Water Resources Minister calls for Adopting Meaningful Agenda in the Area of Water Sector Reform

The 14th National Conference of Water Resources/ Irrigation Ministers of States/ Union Territories was held in New Delhi on October 03. The following is the text of the inaugural address of Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs & Water Resources  Pawan Kumar Bansal: 

“This Conference is being held after a long gap of seven years. This Conference is a very important National Forum which offers a splendid opportunity for a meaningful dialogue on the critical issues relating to the water sector and the interventions needed to address them effectively. My colleague, Shri Vincent Pala has already drawn your attention towards the impending crisis on water resources in our country. 

Growing demand for water as result of population growth, urbanization and economic growth has resulted in tremendous pressure on water resources making India a water stressed country by international standards. The need to provide clean water for drinking & sanitation and the need to achieve food security are of paramount importance. Climate change which might complicate further the existing temporal and spatial variation in availability of water is a growing challenge. Extreme events like floods and droughts could occur more frequently affecting livelihood and food security. Injudicious inter-sectoral and intra-sectoral distribution of water amongst various categories of water users, low water use efficiency, unsystematic water resources planning and development, poor maintenance of irrigation systems and poor recovery of water charges are some of the major problems associated with the management of water resources in the country. 

Global Ministerial level “International Seminar on Energy Access” from 09 – 10 October 2012 at New Delhi

In recognition of the importance of energy access for sustainable economic development, the United Nations General Assembly has designated 2012 as the “International Year of Sustainable Energy for All”.

In support of the above declaration, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is now organizing a Global Ministerial level “International Seminar on Energy Access” from 9 – 10 October 2012 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi. Ministers and senior delegates from over 50 countries are expected to participate in this Seminar. The Plenary Session will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India on 09 October 2012 and will be followed by a Ministerial Session.

The Seminar proposes to bring together multiple stakeholders including Ministers, senior policy planners, multilateral and bilateral agencies and civil society working on delivery of energy to develop integrated sustainable and affordable solutions to energy access. The focus will be to promote development of renewable energy by removing barriers impeding rise of renewable energy and its deployment in large scale for attaining sustainable energy for all. It will provide an opportunity to participating countries, organizations and the experts to showcase policy initiatives and best practices, exchange views, experiences and innovative solutions on energy access.

According to the tentative agenda drawn in consultation with stakeholders there would be twelve technical sessions running concurrently on two days covering topics such as Policy and  Regulation for meeting target of Energy for All; Financing Energy Access; Solar Power for Energy Access; Use of local energy sources of energy access other than Solar in rural areas; and Business Models for stand alonegrids.

UN bodies and International organizations such as UNDP, UNIDO, World Bank, Asian Development Bank and GIZ have committed to host parallel sessions. In addition, Ministries of Power, Petroleum & Natural Gas and Coal are also actively participating in the 2-day Event. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is providing Organizational support

The Event is being organized under the close supervision of broad based Steering and Organizational Committees consisting of representative from National and International Agencies and headed by Secretary and Joint Secretary, MNRE, respectively.

The Seminar is open to Government, Inter-Governmental Organisations, International/Multi-National Organisations, Non-Profit Organisations and Industry, Corporate and Business Institutions.

Special Tiger Protection Force

Karnataka is the first State to create the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) in the Bandipur Tiger Reserve.  Under the ongoing Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Project Tiger, 100% central assistance is provided to tiger States for raising, arming and deploying the STPF in sensitive tiger reserves. The details of central assistance provided to States and spent in this regard are:

S. No.	Name of the Tiger Reserve	State	Year	Central assistance provided (Rs. in lakhs)	Amount spent by States (Rs. in lakhs)
1	Corbett	Uttarakhand	2008-09	93.00	--
2	Dudhwa	Uttar Pradesh	2008-09	93.00	--
3	Ranthambhore	Rajasthan	2008-09	93.00	--
4	Similipal	Odisha	2010-11	30.00	30.00
			2011-12	240.00	--

 

Based on tiger abundance and vulnerability, 13 Tiger Reserves in the country have been identified for raising, arming and deploying the Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF).  The details are:

S. No.	Name of Tiger Reserve	State
1.	Dudhwa	Uttar Pradesh
2.	Corbett	Uttarakhand
3.	Ranthambhore	Rajasthan
4.	Pench	Madhya Pradesh
5.	Kanha	Madhya Pradesh
6.	Bandhavgarh	Madhya Pradesh
7.	Pakke	Arunachal Pradesh
8.	Bandipur	Karnataka
9.	Pench	Maharashtra
10.	Tadoba-Andhari	Maharashtra
11.	Mudumalai	Tamil Nadu
12.	Kaziranga	Assam
13.	Similipal	Odisha

However, under the ongoing Centrally Sponsored scheme of Project Tiger, central assistance is provided to all the tiger reserves, including those in Andhra Pradesh, for antipoaching measures.  This, interalia, includes deployment of local people as well in protection to complement the field staff.

