Climate chabger

Climate engineering,

also known as geoengineering, describes a diverse & largely hypothetical array of technologies & techniques for intentionally manipulating the global climate, in order to moderate or forestall some of the effects of climate change.

It is commonly divided into 2 approaches:

• Designed to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere: A prominent example is carbon capture & storage (CCS). Another method for removing CO2 from the atmosphere is to increase forest cover

• Designed to reflect sunlight away from Earth. Among the techniques being considered are marine cloud brightening, cirrus cloud manipulation & stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI).

International Mechanism

• Kyoto protocol of 1997 first international agreement of its kind to reduce emissions.

• Under the Paris Conference on Climate change (COP21), developed & developing countries alike are required to limit their emissions to relatively safe levels, of 2 ̊C with an aspiration of 1.5

• India’s Intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) include reduction in the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 per cent by 2030 from 2005 level & to create an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3bn tonne of CO2 equivalent through additional

forest & tree cover by 2030.

• 175 GW of renewable power by 2022;

Though useful to prevent climate change, emission reduction approach is criticized on various grounds:

• Absence of major emitters of GHGs in Kyoto protocol ‐For eg. USA didn’t ratify the protocol. In 2011 Canada formally withdrew

• $100 billion a year were pledged by rich nations in 2009 at Copenhagen summit (16% till now)

• Paris Agreement commits to ‘mobilizing’ $100 billion per year by 2020, short of what is required.

• The Paris deal requires no emissions reductions from countries before 2020.

• The budgetary allocation in India for achieving the 175GW renewable energy is inadequate.

In view of the above facts, Climate engineering approaches must be viewed as potential options.

Similarly, the Green India Mission aims at increasing the forest/ tree cover by 5 million.

Climate change

Climate change is the long‐term alteration of temperature and normal weather patterns. Current climate change is occurring due to global warming which in turn is due to increase in concentration of global warming.

Impact on agriculture & food security in India:

• Significant increase in variability of monsoon rainfall would be detrimental for agriculture & food security, as approx 65% is rainfed agric.

• Water stressed north India which is major rice and wheat producing area.

• Floods, cyclones, tsunamis can lead to loss of farmland by inundation & increasing salinity of groundwater in coastal areas.

• Drought can cause failure of crops, like witnessed in Maharashtra.

• lack of proper storage facility & perishability of food items, food security challenge during disaster.

Following steps can be helpful in ensuring adequate & affordable food supply in crisis:

• DRR planning must be included in national agriculture development plans.

• Transportation facilities be upgraded to ensure that food is supplied to all regions affected.

• Remote sensing technology should be adopted in aspects of agricultural crop management.

• Information attained through satellite data about cropping system analysis can help

• focus on prediction & forecasting of extreme events deal with impending disasters. IMD, ISRO

Coal reserves

India, with close to 300 bn tonnes of coal reserves, has one of the biggest coal reserves in the world. Still, imported around 200 million tonne (MT) of coal last FY to top up domestic production of 640 MT.

Challenges:

• lack of coking coal reserves in India that is used as raw material in steel making & allied industry. (Import from Indonesia, SA, Russia & Australia).

• Indian coal has high ash content (20 to 35 %). Tertiary Coal, has high sulphur content (3‐7%). Scientific techniques are required to remove this.

• More than 90% of the coal is transported through railways. Inefficiency creates many problems.

• The coal mining techniques are old & outdated where major part of the work is still manual.

• Policy & other bottlenecks such as nonoperationalization of captive mines, subsequent cancellation of coal block allocation & non‐receipt on environmental clearances have also acted as roadblocks.

All these factors have meant that there has been a steady increase in net imports from 37 MT in 2005‐06 to 200 MT in 2015‐16.

Social commitments vis‐à‐vis INDC commitments

Coal mining, transportation, energy generation etc have adverse impact on the environment, directly or indirectly.

India’s INDC

• improve emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35% by 2030 below 2005 levels

• increase the share of non‐fossil fuels‐based electricity to 40 per cent by 2030.

• enhance its forest cover which will absorb 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) by 2030.



Importance of Coal:

• Cheap form of energy

• 80% power plant based on coal

• Poverty reduction and economic development.

