INDEX

DOWN TO EARTH – NOVEMBER 2017

TITLE PAGE NO.

1. EXTREME WEATHER LEADS TO PUBLIC HEALTH CRISES – SO HEALTH AND 3

CLIMATE EXPERTS MUST WORK TOGETHER
2. FLOODS IN POLLUTED RIVERS CAN POLLUTE GROUNDWATER TOO 4
3. TSUNAMI FORECAST SET TO MOVE TO THE NEXT LEVEL 4
4. MEGA-EARTHQUAKES STRIKE WHERE TECTONIC PLATES COLLIDE FASTER: 5
STUDY

5. CHENNAI TO GET FLOOD WARNING SYSTEM 6

6. ODISHA’S DEADLY FARMLANDS 7
7. STOP USING ANTIBIOTICS TO PROMOTE GROWTH, PREVENT DISEASE IN 7
ANIMALS: WHO
8. TUSSLE WITH DENGUE 10
9. ONE-FIFTH OF PREGNANT WOMEN AT RISK DUE TO GROUP B 10
STERPTOCOCCUS BACTERIA
10. LANCET REPORT 11
11. IS ANDHRA PRADESH TURNING A BLIND EYE TO ILLEGAL SHRIMP REARING? 12
12. NITI AAYOG WANTS TO HAND OVER MICRO IRRIGATION TO PRIVATE 13
PLAYERS

13. AREAS SELECTED FOR SMART CITY DEVELOPMENT ARE HEAT ISLANDS: 14
STUDY
14. ADANI'S MUNDRA PORT AND SEZ: SC ORDERS PROBE INTO ALLEGATION OF 15
SAND DUNE LEVELING
15. CENTRE’S NEW GUIDELINES ON COMPENSATORY AFFORESTATION IGNORE 16
COMMUNITIES’ CONCERNS
16. COMMITMENTS UNDER PARIS DEAL ONE-THIRD OF WHAT IS NEEDED: UN 18
EMISSION GAP REPORT 2017
17. COP 23: ARE COUNTRIES READY FOR NEW MARKET MECHANISM? 19
18. HERE'S WHY THE LATEST PUSH FOR PRE-2020 ACTION AT COP23 IS 20
LIKELY TO FALL FLAT
19. NOT JUST DELHI, SEVERE AIR POLLUTION HAS TAKEN SEVERAL OTHER 21
CITIES HOSTAGE
20. 100% INDIANS EXPOSED TO PM 2.5 POLLUTANTS BEYOND LIMITS 22
21. EASE OF DOING BUSINESS COMES AT AN ENVIRONMENTAL COST 23
22. ‘INDIA COULD ACHIEVE ITS 2030 CLIMATE TARGETS’ 24
23. GLOBAL AIR POLLUTION LEVEL ROSE 8 PER CENT EACH YEAR DURING 2008- 25
2013
24. MOEF&CC TAKES BACK ADVISORY TO AVOID HONEYCOMBING OF FOREST 26
LAND UNDER FRA
25. MOEF&CC ISSUES RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE ENVIRONMENT 26
CLEARANCE AND MONITORING PROCESS
 DOWN TO EARTH – NOVEMBER 2017

1. EXTREME WEATHER LEADS TO How climate change and disease are

interrelated?
PUBLIC HEALTH CRISES – SO
 A more variable climate creates conditions for
HEALTH AND CLIMATE EXPERTS
the spread and control of infectious disease.
MUST WORK TOGETHER
 In particular, changes in the intensity and
What is the issue?
duration of rain can help spread pathogens
 Extreme weather events are inevitably through water.
followed by disease outbreaks. So why not
 Both floods and droughts can increase
team health professionals with climate
waterborne infections.
experts?
 In Australia, fluctuations in the sea surface
Why they should work together?
temperatures in the Indian Ocean (a
 This year has seen a number of extreme phenomenon shown by the ―Indian Ocean
weather events around the globe, from Dipole‖) are linked to spikes in rates of
hurricanes in the Americas to devastating waterborne diseases like cryptosporidiosis,
flooding in South Asia followed by disease which cause gastrointestinal illness.

outbreaks exaggerating the damage effect.

 This shows that these risks are not restricted to
countries with limited resources.
 The connection between climate and disease is
well established, even in less extreme  Research suggests we can improve public
situations. health outcomes by integrating both climate
dynamics and the impact on human health
 As our climate changes, severe weather events
into our management of natural water
will become the ―new normal‖ it makes that
resources.
our meteorologists, climate scientists and
health systems work closely together, a vital. How we may gain from integration across
climate and health?
 Traditional disease surveillance systems rely
 As our understanding of climate patterns
on early detection of illnesses as they
grows, there are more opportunities for the
occur, not predicting them before they
health sector to take advantage of
happen. sophisticated modelling and prediction.

 Health professionals should make better use of  This is particularly true if disease surveillance
weather forecasts to proactively manage and climate and weather forecasting can be
disease risk. combined to assess health risks ahead of
extreme weather events, rather than during or
after the fact.

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  By fostering collaboration and the integration
of the health and climate sectors, we can
improve our capacity to respond to the health
risks posed by climate change.
2. FLOODS IN POLLUTED RIVERS CAN
POLLUTE GROUNDWATER TOO
Why in news?
 A new study has pointed out that flooding in
polluted rivers has the potential to make
groundwater unsafe for human use.
How groundwater polluted by the floods in
polluted rivers?
 Floods have the potential to impact the
microbial quality of groundwater in affected
areas, say researchers.
 In December of 2015, when Chennai was
flooded and, a team of scientists from Anna
3. TSUNAMI FORECAST SET TO MOVE TO THE NEXT LEVEL
Why in news?
 Disaster management authorities are all set to get a new tool to handle tsunamis which may forecast within
about 25 minutes from the time a tsunamigenic earthquake strike.
University were checking whether the ground
water in this region fit for human
consumption.
 The results showed that heavy metal and
microbial load in groundwater samples was
high.
 Also these samples contained microbes such as
Enterobacter, Staphylococcus, Escherichia,
Streptococcus, Vibrio, and Salmonella that are
known to cause infections such as dysentery,
cholera, and typhoid in humans.
 Findings show that floods have the potential to
impact the microbial quality of groundwater in
affected areas.
 Hence, wells must be chlorinated and the
public must be warned to avoid consuming
groundwater for drinking, at least for some
months post floods

How Tsunamis occur?

