“The Earth does not belong to us. We belong to the Earth.

~ Chief Seattle

ABSTRACT:
We are going through a very bad time. The irony is that we are just not realizing this yet.
They say that the Earth is dying, it’s ending. What I believe instead, is that the Earth is not
going to die, we are. We are slowly dying every day. We are just very innocently not
realizing that the path we are heading on, only leads to utter destruction. The global climate
crisis and the urgent need for action, is perpetually being neglected. Forests are being cut and
nobody is giving a damn about it. Amazon Rainforest, the lungs which produce 20% of our
planet’s oxygen - has been burning every day and we’ve been dramatically ignoring it. No
media is covering ivvt because it holds no significance; it is very normal for such dense
forests to catch fire so easily. But the truth is that this year, most area of the Amazon is
believed to have been set on fire by farmers and loggers clearing land for crops or grazing
and that too, “with official permissions”. Activists say the anti-environment rhetoric of
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has encouraged such tree-clearing activities since he came
into power in January.

On the other hand, The Bombay high court in India gives order to cut 2,646 trees from Aarey,
Mumbai- known as the green lung of the metropolis, to make way for a metro car shade.
Delhi has spoilt its one and only river Yamuna so much that it stinks now and we ignorantly
pass by having our noses covered so we don’t have to smell our guilts. The air quality in the
national capital, according to a WHO survey of 1600 world cities, is the worst of any major
city in the world. How difficult is it for us to understand the gravity of this situation; to
understand that this is not right and it shouldn’t be happening?!

This paper thoroughly deals with issues related to the environment, like human encroachment
into nature, global warming, pollution, and moves on to talk about the Indian and global laws
ever after.

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The old world, the pre-modern one, was in direct touch with the natural world; people back
then were immersed and embedded in and with the world. The modern world emphasizes
human control over the natural world, along with the abstract thinking that contributes to this
dominance.

Today, the world is dealing with massive environmental crisis; giving birth to bigger
problems for the upcoming generations to deal with, and there are hundreds of reasons behind
this, namely, intervention of humans into wildlife to global warming to human generated
waste, pollution, deforestation and what not. Some of the major environmental problems are
discussed here-
Human Encroachment into Nature and Wildlife:
Human encroachment on animal habitat and commercialization of forest land depletes the
resources available for wild animals. Wildlife being vulnerable to anthropogenic pressures
often yields to human-wildlife conflicts, fragmentation of natural habitats and illegal wildlife
trade. Human encroachment can lead to local extinctions by forcing the wildlife to migrate to
other suitable habitats. There is a need to develop a better landscape approach model for
wildlife conservation.

Global Warming:
Global warming is literally the “burning” issue of the whole world right now. Over the past
50 years, the average global temperature has increased at the fastest rate in recorded history,
and experts see the trend is accelerating. Needless to say, Global warming is the steady
process of gradual increment in temperature of The Earth’s surface due to increasing rate of
green house gases (like CO2, N2O, SO2 etc) in the atmosphere.

Due to Global Warming, we might have to face disastrous consequences in the near future
like, increased sea level due to melting of polar ice caps, situation of Tsunami, Cyclones,
Flood or even Drought. Many parts of the world are already dealing with the unsuitable
results. In the recent past, South Africa has gone on to be almost bereft of drinking water.
Apart from this, overheating summer weather, uncertainty of rains, floods near coastal areas
or occurrence of earthquake and storms are going on to be common issues in various
countries.

Environmental pollution:
Environmental pollution is reaching worrying proportions worldwide. Urbanization and
industrialization along with economic developments have led to increase in energy
consumption and waste discharges. The global environmental pollution, including
greenhouse gas emissions and acid deposition, as well as water pollution and waste
management is considered as international public health problems, which should be
investigated from multiple perspectives including social, economic, legislative, and
environmental engineering systems, as well as lifestyle habits helping health promotion and
strengthening environmental systems to resist contamination.
Environmental pollutants have various adverse health effects from early life some of the most
important harmful effects are prenatal disorders, infant mortality, respiratory disorders,
allergy, malignancies, cardiovascular disorders, increase in stress oxidative, endothelial
dysfunction, mental disorders, and various other harmful effects. Though, short-term effects
of environmental pollutants are usually highlighted, wide range of hazards of air pollution
from early life and their possible implication on chronic non-communicable diseases of
adulthood should be underscored. Numerous studies have exposed that environmental
particulate exposure has been linked to increased risk of morbidity and mortality from many
diseases, organ disturbances, cancers, and other chronic diseases. Therefore it is high time for
us to take action and control the pollution as well as the pollutants.
Possible solutions:
The first and foremost solution to the global climate crisis is the Sustainable use of energy
and recycling of it.

It is becoming mandatory for the development of current economies in a viable way, in order
to maintain a clean environment for a long time. We have to create awareness about energy
conversation and their role in the economic growth and the environment through T.E.A.M.
approach- Teach, Enforce, Advocate, Model.

