RESEARCH ON ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION

Twenty five years after the promulagation of the Water ( Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act 1974, the first comprehensive legislation on environmental pollution in the country, we have come a long way in this field. To overview the environmental research in the country and to define the priorities for the next millenium, Environmental Monitoring Training & Research Centre, a Delhi based NGO had organised a conference on "Retrospect of Indian Research on Environmental Pollution : Focus 21^st Century". The Conference was co-sponsored by CPCB and was inaugurated by Sh. K.C. Pant, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission. His inaugural speech is presented below, which gives an idea of the Planning Commission’s views on prevention and control of environmental pollution.

Inaugural Speech Delivered by Sh. K.C.Pant:

"As the new millennium approaches, we face new challenges. We have to continue to improve our economic growth rate, provide basic minimum life support services to a large section of our population and deal with the problems of poverty nd unemployment. At the same time, we have to pay attention to conserving our natural resources and also improving the status of our environment. Environmental degradation, which was not much of a concern until quite recently, has started to accelerate, particularly in urban areas. We will need to tackle this in a holistic manner in order to ensure sustainability, both economically and environmentally. This, in short, is the task before the country, and in particular its planners and policy-makers."

"Although the issue of environmental sustainability has formally entered the international agenda only after the Earth Summit, which was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, it has been an integral part of Indian planning and policy-making for at least two decades prior to that. The Fourth Five Year Plan, which was launched in 1969, clearly articulated the need to harmonise our development plans with the preservation of the environment. Subsequent Plans have reaffirmed and given concrete shape to strategies for addressing this concern. Indeed, Agenda 21 of the Rio declaration to a substantial extent reiterates and emphasises the approach that has been articulated in Indian Plans for quite some time."

"The fact that Indian planners and policy-makers expressed concern about environmental issues long before it became fashionable to do so is neither strange nor unusual, since it is deeply rooted in our cultural traditions. To Indian philosophy, the bounties of Nature are as much to be nurtured as used for the benefit of mankind. Protection and regeneration and inherently more desirable in Indian ethos wanton destruction and exploitation."

To quote the Ishopanishad - one of our oldest religious and philosophical texts:

''All in this manifested world, consisting of moving and non-moving, are covered by the Lord. Use its resources with restraint. Do not grab the property of others - distant and yet to come.''

"The global and inter-generational concerns expressed by our forefathers are only today finding an echo in the modern discourse on ecology and environment."

"But philosophy and ethics, while important in shaping attitudes, are subservient to survival instincts. The noble sentiments expressed by our philosophers and saints, and embodied as objectives in our Development Plans, have been overtaken by the pressure of population growth and development needs. Population pressure and poverty together form a potent combination that can undermine all ethical considerations and can severely distort the valuation of the interests of the present generation relative to that of the future. The resultant severe shortening of the operative time horizon and the ready availability of technologies which can quickly and cheaply meet immediate needs through exploitative use of resources form an unholy nexus which is difficult to resist. Our best-laid plans and comprehensive legislative framework for environmental protection have not succeeded in reversing the deterioration in our environmental endowments of air, water, solid and life forms."

"Despite our increasing green consciousness, hazardous wastes are being dumped on land indiscriminately, coastal areas and deep seas are getting increasingly polluted, pesticides and other chemical pollutants continue to contaminate the rivers and ground water and noxious gases are being continuously released into the atmosphere. We are consuming fossil fuels at higher rates to meet the energy demands, arising out of increasing economic activity. Deforestation and degradation of natural habitats is yet another issue of concern."

"According to some reports, ambient air quality is alarming in many urban and semi-urban areas. The time series data for 1995-98 on ambient air quality recorded for 23 cities reveals that the Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) levels remain critical (above 210 mg/m³) in 12 cities. Even in small to medium towns, such as Indore, Ahmedabad, Patna, Ludhiana, etc, the SPM levels are very high and, in some cases, they are higher than even the levels in the metro cities. The costs imposed on society by such pollution are staggering. One study by National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) for Delhi has estimated that human health damage costs due to air pollution along is Rs. 1168 million/year and vegetation production losses are Rs. 321 million/year."

"Rural areas are facing another threat, that of indoor pollution. Studies indicate that the levels of pollutants inside rural houses, especially in the kitchens, are quite significant due to poor ventilation and use of thermally inefficient chullhas as also due to use of poor fuels such as cow dung, fire wood, kerosene etc. It is recently estimated that 82% of Sulphur Dioxide, 38% of Nitrogen Dioxide, 88% of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) and 96% of Particulate Matter emissions in the country come from the household sector. These lead to higher indoor concentrations of pollutants, adversely affecting the health of people, especially women and children."