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How new forecasting works?
 They will be able to know how far the waves
will move into the land at different places
along the Indian coast.
 This will mark a significant jump from the
present forecasting system which can only
indicate time of arrival and wave height.
 The Indian National Centre for Ocean
Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad is
preparing a topographical map of the entire
coastline of the country for a distance of two
km from the shore.
 This map when integrated with tsunami
warning model would be able to provide
information to district authorities and others
involved in disaster management on what
would be the extent of inundation for various
places.
 Provision of information on possible extent of
inundation may be termed as a quantum jump
as that would move the Indian tsunami
warning system to the third level.
 The first level relates to the basic provision of
tsunami based merely on earthquake
information.
 The second level is where we are now: initial
warning based on earthquake level plus
information about the likely time of its arrival
and the wave height.
4. MEGA-EARTHQUAKES STRIKE
WHERE TECTONIC PLATES COLLIDE
FASTER: STUDY
Why in news?
 By creating a model that reproduces
earthquakes, scientists show that frequency
and maximum magnitude of earthquakes
depend on collision rate.
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What is a mega thrust earthquake?
 The apparent inactivity within the zone of
contact suggests that either the two plates are
locked together and are accumulating strain or
that the contact zone is well lubricated and the
plates are moving smoothly past each other.
 Stress accumulation that may occur between
two locked plates can result in a potentially
very destructive type of earthquake, called
a megathrust earthquake.
What does the study say?
 For the first time, scientists have created a
model that reproduces earthquakes
throughout the mountain chains, confirming
earthquakes are a serious hazard for the Alps,
Apennines, Zagros and the Himalayas.
 The study reveals that the velocity with which
the tectonic plates collide to each other is the
only parameter that controls the maximum
magnitude and frequency of both moderate
and great earthquakes in the mountain chains
around the world.
 The new findings show that the risk of having
damaging earthquakes shifts considerably than
previously assumed.
 The authors have adjusted the estimates of
likely maximum magnitude, significant for
construction engineers, who can use it to
effectively design earthquake-resistant
buildings and infrastructure.
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5. CHENNAI TO GET FLOOD WARNING
SYSTEM
Why in news?
 Chennai, which, of late, has been experiencing
urban flooding, is all set to get a
comprehensive flood warning system being
developed by several national agencies and
institutions.
 This is a particularly important technology in
developing countries, where flooding results in
massive loss of life and property.
 Flood warnings are a highly important
adaptive measure where protection through
large scale, hard defences, is not desirable or
possible.

What is flood warning system?
 A flood warning system is a way of detecting
threatening events in advance.
 This enables the public to be warned en masse
so that actions can be taken to reduce the
adverse effects of the event.
 A flood warning process has two distinct
stages: (1) flood warning and (2) response.
 These stages are composed of a number of sub-
stages and are linked through the
dissemination of warnings as shown in
Figure.

 As such, the primary objective of a flood

warning system is to reduce exposure to
flooding.

What is the necessity of the warning system in chennai?

 Chennai has been witnessed multiple instances of flooding in recent years, with the most recent one killing at
least 14.

 As a move to cope with the north east monsoon, Chennai City Corporation has developed early flood warning
system for the city.

 It will then be easy to prevent lives from loss and properties near Adyar, Cooum, Buckingham Canal,
Kosasthalaiyar, etc.
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 6. ODISHA’S DEADLY FARMLANDS
What is the issue?
 The fresh reports of suicides by the farmers in
quick succession have again brought into focus
the acute farm distress in the district, known
as the ‗Rice Bowl of Odisha‘.
Why unenviable happens?
 Between 2001 and 2010, over 2,600 farmers
committed suicide in Odisha and this year,
drought has already broken their economic
backbone. There are many reasons behind this.
 Alleged cold response of the district
administration to the crop damaged by pests is
the cause for recent death.
 No proper set up for compensating farmers
against the loss incurring because of pests.
 No proper insurance framework to alleviate
farmers‘ fears and keep them secured.
 Underreporting of farmer suicides, i.e. family
members of the deceased farmers and social
activists keep alleging that the farmers commit
suicide basically due to crop loss and loan
burden but the government rules out such
possibilities.
 In 2015, the collectors‘ reports on farmers‘
suicides attributed ―family dispute‖, ―marital
discord‖ and ―consumption of liquor‖ by the
farmers as the possible reasons for the
suicides.
 Several studies have revealed that the farmers
in Odisha, earning about Rs 5,000 per month,
are consistently under pressure and take loan
from banks, self-help groups and private
money lenders.
 For marginal farmers, it is difficult to get loan
from nationalised banks, so they turn to
private money lenders who charge between 2
per cent and 10 per cent interest per month.
What were the steps taken?
 An expert committee has been constituted to
give a detailed report on the farmers‘ suicides.
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 The fresh reports of suicides by the farmers in
quick succession have again brought into focus
the acute farm distress in the district
 The collectors have been asked by the state
government to take up relief measures in their
respective districts.
 The Odisha government has declared severe to
moderate drought.
7. STOP USING ANTIBIOTICS TO
PROMOTE GROWTH, PREVENT
DISEASE IN ANIMALS: WHO
What is the issue?
 WHO estimates that in many countries,
approximately 80 per cent of total
consumption of antibiotics is in the animal
sector.
What are the recommendations by WHO?
 The World Health Organization has come up
with new recommendations asking farmers
and food industry to avoid use of antibiotics to
promote growth and prevent disease in healthy
animals.
 This would prevent resistance against
antibiotics, which are extensively used to treat
diseases in humans.
 Restricting antibiotic use in food-producing
animals can reduce antibiotic-resistant
bacteria in these animals by up to 39 per cent.
 Few months back, WHO categorised
antibiotics and announced an advisory on
which of these antibiotics can be used for
common infection and which ones to be
preserved for more serious circumstances.
 The WHO also suggests that wherever
possible, sick animals should be tested to
determine the most effective and prudent
antibiotic to treat their specific infection.
 Antibiotics used in animals should be selected
from those that WHO has listed as being ―least
important‖ to human health.
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What is antibiotic resistance?

 Antibiotic resistance is the ability of bacteria to resist the effects of an antibiotic.

 Antibiotic resistance occurs when bacteria change in a way that reduces the effectiveness of drugs, chemicals,
or other agents designed to cure or prevent infections.

