Subject: Climate Change

Introduction

Plastic pollution represents one of the gravest environmental crises of our times. Despite decades of regulation and bans, plastics remain ubiquitous, cheap, and nearly indestructible. Talks in Geneva involving 180 countries failed to secure an internationally binding legal agreement to limit plastic pollution, reflecting deep divisions over whether the treaty should target waste alone or include production.

Global Plastic Treaty Deadlock: Why It Matters

• Global deadlock: 180 countries failed to agree on a binding treaty on plastic pollution in Geneva, despite a UNEP-backed resolution already in place.
• First-time sharp focus on health: Unlike earlier discussions centred only on waste management, the health impact of plastics is now central.
• Scale of problem: Plastics contain more than 16,000 chemicals, with little knowledge on 10,000+ of them. A Nature study showed 4,000 chemicals of concern are present across major plastic types.
• Striking evidence: Microplastics detected in blood, breast milk, placenta, bone marrow, bringing urgency to the debate.

The Persistence and Ubiquity of Plastics

1. Symbol of consumption economy: Cheap and versatile, plastics reflect today’s global consumption.
2. Persistence and flexibility: Synthetic, fossil-fuel-derived polymers are non-biodegradable and endure for decades.
3. Waste mismanagement: Cheap production, ubiquity, and limited recycling capacity turn plastics into the prime source of litter.

Plastics and Human Health: Emerging Evidence

1. Chemicals of concern: Plastics use ethylene, propylene, styrene derivatives, along with bisphenols, phthalates, PCBs, PBDEs, and PFAS.
2. Products of exposure: Found in food containers, bottles, teething toys, polyester, IV bags, cosmetics, paints, electronics, adhesives.
3. Health links: Studies link plastic chemicals to thyroid dysfunction, hypertension, kidney/testicular cancer, gestational diabetes.
4. Evidence base: Around 1,100 studies, involving 1.1 million individuals, compiled by Boston College & Minderoo Foundation dashboard.
5. Nature of studies: Mostly associative; longitudinal studies (gold standard) are still underway.

The Microplastic Menace

1. Definition: Plastics smaller than 5 mm, found in additives or broken-down products.
2. Recent discoveries: Detected in human blood, breast milk, placenta, bone marrow.
3. Health uncertainty: Exact impacts still under study, but linked to multiple disorders.

Policy Responses: Global and Indian Perspectives

• Global scene: Negotiations divided on waste vs production; developing countries demand funding support.
• India’s stance: 
  • Ban on single-use plastics in ~20 States
  • Administrative push for Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR)
  • Views plastics as a waste management issue, not a health issue.
  • Prefers health dimension to be dealt with at WHO, not in the plastics treaty.

Conclusion

The Geneva deadlock reflects not just a failure of diplomacy but the widening gap between scientific evidence and policy action. Plastics are no longer an invisible convenience; they are a pervasive health hazard. While India treats plastics as a waste issue, ignoring health risks leaves a blind spot in policy. A robust, binding treaty addressing both production and health impact is indispensable if the world is to prevent plastics from becoming the new tobacco of the 21st century.

PYQ Relavance

[UPSC 2023] What is oil pollution? What are its impacts on the marine ecosystem? In what way is oil pollution particularly harmful for a country like India? Linkage: Since UPSC has already asked about oil pollution (2023), it shows the exam’s focus on pollution and ecosystem impacts. Plastic pollution, like oil, originates from fossil fuels and has severe effects on marine life and human health. Hence, a direct question on plastic pollution and its health–environment nexus is highly probable.

Practice Mains Question

Plastics are no longer merely a waste management problem but a serious health hazard. Critically examine the health risks associated with plastic use and evaluate India’s stance in global plastic treaty negotiations.

Mapping Microthemes

• GS-1: Impact of industrialisation and consumerism on environment.
• GS-2: International negotiations, India’s foreign policy stance in environmental treaties.
• GS-3: Pollution, waste management, health-environment nexus.
• GS-4: Ethics of sustainability, intergenerational justice, corporate responsibility.

Why in the News?

The Indian government recently set greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions intensity targets for key industrial sectors under its Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS). These targets apply to eight major industries, including steel, cement, aluminium, and textiles, and aim to reduce emissions per unit of production.

What is CCTS? The Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) allows entities—such as factories, refineries, or power plants—that emit less than their permitted carbon limits to earn carbon credits. These credits can then be traded with other entities that have exceeded their emission limits.

What is the importance of assessing carbon targets at the economy-wide level?