There is also need to work towards cleaner coal based technology like Coal‐to‐liquid (CTL) technology to reduce emissions and fulfill INDC



Carbon sequestration (CS)

CS refers to the long term storage of carbon (usually that carbon that has the immediate potential to become CO2 gas) in plants, soils, oceans & other geological formations. It can be natural or artificial.

Natural carbon sequestration:

• Natural CS is a continuous cycle of absorption of atmospheric CO2 and its release.

• Animals, plants (at night), forest fires, volcanic eruptions etc. release CO2 while the forests, oceans, oil/ gas reservoirs & biomass are the carbon sinks that absorb/ store it.

• Photosynthesis imp for CO2 absorption.

Of the carbon emitted to the atmosphere by human activities, only 45% remains in the atmosphere; about 30% is taken up by the oceans, & the remainder is incorporated into terrestrial ecosystems.



Artificial Carbon Capture & Storage involves capturing waste carbon dioxide (CO2) from large point sources, such as power plants, transporting it to a storage site, & depositing the CO2 to atmospherically‐isolated locations, usually an underground reservoir for long term storage.

Artificial CCS has been gaining prominence due to the following factors:

• Using natural CS ways is a slower process & also competes with other land‐use purposes.

• mitigating contribution of fossil fuel emissions to global warming & rectifying ocean acidification.

Attracted attention of private players & is seen as profitable business venture by some firms.

• Artificial CCS has immense potential to increase the agricultural yield & enhanced oil recovery.

• Supply chain for CCS will create large variety of jobs. Risks are associated with artificial CCS

• IPCC has estimated that CCS would increase the cost of electricity by about one to five cents.

• It is relatively unexamined & its side effects are still unknown. For instance, Lake Nyos (Cameroon, Africa) disaster, where limnic eruption (dissolved carbon dioxide (CO2) suddenly erupting from deep lake waters) produced huge amount of CO2 killing hundreds of people & livestock.

• Since it deals with compression & transportation of CO2, therefore, it is costly & energy intensive.

• Process of ocean sequestration will make oceans acidic, affecting marine life in unknown ways.



Forest Fires:

In early 2016, states of Uttarakhand & Himachal Pradesh saw forest fires in April‐ May. Although forest fires can be natural, more than 95% of wildfires in India were man‐made.

In particular, the reasons can be as follows:

• Due to 1981 ban on felling of trees above 1000m elevation, real estate mafia use forest fires to dry up the trees.

• Replacement of fire resistant broadleaf trees with pine for commercial purposes.

• Migration of people from villages have left more fuel and needles for burning.

• Climate change is also affecting the forest fires.

• Encroachment of water bodies in region lowers the moisture level & increases vulnerability.

Efforts made by authorities have largely been reactive. For instance, funds released by the MOEFCC to the States & UTs under CSS namely, Intensification of Forest Management, have shown a declining trend in last years. Affects ability of State Gov, to deal with forest fires.

This has meant that there has been an overreliance on NDRF for fighting forest fires, which is not desirable in the long term. Therefore, there is a need is to develop a well‐defined mechanism to deal with forest fires via‐

• Need to cut down old pine trees so that broad‐based leave trees establish themselves again

• Regular removal of pine needles‐ using local help, Forest SHGs, linking the activity with MNREGA

• Modern fire‐fighting techniques like the Early Forest Fire Detection can be used.

• Mapping of Fire Vulnerable Zone & preventive measures be taken in most vulnerable zones.

• JFM involving local communities

Even though, periodic forest fires are associated with detrimental consequences, they are also beneficial in the following manner:

• It helps forests by promoting flowering, branching & seedling establishment. Many tree species actually require fire to germinate their seeds.

• Periodic forest fires help in forest growth regeneration. Forest fires return imp nutrients to the forest soil

Similarly, the heating of the soil may result in helpful microbial activity, & hasten decaying

As per State Forest Report (SFR) 2015, out of 70 million hectares of forest cover, more than 54% of forests are vulnerable to fire due to natural & anthropogenic causes.

• Forest fires destroy many acres of natural vegetation & cause significant damage to human habitations.

• It forces the animals to migrate or get extinct within a short span of time.

• It also leads to soil erosion & landslides, ash flows if accompanied by heavy rains occur in the aftermath of a forest fire.