 The bacteria survive and continue to multiply, causing more harm.

How antibiotic resistance spreads?

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 8. TUSSLE WITH DENGUE What are the recent findings regarding the
growing danger?
Why in news?
 Tamil Nadu records the highest number of 40  The study revealed that DENV-1 Asian
deaths due to dengue in the country genotype had replaced the AF-AM type that
was hitherto dominant in Tamil Nadu.
What is dengue?
 Dengue is fast emerging pandemic-prone viral  All four serotypes were circulating but DENV-1
disease in many parts of the world. was dominant, present in 52% of the serotyped
samples.
 It is also known as breakbone fever.
 This is the first time after 20 years we are
 It is transmitted by female Aedes mosquitoes.
observing change in genotype in India.
 It is viral infection causing a severe flu-like
illness and, sometimes causing a potentially 9. ONE-FIFTH OF PREGNANT WOMEN
lethal complication called severe dengue.
AT RISK DUE TO GROUP B
 The incidence of dengue has increased 30-fold STERPTOCOCCUS BACTERIA
over the last 50 years.
What is the issue?
 Severe dengue is also known as dengue
 Almost every fifth pregnant woman in the
haemorrhagic fever.
world is affected by Group B Sterptococcus
 Up to 50-100 million infections are now (GBS) bacteria, which is a major cause of
estimated to occur annually in over 100 maternal and infant ill-health, says a
endemic countries, putting almost half of the
new research.
world‘s population at risk.
What is GBS infection?
Is there any treatment for Dengue?
 There is still no specific medication or  Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is a type of
treatment to cure the disease. In most cases, gram-positive streptococcal bacteria also
the treatment is symptomatic–controlling the known as Streptococcus agalactiae.
symptoms.
 These are bacteria found normally in the
 But when infected first time, the patient
intestine, vagina, and rectal area in about 25%
developed lifetime immunity for that
of all healthy pregnant women.
particular serotype due to presence of
antibodies produced earlier.
 It is a type of bacteria that causes illness in
 However, if the secondary infection is by people of all ages.
another serotype, the immune system is
confused and the infection can become life  Most pregnant women who are colonized by
threatening. the bacteria have no symptoms.

 According to the World Health Organisation,
there are four distinct stereotypes of Dengue
virus–DEN 1, DEN 2, DEN 3 and DEN 4–that
cause the fever and each stereotype has
multiple genotypes with several clades.
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 The infection can be spread to infants before
or during birth.
 The infection can be especially severe in
newborns, most commonly causing sepsis
(infection of the blood), pneumonia (infection
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 in the lungs), and sometimes meningitis
(infection of the fluid and lining around the
brain and spinal cord).
 The most common problems caused by group
B strep bacteria in adults are bloodstream
infections, pneumonia, skin and soft-tissue
infections, and bone and joint infections.
What are the findings of the study?
 The research says that GBS is carried by up to
a third of adults, usually with no symptoms.
 In women, GBS can live harmlessly in the
digestive system or lower vaginal tract, from
where it can be passed to the unborn baby
through the amniotic fluid or to newborns
during labour.
 Being home to only 13 per cent of the world‘s
population, Africa had the highest burden,
accounting for 54 per cent of the total
estimated cases and 65 per cent stillbirths and
infant deaths.
 The top five countries by numbers (to nearest
100) of pregnant women affected were: India
(2,466,500) China (1,934,900), Nigeria
(1,060,000), United States of America
(942,800) and Indonesia (799,100).
 Proper screening and using antibiotic is the
only way to prevent the infant from getting
infected.
10. LANCET REPORT
Why in news?
 Lancet report found that between 1990 and
2016, 2,843 climate disasters affected 4·8
billion people.
What are the findings of the report?
 Between 2000 and 2016 weather-related
disasters also increased by a startling 46 per
cent.
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 The report notes that climate change
disproportionately affects citizens in low-
income countries which bear 99 per cent of
damage-related costs.
 In 2016, climate change is estimated to have
cost a whopping $129 billion around the world.
This number has been on the rise since 1990.
 Exposure to heat waves
 The most alarming impact on health from
changing climate is perhaps the increase in
exposure to heat waves.
 The indicator on heat wave exposure revealed
that between 2000 and 2016, human exposure
to warming was about 0.9 degrees Celsius
which is more than double the average
temperature increase in the earth.
 Weather-related disasters
 The report also notes an increase in weather-
related disasters with 306 disasters recorded
on an average between 2007 and 2016, a 46
per cent increase compared to the 1990-99
average.
 More than 90 per cent of all disasters have
been associated with weather-related events in
the last 20 years with Asia being the continent
most affected.
 Interestingly, the report also shows that there
has actually been a decrease in the number of
people affected by floods worldwide despite an
increase in frequency (this decrease is only
temporary).
Spread of infectious diseases
 Increase in temperatures, notes the report, has
likely had an aggravating impact on the
transmission potential of vector-borne
diseases like dengue.
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 The capacity to transmit diseases in two
vectors of dengue—Aedes aegypti and Aedes
albopictus—has increased by 3 per cent and
5·9 per cent respectively, compared with 1990
levels.
Undernourishment linked to climate
change
 The report explores the link between
increasing undernourishment and reducing
yields as temperatures increase.
 According to the report, increasing
temperatures reduce global wheat production
by 6 per cent for each 1°C increase, while rice
is sensitive to increases in night temperatures,
with yields reducing by up to 10 per cent for
each 1°C increase during growing season.
 Similar reduction in marine productivity has
also been noted to contribute to an increased
risk of nutrition deficiency.
Productivity of labour dips
 The report concludes that labour capacity has
decreased by 5·3 per cent between 2000 and
2016, with a dramatic decrease of more than 2
per cent between 2015 and 2016.
Climate change and worsening air
quality
 71 per cent of the cities being monitored by the
WHO, do not satisfy WHO annual fine
particulate matter exposure recommendations.
 Estimates in the report suggest that exposure
of populations to PM2.5 has increased by 11.2
per cent since 1990.
 Noting that world is poised for a 2.6-4.8°C
increase in temperatures by the end of the
century under the current response, the report
makes a strong case for shoring up adaptation
and mitigation responses through carbon
pricing and low-carbon growth.
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11. IS ANDHRA PRADESH TURNING A
BLIND EYE TO ILLEGAL SHRIMP
REARING?
What is the issue?
 In the past few years, thousands of illegal
shrimp rearing ponds have come up in East
Godavari district, damaging fertilie soil and
groundwater
Why sudden expansion in shrimp rearing?
 Attracted by the demand for shrimp in the
developed countries, shrimp aquaculture has
expanded rapidly, mainly in the subtropical
and tropical lowlands of America and Asia.
 approximately 1-1.5 million ha of coastal
lowlands have been converted into shrimp
ponds, comprising mainly salt flats, mangrove
areas, marshes, and agricultural lands.
 This work provides a global review and
viewpoint on the environmental impacts of
shrimp aquaculture, considering the causes
and effects of the siting and operation of
shrimp ponds and abandonment of farm
facilities.
How shimp rearing affects?
 Shrimp rearing in water that is more saline
than fresh¬water and less saline than seawater
is called brackish aquaculture.
 The extremely salty water in the pond, while
suitable for shrimp rearing or brackish
aquaculture, seeps into the soil, reducing its
fertility and contaminating groundwater—the
only source of water in this village.
 The impact of shrimp farming of most concern
is the destruction of mangroves and salt
marshes for pond construction.
How damage can be mitigated?
 The presence of buffer zones
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  Maintaining an acceptable balance between 5. Less weed growth and restricts population of
mangroves and shrimp pond area, potential hosts.
6. Low labour and relatively low operation cost.
 Improved pond design,
7. No soil erosion.
 Reduction of water exchange 8. Improved infiltration in soil of low intake.

