and Southeast Asia, including Sri Lanka, Java, Sumatra,
Borneo and up to North China. However, currently they are confined to Indian Subcontinent, South East
Asia and some Asian Islands -Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Malaysia.

About half of the Asian elephant population is in India.

Current distribution of wild elephant in India is confined to South India; North East, including North West
Bengal; Central Indian states of Orissa, South WB and Jharkhand; and North West India in Uttarakhand
and UP.

Project Elephant (PE) was launched by the Government of India in the year 1992 as a Centrally Sponsored
Scheme with the following objectives :

SC

GS

1.

To protect elephants, their habitat & corridors

2.

To address issues of man-animal conflict

3.

Welfare of domesticated elephants

The Project is being mainly implemented in 13 States/UTs, viz. Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh,
Assam, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Uttar
Pradesh and West Bengal. Small support is also being given to Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh.

Notes

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Main activities under the Project are as follows:

Ecological restoration of existing natural habitats and migratory routes of elephants;

Development of scientific and planned management for conservation of elephant habitats and viable
population of Wild Asiatic elephants in India;

Promotion of measures for mitigation of man elephant conflict in crucial habitats and moderating pressures
of human and domestic stock activities in crucial elephant habitats;

Strengthening of measures for protection of wild elephants form poachers and unnatural causes of death;

Research on Elephant management related issues;

Public education and awareness programmes;

Eco-development;

Veterinary care

7.

Project Snow Leopard

Project Snow Leopard is a manifestation of the Government of Indias resolve to conserve biodiversity
with community participation. They are at the apex of ecological pyramid, suffer the most on account
of relatively smaller population size and also because of man-animal conflict. This situation further gets
aggravated by the hostile landscape forming its habitat. Referring to its globally-endangered species status
as well as the most important flagship species of the mountain region, the government informed that Snow
Leopard has been included in the list of species under Recovery Programme to be funded through the
umbrella scheme of integrated Development of Wildlife Habitats.

There are more than 26 protected areas in the Himalayan landscape where snow leopard is reported.
However, areas outside protected areas are equally important for a long range species like Snow Leopard.

To give it the same status of importance in the high altitude as that of Tiger in the terrestrial landscape,
the ministry has launched the Project Snow Leopard in the country.

The project will be operational in five Himalayan States viz. Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh,
Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh with active support from Wildlife Institute of India and the
Mysore based Nature Conservation Foundation.

The project stresses on a landscape approach to conservation wherein smaller core zones with relatively
conservation values will be identified and conserved with support and the larger landscape will be managed
in such a way that it allows necessary development benefits to the local communities.

For facilitating effective planning and action, the project will set up enabling administrative mechanisms
from the village duster level to the Central Government. At the Central level, a Steering Committee
chaired by Director General of Forests & Special Secretary to the Government of India will help guide
the project. Each State will have a State Snow Leopard Conservation Society that will coordinate work
by the Landscape level Implementation Committees, which in turn will coordinate work by the village
Wildlife Conservation Committees.

The Project Snow Leopard is an innovative project that would help to arrest species decline in the Indian
high altitudes and would lead to conservation based on sound scientific plans and local support. Species
such as Snow Leopard, Asiatic Ibex, Tibetan Argali, Ladakh Urial, Chiru, Takin, Serow and Musk Deer
will particularly benefit from this project.

Notes

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REDD+

Deforestation and forest degradation, through agricultural expansion, conversion to pastureland, infrastructure
development, destructive logging, fires etc., account for nearly 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions,
more than the entire global transportation sector and second only to the energy sector.

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) is an effort to create a financial
value for the carbon stored in forests, offering incentives for developing countries to reduce emissions from
forested lands and invest in low-carbon paths to sustainable development.

REDD+ goes beyond deforestation and forest degradation, and includes the role of conservation,
sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

Countries that reduce emissions and undertake sustainable management of forests will be entitled to
receive funds and resources as incentives.

REDD+ works on the basis of creating a financial value for the carbon stored and enhanced in the
biomass and soil of standing forests.

The REDD+ approach incorporates important benefits of livelihoods improvement, biodiversity conservation
and food security services.

OR
E

8.

REDD+ & INDIA

India has more than 70 m ha under forest cover with four global biodiversity hotspots, and is one of the
17 megadiverse countries.