Purposed Served by Forest Fire:

• Support new generations: Some species of trees & plants are actually fire dependent. Some trees have fire resistant bark & cones that require heat to open & release seeds for regeneration. For ex. Chaparral & grassland plants.

• Cleaning the forest floor: Fire removes low‐growing underbrush, cleans forest floor of debris, reduces resource competition by opening it up to sunlight, & nourishing soil.

• Prevents large fires: Clearing underbrush from forest floor with low intensity flames can help prevent large damaging wildfires that spread out of control & completely destroy forests.

• Provide habitat & increase biodiversity: Fire clears forests of heavy underbrush, leaving room for new grasses, herbs & regenerated shrubs that provide food & habitat for many wildlife species. When fire removes a thick st& of shrubs, water supply is increased, benefiting other types of plants & animals.

• Killing Disease: Fire kills diseases & insects that prey on trees & releases valuable nutrients, thus enriching the soil.

• Soil regeneration: After hill forest fires, fertilising ash from fire washes down to fields with monsoon rains which increases soil fertility.

Currently, India follows a no‐fire forest policy. Forest department has historically prevented forest fires in order to protect timber stocks. However, this one size fits all approach is not suited to Indian conditions because:

• Early dry season fires burn less hot, & are less detrimental to vegetation than peak dry season fires which burn much hotter. It also destroys invasive plants like lantana that act as a fuel for spread of fires in the Western Ghats region.

• By classifying forest fires as penal offence, forest department gradually legitimised forests as timber & wildlife production systems & ignored the cultural & livelihood significance of the forest ecosystem.

Thus, there is a need to relook at no fire policy & reorient it in the light of ecological & local knowledge systems.

Environment Impact Assessment (EIA)

Definition is an important tool for sustainable development. integration of environmental concerns into developmental process right at the initial stage of planning & suggesting necessary mitigation measures. This ensures optimal use of resources, minimum social & environmental risk.

• It involves collection of relevant data, consultation with experts, evaluation of projects, mandatory public hearing, preparation & submission of Environment Management Plan & a project report to the Ministry.

• However, EIA in India is not conducted in a proper manner. In fact, there are allegations that it is not even undertaken in some projects, for eg., certain constructions in Sardar Sarovar Project, Amaravati project etc.

EIA is mired in number of issues at various stages of impact assessment:

• Determining site ‐ Environmental consultants appointed by project proponent don’t have sufficient insight into prevailing socio‐economic & ecological problems of the site in most cases.

• Unclear Guidelines: Regarding the processes of screening & scoping in EIA Notification, 2006.

• Conducting study: The baseline data is often insufficient & application & prediction tools used are often inconsistent. Such as Sethusamudram project clearance overlooked the impact on supporting coral reef ecosystem through increased shipping activity.

• Public hearing: There is a generally lack of awareness among local people, but at times, the evidence of persons opposing the project is not even recorded.

• Project report: The report is not made in local language & sometimes it is not placed in public domain for scrutiny. For e.g. dam construction in Tawang district in Arunachal Pradesh which affected the wintering sites of blacknecked crane, a protected species whose name was not included in EIA project report.

• Monitoring & implementation: An audit report by CAG in 2017 on environmental clearances, reflected the non‐compliance of laws & laxity of regulation so much so that in 7% of cases, construction was commenced before the environmental clearance

Apart from these, EIA is generally conducted over short period of time which is inadequate to understand the existing environmental status & trends of the area. The aforementioned fallouts tend to reduce EIA to merely a bureaucratic procedure.

Dead zones / Hypoxia

Definition: regions with low oxygen levels (hypoxic), occurring in water bodies such as lakes & oceans.

• most organisms, that require oxygen to live, cannot survive in these conditions.

• the organisms compete with one another for the remaining oxygen & nutrients.

• Hypoxia generally follows algal blooms.

Reasons for formation of dead zones:

• Eutrophication is the main reason for formation of dead water zones.

Causes of Eutrophication:

• Agricultural run‐off fertilizers, animal waste, etc.

• Untreated wastewater from sewage & industry

• Overfishing that disturbs the marine food web

• Atmospheric nitrogen released by fossil fuel

• Population growth & associated activities

• CC may also lead to formation of dead zones.