 An improved residence time of water, size and 9. Ready adjustment to sophisticated automatic
capacity to assimilate effluents of the water control.
body 10. No runoff of fertilizers into ground water.

 The use of mangroves and halophytes as 11. Less evaporation losses of water as compared
biofilters of shrimp pond effluents offers an to surface irrigation.
attractive tool for reducing the impact in those 12. Improves seed germination.
regions where mangrove wetlands and 13. Decreased to tillage operations.
appropriate conditions for halophyte
plantations exist. What are the Disadvantages of Drip
Irrigation?
12. NITI AAYOG WANTS TO HAND 1. Sensitivity to clogging
OVER MICRO IRRIGATION TO 2. Moisture distribution problem
PRIVATE PLAYERS 3. Salinity hazards
4. High cost compared to furrow.
Why in news?
5. High skill is required for design, install and
 The NITI Aayog has put out a draft concept operation.
report seeking private participation in
What is the reason for seeking private
managing and boosting the reach of micro
investment?
irrigation across the country.
 The report titled ―Draft Model Public Private
What is micro irrigation? Partnership Policy Guidelines in Integrated

 Micro-irrigation is also called as localized Micro-Irrigation in India‖, points out that the

irrigation, low volume irrigation, low-flow non-availability of government fund is the key

irrigation, or trickle irrigation reason to push for private investment in

micro-irrigation.
 It is an irrigation method with lower pressure
and flow than a traditional sprinkler system.  For the first time, the government is seeking
private investment in micro irrigation that
 Low volume irrigation is used operates at a local level.
in agriculture for row crops, orchards,
and vineyards.  With the target of achieving 0.5 million ha per
annum coverage under micro irrigation (MI)
What are the Advantages of Drip Irrigation? with a budget of just Rs 1,000 crore
1. Maximum use of available water. under PMKSY (Pradhan Mantri Krishi
Sinchayee Yojana, it will take at least another
2. No water being available to weeds.
100 years to reach the overall MI potential in
3. Maximum crop yield. India.
4. High efficiency in the use of fertilizers.

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What is the proposed implementation 13. AREAS SELECTED FOR SMART
method?
CITY DEVELOPMENT ARE HEAT
 The proposed private-public partnership, ISLANDS: STUDY
would pool in resources to create and maintain
Why in news?
infrastructure for micro irrigation projects.
 A new study of urban areas selected for
 Farmers would consolidate their farms to development of smart cities found urban heat
provide the scale needed to make private island effect driven by rapid urbanisation can
investment profitable for them. further worsen extreme hot conditions in
cities.
 The project is proposed to be implemented
under an organised participatory farming What is the Heat Island Effect?
framework, wherein the farmers shall pool in
 The elevated temperature in urban areas as
their land holdings in order to obtain
compared to rural, less developed areas is
economies of scale.
referred to as the urban heat island effect.
 The proposal is similar to the usual model of
 As cities grow and urbanization peaks this
private-public partnership for infrastructure
phenomenon comes into existence.
projects like highways.
 Although we tend to think of heat islands as a
 Farmers, after a concession period of 15 years,
modern ecological problem, scientists first
would bear all the operation and maintenance
noted this issue as early as the 1800s.
costs, as fixed by the private player and the
government.  Any area (rural, urban, or otherwise) can
experience the heat island effect, but urban
 To begin with, governments would make
areas are typically of more concern since they
payment to private players for setting up
represent a more serious threat to local climate
infrastructure and maintenance costs.
warming.

