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GE1204 –ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING

UNIT – 4 SOCIAL ISSUES AND ENVIRONMENT

LECTURE PLAN

4.1) From unsustainable to sustainable development

4.2) Urban problems related to energy
4.3) Water conservation – Rain water harvesting –Water shed management
4.4) Environmental legislations – Wild life protection Act – Forest
conservation Act – Air , Water Prevention and control Act –
Environmental protection Act – Draw backs – CPCB – SPCB-NGT.
4.5) Resettlement and Rehabilitation of people – Concerns and problems
4.6) Environmental Ethics – Green chemistry
4.7) Waste land reclamation
4.8) Role of Non Government Organisation
4.9) Consumerism and waste products
4.10) Climate Change – Global warming – Acid rain – Ozone layer
depletion
4.11) Nuclear accidents and holocaust
4.12) Public awareness 1
 UNIT – 4 SOCIAL ISSUES AND ENVIRONMENT

4.1) FROM UNSUSTAINABLE TO SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

1. Definition: Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs is called “sustainable development”.
True sustainable development aims at optimum use of natural resources with high
degree of reusability, minimum wastage and maximum productivity. The Rio-De-Generio
(Brazil – 1992) Earth summit declaration and its Agenda – 21 emphasizes on “a new and
equitable global partnership and subsequent sustainable development”.

2. Components / Dimensions of sustainable development:

1. Economy – Economic development like industrial development, creating job

opportunities, utilisation of natural resources for developing the quality of life.
2. Society – Community (society) development like providing food, shelter, cloth, education
and other essentials for human being.
3. Environment – Environmental protection by providing clean air, water and environment
for the present and future generations and utilisation of resources in a sustainable manner.
There are two main aspects of equitable and sustainable development.

3. Aim / Aspects of sustainable development

i) Inter generational equity: It states that we should hand over a safe, healthy, useful
environment to our future generations.
ii) Intra-generational equity: It states that technological development of rich countries
should support the economic growth of poor countries. 2
4. Approaches / significance/ strategies for sustainable development:
1. Appropriate Technology
2. 3R techniques
3. Environmental education
4. Renewable resources utilisation
5. Conservation of non-renewable resources
5. Knowledge of carrying capacity
i) Using appropriate technology:
Sustainable development can be achieved by using the technology which is locally adaptable,
eco-friendly, resource efficient and culturally suitable. It involves local resources and labour
with less resources and minimum wastes.
ii) 3R techniques:
3R principle of Reduce, Recycle and Reuse.
iii) Environmental education:
Introducing the subject of environmental education right from school stage will inculcate a
feeling of belongingness to our earth.
iv) Using renewable resources:
Consumption of renewable energy resources prevent the depleting sources and lead to
sustainability.
v) Conservation of non-renewable resources:
Non-renewable resources should be conserved by recycling and reusing.
v) Knowledge of carrying capacity:
Any system can sustain a limited number of organisms on a long term basis. This is known
as carrying capacity. We have to use the resources as per this carrying capacity.

5. Objectives / Characteristics of a sustainable society:

i) All the material processes will be designed to be of cyclic nature.
ii) No Pollution
iii) Output from one system will be used as input to another system.
iv) Only renewable energy will be used in society.
v) Population will be either stable or gradually declining.
3
4.2) URBAN PROBLEMS RELATED TO ENERGY
Urbanisation is defined as “the process of movement of human population from rural areas
to urban areas in search of better economic interests with better education, communication,
health, civic facilities and other day to day needs”.
Causes Of Urbanisation
The movement and migration of people from non-urban areas to urban areas is depending
on many factors. Most important problems or discomfort in rural areas are:

a) Lack of modernization of agricultural sector d) Poor lifestyle

b) Lack of job opportunities e) Poor health facilities
c) Poor educational, transportation facilities f) Poor availability of energy.

Energy crisis in Urban areas:

The energy crisis in urban area is due to
i) Urbanisation ii) Industrialisation iii) Population explosion
With the emergence of industrial, commercial and residential area development, there is a
spreading of the cities into sub-urban or rural areas. This is called “Urban sprawl”.
The energy crisis is due to their life style, demanding more energy inputs in every sphere of
life. It includes,
i) Residential / Commercial lighting
ii) Transportations
iii) Electronic gadgets
iv) Industries
v) Energy based waste disposal
vi) More usage of water pumping systems
Solution for urban energy problem:
i) Urban people may use public transport instead of using motor cycles and cars.
ii) Energy consumption must be minimised in all aspects.
iii) Use of energy efficient technology.
iv) Use of solar energy and wind energy.
v) Imposing strict laws, penalties and energy audit.
vi) Mass movement of rural areas is to be stopped by providing them better facilities and
opportunities at their own places.
vii) Gap between generation point and the consumption point is to be minimised. 4
4.3- A) WATER CONSERVATION

The process of saving water for future utilisation is known as water conservation.

Need for water conservation

1. Better lifestyles require more fresh water.
2. With the rise in population, water need is also high.
3. Deforestation causes reduced rainfall.
4. Over exploitation of ground water, leads to drought.
5. Industries require more fresh water.