Naturally occurring dead zones

• oxygenated water is only found in the upper portion of the sea.

• the lower regions remain oxygen deficient.

• Example, the largest dead zone in the world, the lower portion of the Black Sea, occurs naturally.

Impact of dead zones:

• Loss of marine life & resources, (benthic major)

• Large‐scale migration of fishes and other freeswimming marine organisms

• Economical, ecological and livelihood losses for coastal communities

• Human illness e.g. due to shellfish poisoning

Dead‐zones are reversible requiring all those measures that mitigate or control Eutrophication. Collective efforts such as industrial and wastewater controls are needed to stem its spread.

Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch

Definition: enormous collection of marine debris that is collected and deposited by ocean currents in the middle of the North Pacific Ocean. Trash mainly comprises of plastic debris and is both huge & widely scattered.

Factors responsible for its formation

• Circulating ocean currents in the North Pacific waters called sub‐tropical gyre continuously move in a clockwise direction carrying the trash and waste along in their path from the land to the middle of the North Pacific Ocean.

• The circular motion of the gyre draws debris into the center which is calm & stable, where it becomes trapped.

• Almost 80% of the debris in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch comes from land‐based activities in North America and Asia & the remaining 20% from boaters, offshore oil rigs, and large cargo ships

• The amount of debris in the patch accumulates since most of it is non‐biodegradable, mainly

microplastics.

Effects of garbage patch

Destruction of marine life due to ingestion of toxic and harmful substances both absorbed & leached out by plastics, thereby disturbing the marine food web.

• Marine mammals get entangled in the debris and get physically injured.

• Presence of the garbage blocks the sunlight from reaching the plankton and algae, thereby reducing productivity of marine ecosystem.

• It affects the free flow of traffic through oceans.

• All the above adversely affects the economic life‐ reduced fishing and hindrance to commerce.

Mitigation measures

• Restrictions on the use of toxic and nonbiodegradable plastic waste.

• Launch a clean‐up drive on the lines of climate change mitigation by some multi‐lateral

organization.

• Use surface currents to let debris drift to specially designed arms and collection platforms. This is a cost

effective method of ocean clean‐up.



Ozone Hole:

Definition: The Ozone hole formation is a phenomenon of seasonal thinning of the Ozone layer situated in the Stratosphere of Earth's atmosphere, allowing abnormal amount of Ultra Violet light to reach earth's surface in the regions.

Cause: The main cause is the excessive use of man‐made chemicals such as CFCs and other Ozone depleting substances (ODS) containing chlorine and bromine.

• These compounds are transported into the Stratosphere by the strong upwards moving air currents after being emitted at the earth‘s surface.

• Thereafter, Stratospheric air motions then transport these gases upward and toward the pole in both hemispheres where they release halogen atoms through photodissociation, which catalyze the breakdown of ozone (O3) into oxygen (O2).

• Ozone‐depleting substances are present throughout the stratospheric ozone layer. However, the severe depletion of the Antarctic ozone layer known as the ―Ozone hole. Occurs because of the special atmospheric and chemical conditions that exist there and nowhere else on the globe.

• Stratospheric air in the Polar Regions is relatively isolated from other stratospheric regions for long periods in the winter months. The isolation results because of strong winds that encircle the poles, forming a polar vortex, which prevents substantial motion of air into or out of the polar stratosphere.

• This circulation strengthens in winter as stratospheric temperatures decrease, particularly in Antarctica.

• The very low winter temperatures in the Antarctic stratosphere cause polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs) to form. Special reactions that occur on PSCs, combined with the relative isolation of polar stratospheric air, allow chlorine and bromine



reactions to produce the Ozone hole in Antarctic springtime.

• When winter temperature falls below ‐78 degree Celsius, (PSCs) exist in larger regions and for longer time periods in the Antarctic than the Arctic, thus concentrating the pollutants which are responsible for ozone layer depletion. And during Southern Hemisphere Spring (September to November), due to a particularly long period of high sunshine, the process speeds up and results into sharp decline of Ozone Cover (up to 60%) over the Antarctica region.

