large-scale resource exploitation and progressively lower agricultural yields on degraded lands are compelling the poor to overuse their limited resources such as forests and grasslands. This has harmed the environment
Environmental degradation is one of the ‘10 threats’ identified by the High level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change of the United Nations. The degradation is a result of the dynamic interplay of socio-economic, institutional and technological activities causing depletion of natural resources such as water, air, soil, in addition to loss of habitats, biodiversity, and leading to global warming. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the US and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration data, the Earth’s average surface temperature has increased by about 1.2 to 1.4 degree Fahrenheit in the last 100 years.
Over the past decade, India has witnessed a rapid growth and it came with its cost. The accelerated growth has displayed an insatiable appetite for natural resources and worrying levels of air and water pollution. This scenario is made worse by poverty that does not seem to be abating. The ever-widening gap between the poverty-stricken and the prosperous population is underlined by the challenging living conditions of the poor.
large-scale resource exploitation and progressively lower agricultural yields on degraded lands are compelling the poor to overuse the limited resources such as forests and grasslands available to them, creating a spiral of impoverishment and environmental degradation. In addition, the loss of biodiversity and resilience in ecosystem is causing livelihood insecurity for the poor.
As per a report released by the World Bank in July, this year, India has been suffering immense losses due to the lack of access to clean water supply, sanitation and hygiene for majority of its population. The report states that environmental degradation is costing India around 5.7 per cent of its GDP every year, or approximately `3.75 trillion ($80 billion), and put burning of fossil fuels as the main cause for declining health in the productive urban youth.
Furthermore, in a recent survey of the environment of 132 countries, India was ranked 126th overall. The survey concluded that India has the worst air pollution in the entire world, beating China, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. According to another recent World Health Organisation survey, across the G-20 economies, 13 of the 20 most polluted cities are in India. As the country’s population is set to increase to about 1.26 billion by the year 2016 India will eventually be having 18 per cent of the world’s population and covering 2.4 per cent of the world’s total area. All of this is bound to make severe demands on its natural resources resulting in water shortage, soil exhaustion and erosion, deforestation, air and water pollution.
The problem is becoming complex as the lack of opportunities for gainful employment in villages and the ecological stresses is leading to an ever-increasing movement of poor families to towns. The result is the growing trend in deterioration of air and water quality, generation of wastes, the proliferation of slums and undesirable land use changes, all of which contribute to urban poverty.
In addition, the manufacturing sector has strained the environment through intensive resource and energy use, as is evident in natural resource depletion, water, air and land contamination, health hazards and degradation of natural ecosystem. This is compounded by an equally callous and polluting transport infrastructure that has adversely impacted the environment due to air, noise pollution and oil spills from marine shipping.
Bringing about a change in this scenario needs an urgent addressing of the causes and consequences of environmental degradation. This in turn needs an initiative-driven, democratic and decentralised governance which involves local actors concerned with development such as policymakers, businesses, non-governmental organisations and community representatives who in turn are motivated to set up local charters for sustainable development. As a part of this, awareness generation is of critical importance. This can be achieved by establishing centres for collecting and disseminating information. Social media and communication can serve as effective carriers for this action. Setting up Internet information platforms that can boost information exchanges on climate, environment, and sustainable development will go a long way in achieving the objective.
The Government also needs to seriously consider steps to rein in population growth and provide impetus to poverty alleviation as both of these have a complex linkage with the state of environment. Additionally, revenue-generating sectors such as eco-tourism must be promoted in a manner that is environmentally friendly and sustainable as this can provide much-needed commerce and opportunities for employment. Tourists should be encouraged to live in the homes of local people where they can experience their unique culture and lifestyle. In this way, building of new structures can be avoided and the strain on environment lessened.