Techniques of water conservation

1. Rain water harvesting - It is a technique of capturing and storing of rainwater for further
utilisation
2. Water shed management - The management of rainfall and runoff is called watershed
management.
3. Reuse of waste water – Treated water can be used for irrigation. Water from washing,
bathrooms etc can be used for watering gardens, washing purposes.
4. Preventing wastage of water – This includes the activities like closing the tap when not
in use, repairing leakages from pipes and using small capacity of taps.
5. Better agricultural practices – Sprinkling irrigation and drip irrigation saves water by 30-
40%. Irrigation in early morning or late evening reduces evaporation losses. Growing
hybrid crop varieties, which require less water also conserve water.
6. Decreasing run-off losses: Run-off on most of the soils can be reduced by allowing most
of the water to infiltrate into the soil. This can be done by using contour cultivation or
terrace farming.
7. Avoiding discharge of sewage : This will prevent the pollution of water bodies and major
quantity of the water can be conserved.

5
4.3- B) RAIN WATER HARVESTING

It is a technique of capturing and storing of rainwater for further utilisation. This is done by
constructing special water harvesting structures like dug wells, percolation pits, lagoons,
check-dams etc.,

Objectives of Rain water harvesting

i) To meet the increasing demands of water
ii) To increase the water table
iii) To reduce intrusion of saline water
iv) To reduce the surface run-off area
v) To reduce soil erosion
vi) To minimise water crisis and water conflicts
vii) To supplement ground water supplies on lean season

Components of a rainwater harvesting system

Process Description
1 Catchment Surface upon which the rain falls
2 Filtering Filter and remove contaminants and debris
3 Conveyance Pipes from catchment area to storage
4 Storage Stored in tanks
5 Purification Filtering equipment, disinfectants
6 Distribution Delivery pipes

Methods of Rain water harvesting:

1. Open space harvesting - In urban area rainwater flows away as surface runoff. This
runoff could be caught and used for recharging aquifers by adopting appropriate methods.
2. Roof-top rainwater harvesting method:
This method involves collecting rainwater from roof of the building and storing it in the
ground for future use. The rainwater from the top of roofs, road surfaces, play grounds,
open lands is diverted to the surface tanks through delivery system. The tanks are filled
with stones, sand, gravels which are serving as sand filter. 6
Advantages of rainwater harvesting:
i) Recharges the aquifers – helps for future generation.
ii) Improves ground water quality by dilution
iii) Improves soil moisture
iv) Reduces soil erosion due to run-off
v) Mitigating the effects of droughts and floods
vi) Increases ground water level.
Precautionary measures to be taken while harvesting rainwater:
Harvested rainwater is used for direct usage or for recharging aquifers. It is most important
to ensure that the rainwater caught is free from pollutants.
1. Roof or terraces uses for harvesting should be clean, free from dust, algal plants etc.
2. Roof should not be painted as most paints contain toxic substances and may peel off.
3. Do not store chemicals, rusting iron, manure or detergent on the roof.
4. Nesting of birds on the roof should be prevented.
5. Terraces should not be used for toilets either by human beings or by pets.
6. Provide gratings at mouth of each drainpipe on terraces to trap leaves debris and floating
materials.
7. Do not use polluted water to recharge ground water.
8. Before recharging, suitable arrangements of filtering should be provided.

7
4.3- C) WATER SHED MANAGEMENT
Water shed is the land area from which water drains under the influence of gravity into a
stream, lake or reservoir. The management of rainfall and runoff is called watershed
management.
Factors Affecting Watershed
1. Watersheds are degraded due to uncontrolled and unplanned land use activities.
2. Overgrazing, deforestation, mining, construction activities affect and degrade watersheds.
3. Drought climates also affect the watershed.
Objectives of Water shed management :
SAME AS OBJECTIVES OF RAIN WATER HARVESTING.

Watershed Management Techniques

In watershed management, various civil structures were constructed in the catchment
area to improve groundwater storage.
i) Trenches (Pits) – Trenches were dug at equal intervals to improve groundwater storage.
ii) Earthern dam (or) Stone embankment to be constructed in catchment area to check the
run-off water.
iii) Farm pond: can be built to improve water storage capacity of the catchment area.
iv) Underground barriers (Dykes): should be built along the nullahs to raise the water table.

Maintenance Of Watershed (Or) Components Of Integrated Watershed Management

i) Water Harvesting – Proper storage of water in watershed is done with provisions that the
water can be used in dry seasons in low rainfall areas.
ii) Afforestation and Agroforestry – Help to prevent soil erosion and retention of moisture
in watershed areas. (e.g) In high rainfall areas woody trees are grown in between crops to
reduce the runoff and loss of nutrients of soil.
iii) Scientific mining and quarrying – improper mining results in landslides and rapid soil
erosion. Planting soil binding plants at an interval of 1 meter in the mined area are
recommended for minimizing the destructive effects of mining in watershed areas.
iv) Public participation –People must be motivated for protecting a freshly planted area and
maintaining a water harvesting structure, implemented by the government.
v) Reducing soil erosion – Terracing, bunding, contour cropping, strip cropping, etc. are
used to minimize soil erosion and runoff on the slopes of watersheds. 8
4.4) ENVIRONMENTAL LEGISLATIONS / LAWS / ACTS
United Nation Conference on Human and Environment was held at Stockholm on 1972.
Following that, India has framed several acts.
1. Wildlife (Protection) Act – 1972
2. Water (Prevention & Control) Act – 1974
3. Forest (Conservation) Act – 1980
4. Air (Prevention & Control of pollution) Act – 1981
5. Environmental (Protection) Act – 1986
Article 48(A) : The state shall try to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard
forest and wildlife of our country.
Article 51(A): It is the duty of every citizen to protect and improve the environment and
have compassion for living creatures.