• Ozone depletion also occurs in Arctic region during Northern Hemisphere Spring (March‐May) but less depletion occurs in the region than Antarctica as the range of winter minimum temperatures found in the Arctic are much greater than in the Antarctic. As a result, PSC formation temperatures are not reached in the Arctic, and significant ozone depletion does not occur. While in the Antarctic, PSCs are present for many months, and causes severe ozone depletion.



Ozone occurs in two layers, stratospheric layer and in tropospheric layer. While ozone in stratosphere is essential for the survival of human beings, tropospheric ozone is considered as bad Ozone. It is formed near to the earth’s surface due to anthropogenic causes mostly.

It is considers called Bad Ozone due to following reasons:

• It can trigger a variety of health problems including chest pain, worsening bronchitis, asthma etc.

• Repeated exposure may permanently scar lung tissues.

• It also damages vegetation and ecosystem.

• It leads to reduced agricultural and commercial forests yield.

Reasons for formation of Bad Ozone (Tropospheric Ozone)

Ground level or bad ozone is not emitted directly into the air and is a secondary pollutant, created by chemical reactions between oxides of Nitrogen (NOx) and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) in the presence of sunlight especially during summers.

Emissions from industrial facilities and electric utilities, motor vehicle exhaust, gasoline vapour and chemical solvents are some of the major sources of NOx and VOC.

Reasons for ozone depletion (Stratospheric Ozone)

• Natural causes‐ Certain natural phenomena like sunspot, stratospheric winds and volcanic eruptions cause ozone depletion. But this has been found to cause not more than 1‐2% depletion of ozone layer and effects are also thought to be only temporary. Anthropogenic causes‐ The main cause for depletion of ozone layer is excessive release of chlorine and bromine from man‐made compounds such as CFCs,

Methyl chloroform, Carbon Tetrachloride, HCFCs etc.

National Ambient Air Monitoring Network

CPCB took initiative for developing a national Air Quality Index (AQI) for Indian cities.

AQI is a tool to disseminate information on air quality in qualitative terms (e.g. good, satisfactory, poor) as well as its associated likely health impacts. The formulation of the index was an initiative under Swachh Bharat Mission (Cleanliness Mission), based on the recommendations of IIT Kanpur and the Expert Group formed in this regard.

In India, National Air Quality Index (AQI) disseminates information on air quality in an easily understandable form for the general public.

The measurement of air quality is based on eight pollutants:

• Particulate Matter (size less than 10 µm) or (PM10), • Particulate Matter (size less than 2.5 µm) or (PM2.5),

• Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), • Sulphur Dioxide (SO2),

• Carbon Monoxide (CO),

• Ozone (O3),

• Ammonia (NH3), and

• Lead (Pb).

The index will be based on real time monitoring, and the health risks will be easily identified through a colour coded system. The risks will be signified through six levels – good, satisfactory, moderately polluted, poor, very poor, and severe.



Various ways to measure Air Quality:

• Ground monitoring stations: continuous ambient air quality monitoring (CAAQM) stations collect data of 8 pollutants. Example: SAFAR (System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting) in cities like Delhi.

• Use of satellite data for air pollution monitoring. It helps to monitor pollution even in areas where ground‐based network does not exist.

Conclusion:

Given air pollution issues in the country, Government has launched National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) A time bound national level strategy for pan India implementation to tackle the increasing air pollution problem across the country in a comprehensive manner.

E‐waste in India:

62 million tonnes of waste is generated annually in the country at present, out of which 5.6 million tonnes is plastic waste, 0.17 million tonnes is biomedical waste, hazardous waste generation is 7.90 million tonnes per annum and 15 lakh tonne is e‐waste.

Only about 75‐80% of the municipal waste gets collected and only 22‐28 % of this waste is processed and treated.

Waste generation will increase from 62 million tonnes to about165 million tonnes in 2030.

E‐waste in India:

• Even today, when India is among the world’s largest consumer of mobile phones with 1.5 million tonnes of e‐waste generated in 2015, most consumers are still unaware of how to dispose of their e‐waste.

• E‐waste is growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 30% in the country. Assocham estimated that e‐waste generation was 1.8 million metric tonnes (MT) per annum in 2016.

Many developing and emerging countries are faced with the major challenge of improving their inadequate and unsustainable waste management systems.