• Reflects true environmental impact: Evaluating targets at the economy-wide level ensures we understand the overall reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, which is the ultimate goal of climate action.
• Enables flexible compliance: It allows efficient entities to overachieve and trade credits with less efficient ones, reducing total emissions cost-effectively. Eg: In India’s PAT scheme, cement plants exceeding targets sold energy-saving certificates to aluminium units lagging behind.
• Aligns with national commitments: It supports the evaluation of whether India is on track to meet its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and net-zero targets, beyond fragmented sectoral views. Eg: India aims to reduce emissions intensity of GDP by 45% by 2030 – a goal only visible through economy-wide analysis.

What is the PAT Scheme? The PAT Scheme sets energy efficiency targets for large, energy-intensive industries. Companies that exceed their targets earn Energy Saving Certificates (ESCerts), which they can trade with other companies that fail to meet their targets.

How has the PAT scheme proven effective in reducing energy intensity?

• Encouraged market-based efficiency: The Perform, Achieve and Trade (PAT) scheme allowed industries to meet energy targets using tradable efficiency certificates, creating a cost-effective compliance mechanism.
• Achieved aggregate reduction: Despite mixed results at the entity or sector level, overall energy intensity in India declined across PAT cycles, proving its system-wide impact. Eg: Between 2012–14, even as chlor-alkali sector’s intensity rose, combined data showed less energy used per unit of output.
• Enabled flexible transition: PAT helped industries adopt incremental improvements or buy credits instead of making costly in-house upgrades, ensuring participation without economic strain. Eg: Aluminium units improved production processes, while others chose certificate trading to meet targets.

Why are entity-level targets insufficient to assess emission reduction?

• Limited Scope of Impact: Targets at the entity level show progress in isolation and may miss the broader picture. For instance, even if some paper or chlor-alkali plants increase their energy use per unit of output, overall national emissions may still fall due to reductions in other sectors.
• Focus on Transactions, Not Outcomes: These targets often guide financial trades between companies rather than ensuring actual emissions reduction. A steel plant may meet its target not by cutting emissions but by buying efficiency certificates from another unit.
• Inconsistency Across Sectors: Emission reductions may vary widely across sectors. While cement and aluminium sectors may improve efficiency, others may lag. Solely relying on entity targets could misrepresent the real national decarbonisation progress.

What limits the comparison of CCTS targets with past and future benchmarks?

• Mismatch in Scope: The CCTS targets apply only to a part of India’s industrial base, making it difficult to compare them with economy-wide goals like the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Eg. CCTS covers only 8 industrial sectors, while NDCs span all sectors including agriculture and transport.
• Changing Baselines and Ambition Levels: Past schemes like PAT Cycle I had relatively modest targets. Comparing them with current CCTS goals may underestimate the urgency for stronger action aligned with net-zero by 2070. Eg. A sector that achieved 1% reduction earlier may now require over 2.5% annual reduction to stay on track.
• Different Indicators Used: Past targets often focused on energy intensity, while future goals (like NDCs) emphasise emissions intensity per GDP or value added, making direct comparison methodologically inconsistent. Eg. Comparing energy saved per unit of production vs emissions per unit of GDP distorts true climate ambition.

How do CCTS targets align with India’s NDC and net-zero goals?

• Partial Alignment with Emission Intensity Reduction: The CCTS targets aim to reduce emissions intensity in key industrial sectors, contributing to India’s NDC goal of reducing emissions intensity of GDP by 45% by 2030 (compared to 2005 levels). However, the annual reduction rateof ~1.68% in CCTS sectors is lower than the required pace for full alignment.
• Lag Behind Power Sector Decarbonisation: Compared to the power sector, which has low-cost mitigation options and a projected 3.44% annual decline in emissions intensity, the industrial sector’s slower pace (~2.53%) under CCTS may hinder the broader net-zero pathway.
• Need for Greater Sectoral Ambition: The current CCTS trajectory appears less aggressive than necessary for the 2070 net-zero target. Without scaling upambition across more sectors and tightening targets, CCTS alone cannot ensure full alignment with India’s long-term climate goals.

Way forward: 

• Enhance Sectoral Ambition with Dynamic Targeting: Revise CCTS targets periodically based on economy-wide modelling aligned with India’s NDC and net-zero goals, ensuring progressively stringent emission intensity reductions across all major industrial sectors.
• Integrate Technology and Incentives: Promote adoption of clean technologies through financial incentives, carbon pricing, and capacity-building support to enable industries to decarbonize efficiently without compromising growth.

Mains PYQ:

[UPSC 2014] Should the pursuit of carbon credit and clean development mechanism set up under UNFCCC be maintained even through there has been a massive slide in the value of carbon credit? Discuss with respect to India’s energy needs for economic growth.

Linkage: The article talks about the concept of “carbon credit,” which is a fundamental component of carbon trading schemes, including India’s Carbon Credit Trading Scheme (CCTS) which is related to the demand of the question.