4.4-A) WILD LIFE PROTECTION ACT 1972 (amendment 1983,1986,1991)

This act aims to protect and preserve wildlife. Wildlife refers to all animals and plants that
are not domesticated. Wildlife is declining due to human actions, the wildlife products –
skins, furs, feathers, ivory, etc., Wildlife populations are regularly monitored and
management strategies formulated to protect them.

Objectives Of Wildlife Act

a) To maintain essential ecological processes and life-supporting system.
b) To preserve biodiversity.

Important Features of Wildlife Act

i) It defines wild life related technologies.
ii) It appoints wild life advisory board member, wild life warden, their powers and duties.
iii) It lists endangered wild life species and endemic species.
iv) Setting up of National parks, sanctuaries and zoos is empahsised by the act.
v) It monitos licensed trade, transfer of wildlifes.
vi) It impose ban on certain animal trades.
vii) It provides legal powers to officers to punish the offenders. 9
4.4-B) FOREST CONSERVATION ACT 1980 (amendment 1992)
This act provides conservation of forests and related aspects. This act also covers all type of
forests including reserved forest, protected forest and any forested land. This Act is enacted
in 1980. It aims at to arrest deforestation.
Objectives Of Forest conservation Act
(i) To protect and conserve forests (ii) To ensure judicious use of forest products
Important features of forest conservation Act
i) The state government can use forest only for forestry purposes. Otherwise it must seek
approval from central government.
ii) It appoints an advisory committee that recommends proper funding activities.
iii) As per amendment 1992, state government does not need recognition from central for
transmission lines, seismic surveys. But it is must for hydroelectric power plants.
iv) Cultivation of tea, coffee, spices, rubber, cash crops are coming under non forestry
activity which is not allowed in forests.
v) Mining, Mulbery commercial cultivation are also non forestry.
vi) All the proposals should be accompanied by Environmental Impact Assessment and
Statement (EIA and EIS).
vii) It provides legal powers to officers to punish the offenders.

4.4-C) WATER (PREVENTION & POLLUTION CONTROL) ACT - 1974

This act provides for maintaining and restoring the sources of water. It also provides for
preventing and controlling water pollution.
Objectives Of Water Act
(i) Prevention and control of water pollution.
(ii) Maintaining the quality of water.
(iii) Establishing central and state boards for the prevention and control of water pollution.
Important Features Of Water Act
(i) Aims to protect the water from all kinds of pollution and to preserve the quality of water
in all aquifiers.
(ii) Provides establishment of central state boards for prevention of water pollution.
(iii) The States are empowered to restrain any person from discharging sewage or effluent
into any water body without the consent of the Board.
(iv) Any contravention of the guidelines or standards would include prison sentence ranging
from three months to six years. 10
(v) The act is not clear about the definition of pollutant, discharge of pollutant, toxic
pollutant which allows scope for misinterpretation at the time of decision whether the law is
violated or not.
The Amendment Act of 1978 requires permission to set up an industry which may discharge
effluent.

4.4-D) AIR (PREVENTION & POLLUTION CONTROL) ACT - 1981

It deals with the problems relating to air pollution. It gives absolute powers to monitor air
quality and pollution control to Central and State Boards.
Objectives Of Air Act
(i) To prevent, control and abatement of air pollution.
(ii) To maintain the quality of air.
(iii) To establish a board for the prevention and control of air pollution.
Important Features Of Air Act
1. The Central Board may lay down the standards for the quality of air.
2. The Central Board co-ordinates and settle disputes between state boards, in addition to
providing technical assistance and guidance to state boards.
3. The State Boards are empowered to lay down the standards for emissions of air pollutants
from industrial units or automobiles or other sources.
4. The State Boards are to collect and disseminate information related to air pollution and
also to function as inspectorates for air pollution.
5. The State Boards are to examine the manufacturing processes and the control of
equipment to verify whether they meet the standards prescribed.
6. The State Board can advise the State Government to declare certain heavily polluted areas
as pollution control areas and can advice to avoid the burning of waste products which cause
air pollution in such areas.
7. The directions of the Central Board are mandatory on State Boards.
8. The operation of an industrial unit is prohibited in heavily polluted areas without the
consent of the Central Board.
9. Violation of law is punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three
months or fine up to rupees ten thousand or both.
10. The Air act like Water act, confers wide powers on State Boards to order closure of any
industrial unit or stoppage or regulation of supply of water, electricity or other services, if it
is highly polluting. 11
4.4-E) ENVIRONMENTAL (PROTECTION) ACT - 1986
This is a general legislation law in order to rectify the gaps and laps in the above Acts. This
Act empowers the Central government to fix the standards for quality of air, water, soil and
noise and to formulate procedures and safe guards for handling of hazard substances.

Objectives Of Environmental Act

i) To protect and bring about improvement of the environment.
ii) To prevent hazards to all living creatures and property.
iii) To maintain harmonious relationship between humans and the environment.