Why we need sustainable strategies?

• Waste must no longer be deposited in residential areas and uncontrolled landfills or end up on illegal rubbish tips and in waterways.

• It accumulates in the world’s oceans as marine litter, and is blown across continents and pulverized by the action of the wind, sun and waves.

• Plastic waste in particular does considerable damage to flora and fauna and finds its way into the human food chain in the form of micro‐particles.

• Since 80 per cent of the waste that ends up in the ocean originates from land‐based sources, uncontrolled waste deposits in waterways and oceans are largely the consequence of non‐existent or inadequate waste management. What are the sustainable strategies to address the problem of solid waste?

A multi‐pronged approach, including Technical, organisational and financial strategies for sustainable waste and resource management, is required.

• Waste‐to‐energy technologies

• Avoidance of marine litter

• Electronic waste

• EPR and “Reduce, Re‐use and Recycle”

• Economic instruments

• economic incentive systems can be developed to avoid or recycle waste ex‐ product taxation, deposit systems or user charges.

India’s Solid waste management rules, 2016 and E‐waste management rules, 2016 are good examples of sustainable strategies to problems of waste management.

Some of the salient features of SWM Rules, 2016 include: – Source segregation of waste and Responsibilities of

Generators has been mandated.

• Integration of waste pickers/ rag‐pickers and waste dealers/ Kabadiwalas in the formal system

• Generator will have to pay ‘User Fee’ to waste collector and for ‘Spot Fine’ for Littering and Nonsegregation

• New townships and Group Housing Societies have been made responsible to develop in‐house waste handling, and processing arrangements for biodegradable waste.

• Problems of construction and demolition waste, horticulture waste and garden waste and strategies to resolve them are also mentioned briefly in rules.

Some of the salient features of the E‐waste (Management) Amendment Rules, 2018 are as follows:

• Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR),

• onus on the producer for the management of the final stages of the life of its product, in an eco‐friendly way.

• global best practice to ensure the take‐back of the end‐of‐life products.

• ‘Producer Responsibility Organisation’ (PRO)

• to strengthen EPR further. Conclusion

• Waste disposal issues are exacerbated by changing patterns of consumption, industrial development and urbanisation; this in turn means that traditional systems for solid waste disposal and recycling are no longer appropriate.

• Strict implementation of the rule, creating adequate awareness, training for requisite skill sets and providing affordable technology to the informal sector could be a game‐changer.

• Up‐gradation of the informal sector to reach environmentally acceptable operations is need of the hour.

Namami Gange Programme

The Namami Gange Programme is an initiative of (MOWR), to make villages on the bank of river Ganga ODF along with interventions dealing with solid and liquid waste management (SLWM). It incorporates activities like sewage infrastructure, ghats & crematoria development, river front development, river surface cleaning, institutional development, biodiversity conservation, afforestation, rural sanitation, and public participation.

Achievements:

• Infrastructure development‐ Activities like sewage infrastructure, river‐front development, ghat and crematoria, ghat cleaning, rural sanitation, etc.

• Decentralization‐ Panchayat Raj Institutions (PRIs), Ganga Grams initiative.

• Mobilization of resources‐ private sector is given priority. The Hybrid Annuity‐PPP model has been adopted for the sewage sector.

• Knowledge dissemination and awareness building‐ Ganga Knowledge Centre (GKC) was established. Ganga Vichar Manch and Ganga Manthan were launched.

Shortcomings:

• Unused funds‐ As per a report from the CAG, Government had only used $260 million of the $1.05 billion earmarked for the flagship programme between April 2015 and March 2017.

• Delays‐ There have been delays, lapses or complete non‐implementation

• Slow Implementation‐ Attributable to delays in tendering, non‐ availability of land, legal issues, pending approvals etc. NGT recently slammed the government due to stretches between Haridwar and Unnao being “unfit for drinking and bathing”.

Financial issues

• Absence of a long‐term plan

• Technical and Engineering aspects‐ Treating the highly toxic sludge requires advanced treatment

technology.

• Poor inter‐agency cooperation

• Inability to keep pace with growing pollution loads Conclusion: To address the shortcomings in the implementation of the existing programmes to clean the Ganga, the proposed National River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management) Bill, 2017 should considered by the Parliament on a priority basis.