India recognizes that conserving, expanding and improving the quality of our forests is a major national
priority. This has enormous domestic and transnational mitigating benefits. Not only it is a cost-effective
and efficient way to mitigate the effects of climate change, but it also improves Indias water security,
safeguards its rich biodiversity and provides livelihood security for millions of Indians.

India will gain a lot from REDD+ as it has opened avenues to get compensation for the efforts of proconservation and sustainable management of forests, which will result in further increase of forest cover
and consequently forest carbon stocks.

The incentives which will be received from REDD+ would be passed on to the local communities which
are involved in forest conservation. The REDD+ initiative will help local Indian communities as it clearly
safeguards their rights.

It is estimated that India could provide capture of more than 1 billion tonnes of additional CO2 over the
next 30 years and will gain US$ 3 billion as carbon service incentives.

India has been insisting on following a comprehensive and holistic approach in realizing the full potential
of mitigation in the forestry sector. Indias stand was finally accepted in 13th Meeting of the Conference
of Parties (COP 13) at Bali, when elements of conservation, sustainable management of forests and
enhancement of forest carbon stocks were added to the then existing text of reducing deforestation and
forest degradation as part of the Bali Action Plan.

India has started an ambitious Green India Mission under the National Action Plan on Climate Change
with a budget of Rs 46,000 crore over a period of 10 years. The objective of the Mission is to increase
forest and tree cover in 5 m ha of land and improve quality of forest cover in another 5 m ha. Thus, the
Mission will help in improving ecosystem services in 10 m ha of land, and increase the flow of forestbased livelihood services and the income of about 3 million forest dwellers.

Notes

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India has made a submission to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
on REDD, sustainable management of forest and afforestation and reforestation in December 2008.

A technical group has been set up to develop methodologies and procedures to assess and monitor
contribution of REDD+ actions.

A National REDD+ Coordinating Agency is being established.

A National Forest Carbon Accounting Programme is being institutionalized.

India is hosting the Conference of Parties (COP-11) of the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2012,
to coincide with 20 years of Rio.

A report on the study of the impact of climate change on Indias forests assigned to the Indian Network
for Climate Change Assessment, has been released in November 2010. In the year 2030, 8-56% of forests
are likely to experience a change in vegetation type with respect to those observed in the 1970s. There
is likely to be an increase in net primary productivity ranging from 20% to 57%.

Important Environmental Conventions:

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Basel Convention:

The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their
Disposal, usually known as the Basel Convention, is an international treaty that was designed to reduce
the movements of hazardous waste between nations, and specifically to prevent transfer of hazardous
waste from developed to less developed countries (LDCs).

It does not, however, address the movement of radioactive waste.

The Convention is also intended to minimize the amount and toxicity of wastes generated, to ensure their
environmentally sound management as closely as possible to the source of generation, and to assist LDCs
in environmentally sound management of the hazardous and other wastes they generate.

The Convention was opened for signature on 22 March 1989, and entered into force on 5 May 1992.

As of January 2015, 182 states and the European Union are parties to the Convention.

Haiti and the United States have signed the Convention but not ratified it.

Obligations:

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SC

1.

In addition to conditions on the import and export of the above wastes, there are stringent requirements
for notice, consent and tracking for movement of wastes across national boundaries.

It is of note that the Convention places a general prohibition on the exportation or importation of wastes
between Parties and non-Parties.

The exception to this rule is where the waste is subject to another treaty that does not take away from
the Basel Convention.

The Convention states that illegal hazardous waste traffic is criminal but contains no enforcement provisions.

2.

Convention on Biological Diversity:

The Convention has three main goals:

conservation of biological diversity (or biodiversity);

Notes

i.

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ii.

sustainable use of its components; and

iii. fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources

In other words, its objective is to develop national strategies for the conservation and sustainable use of
biological diversity. It is often seen as the key document regarding sustainable development.

The Convention was opened for signature at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro on 5 June 1992 and
entered into force on 29 December 1993.

Nagoya Protocol:
The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits
Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity is a supplementary agreement to
the Convention on Biological Diversity.

It provides a transparent legal framework for the effective implementation of one of the three objectives
of the CBD: the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.