Important Features Of Environmental protection Act

i) It defines environment, pollution, hazardous substances and wastes.
ii) It sets up standards of quality of air, water and soil for various areas and purposes.
iii) It sets the permissible limits for various pollutants.
iv) It gives the procedures and safe guard techniques for handling hazardous materials.
v) It emphasises on pollution check instrument and water treatment plants.
vi) It prohibits and restricts the hazardous material usage.
vii) It encourages the 3R – Principle, Reduce- Recycle – Reuse.
viii) It makes more stringent penalties such as cash fine Punishment up to 1 lakh and/or 5
years imprisonment.
4.4 F) MAJOR ISSUES AND DRAWBACKS ON ENFORCEMENT OF

ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS:
i) Ownership certificates for animal articles are being misused for illegal trading.
ii) All the laws are not including Jammu & Kashmir. So, lot of illegal activities are
originating there and spread nationwide.
iii) The penalties and punishments are not stringent.
iv)All the powers have centralised at the top. So, local activists kept out from decision
making. Hence, poor community participation causes Forest Law unsuccessful.
v) Illegal mining activity cannot be controlled by CPCB.
vi) Small scale industries find it difficult to install water treating plants.
vii) Filing a petition is circuitous and delayed.
viii) Out of court settlements are big hindrance to enactments. 12
ix) The tribal's who lived in the forest were totally dependent on forest resources. When
they are stopped from taking any resources from there, they involve in criminal activities
like smuggling, killing, etc. Their rich knowledge about the forest resources and its
conservation has not been used and acknowledged by the laws.
x) The position of chairman of the boards is occupied by political appointee. Hence it is
difficult to implement the Act without political interference.
4.4-G) FUNCTIONS OF CENTRAL POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD (CPCB)

& STATE POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD (SPCB)

a) Functions of Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB):
i) It advises central government in matters related to prevention and control of water and air
pollution.
ii) It co-ordinates activities of SPCB and provides solution to their problems.
iii) It provides the technical assistance and guidance to SPCB.
iv) It collects, compiles and publishes the data that are related to pollution.
v) It prepares the manual for disposal of sewage and effluent.
vi) It establishes and recognises the analytical labs.
vii) It shall give cash punishments upto 25,000 rupees and imprisonment ranging from 3
months to 6 years.
viii) It provides guidance to install treatment plants and emission check equipments.
b) Functions of State Pollution Control Board (SPCB):
i) It functions as the same way of CPCB, but within domestic, municipal, metro and district
levels.
ii) In addition, it shall stop water and power supply to non-compliance industries.
iii) It advises the state government on any matter concerning the prevention and control of
pollution.
iv) It has the right to inspect at all times any pollution control equipment, industrial plant
and gives orders to take the necessary steps to control pollution.
v) It encourages research and investigations regarding pollution.
vi) It organizes educational programme in collaboration with central board.
vii) The analyst of the board is expected to analyze the sample, sent to him and submit a
report to the board and respective industry.
viii) No establishment of industries is allowed without its permission. But, there is a
provision for appeal from industry within 30 days of passing the order. 13
4.4-H) NATIONAL GREEN TRIBUNAL (NGT)
The National Green Tribunal has been established in the year of 2010 under the National
Green Tribunal Act 2010.

Structure of NGT

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) comprises three major bodies namely:

1. The Chairperson
2. The Judicial Members, and
3. The Expert Members.

Locations of NGT
1.New Delhi (Head quarters)
2. Bhopal
3. Pune
4. Kolkatta
5. Chennai

Functions of National Green Tribunal (NGT)

(i) Effective and speedy disposal of cases that are related to the protection and
conservation of the environment, forests, and other natural resources.

(ii) To give relief and compensations for any damages caused to persons and properties.

(iii) To handle various environmental disputes that involves multi-disciplinary issues.

(iv) It helps in the reduction of the litigation burden on environmental matters in the
higher courts.

(v) NGT ensures the strict observation of the Environment Impact Assessment
(EIA) process.

(vi) It considers some principles before deciding any case such as, sustainable
development, polluter pays, precautionary principle etc.

(vii) NGT is mandated to dispose of the case within 6 Months from the date of filing of the
complaint. 14
4.5) RESETTLEMENT & REHABILITATION OF PEOPLE – Concerns & Problems
Resettlement is simple relocation or displacement of human population. This process does
not focus on their future welfare.
Rehabilitation involves relocation along with the replacement of lost economic assets,
rebuilding the community system and repairing damaged structures.
Causes of relocation
(a) Development activities:
Construction of dams, roads, railway tracks, airports, ports, canals etc., cause the relocation
of people.
(b) Disasters:
It may be natural or manmade. For example, earthquake, floods, droughts, landslides,
avalanches, volcanic eruptions, forest fire, nuclear accidents etc.
(c) Conservation initiatives:
These include protection of wildlife, forests, water body conservation or for pollution
control purposes such as displacement of human populations around industrial areas, etc.
Rehabilitation issues:
1. Displacement of tribal populations increases their poverty due to the loss of home, land,
job, food, etc.
2. Break up of families
3. Land acquisition policy allows meagre compensation
4. Tribals are becoming “environmental refugees”
5. Marriages, social and cultural functions, their folk-songs , dances and activities vanish
with their displacement.
6. Loss of identity and loss of the intimate link between the people and the environment is
one of the big loss.
Rehabilitation policy:
1. Land acquisition Act 1997 empowers the government to serve notice to the people to
vacate and gives them compensation
2. Priority to the land owners in employability in particular industry
3. If available, same area surface will be allocated in some other places
4. Tax exemption of the compensation
5. The people should be rehabilitated on “minimum dislocation basis” by choosing
adjacent areas
6. A thorough and detailed Environmental Impact Study (EIS). 15
 Case studies