Permafrost

Permafrost is permanently frozen soil, and occurs mostly in high latitudes. Permafrost comprises 24% of the land in the Northern Hemisphere and also to a lesser extent in Southern Hemisphere, and stores massive amounts of carbon.

Impact of melting permafrost on global climate

• Researchers at the National Snow and Ice Data

Centre estimate that if, 60% of the Northern Hemisphere’s permafrost is melted, and it could release around 190 billion tons of carbon into the atmosphere. This amount is about half of all the carbon released in the industrial age.

• Albedo of Snow is high which helps balancing heat budget of earth melting of permafrost will disrupt the balance

• Health Risk: microbes that have been frozen in the permafrost for millennia can come back to life after the thaw. There has already been the re‐emergence of ancient viruses like anthrax, as recently discovered by French and Russian researchers.

• Roadways are warping and foundation shifting: Bethel, Alaska, roadways are literally rippling and warping as the ground beneath them becomes less solid. In other places, the melting permafrost is creating craters and sinkholes. Buildings can lose structural integrity and become unstable.

• Methane and Mysterious craters: Ice like mixtures of methane and water, trapped below and within the permafrost, expands as they warm, heaving up the ground until it erupts. This will be like a ticking time bomb.

• The upper air circulation due to polar winds might get effected .This will alter movement of temperate cyclones .

Few positive of perma frost melting could include

Reviving ancient plants which were frozen for longest time: In 2012 when researchers from the Russian Academy of Sciences sprouted three dozen Silene stenophylla, herby white tundra flowers, from 30,000‐year‐old fruits. Understand the origin of life by studying virus

Permafrost thaw may help archaeologists discover sites because the warming ground leads to erosion, which exposes

artefacts

New routes of communication can be discovered if countries stick to the Paris Agreement, holding global average temperature to 1.5 to 2 C (2.7 to 3.6 F) above preindustrial levels, then 55 to 70 percent of permafrost land area could be saved.

Mangroves

Mangroves are trees or large shrubs which are salt tolerant and grows in the intertidal zones in tropical and subtropical regions. These are rich in biodiversity and provide a large number of ecological services

Maximum concentration of mangroves is found between 5degree north to 5‐degree south of equator. Asia has the largest amount around 43 percent of world’s mangrove followed by Africa, North America, Oceania and South America

• Papua province of Indonesia archipelago

• Tarut island, Saudi Arabia

• Sundarbans mangroves, India



Role played by mangroves are as follows

• Biodiversity– provide nesting and breeding habitat for fish and shellfish, migratory birds, and sea turtles.

• Livelihoods‐ fishers and farmers depend on these natural environments

• Water‐ With their dense network of roots and surrounding vegetation, they filter and trap sediments, heavy metals, and other pollutants.prevents contamination of downstream waterways and protects sensitive habitat like coral reefs and sea grass beds below.

• Coastal defence. Mangroves are the first line of defence for coastal communities. They stabilize shorelines by slowing erosion and provide communities from increased storm surge, flooding, and hurricanes.

• Carbon storage. Mangroves “sequester carbon at a rate two to four times greater than mature tropical forests and store three to five times more carbon per equivalent area than tropical forests” like the Amazon rainforest.

• Materials. wood and other extracts for both building and medicinal purposes. Their potential as a source for novel biological materials, such as antibacterial compounds and pest‐resistance genes, remains largely undiscovered.

• Sustainable development. Intact and healthy mangrove forests have an potential for sustainable revenue‐generating initiatives including ecotourism, sport fishing, and other recreational activities.

Mangrove for future by IUCN and government of India is a step in right direction. It will also fulfil sustainable development goal 14 i.e. conservation of lives depended on oceans.

Wetland Ecosystem:

Wetlands are unique, productive ecosystems where terrestrial and aquatic habitats meet.

Significance of wetlands ecosystem:

• Water services ‐ Wetlands are particularly important providers of all water‐related ecosystem services. They regulate water quantity, groundwater recharge, regulating floods and the impacts of storms which has become immensely important due to increasing concretization in urban areas.

• Ecological services – With respect to climate change adaptation and mitigation, wetlands can play an important role.