 Once the concession period is over, farmers
would have to channelise their input subsidies
from the government to private players to
sustain the irrigation infrastructure.
 Beneficiary farmers on receiving subsidies
from the government for implementation of
on-farm MI and solar equipment would
transfer the same to the concessionaire.
 As irrigation is a state subject, the draft has
proposed the state governments to formulate
appropriate guidelines or provide approvals
for the project proponent to successfully
execute the project.
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 For smaller cities, heat islands are less
noticeable. For a large city of one million
people, the average temperature can be
anywhere from around 1°C to 12°C warmer
than the surrounding area.
What Causes the Heat Island Effect?
 When urban and suburban areas lose land
surface and naturally occurring vegetation,
heat can no longer easily escape.
 Tall buildings, concrete, and asphalt trap heat
and contribute to the warming effect.
14
  Waste heat from energy use is another source
of additional heat.
 Other contributing factors include local
weather, seasonal changes, time of day, and
geographic location.
What are the types of heat islands?
 There are three basic types of heat islands:
canopy layer, boundary layer, and surface.
 Both canopy layer and boundary layer heat
islands refer to atmospheric heating (warmer
air temperatures).
 Surface heat islands refer to the actual
temperature of surfaces in a specific heat
island.
 Although the timing and intensity of these
types may vary, they can all be harmful to
urban and suburban environments.
What does the study says?
 The study covered the areas selected for
development of smart cities.
 It has found that agriculture and irrigation are
two dominant drivers of urban heat islands
(UHIs) in India.
 In addition, significant presence of
atmospheric aerosols—mainly pollutants—over
urban areas can influence UHI.
 Moisture from irrigation canals and
agriculture fields plays keeps rural areas much
cooler than urban areas making cities as heat
islands.
 But when the surrounding non-urban areas
have no agriculture during summer, cities are
relatively cooler during daytime.
 However, in the night-time, cities are
significantly warmer than surroundings in
both winter and summer seasons mainly
because of heat stored in buildings and other
impervious surfaces.
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 Indo-Gangetic Plain and north-west India
(Haryana and Punjab)—show UHI intensity of
3 to 5 degrees Celsius.
 ―While urban areas have experienced
increased number of heat waves and
temperature extremes in recent past, urban
heat island effect driven by rapid urbanisation
can further worsen extreme hot conditions in
cities
How can we reduce the heat Islands?
 Green roofs, which are lined with soil and
certain types of vegetation, can actually help
cities regain some of the cooling and
evaporative effects that the natural landscape
once provided.
 Dark building surfaces that absorb more heat
account for some of the rising temperatures in
urban areas.
 One simple method for reducing this effect is
to paint buildings with light or white colors
that do not absorb nearly as much heat.
 Another rooftop technique that can help to
ameliorate the heat island effect is roof
sprinkling. As moisture from the sprinklers
evaporates, this helps to cools the surrounding
air.
 Many cities have urban forestry initiatives that
have been in place for years for a variety of
purposes.
14. ADANI'S MUNDRA PORT AND SEZ:
SC ORDERS PROBE INTO
ALLEGATION OF SAND DUNE
LEVELING
Why in news?
 Supreme Court, ordered a probe into whether
the Adani group has violated environmental
clearance norms by leveling sand dunes in its
port and SEZ construction activities at Mundra
in Gujarat‘s Kutch district.
15
What is the Impact of development work on
environment?
 The port at Mundra is the rapidly-booming
business hub, including a commercial airport.
 The company was earlier hauled up by activists
for flouting environmental regulations.
 The farmers-collective Kheti Vikas Sewa Trust,
along with the Machimar Adhikar Sangharsh
Sangathan had complained about the impact
of Adani‘s port development activities in the
Kutch region.
 It has been claimed that the leveling of sand
dunes had caused coastal biodiversity loss and
rendered local inhabitants vulnerable in the
face of natural disasters.
 The government was blamed for ignoring these
multiple violations and instead, framing laws
to ensure ease-of-doing-business.
What are the findings of the committee of
2013?
 The committee in its report showed that
mangrove forests were damaged. Evidence was
shown to prove loss of forest cover and
company‘s negligence in protecting creeks
from construction activities.
 They had also failed to line water channels to
prevent saline contamination or manage fly
ash disposal.
 The committee had objected to construction of
the North Port to preserve the area‘s ecological
balance.
 It had also recommended formation of an
environmental restoration fund amount to Rs
200 crore.
 It also gave a clear cut plan to restore ecology
in the area.
 However, the issue of sand dune leveling was
not discussed in that report.
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Why reassessing damage to sand dunes is
important?
 Coastal sand dunes form a natural barrier
against wind and waves, protecting inland
areas from damage due to storms.
 Sand dunes create natural shelters for coastal
and ocean-based life forms and hence, they
have an important role in preserving
biodiversity of an area.
 The structure of sand dunes depends largely
on stabilizing vegetation such as native dune
grass.
 Without it, the sand would simply blow away,
as it does in areas that have been degraded by
trampling and invasive species.
 Crabs and other shellfish, which survive on the
boundaries between land and sea, are
particularly affected by changes to their
natural landscape.
 Taking note of this fact, the Supreme Court in
its recent order stated that the same
committee would look into the matter of the
leveling of sand dunes around the port
facilities in Mundra.
15. CENTRE’S NEW GUIDELINES ON
COMPENSATORY AFFORESTATION
IGNORE COMMUNITIES’ CONCERNS
Why in news?
 The Ministry of Environment, Forest and
Climate Change (MoEF&CC) issued guidelines,
specifying criteria for suitability and
identification of land bank for compensatory
afforestation.
What is compensatory afforestation?
 Compensatory Afforestation (CA) refers to
afforestation and regeneration activities
carried out as a way of compensating for forest
land diverted to non-forest purposes.
16
  The Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980 requires
that afforestation is carried out in
compensation for forest land diverted for non-
forestry uses.
 Compensatory afforestation can be done over
an equivalent area of non-forest land or over
degraded forest twice in extent of the area
being diverted.
 Here "non-forest purpose" means the breaking
up or clearing of any forest land or a portion
thereof for-
 the cultivation of tea, coffee, spices, rubber,
palms, oil-bearing plants, horticultural crops
or medicinal plants;
 any purpose other than reafforestation;
 It does not include any work relating or
ancillary to conservation, development and
management of forests and wildlife, namely,
the establishment of check-posts, fire lines,
wireless communications and construction of
fencing, bridges and culverts, dams,
waterholes, trench marks, boundary marks,
pipelines or other like purposes.
 CA is one of the most important conditions
stipulated by the Central Government while
approving proposals for de-reservation or
diversion of forest land for non-forest use.
 The compensatory afforestation is an
additional plantation activity and not a
diversion of part of the annual plantation
programme.
Will the guidelines address compensatory
afforestation issues?
 Since the land available for CA already has
vegetation the government suggested planting
1000 plants/hectare on the non-forest land.
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 If in case planting 1,000 plants per ha is not
possible on non-forest land; the balance
number of plantations can be done on
degraded forests.
 The guidelines have tried to address the
mounting challenge of land scarcity for
compensatory afforestation. However, they
have fallen short of clarifying the minimum
threshold for undertaking plantations on non-
forest land.
 It also emphasis on activities such as soil and
moisture conservation and regeneration
cleaning to ensure maintenance of plantations
for a period of seven to 10 years.
 But, poor survival rate of plantations raised
under compensatory afforestation has raised
serious questions about their effectiveness.
 It would have been better if the guidelines had
also specified a certain percentage of
compensatory afforestation funds to be set
aside exclusively for this purpose
 The guidelines have also directed the
constitution of state-level committees under
the chairmanship of the Principal Chief
Conservator of Forests to expedite the creation
of land bank for compensatory afforestation.
What are the compromises made on
community forest rights?
 The land identified for compensatory
afforestation is required to be notified as
Reserved Forests under the Indian Forest Act
of 1927.
 While the forest department‘s jurisdiction
would extend over new lands through this
process, tribal dispossession of lands in the
name of compensatory afforestation could
increase, as is already happening in several
parts of the country.
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  With the FRA in force, an estimated 40 million
ha of forestlands are claimable as CFRs.
 This applies particularly to zupti jungle,
chote/bade jhar ke jungle, jungle-jhari
land, and civil/soyam lands with extensive
community rights recorded in them.
 Treating these as non-forest lands in violation
of the Supreme Court's order and requiring
that these be converted into a land bank for
compensatory afforestation is criminal and
must be challenged.
16. COMMITMENTS UNDER PARIS
DEAL ONE-THIRD OF WHAT IS
NEEDED: UN EMISSION GAP REPORT
2017
What is the issue?
 If the emission gap is not closed by 2030, it is
extremely unlikely that the goal of restricting
global warming to well below 2°C can be met.
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What does the report say?
 The eighth edition of UN Environment‘s
Emissions Gap report finds that national
pledges only bring one-third of the reduction
in emissions required by 2030 to meet climate
targets, with private sector and sub-national
action not increasing at a rate that would help
close this worrying gap.
 The 2015 Paris Agreement set a specific goal of
restricting global warming to well below 2
degrees Celsius (°C) compared to pre-
industrial levels (1850) and pursuing efforts to
limit warming to 1.5°C.
 One year after the Paris Agreement entered
into force, we still find ourselves in a situation
where we are not doing nearly enough to save
hundreds of millions of people from a
miserable future Global greenhouse gas
emissions for top six emitting countries and
regions.
18
Can the emission gap be bridged?
 A systematic assessment of sectoral mitigation options presented in the report shows that the gap can be
closed before 2030 by adopting cost-effective technologies and best practices followed across countries.