Why in the News?

India is seeing a worrying rise in people being forced to leave their homes due to climate change along its coasts, revealing serious gaps in how the country manages the environment and supports affected communities.

What are the socio-economic impacts of coastal climate change?

• Displacement of Coastal Communities: Rising sea levels, saltwater intrusion, and erosion force people from traditional coastal villages to resettlement colonies. Eg: In Satabhaya, Odisha, entire villages have been submerged, displacing residents with little access to sustainable livelihoods.
• Loss of Traditional Livelihoods: Coastal degradation affects fishing and agriculture, disrupting long-standing economic systems. Eg: In Honnavar, Karnataka, fishing communities face livelihood loss due to mangrove destruction and tourism development.
• Forced Migration to Urban Informal Sectors: Displaced people migrate to cities and enter unprotected labour markets, often in exploitative conditions. Eg: Many end up as construction or brick kiln workers in cities like Mumbai or Chennai, without labour rights.
• Labour Exploitation and Gender Vulnerability: Migrants, especially women, face debt bondage, abuse, and trafficking due to informal employment and lack of legal safeguards. Eg: Displaced women entering domestic work are underpaid and vulnerable to exploitation.
• Social Inequality and Lack of Legal Protection: The absence of targeted legal frameworks leads to exclusion from welfare schemes and labour protections, worsening socio-economic inequality. Eg: Existing laws like the BOCW Act, 1996, do not cover climate migrants, leaving them unprotected.

How does climate-induced displacement test India’s democratic values? Right to Life and Dignity (Article 21): Climate displacement challenges the constitutional guarantee of life with dignity, as displaced communities often lack shelter, healthcare, and livelihood. Denial of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (Article 19(1)(a)): Many infrastructure and tourism projects along the coast proceed without consulting local communities, violating their freedom of expression and participation in governance. Suppression of Protest and Association (Article 19(1)(b) and 19(1)(c)): Environmental defenders and activists resisting unjust displacement face police action, surveillance, and criminalisation, undermining their freedom to protest and form associations.

Why is a legal framework for climate migrants essential?

• To Recognise and Protect the Rights of the Displaced: Climate migrants often lose access to housing, work, and basic services. A legal framework ensures their right to life and dignity is upheld under Article 21 of the Constitution. Eg: Villagers displaced from Satabhaya, Odisha, lack legal recognition as climate migrants, preventing access to structured rehabilitation.
• To Fill Gaps in Existing Laws and Policies: Current laws like the Disaster Management Act, 2005 and CRZ Notification, 2019 focus on emergency response or environmental regulation, not long-term rehabilitation or labour rights. Eg: The NAPCC identifies vulnerability but has no mechanism to integrate displaced people into labour or housing policies.
• To Prevent Labour Exploitation and Ensure Social Justice: Without legal safeguards, climate migrants, especially in urban informal sectors, face wage theft, abuse, and gendered violence. Eg: Migrants working in brick kilns or as domestic workers in cities remain outside labour codes, exposing them to exploitation.

What is the role of local movements in protecting coastal communities?

• Grassroots Resistance Against Destructive Projects: Local movements mobilize communities to protest against unsustainable infrastructure and industrial projects that threaten coastal ecosystems. Eg: The Save Satabhaya campaign in Odisha resisted sea-erosion-driven displacement and demanded proper rehabilitation.
• Advocacy for Environmental Justice and Rights: These movements highlight environmental injustices, defend the livelihoods of traditional communities, and demand informed consent and legal protection. Eg: Pattuvam Mangrove Protection Movement.
• Challenging Development Narratives and Policy Gaps: Local struggles question top-down development policies, push for sustainable alternatives, and expose policy loopholes that ignore climate and social impacts. Eg: Protests against the Adani port expansion at Ennore Creek, Tamil Nadu.

Which reforms can ensure rights-based climate migration policies? (Way forward)

• Legal Recognition of Climate Migrants: Integrate climate-induced displacement into national migration and disaster policies to ensure affected individuals are officially recognized and protected under law.
• Labour Code Reforms for Informal Workers: Amend existing labour laws to include climate migrants, especially those in vulnerable sectors like construction and domestic work, ensuring fair wages, social security, and workplace protections.
• Participatory Coastal Zone Management: Redesign Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules to prioritize ecological sustainability and the rights of local communities, with mandatory community consent before approving commercial projects.

Mains PYQ:

[UPSC 2024] What is sea surface temperature rise? How does it affect the formation of tropical cyclones?

Linkage: The article highlights “rising seas, saltwater intrusion” and “coastal degradation” as impacts of climate change. This question directly relates to a key oceanic phenomenon influenced by climate change and its effect on extreme weather events like cyclones.