The Protocol was adopted on 29 October 2010 in Nagoya, Aichi Province, Japan, and entered into force
on 12 October 2014.

Its objective is the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources,
thereby contributing to the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.

OR
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Cartagena Protocol:

The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to the Convention on Biological Diversity is an international treaty
governing the movements of living modified organisms (LMOs) resulting from modern biotechnology
from one country to another.

It was adopted on 29 January 2000 as a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological

Diversity and entered into force on 11 September 2003.

Parties:

GS

SC

One hundred and ninety-five states and the European Union are parties to the convention. All UN
member stateswith the exception of the United Stateshave ratified the treaty.

Non-UN member states that have ratified are the Cook Islands, Niue, and the State of Palestine.

The Holy See and the states with limited recognition are non-parties.

The US has signed but not ratified the treaty, and has not announced plans to ratify it.

Conference of the parties:

The conventions governing body is the Conference of the parties (COP), consisting of all governments
(and regional economic integration organizations) that have ratified the treaty.

This ultimate authority reviews progress under the Convention, identifies new priorities, and sets work
plans for members.

The COP can also make amendments to the Convention, create expert advisory bodies, review progress
reports by member nations, and collaborate with other international organizations and agreements.

The Conference of the Parties uses expertise and support from several other bodies that are established
by the Convention.

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In addition to committees or mechanisms established on an ad hoc basis, two main organs are:

Secretariat: The CBD Secretariat. Based in Montreal, it operates under the United Nations Environment
Programme.

Its main functions are to organize meetings, draft documents, assist member governments in the
implementation of the programme of work, coordinate with other international organizations, and collect
and disseminate information.

Subsidiary body for Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA): The Subsidiary Body on
Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA). The SBSTTA is a committee composed of
experts from member governments competent in relevant fields.

COP 12- 2014:

The twelfth ordinary meeting of the parties to the convention takes place October 2014, in Pyeongchang,
Republic of Korea.

The theme, Biodiversity for Sustainable Development,

From October 617, 2014, parties discussed the implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity
2011-2020 and its Aichi Biodiversity Targets, which are to be achieved by the end of this decade.

The results of Global Biodiversity Outlook 4, the flagship assessment report of the CBD informed the
discussions.

The conference gave a mid-term evaluation to the UN Decade on Biodiversity (2011-2020) initiative,
which aims to promote the conservation and sustainable use of nature.

At the end of the meeting, participants adopted the Pyeongchang Road Map, which addresses ways to
achieve biodiversity through technology cooperation, funding and strengthening the capacity of developing
countries.

COP 13- 2016:

GS

SC

OR
E

The thirteenth ordinary meeting of the parties to the convention takes will take place December 2016 in
Los Cabos, Baja California South, Mexico.

3.

Bonn Convention:

The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals - more commonly abbreviated
to just the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) or the Bonn Convention-aims to conserve terrestrial,
marine and avian migratory species throughout their range.

It is an intergovernmental treaty, concluded under the aegis of the United Nations Environment Programme,
concerned with the conservation of wildlife and habitats on a global scale.

The Convention was signed in 1979 in Bad Godesberg, a suburb of Bonn (hence the name), and entered
into force in 1983.

The CMS is the only global and UN-based intergovernmental organization established exclusively for the
conservation and management of terrestrial, aquatic and avian migratory species throughout their range.

The CMS Family covers a great diversity of migratory species. The Appendices of CMS include many
mammals, including land mammals, marine mammals and bats; birds; fish; reptiles and one insect.

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Appendix I Threatened Migratory Species:

Migratory species threatened with extinction are listed on Appendix I of the Convention.

Parties that are Range States to Appendix I species are obliged to afford them strict protection.

CMS Parties strive towards strictly protecting these animals, conserving or restoring the places where they
live, mitigating obstacles to migration and controlling other factors that might endanger them.

Besides establishing obligations for each State joining the Convention, CMS promotes concerted action
among the Range States of many of these species.

Appendix II Migratory Species requiring international cooperation:

Migratory species that need or would significantly benefit from international co-operation are listed in
Appendix II of the Convention.

These species, either individually or by taxonomic group, are the basis for establishing instruments
regional or global under CMS.

For this reason, the Convention encourages the Range States to conclude global or regional Agreements.

4.

Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants:

It is an international environmental treaty, signed in 2001 and effective from May 2004, that aims to
eliminate or restrict the production and use of persistent organic pollutants (POPs).

Key elements of the Convention include the requirement that developed countries provide new and
additional financial resources and measures to eliminate production and use of intentionally produced
POPs, eliminate unintentionally produced POPs where feasible, and manage and dispose of POPs wastes
in an environmentally sound manner.

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) are organic chemical substances. They possess a particular
combination of physical and chemical properties such that, once released into the environment, they:

i.

remain intact for exceptionally long periods of time (many years);

ii.

become widely distributed throughout the environment as a result of natural processes involving soil,
water and, most notably, air;

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OR
E

iii. accumulate in the fatty tissue of living organisms including humans, and are found at higher concentrations
at higher levels in the food chain; and are toxic to both humans and wildlife.
POPs concentrate in living organisms through process of bioaccumulation. Though not soluble in water,
POPs are readily absorbed in fatty tissue, where concentrations can become magnified by up to 70,000
times the background levels.

Fish, predatory birds, mammals, and humans are high up the food chain and so absorb the greatest
concentrations.

Specific effects of POPs can include cancer, allergies and hypersensitivity, damage to the central and
peripheral nervous systems, reproductive disorders, and disruption of the immune system.

Some POPs are also considered to be endocrine disrupters, which, by altering the hormonal system, can
damage the reproductive and immune systems of exposed individuals as well as their offspring; they can
also have developmental and carcinogenic effects.

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Minamata Convention on Mercury :

It is an international treaty designed to protect human health and the environment from anthropogenic
emissions and releases of mercury and mercury compounds.

This Convention was a result of three years of meeting and negotiating, after which the text of the
Convention was ratified by delegates from 140 countries on January 19, 2013.

The Convention is named after the Japanese city, Minimata. This naming is of symbolic importance as
the city went through devastating incident of mercury poisoning.

The convention has prohibited a myriad of products containing mercury, and their production and trade
will be altogether prohibited by 2020.

These products include batteries, compact fluorescent lamps, switches and relays, soaps and cosmetics,
thermometers, and blood pressure devices.

Furthermore, delegates went as far as prohibiting vaccines containing mercury, as well as dental fillings
which use mercury amalgam.

The biggest mercury release comes from coal-fired power stations and usage of mercury to separate gold
from ore-bearing rock.

OR
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5.

Mercury from the factories is released into a river system.

The Convention requires countries to come up with plans to reduce the amount of mercury used by gold
miners.

The treaty will also organize and support financially mercury awareness campaigns by which it will give
support for mercury-free alternatives.

6.

CITES:

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as
the Washington Convention is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals.

It was drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of members of the International
Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

The convention was opened for signature in 1973, and CITES entered into force on 1 July 1975.

Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the
survival of the species in the wild, and it accords varying degrees of protection to more than 35,000
species of animals and plants.

CITES is one of the largest and oldest conservation and sustainable use agreements in existence.

Participation is voluntary, and countries that have Funding for the activities of the Secretariat and Conference
of the Parties (CoP) meetings comes from a Trust Fund derived from Party contributions.

CITES works by subjecting international trade in specimens of selected species to certain controls.

All import, export, re-export and introduction from the sea of species covered by the Convention has to
be authorized through a licensing system.

Notes

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Appendices:
Roughly 5,000 species of animals and 29,000 species of plants are protected by CITES against overexploitation through international trade.

Appendix I, about 1200 species, are species that are threatened with extinction and are or may be affected
by trade. Commercial trade in wild-caught specimens of these species is illegal (permitted only in exceptional
licensed circumstances).

Appendix II, about 21,000 species, are species that are not necessarily threatened with extinction, but may
become so unless trade in specimens of such species is subject to strict regulation in order to avoid
utilization incompatible with the survival of the species in the wild.

Appendixes III, about 170 species, are species that are listed after one member country has asked other
CITES Parties for assistance in controlling trade in a species. The species are not necessarily threatened
with extinction globally.

7.

The Ramsar Convention:

The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, called the Ramsar Convention, is an

intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for
the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.

The treaty was adopted in the Iranian city of Ramsar in 1971 and came into force in 1975.