Apart from this, there are several other ways that a human being is easily capable of,
mentioned here-

1. Improving energy efficiency, such as, turning on the save screen mode which reduces
power consumption and emissions;
2. Increased use of solar energy, such as, solar cookers, solar PV pumps;
3. Increased use of wind energy, such as, mechanical wind pumps can be used to pump
water;
4. Reducing water usage in daily activities;
5. Applying rural renewable energy strategies, like, using hydropower or biogas for
lighting and energy purpose.

The question of Environmental protection is a global issue and it is not an isolated problem of
any particular area or nation. India has enacted various laws at almost regular intervals to deal
with the problem of Environmental Degradation. The Indian Constitution is amongst the few
in the world that contains specific provisions on Environment Protection. Article 51A (g) of
the Indian Constitution places a fundamental duty on every citizen to protect and improve the
natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life, and to have compassion for
living creatures. It also included forests and protection of wild animals in the Concurrent List
under Seventh Schedule- Article 256 of the Constitution.

Apart from that, Article 48 of the Constitution of India provides that State shall endeavor to
Organization of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry and Article 48A provides that State shall
endeavor to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of
the country. Hence, the State has to take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and
prohibiting the slaughter of cows, calves and other mulch and draught cattle. Article 246 of
the Constitution of India gives law making powers upon some specific subjects to the
parliament and state legislatures of our country. Parliament has absolute authority to make
laws in respect to any matters in List-I and for matters on List-III, Both Parliament and the
legislature have the authority to make laws. Hence, the concerned authority can make laws
for prevention of cruelty to animals, protection of wild animals and birds, prevention of the
extension from one State to another of infectious or contagious diseases or pests affecting
men, animals or plants.
Legislative Framework for Wildlife Conservation in India:
The Government of India has introduced various types of legislation in response to the
growing destruction of wildlife and forests. Amongst these, The Wildlife (Protection) Act
(WLPA), 1972 is an important statute that provides a powerful legal framework for
Prohibition of hunting, Protection and management of wildlife habitats, Establishment of
protected areas along with Regulation and control of trade in parts and products derived from
wildlife. There are various sets of laws enacted by the Indian parliament to keep a check and
control upon the environmental issues, such as-

The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981

The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974
The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1977
The National Environmental Tribunal Act, 1995
The National Environmental Appellate Authority Act, 1997
The Mines and Minerals (Regulation and Development) Act, 1957
The Indian Forest Act, 1927
The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980
The Atomic Energy Act, 1948
The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010

GLOBAL POLICIES:
In the past three decades, protecting the global environment has emerged as one of the major
challenges in international relations. No fewer than ten global environmental treaties have
been negotiated as well as literally hundreds of regional and bilateral agreements.
Governments have also endorsed dozens of comprehensive action plans, most notably the
400-page Agenda 21, which set forth a blueprint for implementing sustainable development.
The result is an increasingly complex and rich body of international environmental law and
policy. At least on paper, this provides a broad framework for moving towards a more
environmentally sustainable future.
Unfortunately, this rich body of treaties, action plans, and other instruments has not reversed
global environmental decline. Virtually every major environmental indicator is worse today
than it was at the time of the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development (Earth
Summit) held in Rio de janeiro. Climate change has caused the warmest decade in the entire
recorded history, the ozone layer continues to deteriorate, species extinction is at the highest
rate since the end of the dinosaur era, fish populations are crashing, and toxic chemicals are
accumulating in every part of the planet and in every living organism, including humans.
Conclusion:
Like it or not, by 2050 the world’s population will almost certainly be larger and, perhaps,
richer, which will put unprecedented demand on Earth’s land and water resources. The
challenge for the future, therefore, is several fold: first, to make it easier to increase
production by using improved technologies on lands and waters already diverted to human
use, rather than through additional land conversion and water diversion; second, to ensure
that the environmental impacts of new and existing technologies are mitigated and contained;
and third, to ensure that future productivity-enhancing and environmental technologies are
affordable and widely implemented.

The Indian as well as world judiciary has played a remarkable role in uplifting the goal of
preservation through its various landmark decisions and the Acts and laws which provides a
platform so that one cannot exploit the nature and its gift for his or her greedy needs.
India has witnessed vast participation of individuals of strong will that can be seen through
various movements such as Chipko Movement, Appiko Movement, Silent Valley Movement,
Tehri Dam Conflict, Save the Bhagirati, Narmada Bachao Andholan and various others
like Swachhagraha, Clean Ganga Mission should be introduced more further.
Environment is the gift of nature and we have to respect it. However, since the environment
is a complex, variable and extensive system, protecting the environment is a hard and
enduring task. It is impossible that all the existing pollution problems in the environmental
can completely be resolved in the next decade. A wonderful and quality environment must be
achieved by continuous planning, governmental policies, efforts of the enterprises and public
participation. Thus, it is everyone’s collective responsibility to make ourselves a better,
healthier and more durable environment to breathe in.