Disposal of E-Waste

The Ministry of Environment & Forests is implementing a Scheme to provide financial assistance for setting up of treatment, disposal and storage facility for hazardous and integrated recycling facilities for E-waste on public private partnership mode.

Based on a survey carried out by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), it is estimated that 1.47 lakh MT of e-waste was generated in the country in the year 2005. This is expected to increase to about 8.0 lakh MT by 2012. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Delhi, Karnataka, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab are among top ten states generating about 70% of total e-waste. There are about 75 authorized and registered e-waste recyclers with recycling capacity of about 2.46 lakh MTA of e-waste.

The Ministry of Environment and Forests has notified the E-Wastes (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011, for proper management and handling of e-waste. These Rules have come in to force from 1st May 2012. As per these Rules, `e-waste` means waste electrical and electronic equipment, whole or in part or rejects from their manufacturing and repair process, which are intended to be discarded.

The concept of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) has been enshrined in these rules. As per these Rules the producers are required to collect e-waste generated from the end of life of their products by setting up collections centers or take back systems either individually or collectively. E-waste recycling can be undertaken only in facilities authorized and registered with State Pollution Control Boards/Pollution Control Committees. Waste generated is required to be sent or sold to a registered or authorized recycler or re-processor having environmentally sound facilities.

The Guidelines for Environmentally Sound Management of e-waste published by CPCB provide the approach and methodology for environmentally sound management of e-waste. They provide approach for setting up collection mechanism, dismantling and recycling operations.

Western Ghats: Challenges of Sustainable Development

UNESCO's World Heritage Committee inscribed the Western Ghats of India as a world heritage site on July 1. The tag came at the 36th session of the World Heritage Committee (WHC) in St Petersburg in Russia. Altogether 39 sites that dot the Western Ghats landscape will be part of the region that has been designated as World Heritage Site. Kerala leads with 20 sites being inscribed in the heritage list followed by Karnataka with ten, Tamil Nadu five and Maharashtra four.  

List of Western Ghats World Heritage clusters in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala and TN

MAHARASHTRA
Kaas Plateau	Koyna Wildlife Sanctuary	Chandoli National Park
Radhanagari Wildlife Sanctuary
KARNATAKA
Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary	Talacauvery Wildlife Sanctuary	Padinalknad Reserved Forest
Kerti Reserved Forest	Aralam Wildlife Sanctuary	Kudremukh National Park
Someshwara Wildlife Sanctuary	Someshwara Reserved Forest	Agumbe Reserved Forest
Balahalli Reserved Forest
KERALA - TAMILNADU
Kalakad- Tiger Reserve,	Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary,	Neyyar Wildlife Sanctuary,
Peppara Wildlife Sanctuary	Kulathupuzha Range,	Palode Range
Periyar Tiger Reserve	Ranni Forest Division	Konni Forest Division
Achankovil Forest Division	Srivilliputtur Wildlife	Tirunelveli North Forest Division
Eravikulam National Park	Grass Hills National Park	Karian Shola National Park
Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary,	Mankulam Range,	Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary
Mannavan Shola	Silent Valley National Park	New Amarambalam Reserve Forest
Mukurti National Park	Kalikavu Range	Attapadi Reserved Forest
Pushpagiri Wildlife Sanctuary

While environmentalists are rejoicing that constant international scrutiny will curb amassment of forest wealth by vested interests, the state governments have given a guarded reaction. Skeptics are of the view that the tag will make little difference to many ecologicaly destructive projects that have been implemented or are proposed in the Western Ghats. 

Recognition Comes After Rejection

The world heritage tag for the Western Ghats has come after many glitches. The proposal for including 39 sites in the Western Ghats as world heritage was rejected by the World Heritage Committee in its 35th meeting last year. When the proposal for it was re-submitted for consideration this year, it was once again on the verge of getting rejected.  The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) suggested that India should review and refine the proposal to redefine the boundaries of the proposed sites to maintain the contiguity of the forests. The Indian delegation in St Petersburg, however, managed to convince the world heritage committee on the merits of India’s proposal and also discussed the issue with 21 members of the committee. The intense lobbying paid off, as the Russian delegation moved a proposal which was backed by several Asian and African nations. 