The Ramsar definition of wetlands is fairly wide, including areas of marine water the depth of which
at low tide does not exceed six meters as well as fish ponds, rice paddies and salt pans.

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The Conventions mission is:

OR
E

the conservation and wise use of all wetlands through local and national actions and international cooperation,
as a contribution towards achieving sustainable development throughout the world

ii.

uses a broad definition of the types of wetlands covered in its mission, including lakes and rivers, swamps
and marshes, wet grasslands and peatlands, oases, estuaries, deltas and tidal flats, near-shore marine areas,
mangroves and coral reefs, and human-made sites such as fish ponds, rice paddies, reservoirs, and salt pans.

The Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance now includes 1,869 sites (known as Ramsar
Sites) covering around 1,836,000 km, up from 1,021 sites in 2000.

The country with the highest number of Sites is the United Kingdom at 170 and the country with the
greatest area of listed wetlands is Bolivia, with over 140,000 km2 (54,000 sq mi).

GS

i.

What are wetlands?

Wetlands are areas where the water table is at or near the surface of the land, or where the land is covered
by water. The Ramsar Convention takes a broad approach in determining the wetlands which come under its
aegis.
Five major wetland types are generally recognized:
Marine (coastal wetlands including coastal lagoons, rocky shores, and coral reefs);

Estuarine (including deltas, tidal marshes, and mangrove swamps);

Lacustrine (wetlands associated with lakes);

Riverine (wetlands along rivers and streams); and

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Palustrine (meaning marshy - marshes, swamps and bogs).

Why to conserve wetlands?

Wetlands are among the worlds most productive environments. They are cradles of biological diversity,
providing the water and primary productivity upon which countless species of plants and animals depend for
survival. They support high concentrations of birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish and invertebrate
species. Wetlands are also important storehouses of plant genetic material.
Wetlands provide tremendous economic benefits, for example: water supply (quantity and quality); fisheries
(over two thirds of the worlds fish harvest is linked to the health of coastal and inland wetland areas);
agriculture, through the maintenance of water tables and nutrient retention in floodplains; timber production;
energy resources, such as peat and plant matter; wildlife resources; transport; and recreation and tourism
opportunities.
Montreux Record:
Montreux Record under the Convention is a register of wetland sites on the List of Wetlands of International
Importance where changes in ecological character have occurred, are occurring, or are likely to occur as
a result of technological developments, pollution or other human interference. It is maintained as part of
the Ramsar List.

The Montreux Record was established by Recommendation 4.8 of the Conference of the Contracting
Parties (1990).

Resolution 5.4 of the Conference (1993) determined that the Montreux Record should be employed to
identify priority sites for positive national and international conservation attention.

Sites may be added to and removed from the Record only with the approval of the Contracting Parties
in which they lie. A

s of September 2007, 59 Ramsar sites are present in the Montreux Record 23 sites which had been listed
on the Montreux Record have since been removed from it.

World Wetland Day:

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OR
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World Wetlands Day which is celebrated each year on 2 February, marks the date of the adoption of the
Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian
Sea.

World Wetlands Day was celebrated for the first time on February 2, 1997, on the 16th anniversary of
the Ramsar Convention.

8.

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC):

It is an international environmental treaty (currently the only international climate policy venue with broad
legitimacy, due in part to its virtually universal membership) negotiated at the United Nations Conference
on Environment and Development (UNCED), informally known as the Earth Summit, held in Rio de
Janeiro from 3 to 14 June 1992.

The UNFCCC was adopted on 9 May 1992, and opened for signature on 4 June 1992, after an
Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee produced the text of the Framework Convention as a report
following its meeting in New York from 30 April to 9 May 1992.

It entered into force on 21 March 1994. As of March 2014, UNFCCC has 196 parties.

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The objective of the treaty is to stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that
would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system.

The treaty itself set no binding limits on greenhouse gas emissions for individual countries and contains
no enforcement mechanisms.

In that sense, the treaty is considered legally non-binding. Instead, the treaty provides a framework for
negotiating specific international treaties (called protocols) that may set binding limits on greenhouse
gases.

Classification of Parties and their commitments:

As of 2014, the UNFCC has 196 parties including all United Nations member states, as well as Niue,
Cook Islands and the European Union. In addition, the Holy See and Palestine are observer states.