• Carbon Sequestration: Wetlands act as carbon sinks for CO2 and other greenhouse gases especially if their vegetation is protected and their natural processes are maintained.

• Reducing pressure on land ‐ Wetlands also help in erosion control and sediment transport, thereby contributing to land formation and increasing resilience to storms.

• Reservoir of Biodiversity ‐ Wetlands are productive areas for plant life, animals and wetland agriculture. They provide spawning grounds for fish and ideal conditions for species group such as amphibians.

• Food security ‐ Wetlands are an important source of food such as rice paddy systems, fish etc. The entire production of inland capture fisheries and most coastal fisheries is derived from wetlands.

• Recreational and cultural ‐ useful for recreational activities such as hiking, fishing, bird watching, photography and hunting.

Apart from the above factors, wetlands provide multiple benefits to cities and urban areas in the following way: Wetlands act as filters and help reduce the urban waste water and help prevent eutrophication in lakes and streams.

• The capacity of a functional urban wetland in flood control is also be very important.

Government has taken following steps for integrated management of wetland ecosystems:

• Scheme of National Wetlands Conservation

Programme (NWCP) –It aims at holistic conservation of lakes and wetlands. It is operational on cost sharing basis between the Central and State Governments.

• Financial assistance has been provided to the State Governments/Union Territories for undertaking wetland conservation activities like survey & demarcation, catchment area treatment, desilting & dredging, bio‐fencing, fisheries development, weed control, biodiversity conservation, pollution abatement, education & awareness and community participation etc.

• Advising state governments for giving high priority for constitution of State wetland/ lake authorities, identification and notification of priority wetlands including delineation of their boundaries, development of integrated management plans, securing resources for implementation of management plans, monitoring and evaluation, strengthening research‐management interface, etc.

Island Ecosystem:

India has around 1,382 islands. Developing them is critical for the growth of India‘s maritime economy and to address the security concerns in Indian Ocean. However these islands also harbour rich biodiversity and are home to some of the most primitive tribes. This raises various concerns:

Environmental concerns

• Fragile ecosystem: For example, slight variation in temperature leads to loss of coral reefs.

• Geological volatility: islands are located in zones where earthquakes, tsunamis and cyclones are regular occurrences.

• Environmental degradation through economic activities like timber extraction for plywood industry, sand and coral mining.

• Infrastructure development which disrupts ecology: For e.g. Andaman trunk road was built through Jarawa reserve belt.

• Destruction of mangroves and loss of sandy beaches. Tribal concerns:

• Loss of Cultural diversity: development at times lead to homogenization of cultural aspects like tribal sports, music, folklore, food etc.

• Livelihood: indigenous people‘s livelihood must not be threatened by development in islands (for instance, deforestation/lack of privacy may disrupt tribal livelihood by displacement).

• Health: ending isolation may expose tribal to diseases hitherto unknown to them.

Recent steps taken by the Government:

The recently constituted Islands Development Agency (IDA) in consultation with other stakeholders has identified 10 islands for holistic development. This sustainable exploitation would primary revolve around:

Basic infrastructure development: development of airports, shipping ports and other connectivity projects including digital network.

Promoting islands as Tourist destinations: by developing beach resorts, water sports, trekking etc.

Modernization of agriculture: by promoting organic agriculture and fisheries, integrated pest management etc. Carbon‐neutral energy generation: predominantly using solar

power

Exploring natural resources in EEZ.

Other measures taken by the government include:

• The coastal municipalities and islands‘ local municipalities to implement waste disposal plans by 2020.

• Promoting small scale village and handicrafts units in Andaman Islands.

• National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) is promoting research in potential drugs from marine living resources at Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

• The National Institute of Ocean Technology has formed a self‐help group (SHG) titled ‗Aqua Crab Farming SHG‘ and also has successfully designed and developed Fish Aggregating Devices (FADs) around the Lakshadweep Islands here for development of Aquaculture.

• Vulnerability and risk assessment of island regions for natural calamities is to be completed by 2018 and urban resilient infrastructure policy would be adopted to contain the losses of any natural calamity by 2020.

• Ministry of Shipping has identified places on islands to be developed as lighthouses for promotion of shipping industry.

• Port‐linked industrialization and coastal community development under SAGARMALA.