Importance of Western Ghats

Older than the Himalayas, the Western Ghats are the treasure trove of bio-diversity. In fact they are recognized as one of the 8 global hot-spots harbouring a wealth of flora, fauna. The Western Ghats which begin at the Dangs in Gujarat, run through the western parts of Maharashtra, the tiny state of Goa, the Malnad region of Karnataka and the highlands of Kerala and Tamil Nadu, before ending near Kanyakumari.

The Ghats are currently known to have more than 5,000 plant and 140 mammal species, 16 of which are endemic, i.e. species found in that area alone. Notably among these being the lion-tailed macaque and the Nilgiri tahr. Out of 179 species of amphibians found in the Western Ghats, 138 are endemic to the region.  It has 508 bird species, 16 of which are endemic, including the Nilgiri flycatcher and the Malabar parakeet.

The Western Ghats are considered ecologically sensitive region with nearly 52 species moving one step closer to extinction. Habitat change, over-exploitation, pollution and climate change are the principle pressures causing bio-diversity loss.

The need to protect the ecology of the Western Ghats can hardly be over-emphasized.

The UNESCO Mandate

The UNESCO has noted with appreciation India’s ongoing commitment to conserving high bio-diversity values of the Western Ghats, but has clearly underlined that more needs to be done. The World Heritage Committee has suggested to the Indian Government to take into account the recommendations of the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel. It has also asked the government to strengthen buffer zones to provide increased protection within the nominated sites. The UN body also wants to promote participatory governance approaches through community participation to ensure equitable sharing of benefits. The panel has said that no industrial activity should be allowed without the consent of the locals.

The Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel, was constituted by the Ministry of Environment & Forests in February 2010 under the chairmanship of noted environmental expert Prof. Madhav Gadgil. The panel has identified several eco-sensitive zones in the region and recommended that they should be declared no-go areas. Among its recommendations, the panel has also called for scrapping of Karnataka's Gundia and Kerala's Athirapally hydro-projects, and gradual phasing out of mining activities in ecologically highly-sensitive areas of Goa by 2016.  It has also suggested setting up of a Western Ghats Ecology Authority (WGEA), as a statutory authority appointed by the Ministry of Environment and Forests, with the powers under Section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.  The 24-member body is to have ecologists, scientists, representatives of civil society, as well as tribal groups, officials from the Union Environment Ministry, Planning Commission, National Biodiversity Authority, Central Pollution Control Board, and representatives of the state government as its members.

Both the Karnataka and Kerala state governments have been opposed to the recommendation to scrap the hydro projects in their respective regions. The Karnataka Government had also been opposing the World Heritage tag citing regulatory hurdles in the development of places falling under these regions. Goa's lackadaisical attitude in conserving the Western Ghats has resulted in the state not getting any site in the list of 39.  Maharashtra Government has welcomed the World Heritage Status to Western Ghats, but that is unlikely to change the state’s present stance of not imposing a complete ban on mining and industries, except in the core areas. The state, nevertheless is encouraging green fuel movement in the villages of Western Ghats by way of up to 75% subsidy on biogas and 50% subsidy on shift to low yielding cattle, which rely on domestic fodder instead of open grazing.

Impact of UNESCO World Heritage Site

The World Heritage status could have implications on development in and around these sites as UNESCO prescribes creation of additional buffer zones around the natural world heritage sites and putting in place an overarching management authority for conservation of the selected 39 serial sites.  Conservationists also fear a mad-rush to these sensitive areas in the guise of eco-tourism. “This might trigger commercial activities in the Western Ghats, followed by construction activities like building roads, structures, power lines and other infrastructure, which will defeat the purpose of protecting the green cover and habitat protection,” says an activist associated with the Kudremukh Wildlife Foundation in Karnataka.

The Western Ghats expert Dr. Madhav Gadgil has welcomed the UNESCO gesture and said “It will hopefully strengthen the Acts like Biological Diversity Act of 2002, which empowers the local bodies like panchayats to take appropriate steps for conservation.”  The participation of locals is going to be crucial in determining the success of conservation efforts and promising sustainable development.