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Parties to the UNFCCC are classified as:

Annex I:

There are 43 Parties to the UNFCCC listed in Annex I of the Convention, including the European Union.

These Parties are classified as industrialized (developed) countries and economies in transition (EITs).

The 14 EITs are the former centrally-planned (Soviet) economies of Russia and Eastern Europe.

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Annex II:

There are 24 Parties to the UNFCCC listed in Annex II of the Convention, including the European Union.

These Parties are made up of members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
(OECD).

Annex II Parties are required to provide financial and technical support to the EITs and developing
countries to assist them in reducing their greenhouse gas emissions (climate change mitigation) and
manage the impacts of climate change (climate change adaptation).

Annex B:

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Parties listed in Annex B of the Kyoto Protocol are Annex I Parties with first- or second-round Kyoto
greenhouse gas emissions targets.

The first-round targets apply over the years 20082012. As part of the 2012 Doha climate change talks,
an amendment to Annex B was agreed upon containing with a list of Annex I Parties who have secondround Kyoto targets, which apply from 20132020. The amendments have not entered into force.

Least-developed countries (LDCs):

49 Parties are LDCs, and are given special status under the treaty in view of their limited capacity to adapt
to the effects of climate change.

Non-Annex I:
Parties to the UNFCCC not listed in Annex I of the Convention are mostly low-income developing
countries.

Developing countries may volunteer to become Annex I countries when they are sufficiently developed.

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Durban and Doha negotiations:

In 2011, parties adopted the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action.

As part of the Durban Platform, parties have agreed to develop a protocol, another legal instrument or
an agreed outcome with legal force under the Convention applicable to all Parties.

This new treaty is due to be adopted at the 21st COP, and implemented in 2020. The 21st COP is
scheduled to held in 2015.

At Durban and Doha, parties noted with grave concern that current efforts to hold global warming to
below 2 or 1.5 C relative to the pre-industrial level appear inadequate.

Kyoto Protocol:
The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty, which extends the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that commits State Parties to reduce greenhouse gases emissions, based
on the premise that (a) global warming exists and (b) man-made CO2 emissions have caused it.

The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997 and entered into force on 16
February 2005.

There are currently 192 Parties (Canada withdrew effective December 2012) to the Protocol.

The Kyoto Protocol implemented the objective of the UNFCCC to fight global warming by reducing
greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere to a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic
interference with the climate system (Art. 2).

The Protocol is based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities: it puts the obligation
to reduce current emissions on developed countries on the basis that they are historically responsible for
the current levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

The Protocols first commitment period started in 2008 and ended in 2012.

A second commitment period was proposed in 2012, known as the Doha Amendment, in which 37
countries have binding targets.

Flexibility mechanisms:

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The Protocol defines three flexibility mechanisms that can be used by Annex I Parties in meeting their
emission limitation commitments.

The flexibility mechanisms are International Emissions Trading (IET), the Clean Development Mechanism
(CDM), and Joint Implementation (JI).

IET allows Annex I Parties to trade their emissions (Assigned Amount Units, AAUs, or allowances
for short)

Carbon emissions trading:

It is a form of emissions trading that specifically targets carbon dioxide (calculated in tonnes of carbon
dioxide equivalent or tCO2e) and it currently constitutes the bulk of emissions trading.

This form of permit trading is a common method countries utilize in order to meet their obligations
specified by the Kyoto Protocol; namely the reduction of carbon emissions in an attempt to reduce
(mitigate) future climate change.

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Under Carbon trading, a country having more emissions of carbon is able to purchase the right to emit
more and the country having less emission trades the right to emit carbon to other countries.

More carbon emitting countries, by this way try to keep the limit of carbon emission specified to them.

Clean Development Mechanism (CDM):

It provides for emissions reduction projects which generate Certified Emission Reduction units which may
be traded in emissions trading schemes.

The purpose of the CDM is to promote clean development in developing countries, i.e., the non-Annex
I countries (countries that arent listed in Annex I of the Framework Convention).

The CDM is one of the Protocols project-based mechanisms; in that the CDM is designed to promote
projects that reduce emissions.