What needs to be done?  Most G20 countries require new policies and
actions to achieve their NDC pledges.
 The assessmenT shows that emissions could be
reduced by up to 30 to 40 GtCO2e per annum,  These countries collectively generate around
which will cost below US$100/tCO2e. 75 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Their success in implementing (or exceeding)
 It is remarkable that a large part of this
their NDC pledges will have a major impact on
potential comes from just six relatively
the achievement of the global temperature
standardised categories: solar and wind
goals.
energy, efficient appliances, efficient passenger
cars, afforestation and stopping deforestation
17. COP 23: ARE COUNTRIES READY
which possess a combined potential of up to 22
GtCO2e per annum.
FOR NEW MARKET MECHANISM?
Why in news?
 Report also argues against building of new
coal-fired power plants and in support of  At Bonn, Parties are working towards creating
phasing out existing ones to close the emission a rule book for implementing the various
gap. provisions of Paris Agreement. One such
provision is the New Market Mechanism
 It says that more ambitious NDCs will be (NMM).
necessary by 2020.

19
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What does the agreement talks about? 18. HERE'S WHY THE LATEST PUSH
 The 2015 Paris Agreement established a new FOR PRE-2020 ACTION AT COP23 IS
market mechanism to assist Parties in LIKELY TO FALL FLAT
achieving nationally determined contributions,
raising ambition and supporting sustainable Why in news?
development.  The 23rd session of the Conference of Parties
(CoP23) commenced in the German city of
 The exact rules of this mechanism are yet to be
Bonn.
determined.
What is being focused?
 The Agreement talks of cooperative
approaches ―which would involve the use of  The world focuses on preparing the rule book
internationally transferred mitigation for implementation of the Paris Agreement.
outcomes (ITMO) towards nationally
 Members from the umbrella group of Like-
determined contributions, promote
Minded Developing Countries (LMDC),
sustainable development and ensure
including India, China and Iran took the floor
environmental integrity and transparency.‖
at the opening plenary to raise the issue of vast
 Thus, ITMOs are meant to help in meeting a inadequacy of climate actions in the run up to
part of commitments of Parties, as defined in 2020 when the Paris Agreement becomes
their Nationally Determined Contributions operative.
(NDCs).
Is little progress on pre-2020 actions?
What are the problems with new market  India‘s key negotiator at the talks, stressed on
approaches under Paris Agreement? the importance of meeting commitments made
 Major issue is the extent of readiness of Parties for the period until 2020 on which there has so
for creating quality mitigation outcomes and far been little progress.
transferring the mitigation outcomes to avoid
 India‘s stance was met with enthusiastic
double counting.
support by negotiators from other developing
 Distinction between developed and developing countries.
countries is absent in the Paris Agreement as it
 While action on post-2020 period under the
encourages all Parties to voluntarily develop
Paris Agreement has gained momentum, the
their markets internally and trade the
discussions on pre-2020 actions have lagged
mitigation outcomes with other markets.
behind.
 This makes the situation more complicated
 The commitments being referred to by
because different countries are at different
developing nations are the ones made by
starting points in relation to carbon markets.
parties of the UNFCCC before the Paris
 While countries like US, EU, Japan, Vietnam, Agreement took form, when discussions
Ukraine and Brazil have more developed and revolved around the path to be taken until
active carbon markets, African countries such 2020.
as Ethiopia are at a preliminary stage.
 The agreement during the first commitment
period, in effect until 2012, was for developed