All along the Western Ghats in five states, there are lakhs of tribal people who have made their homes in the ghats. The Thodas of Nilgiris, Soligas of BR Hills, Malekudiyas of Belthangady, Halakki Vokkals of Uttara Kannada, the Sidhis of Kumta, Paniyas of Waynad, Kattunayakans of Malabar and many others in Goa and Maharashtra are some of them. The Perspective Plan for Protection of Biodiversity 2001-16 states that “tribal communities are part of the biodiversity and the state governments should not take them out of their natural surroundings, but empower them democratically and let the government facilities go to them.”

The ground situation for people’s participation in development is conducive in most parts of the Western Ghats. The region has some of the highest levels of literacy in the country, and a high level of environmental awareness. The democratic institutions are well entrenched, and Kerala leads the country in capacity building and empowering of Panchayat Raj Institutions. Goa has recently concluded a very interesting exercise, Regional Plan 2021, of taking inputs from Gram Sabhas in deciding on the land use policies. Evidently, Western Ghats are an appropriate region of the country to attempt to make the transition towards an inclusive, caring and environment friendly mode of development.

 The Western Ghats - Some Facts

         The Western Ghats, is a mountain range that runs along the western side of India.

·         It runs, about 1600 kms, North to South, along the western edge of the Deccan Plateau.

·         It is one of the eight hottest hotspots of biological diversity in the world.

·         It originates near the border of Gujarat and Maharashtra, and runs through the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, finally ending at Kanyakumari.

·         These hills cover a total area of 160,000 square kms.

·         The average elevation is about 1,200 m (3,900 ft).

·         The region is home to over 5000 species of flowering plants, 139 mammal species, 508 bird species and 179 amphibian species.

·         It is also reported that the Western Ghats is home to at least 84 amphibian species, 16 bird species, seven mammals, and 1,600 flowering plants which are not found elsewhere in the world.

·         There are numerous protected areas designated by the Government of India in the Western Ghats. They include two bio reserves and thirteen National Parks.

·         The Nilagiri Biosphere Reserve that comprises 5500 square kms of evergreen and deciduous forests forms an important part of the Western Ghats.

·         The Silent Valley National Park in Kerala, which forms part of the Western Ghats, is one among the last tracts of virgin tropical evergreen forest in India.

·         In August, 2011, the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) designated the entire Western Ghats as an Ecologically Sensitive Area (ESA). The panel also assigned three levels of ecological sensitivity to its different regions.

·         In 2012, thirty nine places in the Western Ghats region have been declared as World Heritage Sites by the UNESCO.

UNESCO inscribed Western Ghats Mountain Chain on the List of World Heritage Sites

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the science and cultural body of UN, inscribed India's 1600-km long Western Ghats mountain chain on the list of its world heritage sites on 1 July 2012. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee included 39 sites scattered across Ghats in the coveted list of world heritage sites. Kerala with 20 sites got maximum number of sites included in the heritage list followed by Karnataka with ten. Five sites from Tamil Nadu and four from Maharashtra got the world heritage tag. The Kas plateau, the Koyna wildlife sanctuary, the Chandoli national park and the Radhanagari Wildlife sanctuary in Maharashtra received the designation of world heritage site.
The Western Ghats mountain chain is globally renowned for its enormous biological diversity. The mountain’s chain, which are older than the Himalaya, are widely responsible for the Indian monsoon weather pattern. The Western Ghats are also considered to be one of the world's eight hottest hotspots of biological diversity.
The 1600-km long ghats, begins at the border of Gujarat and Maharashtra and passes through as many as 5 states including Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu marks the ending point of the ghats.
The decision to include Western Ghats in the World Heritage list came after a meeting held in Russia on 1 July 2012. Committee of UNESCO holds its meeting once every year, where it looks into the implementation of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, which defines the kind of natural or cultural sites which can be considered for inclusion on the World Heritage List. Presently five natural sites and 23 cultural sites from India have been inscribed on the Unesco World Heritage List.
India had nominated the Western Ghats for the inclusion in world heritage site at the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Paris, in February 2010. The Union Environment Ministry in 2010 had constituted an Ecology Expert Panel headed by noted environmentalist Madhav Gadgil to suggest ways to protect the ghats.

Study finds permafrost thaw, glacier melt releasing methane

Methane from underground reservoirs is streaming from thawing permafrost and receding glaciers, contributing to the greenhouse gas load in the atmosphere, a study led by scientists at the University of Alaska Fairbanks has found.

The study, published in the journal Nature Geoscience, is the first to document leakage of deep geologic methane from warming permafrost and receding glaciers.

Release of methane into the atmosphere from any source is troubling because methane has far more potent greenhouse powers than carbon dioxide, climate scientists say. Methane has more than 20 times the heat-trapping power of carbon dioxide.