"The country's water resources are also facing problems of pollution leading to high occurrence of water borne diseases. Even today about 200 million people in India do not have access to safe drinking water. Most of our water resources are polluted with untreated/partially treated wastes from industry, domestic sewage and fertilizer/pesticide runoff from agricultural fields. About 1.5 million children die each year due to water related diseases only. The problem of water pollution is being faced both in river water as well as ground water. The main cause of groundwater pollution is leaching and percolation of pollutants, including heavy metals, from industry. Contamination from agricultural runoff contains high amounts of pesticides and insecticides. Lack of proper sewage treatment and disposal facilities is another problem that is contributing to water pollution. About 75% of the wastewater produced is from the domestic sector, but the sewerage facilities are inadequate in most cities and almost absent in rural India. Only 25% of class I cities have wastewater collection, treatment and disposal facilities. Only 20% of wastewater generated in class I cities and 2% in class I towns is treated. The problem is compounded by depletion of the water table due to over-exploitation of ground water. Ground water pollution is a matter of serious concern as 80% of domestic water needs are met from this source."

"Major rivers in our country too are facing pollution due to sewage disposal and industrial effluents flowing directly into them. Besides these, the non-point sources of pollution, which are even more difficult to monitor and control, include agricultural non-offs, dhobi ghats and cattle wallowing. As a result of pollution, even the river Ganga is unfit for bathing at some stretches."

"The increase in noise levels leading to noise pollution is quite alarming and if unchecked may impair hearing ability. Noise pollution has reached a high level in most of the metropolitan cities in many residential and commercial areas and even in the 'silent zones'."

"The problem of land degradation has arisen mainly because of the changes in land use pattern over the years, wherein large tracts of fertile agriculture and forest land have been diverted for urbanisation and settlements. Excessive soil erosion with consequent high rate of sedimentation in the reservoirs and decreased land fertility has become a serious environmental problem with disastrous economic consequences."

"One must understand that economic activities have a direct bearing on the natural and environmental resources. Excessive and indiscriminate use of natural resources and energy leads to pollution. Activities involving processes like extraction, manufacture, transport, consumption and disposal add some stress to the environmental and affect its assimilative capacity by adding wastes to it. When such activities are carried out inefficiently, the impact is much higher."

"Government of India has been making efforts at tackling the problem of pollution, and its policy on environment is reflected in the various policy statements on Abatement of Pollution, National Conservation Strategy and Environment and Development. Control of vehicular pollution, which is a major source of air pollution in cities, has received considerable attention. In Delhi, a programme to phase our 15 years and older vehicles has started since November 1998. A phased programme on Improvement of fuel quality is also underway and unleaded petrol has been introduced in Metro Cities and State Capitals. Sulphur in diesel supplied in Delhi and the Taj Trapezium has been reduced to 0.25% since 1997. These steps have resulted in reduction of the pollution load of Delhi. Lead levels have come down by as much as 97% from the 1995-96 levels, which is a very encouraging trend. This programme is coupled with tightening of vehicle emission norms. We have notified the India 2000 and modified India 2000 norms for vehicle emissions, which are at par with the Euro I & II norms respectively. In Delhi, India 2000 norms have been enforced since 01 June 1999 and the modified India 2000 would come into force from 01 April 2000. At the National Level, India 2000 norms would be enforced from 01 April 2000."

"To tackle the problem of pollution from industries, an Industrial Pollution Control Project, with the assistance from the World Bank, was initiated in 1991, with the objective of strengthening the technical capability of State Pollution Control Boards of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. Under this project loans were provided to industries for installing effluent treatment plants in clusters of industries for pollution control. Another World Bank assisted project on Industrial Pollution Prevention is underway with the objectives of strengthening SPCBs of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and to provide technical assistance and facilitate priority investments by encouraging and promoting the development and adoption of clean technologies including water reuse and recycling."

"To control the problem of river pollution, the National River Conservation Plan now covers 18 major rivers in 19 States of the country. Programmes on Interception and Diversion works, Sewage Treatment Plants, Low Cost Sanitation schemes, Electric Crematoria and schemes of River Front Development have been initiated and are at various stages of completion. River action plans now seek to promote low cost technologies and greater people's participation for greater impact in controlling pollution. To tackle the problem of water pollution from agriculture sector, sustainable agronomical practices and use of bio-pesticides and bio-fertilisers needs to be encouraged."