E.g 1. SARDOR SAROVAR DAM

River Narmada flows through Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat and merges in
Arabian sea. The Sardor Sarovar Dam is situated in the Narmada Valley. As a result of
construction of the dam, about 573 villages consisting of 10 lakh people would be homeless and
45,000 hectares of forest and 2, 00,000 hectares of cultivated lands would be submerged in
Maharashtra. The affected tribal people must be given adequate compensation in the form of
land, jobs, cash compensation, etc., and care should be taken to improve their quality of their
life. Now the Gujarat government has planned to increase the height of Sardor Sarver dam from
100m to 110.64m. The height of the dam has become a controversial issue as there is no proper
rehabilitation scheme for the affected people. Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) was initiated
against the construction of the dam and is lead by Smt. Maedha Patkar. She is constantly
working for the affected out see tribals. Narmada Control Authority (NCA) also asked Madhya
Pradesh and Maharashtra governments to give status of resettlement rehabilitation of the people
displaced by the Narmada Dam Project.

E.g. 2. TEHRI DAM PROJECT

The dam is being constructed across the rivers Bhagirathi and Bhilanganga, close to the
Gashwal town of Tehri. The dam would submerge nearly 100 villages, including Tehri, a
historical village, 85,600 families will have to be relocated. The region of Tehri is vulnerable to
earthquakes. The dam is also structurally incapable of withstanding the water, which would kill
thousands of people. Due to the above reasons, the people nearer to that area were resettled in
some other place.

E.g. 3. Dal lake development project – Kashmir – Nearly 50,000 people were affected

E.g. 4. Jharia coal fields – Jharkand – 30,000 people affected

E.g. 5. Valmiki Tiger reserve – Bihar – 142 villages affected

E.g. 6. Vayanad Wildlife Sanctuary – Kerala – 534,472 tribals affected and only 843 got
compensation. 16
4.6- a) ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS – Issues & Solutions
Environmental ethics refers to the guidelines, issues, and principles related to human
interactions with their environment. It also focuses on the efforts to be taken for
environmental protection.
Environmental ethics is based on two views:
(a) Anthropocentric world view:
i. Man is most important
ii. Earth has unlimited supply
iii. Resources are meant for only human welfare
iv. Healthy environment depends on healthy economy
v. Success of human being depends on how he is deriving benefits from nature.
(b) Ecocentric world view:
i. Environment is important
ii. There is a limited supply and it is meant for all the living beings
iii. Healthy economy depends on proper environment
iv. Success depends on how man is cooperating with nature

Ethical solutions to environmental problems:

The environment can be protected due to the following activities:

i. Reduce the waste of matter and energy resources.
ii. Recycle and reuse waste products and resources as possible.
iii. Over-exploitation of natural resources must be reduced.
iv. Soil degradation must be minimized.
v. Sustainable development is essential on conservation of natural resources,
harvesting of non-conventional energy and waste management.
vi. Biodiversity of the earth must be protected.
vii. Reduce population and increase the economic growth of our country.

Some important ethical guidelines:

1. Love and honour our earth
2. Each day is sacred to earth
3. Don’t drive the resources to extinction 17
 4. Be grateful to plant and animals
5. Conserve resources
6. Environment should be given preference than economy
7. Aim for sustainable development
8. Admit and take measures for the loss caused by you to the environment

4.6- b) APPROACHES TOWARDS GREEN CHEMISTRY

Green chemistry is the chemistry that involves designing and production of chemicals
without polluting the environment.
12 Principles or Goals of green chemistry
1. Prevention of wastes: It is better to prevent waste rather than cleaning and treating them.
2. Atom economy: Synthetic methods should be designed to maximise the incorporation of
all materials used in the process of formation of final product.
3. Less hazardous chemical synthesis: Synthetic methods should be designed to use and
generate materials which possess no toxicity or little to human health and environment.
4. Designing safer chemicals: The chemicals should be designed to function with
minimum or no toxicity.
5. Safer solvents & auxiliaries: The use of auxiliary substance should be minimised .
6. Design for energy efficiency: Energy requirements during chemical processes should be
minimized.
7. Use of renewable feedstock: Raw materials should be renewable rather than depleting.
8. Reduce derivatives: Necessary derivatives should be minimised, because such steps
require additional reagents and additional wastes are generated.
9. Catalysis: Catalytic reagents are superior to stoichiometric reagents.
10. Design for degradation: Chemical products should be designed in such a way that at the
end of their function they break down in to harmless degradation products.
11. Real time analysis for pollution prevention: Analytical methodologies should be used
for real time process monitoring and controlling hazardous substance.
12. Inherently safer chemistry for accident prevention: Substances used in process should
be chosen to minimise accidents like leaks, explosions. 18
4.7) WASTE LAND RECLAMAITON
Land which is unproductive, unfit for cultivation, grazing and other economic uses is called
“waste land”. Altering the waste land into an useful surface and maintaining it for future
utilisation is known as “wasteland reclamation”
There are two types of waste lands:
1. Uncultivable waste lands:. They cannot be brought under cultivation. (e.g) glacial
area, rocks and deserts
2. Cultivable: They are cultivable but not cultivated for more than five years.
(e.g) saline, waterlogged, marsh lands
Causes of wasteland formation:
1. Soil erosion, deforestation, overgrazing, water logging result in wasteland.
2. Salinity is also creating waste lands.
3. Fire wood demand causes degradation of forest lands.
4. Pesticides causes the loss of fertility of soil.
5. Development activities like dams and power plants disturb the soil fertility.
6. Over exploitation of natural resources
7. Sewage and industrial wastes are also resulting in waste land formation.
8. Mining activities destroys the forest and cultivable land.
Methods of wasteland reclamation:
1. Drainage – Excess water is removed by artificial drainage. This process is used for
water- logged soil reclamation.
2. Leaching – It is the process of removal of salt from soil by applying excess amount of
water. Leaching is done by dividing the field in small plots. In continuous leaching 0.5 to
1.0 cm water is required to remove 90% of soluble salts.
3. Irrigation Practices – High frequency irrigation with controlled amount of water helps to
maintain better water availability in the land.
4. Green manures – Application of green manure improve the saline soils.
5. Afforestation programmes – The National Commission on Agriculture (NCA) has
launched several afforestation schemes. The National Development Board decided to bring
5 million acres of wasteland annually for firewood and fodder plantation.
6. Social Forestry Programmes – These programmes involve strip plantation on road,
canal-sides, degraded forestland, etc. 19
7. Application of Gypsum: Soil solidity can be reduced with gypsum. Calcium of gypsum
replaces sodium from the exchangeable sites. This process converts clay back into calcium
clay.
Objectives (Or) Need Of Wasteland Reclamation
1. To improve the physical structure and quality of the soil.
2. To prevent flooding, landslides and soil erosion.
3. To avoid over exploitation of natural resources.
4. To provide good quality water for industrial and agricultural purposes.
5. To supply fuel, food and timber for local use.
6. To conserve the biological resources and natural ecosystem.
7. To provide a source of income to the rural poor.