Scientists have speculated about such methane releases and modelling has predicted that it would happen as the cryosphere—the earth’s layer of ice and frozen ground— softens and melts.

The leaking geologic methane comes from such sources as underground coal beds and conventional natural gas reservoirs. Those are fossil fuels that energy companies target in drilling operations.It, however, differs from the methane streaming from decaying plant and animal matter at the bottom of warming Alaska lakes.

Study found Arctic Ocean As A Significant Contributor of Methane in the Atmosphere

According to a study report published in the journal Nature Geoscience on 22 April 2012, the Arctic Ocean could be a significant contributor of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.
Researchers carried out five flights in 2009 and 2010 to measure atmospheric methane in latitudes as high as 82 degrees north.
They found concentrations of the gas close to the ocean surface, especially in areas where sea ice had cracked or broken up.
The scientists are now concerned over the fact that the new disturbing mechanism could accelerate global warming.
The scientists involved in the study opined that the surface waters of the Arctic Ocean represent a potentially important source of methane, which could prove sensitive to changes in sea-ice cover.
Levels of methane in the atmosphere are relatively low, but the gas is 20 times more effective that carbon dioxide (CO2) at trapping solar heat.
Scientists have been struggling to understand the movements of the methane curve.

Diversity helped Mammals to Survive During Climate Change

A study published in the journal Public Library of Science One on 23 April 2012, described that the diversity is the mammal's best defense when it comes to adapting climatic changes.
In one of the conclusions of the first study of how mammals in North America adapted to climate change the researchers found that diversity helped them to sustain in the changing climate.
The role of diversity in mammalian adaptation is specifically important given the fact that mammal species have been going extinct in record numbers for the past 400 years. In a 2008 report, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature predicted that one in four species of land mammals in the world faces extinction. As a result, the diversity of mammalian families is declining at a time when they need it the most to cope with a rapidly changing climate.
Larisa R. G. DeSantis, the assistant professor of earth and environmental studies at Vanderbilt directed the study, while it was co-authored by Rachel A. Beavins Tracy, Cassandra S. Koontz, John C. Roseberry and Matthew C. Velasco. The project was supported by funds from Vanderbilt University.

Freak phenomenon along the southern coast of India

With memories of the 2004 tsunami still fresh in the minds of people, the event sparked alarm all along the coast. As many as 12,000 people were affected as the tidal swell slammed the coastal belt, from Adimalathura to Pozhiyoor.

Residents fled their waterlogged houses; boats and fishing equipment were damaged. “It took several days for the situation to return to normality,” remembers Mr. Peter, president of the Kerala Swathantra Matsya Thozhilali Federation, who was at the forefront of relief operations.

Baffled by the freak phenomenon, scientists initially attributed it to an intensive pre-monsoon swell. The Centre for Earth Science Studies (CESS) later conducted a detailed study, which traced the origin of the swell to a cyclonic storm off the west coast of Australia.

The project, which involved tsunami expert Tad Murty of Canada, established that swells generated in the southern Indian Ocean by storms near Antarctica could propagate northward, to the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.

“Travelling thousands of kilometres across the entire ocean basins, the swell gets amplified when it encounters a coastal current directed southward, resulting in increased wave setup, a phenomenon referred to as remote forcing,” says Director of CESS N.P. Kurian, who was part of the study.

‘Kallakkadal,' the term used to name the freak flooding, was borrowed from the parlance of fishermen. “In local parlance, it means the sea that arrives like a thief, unannounced,” says Dr. Kurian.

In February this year, UNESCO formally accepted the term to explain the freak occurrence. Earlier, the World Meteorological Organisation and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission too recognised the terminology. “The formal recognition could perhaps pave the way for the term to be included in subsequent editions of dictionaries,” Dr. Kurian says.

Mr. Peter said the adoption of the term by the U.N. represented a marriage of conventional wisdom and scientific endeavour. “It calls for further studies to be taken up for hazard assessment and disaster mitigation.”

‘Kallakkadal' is known to occur along the southern coast of India, mainly during the pre-monsoon period, in April and May, marked by clear weather. The flooding turns severe on the days of spring tide. Though not well documented in scientific literature, the swells occur almost every year with varying intensity. They are characterised by long-period waves, with frequency of more than 15 seconds.

“The study highlights need for regular monitoring of Antarctic storms. A global database on storm surges will be a critical input for a numerical model that could help to predict the swell waves and coastal flooding,” says Dr. Kurian.