"Government has from time to time enacted a number of laws for environmental protection. Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, The Hazardous Wastes (Management & Handling) Rules, 1989 and National Environment Tribunal Act, 1995 are some of the important legislative measures. However, despite having a number of laws, their implementation has remained rather weak in checking pollution and degradation of the environment. Special courts have not yet been set up in all the States for expeditious disposal of pollution related cases. Continuous monitoring of polluting industries is another weak area where further efforts are required."

"Administrative and legal measures for controlling emissions, while important in themselves, are no substitutes for appropriate pricing regimes, on the one hand, and development of requisite technologies, on the other. Since energy usage has strong externalities through its impact on the environment, there is good economic rationale to tax energy consumption in a manner so as to encourage a shift towards more energy-efficient technologies. Similarly, pollution taxes can also be persuasive instruments for transitioning to more environment-friendly technologies and practices. These new Market Based Instruments for control and abatement of pollution will need to be implemented to supplement our traditional approach. However, for such measures to be successful without adversely affecting our pace of growth and development, the necessary technologies must exist and must be available at reasonable costs. This is the challenge before us."

"Cleaning the environment has the potential of acquiring the status of an industry but would require large-scale promotion of R & D. There exist a number of possibilities in various sectors where pollution levels could be reduced but these suffer for want of advanced technologies, which could only be developed through research. In the energy sector, new technologies for environmentally sound energy systems, including new and renewable energy sources and nuclear energy, improving energy efficiency, improving environmental management in mining are potential areas for research where substantial reduction in pollution could be achieved. In the transport sector, which contributes greatly to air pollution through vehicular emissions, research for technology improvement by developing efficient multi-valve engines, catalytic converters and microprocessors to maintain air fuel ratio etc could yield good results in abating pollution. Enhancing productivity and minimising wastes through efficiency improvement programmes would lead to substantial reduction in waste generation thereby directly reducing pollution. The need to develop cleaner production systems in many processing industries and improving productivity acquires importance for research. India has a large potential to generate electricity through wind and solar power. In fact solar electricity generation technologies are promising future options for renewable energy supply. An outcome of greater use of wind and solar technology would be the mitigation of carbon emissions. These environmentally friendly technologies are only at a nascent stage of development and it would require adequate research inputs to perfect these technologies. These are some of the key areas where research in our country should focus in the coming years."

"Despite having a very elaborate educational and scientific network of Universities and Research Institutions, crucial research gaps exist in many areas. There is no doubt that research will play a very crucial and constructive role not only in finding solutions for environmental problems. What we need is a partnership of public and private sector cooperation in this field."

"The process of transfer of internationally proven technology in this field has to be considered on a separate footing, considering its impact on humanity as a whole. Mandated emission levels, which can be achieved only by application of specific technologies, automatically confer monopolistic powers on the holders of the technology and enable them to earn unjustified rent. This is iniquitous. Since the environment is of concern to all, there is no justification for some to earn large rents at the cost of the vast majority. Fair return on technological development must of course be there, but nothing beyond. The Global Environmental Fund (GEF) attempts to tackle this issue in part, but a partial reimbursement is not a corrective for the essential distortion. Mechanisms need to be evolved to ensure both the development of technologies and their dissemination at fair non-distorting prices. There is a case for transferring these technologies at variable incentive prices to countries with the highest potential for controlling damaging emissions."

"At the dawn of a new millennium, as India continues to surge ahead on her path of development, while maintaining its cultural and traditional ethos, research and development will play a crucial role in almost all sectors, but nowhere more so than in the protection of our environment. India would continue to reaffirm its commitment to the solution of environmental problems facing humanity today. It has great confidence in the capabilities of its scientific manpower, which is one of the best in the world. The presence here today of academicians, researchers, environmental professionals, industrialists, policy makers and NGOs together under a common roof is indicative enough of our determination to tackle the problem of environmental pollution and lead our people to a cleaner and greener century."

"I extended my best wishes for the success for this conference, and hope that collectively, you will be able to achieve the objectives set before you. I am confident that the conference would identify crucial research gaps and would propose ways and means to plug these gaps. I also hope that the views and findings presented in the conference would be widely disseminated."