20
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 nations to reduce their carbon emissions while
developing nations were to switch to low-
carbon technologies and climate change
mitigation strategies.
 In 2010, at COP16 in Cancun, close to 80
developed and developing countries
announced their intentions to cut down
emissions and reduce emission intensities
respectively.
 This moment probably represents the last
collaborative effort towards arriving at a
mechanism of addressing climate change
before 2020.
 Beyond this, the world shifted its attention to
what must be done beyond 2020, leaving
deliberations on more immediate actions on
the backburner.
 The Paris Agreement no longer differentiated
between developed and developing countries
on the basis of historical responsibility.
 Each country decides domestic actions it
intended to take up to reduce the emissions
gap required to keep the global warming
ideally under 1.5 degrees Celsius and under
2°C at the very least.
 It is high time now for developed countries to
keep their word on pre-2020 actions.
 Before we can address what needs to happen
beyond 2020, this is an urgent matter at hand
that has a bearing on how the world can move
forward in achieving its goals stated in the
Paris Agreement.
19. NOT JUST DELHI, SEVERE AIR
POLLUTION HAS TAKEN SEVERAL
OTHER CITIES HOSTAGE
What is the issue?
 Not a single city in northern India meets
international air quality standards
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What the pollution study reveals?
 Delhiites look clueless and powerless to deal
with this public health emergency.
 While the national capital is waking up to
smog-ridden toxic days, other cities in the
country are no stranger to this experience.
 The exposure to these pollutants is associated
with cardiovascular and respiratory diseases,
neurological impairments, increased risk of
preterm birth and mortality and morbidity.
 Increase in PM2.5 levels has adverse effect on
health as well as agricultural yields.
 Air pollution is killing more than 1 million
Indians each year and causing a 3 per cent loss
in the country‘s GDP.
 While there is a sharp decline in air quality in
most cities of north India, the southern India,
on the other hand, is enjoying good air quality.
What is the reason for sudden increase?
 A study by non-profit Centre for Science and
Environment (CSE) attributed poor air quality
in smaller towns to lack of transport
infrastructure and growing number of vehicles.
 It also factored in meteorological parameters
like lack of wind speed need for dispersion of
pollutants, low temperature and high
humidity.
 The reason behind the southern cities enjoying
a much better air quality is the northeast
monsoon showers due to which the pollutants
have settled down.
 It is because of this monsoon that the moisture
from the south is making its way to the north
and trapping pollutants.
21
 20. 100% INDIANS EXPOSED TO PM
2.5 POLLUTANTS BEYOND LIMITS
Why in news?
 According to a report by the World Bank, 100
per cent Indians are exposed to PM 2.5 air
pollutants in excess of the value specified by
the World Health Organization (WHO) air
quality guidelines.
What is a particulate matter?
 Particle pollution, also called particulate
matter or PM, is a mixture of solids and liquid
droplets floating in the air.
 Particles less than or equal to 10 micrometers
in diameter are so small that they can get into
the lungs, potentially causing serious health
problems.
 Particle pollution includes:
 Coarse dust particles (PM10) are 2.5 to 10
micrometers in diameter.
 Fine particles (PM2.5) are 2.5 micrometers
in diameter or smaller, and can only be seen
with an electron microscope.
What are its sources?
 Some particles are released directly from a
specific source, while others form
complicated chemical reactions in
atmosphere.
 Sources of PM10 include crushing or grinding
operations and dust stirred up by vehicles on
roads.
 Whereas, fine particles of PM2.5 are sourced
from all types of combustion, including motor
vehicles, power plants, residential
burning, forest fires, agricultural burning, and
some industrial processes.
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What are its health effects?
 People with heart or lung diseases, older adults
and children are most likely to be affected by
particle pollution exposure.
 Even a healthy person may feel temporary
symptoms if exposed to high levels of particle
pollution.
 Numerous scientific studies connect particle
pollution exposure to a variety of health issues,
including:
 irritation of the eyes, nose and throat
 coughing, chest tightness and shortness of
breath
 reduced lung function
 irregular heartbeat
 asthma attacks
 heart attacks
 premature death in people with heart or lung
disease
What does the report says?
 The recently released Global Mobility Report
2017 by The World Bank is the first ever
attempt to examine the performance of the
transport sector globally.
 It has found that all Indians were exposed to
PM 2.5 in excess of the WHO guideline.
in  Worldwide, the report finds, 98 per cent of
the cities in developing countries do not meet air
quality guidelines, as against 56 per cent such
cities in high-income countries.
 Only 10 per cent of people around the world
live in cities that comply with WHO air quality
guidelines.
 Some of the most populous and rapidly
expanding cities in the world suffer the most,
wood as population growth leads to increases in
congestion and fuel consumption, especially in
the transport sector.
22
How Can I Reduce My Exposure to PM?
 You can use air quality alerts to protect
yourself and others when PM reaches harmful
levels.
 Every day the Air Quality Index (AQI) tells you
how clean or polluted your outdoor air is,
along with associated health effects that may
be of concern.
 The AQI translates air quality data into
numbers and colors that help people
understand when to take action to protect their
health.
21. EASE OF DOING BUSINESS COMES
AT AN ENVIRONMENTAL COST
What is the issue?
 India has seen a historic jump in ease of doing
business this year, but dilution of legislation to
facilitate business will hurt the environment.
How the jump in ranking made possible?
 India‘s ranking in ease of doing business,
formulated by the World Bank, has climbed up
30 spots to reach 100 this year.
 The rankings, are based on a country‘s
regulatory laws for running a business,
calculated by measuring the ease or difficulty
for starting a business, dealing with
construction permits, getting electricity,
enforcing contracts, among other factors.
 A high ease of doing business ranking means
the regulatory environment is more conducive
to the starting and operation of a local firm.
 The historic jump was hailed as an outcome of
all-round & multi-sectoral reform push but it
comes at a cost of environment.
 There was an achievement document in which
they emphasized ease doing business and all
the ministries are toeing the like of ease of
doing business.
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 These dilutions seem to be geared towards
safeguarding business interests and have an
environmental cost.
What are the relaxations in clearance
legislations?
 Government has diluted environmental
legislation to make business easy, which may
have multifarious impacts on the country‘s
environment.
 The government weakened the process of
granting Forest Clearance (FC), required for
diverting forest land for non-forest uses, like
mining, construction and others.
 The new guidelines allowed project
proponents to fell trees once the in-principle
or the Stage I FC was granted. Earlier, this was
only allowed after the final approval or the
Stage II FC was granted.
 the MoEF&CC created a list of 36 ―non-
polluting‖ industries, calling them ―White
Industries‖, which were exempted from
obtaining the otherwise mandatory
environmental clearance (EC) to begin
operations.
 While a mini-hydro power project might not
be polluting during its operation phase, they
are definitely polluting during the construction