4.8) ROLE OF NON GOVERNMENTAL ORAGINSATIONS

They are legally constituted organisations created by voluntary organizations or people.
Important roles of NGO‟s
1. To protect environmental resources and their economical use
2. To organise courses
3. To create information; materials like newsletters, brochures, booklets,
4. To analyse and monitor resources independently
5. To protect rights of citizen to a healthy environment
6. To keep vigil in surrounding area, well, river, lake against pollution and reporting to
state/central board
7. To conduct sampling and analysis of well/river water to establish its quality
8. To publish notified restricted areas where industries, industrial operations should not be
carried out
9. To provide information on fish killing t the environment not noticed by the state board
Some important NGO in India
1. Centre for science and environment (CSE), New Delhi
2. Centre for Environmental Education (CEE), Ahmedabad
3. Environmental society of India, Chandigarh
4. Madras Environmental society, Chennai
5. Environmental Society of Thirupathi, Thirupathi 20
(4.9) CONSUMERISM AND WATER PRODUCTS
Consumerism refers to the consumption of resources by the people. The main components
of consumerism are buyer and seller. Both have their own rights and responsibilities

Objectives of consumerism:
1. It improves the rights and powers of the buyers
2. Manufacturer holds responsibility for his products’ life
3. 3R principle must be applied mainly by manufacturers
4. consumerism without wastage improves human health, happiness and saves resources

Traditionally favourable rights of sellers

1. The right to introduce any product.
2. The right to change any price.
3. The right to spend any amount to promote their product.
4. The right to use incentives to promote their products.
Traditional buyer rights
1. The right to buy or not to buy.
2. The right to expect a product to be safe.
3. The right to expect the product to perform as claimed.
Important information to be known by buyers
1. Ingredients of a product.
2. Manufacturing date and expiry date.
3. Whether the product has been manufactured against an established law of nature or
involved in rights violation.

Generation of wastes:
Sources: industries, agriculture, automobiles, domestic activities, hotels and restaurants,
thermal power plants, e-waste sources
Waste products: food waste, packing materials, plastic toys, carry bags, cool drinks tin cans,
iron scraps, sewage, ash and smoke
E- Waste products Electronic equipments like computers, printers, mobile phones, Xerox
machines, calculators, etc. After using these instruments, they are thrown as waste. 21
Effects of waste:
a) Chemical wastes, industrial wastes and explosives are a hazard
b) Dumped wastes degrade soil adn cause infertility
c) E-waste include lead, cadmium, PVC and cause cancer and respiratory problems
d) Plastics are difficult to recycle or incinerate safely due to non-biodegradability

Factors affecting consumerism and waste generation

1. People over population:
In less developed countries there are more people than the supply of resources. Over
population causes degradation of resources. In LDCs the per capita consumption of
resources and waste generation are less.
2. Consumption over population:
In developed countries there are less people than the available resources. Due to luxurious
life style per capita consumption of resources is very high and hence waste generation is
also high. This leads to environmental degradation.

Proposals for waste products utilisations:

1. Sugarcane wastes can be recycled in paper, electricity production.
2. Refilling of used cool drink bottles
3. Garbage can be used to prepare bio compost
4. Animal skins can be used as raw materials in leather industry
5. Cattle dungs can be processed into manure, gobar gas
6. Waste papers can be recycled as cardboards, second grade papers

Control of waste production due to consumerism

1. Avoiding generation of waste at source
2. 3R – reduce, reuse, recycle
3. Ecofriendly products usage
4. Limited uses of goods and resources
5. Providing environmental education and awareness 22
(4.10-a) CLIMATE CHANGE
Climate is the average weather of an area. The earth surface has warmed up on an average
by about 0.6 C during the last 100 years. By 2100, we are expected teh surface temperature
anywhere between 1.4 and 5.8 C higher than in 1900. Thus, the change in the climate
becomes a main concern of the world
Causes:
1. Presence of green house gases
2. Depletion of the ozone layer
3. Variations in the solar output
Effects:
1. Disturbances in agriculture
2. Upset of hydrological cycle – leads to flood
3. Wind and ocean currents are disturbed
4. Species extinction
5. Sea level increase

(4.10-b) GLOBAL WARMING (GREEN HOUSE EFFECT)

.