The CDM is defined in Article 12 of the Protocol, and is intended to meet two objectives:

i.

to assist parties not included in Annex I in achieving sustainable development and in contributing to the
ultimate objective of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which
is to prevent dangerous climate change; and

ii.

to assist parties included in Annex I in achieving compliance with their quantified emission limitation and
reduction commitments (greenhouse gas (GHG) emission caps).

The CDM addresses the second objective by allowing the Annex I countries to meet part of their emission
reduction commitments under the Kyoto Protocol by buying Certified Emission Reduction units from
CDM emission reduction projects in developing countries.

Joint implementation (JI):

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It is one of three flexibility mechanisms set out in the Kyoto Protocol to help countries with binding
greenhouse gas emissions targets (so-called Annex I countries) meet their obligations.

JI is described in Article 6 of the Kyoto Protocol. Under Article 6, any Annex I country can invest in
an emission reduction project (referred to as a Joint Implementation Project) in any other Annex I
country as an alternative to reducing emissions domestically.

In this way countries can lower the costs of complying with their Kyoto targets by investing in projects
that reduce greenhouse gas emissions in an Annex I country where reducing emissions may be cheaper,
and then using the resulting Emission Reduction Units (ERUs) towards their commitment goal.

A JI project might involve, for example, replacing a coal-fired power plant with a more efficient combined
heat and power plant.

Most JI projects are expected to take place in so-called economies in transition, noted in Annex B of
the Kyoto Protocol.

Currently Russia and Ukraine are slated to host the greatest number of JI projects.

Unlike the case of the Clean Development Mechanism, the JI has caused less concern of spurious
emission reductions, as the JI project, in contrast to the CDM project, takes place in a country which has
a commitment to reduce emissions under the Kyoto Protocol.

9.

Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer

It is a Multilateral Environmental Agreement. It was agreed upon at the Vienna Conference of 1985 and
entered into force in 1988.

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In terms of universality, it is one of the most successful treaties of all time, having been ratified by 197
states (all United Nations members as well as the Holy See, Niue and the Cook Islands) as well as the
European Union.

It acts as a framework for the international efforts to protect the ozone layer. However, it does not include
legally binding reduction goals for the use of CFCs, the main chemical agents causing ozone depletion.
These are laid out in the accompanying Montreal Protocol.

What is Ozone?

Ozone is a form of oxygen. Oxygen occurs in three different forms in the atmosphere; as oxygen atoms
(O), as oxygen molecules (O2) and as zone (O3). Ozones unique physical properties allow the ozone
layer to act as our planets sunscreen, providing an invisible filter to help protect all life forms from the
suns damaging UV (ultraviolet)rays.

Most incoming UV radiation is absorbed by ozone and prevented from reaching the Earths surface.
Without the protective effect of ozone, life on Earth would not have evolved the way it has.

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What is Ozone Depletion?

Ozone depletion occurs when the natural balance between the production and destruction of stratospheric
ozone is tipped in favour of destruction.

Although natural phenomenon can cause temporary ozone loss, chlorine and bromine released from
synthetic compounds is now accepted as the main cause of a net loss of stratospheric ozone in many parts
of the world since 1980.

There is strong evidence that global ozone depletion is occuring.

The evidence is in the observations of the Antratic ozone holeand atmospheric records indicating
seasonal declines in global ozone levels.

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Terms and purposes:

The treaty is structured around several groups of halogenated hydrocarbons that have been shown to play
a role in ozone depletion.

All of these ozone depleting substances contain either chlorine or bromine (substances containing only
fluorine do not harm the ozone layer).

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Ozone Depleting Substances:

CFC and HCFCs - mostly used in refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump systems. Only HCFCs
can continue to be used for a limited period of time.

Halons - used historically as fire suppression agents and fire fighting, but now only allowed in very limited
situations

Carbon tetrachloride (Tetrachloromethane) - limited solvent use in laboratories and chemical and
pharmaceutical industry.

1,1,1,-trichloroethane - limited solvent use in laboratories and chemical and pharmaceutical industry.

Methyl bromide - historically used in fumigation, soil treatment, pest control, quarantine, market gardening.
Methyl bromide is no longer registered for use in Ireland.

Hydrobromofluorocarbons - historically used in fire suppression systems and fire fighting.

Bromochloromethane - historically used in the manufacture of biocides.

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