phase when stone crushers are required to
obtain construction material.
 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)
amended exempting construction projects
from getting prior environment clearance
(EC).
 Another amendment to the EIA allowed
industries in violation of the EIA to apply post-
facto clearances, which means illegal projects,
which did not have an environmental
clearance, to apply for and obtain clearances
after beginning operations.
23
What CAG report says?
 CAG report also reflects the non-compliance
with existing laws.
 ―The annual environmental audit report was
not submitted by Project Proponents to State
Pollution Control Boards in 19 per cent of the
cases and in seven per cent of the cases
construction/operations was commenced
before grant of Environmental Clearance‖ the
report says.
 Also the Ministry did not have a database of
cases received by it where the violations were
reported by Regional Offices.
 No penalty was imposed by the Ministry for
violating conditions of Environmental
Clearance in the last two years.
What will be the consequences?
 More recently, the ministry decided to relax
the Costal Regulation Zone
Notification, allowing mining of atomic
minerals like uranium, thorium, titanium,
tantallium and zirconium.
 Under the previous rules, mining of coastal
atomic minerals was only allowed when they
were not available in non-coastal areas.
 It is difficult to compute the damage done to
the environment by these dilutions so far.
 The impacts will take a couple of years to
become visible and when it does, there will be
no environmental laws to move courts.
22. ‘INDIA COULD ACHIEVE ITS 2030
CLIMATE TARGETS’
Why in news?
 As per new report, India is among the small
group of countries that are on track to achieve
their self-declared climate targets under the
2015 Paris Agreement with their current
policies in place.
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What is an INDC?
 Countries across the globe adopted an
historic international climate agreement at the
U.N. Framework Convention on Climate
Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties
(COP21) in Paris in December 2015.
 In anticipation of this moment, countries
publicly outlined what post-2020 climate
actions they intended to take under the new
international agreement, known as their
Intended Nationally Determined
Contributions (INDCs).
 The climate actions communicated in these
INDCs largely determine whether the world
achieves the long-term goals of the Paris
Agreement: to hold the increase in global
average temperature to well below 2°C, to
pursue efforts to limit the increase to 1.5°C,
and to achieve net zero emissions in the
second half of this century.
What does the report says?
 It says that only nine of the 25 top emitting
countries it surveyed were in line with
achieving their targets.
 Besides India, other countries who are roughly
on track to achieve their Paris pledges include
China, Brazil, Colombia, Japan, Mexico,
Russia, Ukraine and Turkey.
 Another report, by the UN Environment
Programme, has said that costs of adapting to
climate change in the developing countries by
the year 2030 would escalate to US$ 140
billion to US$ 300 billion per year.
 The Adaptation Gap report, builds on the
Emission Gap report.
What are India’s Nationally-Determined
Contributions (NDCs)?
 India had promised to reduce its emissions
intensity—greenhouse gas emissions per unit
of GDP— by 33 to 35 per cent below 2005
levels by the year 2030.
24
  It had also promised to ensure that at least 40
per cent of its energy in 2030 would be
generated from non-fossil fuel sources, like
solar, wind or bio-fuels.
 In addition, it had said it would rapidly
increase its forest cover so that an additional
carbon sink equivalent to 2.5 to 3 billion
tonnes of carbon dioxide is created by the year
2030.
 In 2009, in the run-up to COP 15 in
Copenhagen, Denmark, India had promised to
reduce its emission intensity by 20 to 25 per
cent from 2005 levels by the year 2020.
23. GLOBAL AIR POLLUTION LEVEL
ROSE 8 PER CENT EACH YEAR
DURING 2008-2013
What is the issue?
 It was found that air pollution exposure levels
for rich people in developed countries are
going down and for people in the urban
centres of developing countries are increasing
at a worrying rate.
 The particulate matter (PM) levels—which
include PM 2.5 and PM 10— in the world
increased at 8 per cent per annum between
2008 and 2013.
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How the exposure to pollution differs?
 It is true that 92 per cent of the world‘s
population is breathing polluted air.
 However, the high-income cities in the US, the
high- and low-income cities in Europe and the
high-income cities in Western Pacific showed
more than 5 per cent decrease in the PM levels.
 High- and low-income cities in Southeast Asia
and Eastern Mediterranean, and low-income
cities in Western pacific saw PM levels
increase by more than 5 per cent annually in
five years.
 These findings are part of the WHO‘s 2016
Urban Ambient Air Pollution database.
 The WHO database also suggests that less than
10 per cent of high-income Americans are
living in areas where PM levels are on the rise.
 In contrast, more than 30 per cent low- and
middle-income Americans live in areas with
increasing PM levels.
 In Southeast Asia, close to 60 per cent people
reside in areas with increasing PM levels.
25
 24. MOEF&CC TAKES BACK ENVIRONMENT CLEARANCE AND
ADVISORY TO AVOID MONITORING PROCESS
HONEYCOMBING OF FOREST LAND Why in news?
UNDER FRA The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change (MoEF&CC) has given recommendations for
Why in news?
streamlining environment clearance and post-
The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
clearance process.
Change (MoEF&CC) has withdrawn its advisory of
2010 about giving land under the Scheduled Tribes What is Environmental Impact Assessment?
and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of
 Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an
Forest Rights) Act, 2006 (FRA).
important management tool for ensuring the
What was the advice given and why optimal use of natural resources for
retracted? sustainable development.
 The advisory, issued to the states, was about
 It is a process of evaluating the likely
granting land under FRA on the periphery of
environmental impacts of a proposed project
the forest to avoid ―honeycombing‖ of land.
or development, taking into account inter-
 the 2010 advisory read, ―Where scattered related socio-economic, cultural and human-
plots of land have been occupied throughout a health impacts, both beneficial and adverse.
tract of forest, they may be brought in one
corner of forest to avoid honeycombing and  Environmental Management or planning is the
subsequent fragmentation‖. study of the unintended consequences of a
project.`
 The advisory was a good proposal.
 Its purpose is to identify, examine, assess and
 The land titles given to tribals under FRA are evaluate the likely and probable impacts of a
scattered and living in the core forest area they
proposed project on the environment and,
don‘t even get benefits of government
schemes. thereby, to work out remedial action plans to
minimize adverse impact on the environment.
 So this proposal was brought in to club all
these lands together and shift them to the What is the recommendation?
periphery of the forest.
The recommendations, directed at officials working in
 The advisory was retracted on October 12 the Impact Assessment division, talk about
citing ―confusion reported by many states‖ as revalidating data, specifying conditions and
the reason. maintaining clear activities and accounts.

 The problem with the advisory was that the

rule position (of FRA) doesn‘t allow this.
Under FRA there is no such provision to club
lands together. If someone wants to voluntary
do that, then it depends on the state
government to look into it

25. MOEF&CC ISSUES

RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE
26
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