23
 The increase in temperature of earth due to green house effects is called “Global
warming” or “Green house effect”. The process may be defined as “The progressive
warming up of the earth’s surface due to blanketing effect of CO2 in the atmosphere”. Here,
heat is allowed inside the earth but cannot get out. This is similar to horticultural glass
greenhouse. Hence, this is known “Green house” effect. CO2 (industries), CH4 (coal
production), N2O (fertilizer), CFC (fridges), CCl4 are examples of greenhouse gasses.

Effects of global warming

1. More heat waves, Expansion of desert area, unseasonal floods and drought will be the
common problems of global warming.
2. Effect on terrestrial ecosystem – Many plant and animal species will have problems with
global warming. This will influence the mix of species of different locations. Many will be
at a risk of extinction.
3. Melting of ice caps in arctic and Antarctic regions will be caused by global warming.
4. Changes in pattern of rain fall – As climatic pattern shifts, rain fall is reduced and soils
are dried out resulting in drought.
5. Rise in sea level – As a result of glacial melting and thermal expansion of the ocean, a 20
cm rise is expected in sea level by the year 2030.
6. Disturbed agriculture – High CO2 level in the atmosphere has long term negative effects
on crop production and forest growth. More grain belts would become less productive.
7. Human health concerns – As the earth becomes warmer, the floods and droughts
become more frequent. There would be increase in waterborne diseases, infectious diseases
carried by mosquitoes and other disease vectors.
Control measures of global warming:
1. Reducing the use of fossil fuel to cut CO2 emission
2. Aforestation
3. Renewable energy utilisation
4. Use of unleaded petrol in automobiles
5. Installation of pollution control devises in automobiles and in industries
6. Atmospheric CO2 is stabilised by photosynthetic algae
7. Adopt sustainable agriculture.
8. Stabilisation of population growth. 24
 (4.10-c) ACID RAIN
When SO2, NO3 gases are present in the atmosphere they are dissolved in rain water
and they form sulphuric and nitric acid. This is known as “Acid rain”
2 SO2 + O2  2 SO3:

SO3 + H2O  H2SO4

NO3 + NO2  N2O5

N2O5 + H2O  2HNO3

Acid rain is one of the components of Acid deposition. It is a total of wet deposition and dry
deposition. Wet deposition refers to acid rain. Dry deposition refers to acidic gases and
particles.

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Effects of acid rain

1. Effects on human beings:

a. `human nervous system, respiratory and digestives systems are affected
b. It causes heart and lung disorders like asthma

2. Effect on buildings:
a. Taj Mahal is suffering from acid rain .
b. It causes corrosion of houses, monuments and bridges.
c. They increase the maintenance costs of buildings
d. It even corrodes metal

3. Effects on environment
a. Reduces the rate of photosynthesis
b. Retards growth of crops
c. Reduction in fish population
d. Biomass production is reduced
e. Microscopic decomposition (scavenging) is reduced in highly acidic water and
food chain is disturbed

Control measures of acid rain

1. Using clean combustion technology to reduce air pollution
2. Reducing SO2 and NO2 emission with proper control measures
3. Coal with lower sulphur content is preferred
4. Liming of the lakes and soils should be done to correct the adverse effects of acid
rain
5. Reducing unnecessary utility of motor vehicles
6. Reducing the use of fossil fuel

26
 (4.10-d) OZONE LAYER DEPLETION (OLD)
Ozone is an odourless, colourless gas composed of three atoms of oxygen (O3). Oxygen at
240nm dissociates into the oxygen atom. The oxygen atom combined with other oxygen
molecules produce ozone.
. . .
O2 + h O + O O2 + O  O3

Ozone layer is highly concentrated in the atmosphere between 10 – 50 km. It protects us

from UV radiation. Due to CFC, methane, CO2, NOx certain parts of the ozone layer
becoming thinner and ozone holes are developing. This is called “ozone layer depletion”.
Chloro Fluoro carbons (CFC) release chlorine which breaks ozone into oxygen.
Cl + O3  ClO + O2
ClO + O.  Cl + O2
1% loss of ozone results 2 % increase in UV radiation entry into the earth’s surface.
Example of OLD chemicals : CFC, HydroCFC, BFC
Effects of Ozone Layer depletion:
i) Skin cancer
ii) Slow blindness (actinic keratitis)
iii) Suppress the immune responses in living organism
iv) Affects the aquatic forms
v) Degradation of paints and plastics
vi) OLD chemicals can contribute to the global warming

Control measures of Ozone layer depletion

i) Replacing CFC with less damaging chemicals
ii) Use of gases such as methyl bromide which is a crop
fumigant should be controlled.
iii) Manufacturing and using of ozone depleting
chemicals should be stopped.

27
(4.11) NUCLEAR ACCIDENTS & HOLOCAUST
Nuclear reactors produce cleaner and safer nuclear energy either by fission and fusion. But
it possess serious hazard of radioactive pollutants and wastes.

Types of nuclear accidents:

i) It may be due to nuclear test, underground nuclear explosions.
ii) Nuclear power plant accidents due to core melt down.
iii) Improper disposal of radioactive wastes.
iv) Accident during transport.

Nuclear holocaust:
Major accidents, nuclear bombs and radioactive explosions cause destruction of
biodiversity. A large number of living beings are totally destroyed by nuclear war. This
phenomenon is known as nuclear holocaust.

Effects of nuclear accidents and holocaust:

1. Genetic damages, DNA mutation, disorders in genes, chromosomes and heredity carriers.
2. Somatic damages, burns, skin cancer, eye cataract, bone cancer, Thyroid, lungs problems.
3. Mining of Uranium enters into crops and to human beings.
4. On contact with water, these pollutants affect the environment severely.
5. Radioactive Iodine - 131 cause Thyroid glands malfunctions.
6. Radioactive Strontium – 90 causes bone diseases and leukemia.
7. Low dose radiations (100 – 250 rads) cause fatigue, vomiting and loss of hair.
8. High dose radiations (400 -500 rads) - problems in bone marrow, blood cells, clotting.
9. Very high dose of radiation (10,000 rads) kills the organisms by damaging the tissues of
heart and brain.
11. Nuclear bombardment cause combustion of wood, plastics and produce black soot.
Black soot absorbs all UV- radiations. Therefore, cooling will result. This is opposite to
‘global warming’ known as ‘nuclear winter’. It leads to freezing temperature and famine.

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Control measures of nuclear accidents and holocaust:
i) Proper disposal of nuclear waste. - The important step in controlling nuclear pollution is
the proper disposal of nuclear waste. It involves three major principles.
a. Dilute and disperse b. Delay and Decay c. Concentrate and contain.
If the nuclear wastes are of minimum amount, it can be diluted with other impurities
and can be dispersed. It the half life period is greater, then the materials have to be kept upto
their half life period and can be dispersed. Otherwise, they have to be kept under a proof seal
material and deep burial method is to be adopted.
ii) Regular checks for power plants.
iii) Constant monitoring of radiation level inside and outside the plant.
iv) Proper training of operators.
v) Ban on nuclear weapons.
vi) Erection stage analysis for nuclear reactor should be carried out properly.
vii) Proper disaster management system should be maintained.
viii) Radiation therapy should be applied only as a last irresistible method even then with a
minimum dosage.
ix) Always using less harmful isotopes in industries.

Case studies on nuclear accidents and holocaust:

E.g. 1. Second World War
1945 – World War II – Hiroshima (6th August), Nagasaki (9th August) bomb blast caused
severe genetic and somatic damages for a very long period. – More than 100,000 people died.
E.g. 2 – Chernobyl disaster
Chernobyl, Ukraine in USSR in 26th April, 1986. The power plant was designed to produce
1000MW electrical energy. It was shut down for maintenance operations on April 25, 1986.
Due to faulty operations, an explosion occurred at 1.23 hrs on April 26. Three seconds later
another explosion occurred. 1000 tones steel concrete lid of the reactor blew off.
Temperature rose to 2000o C. The debris and gases drifted over most of the northern
hemisphere. Iodine, Cesium were the important radioactive components. More than 2000
people were killed. People suffered due to the illness such as degeneration of the cells,
severe bleeding, anaemia, skin cancer. Animals, plants are also affected by nuclear
radiation. 29
(4.12)PUBLIC AWARENESS IN POLLUTION CONTROL& SOCIAL ISSUES
1. Environmental pollution cannot be removed by the law alone. The proper
implementation and public participation should be given importance and stress.
2. Individuals of schools, colleges, industries, service centers, villages, urban centres
should realize the importance of day to day environmental issues.
3. It is needed to maintain a natural balance, sensible planning of development in order
to save humanity from extinction.
4. To check nominal use of natural resources as watch dogs informing government about
the degradation of environment.
5. To motivate and active participation of individuals in protecting the environment from
various types of pollution.
6. The public participation and can be in the form of watch dog, pressure group,
advisory council member or law enforcement authorities.
7. Further, the awareness campaign can be implemented through the following ways:
a) Environmental awareness in schools and colleges: Environmental education must be
imparted to the students in schools and colleges.
b) Through mass-media: Media like radio, TV and cable network can educate the people
on environmental issues through cartoons, documentaries and street plays.
c) Cinema: Film about environmental education should be prepared and screened in the
theatre compulsorily. This film may be released with tax free to attract the public.
d) News Papers: Newspaper and magazines must publish the environment related problems.
e) Audio-visual media: To deliver the concept of environment, special audio-visual and
slide shows should be arranged in all public places.
f) Voluntary organizations: The services of the voluntary bodies like Rotary club, NCC and
NSS should be effectively utilized for spreading the environmental awareness.
g) Traditional techniques: Folk plays and dramas may be utilized to spread environmental
messages to the public. These techniques attract the rural people very much.
h) Arranging Competitions: Story writing, essay writing and painting competitions on
environmental issues should be organized for student, as well as for the public. Attractive
prizes should be awarded for the best effort.
i) Leaders appeal: Political leaders, cine actors and popular social reformers can make an
appeal to the public about the urgency of environmental protection. 30