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Subject: Environment

  • PUC Certificate must to buy fuel in New Delhi

    Motorists will not be able to buy fuel in Delhi without a valid Pollution Under Control (PUC) certificate from October 25.

    What is PUC Certificate?

    • The PUC certificate is a document that any person driving a motor vehicle can be asked to produce by a police officer in uniform authorized by the state government.
    • These issue certificates if a vehicle is found complying with the prescribed emission norms.
    • Since the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act, 2019 came into force, PUC certificate has been made mandatory.
    • A PUC certificate contains information such as the vehicle’s license plate number, PUC test reading, date on which the PUC test was conducted and the expiry date.

    Compliance rules

    • According to Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, every motor vehicle is required to carry a valid PUC Certificate after the expiry of period of one year from the date of its first registration.
    • This includes those conforming to BS-I/ BS-II/ BS-III/BS-IV /BS-VI as well as vehicles plying on CNG/LPG.
    • However, the validity of four-wheeled BS-IV compliant vehicles is one year and for other vehicles it is three months.

    How is a pollution control check carried out?

    • The computerized model for pollution check was developed by the Society of Indian Automobile manufacturers.
    • A gas analyzer is connected to a computer, to which a camera and a printer are attached.
    • The gas analyzer records the emission value and sends it to the computer directly, while the camera captures the license plate of the vehicle.
    • Subsequently, a certificate may be issued if the emission values are within the limits.

    Why obtain PUC Certificate?

    • Emissions from automobiles are major contributors to air pollution all over the world.
    • The smoke emitted from vehicles contains the following pollutants:
    1. Hydrocarbons (HC)
    2. Carbon Monoxide (CO)
    3. Oxides of Nitrogen (NOx)
    4. Particulate Matter (PM)
    5. Sulphur Dioxide (SO2)
    6. Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
    7. Nitrous Oxide (N2O)

     

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  • Stressed ecology of Bay of Bengal

    Bay of BengalContext

    • At the fourth BIMSTEC summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the opening of the Centre for Bay of Bengal Studies (CBS) at Nalanda University. The launch of the CBS has once again demonstrated India’s commitment to advancing constructive agendas by forging connections and setting up platforms for all those with an interest in the of Bay of Benagl.

    Bay of BengalWhy Bay of Bengal is so important?

    • Commerce hub: The Bay has long been a major commerce hub for the Indian Ocean. It created a conduit between the East and the West in terms for trade and culture.
    • Emerging arena of maritime warfare: An Indo-Pacific orientation and the realignment of global economic and military power towards Asia have had a considerable impact on the Bay region.
    • Communication and Energy: The key sea lanes of communication in this area are lifelines for global economic security and are crucial to the energy security that powers the economies of many countries in the region.Further, non-traditional dangers including terrorism and climate change have become more prevalent.
    • Under water resources: The Bay also provides an opportunity for greater regional cooperation in the environmentally friendly exploration of marine and energy resources. The Bay has a biodiverse marine environment.
    • Fresh water resources: It receives the water from some of the world’s largest rivers. It is a partially enclosed sea that has given rise to several geological characteristics.
    • Ecology: It is home to many rare and endangered marine species and mangroves, which are essential to the survival of the ecology and the fishing sector.

    Bay of BengalWhy ecology in the region is under threat?

    The region’s maritime environment has changed as are result of major powers expanding their economic and geopolitical influence.

    • Competition: Political and cultural engagement, together with economic competition, have taken on new dimensions. More crucially, the Bay’s ecosystem is going through an unprecedented crisis brought on by widespread environmental exploitation and geopolitical unrest.
    • Resource exploitation: Species extinction is a result of careless exploitation of the maritime environment, which has severe consequences on biodiversity. Problems such as population growth, altered land use, excessive resource exploitation, salinity, sea level rise, and climate change are exerting significant strain on the Bay’s environment.
    • Water pollution: Operational discharge from small and medium feeder ships, shipping collisions, unintentional oil spills, industrial waste, pollution, and the accumulation of non- biodegradable plastic litter are all contributing to the deterioration of the Bay.
    • Declining ecology: A dead-zone has formed, and the mangrove trees that protect the shore from the fury of nature are under more threat than ever.

    What could be the Solutions?

    For a better knowledge of challenges, and strategies to overcome them for the sustainable development of the region, more focused and inter-disciplinary study is required on these issues.

    • Centre for Bay of Bengal studies: By founding the CBS, Nalanda University has already started its journey and given the nation a unique interdisciplinary research centre devoted to Bay focused teaching, research, and capacity building. Additionally, scholars from many countries and academic streams are already participating in CBS’s first certificate programme on the Bay.
    • Inter-governmental cooperation: It is essential that nautical neighbours develop a partnership and cooperate because of the maritime domain’s interrelated and interdependent nature, transnational character, and cross-jurisdictional engagement of various governments and diverse organisations and enterprises.
    • Maritime connectivity: A few concerns that need immediate attention include expanding cooperation in maritime safety and security, enhancing cooperation on maritime connectivity and the ease of maritime transit, and boosting investment possibilities in the maritime connectivity sector.
    • Illegal activities: The latter subject involves addressing non-traditional threats and fostering group efforts to reduce illicit, unreported, and unregulated fishing.
    • Data sharing: Standardising and harmonising data reporting.
    • Balanced approach: Furthermore regional marine entities should strive to balance opportunities and goals on a national, regional, and international scale.
    • Investment in R&D: Littoral governments need to support and promote skill-building, research, and training.

    Conclusion

    • Countries in the Bay of Bengal need to mobilise investments, manage maritime affairs more effectively. Alternative lifestyle should be explored. The cooperation of all member states, for information gathering, sharing and result oriented actions is crucial in protecting the ecology of Bay of Bengal.

    Mains Question

    Q.Countries in the Indian subcontinent are developing rapidly, putting serious stress on the environment of the Bay of Bengal.Mention the challenges and suggest solutions.

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  • Transboundary Flood Disasters

    Transboundary Flood Disasters

    Context

    • Pakistan experiencing devastation, with a spread of diseases and severe shortage of potable water after intense flooding. In June this year Assam experienced one of its worst floods in which it affected over 30 districts. Assam and Bihar frequently suffer from transboundary flood disasters.

    What is transboundary flood?

    • Floods that are originate in upper riparian state crosses the international boundary and also affects the lower riparian state. For example, river Brahmaputra causes flood both in China and India simultaneously.

    Transboundary Flood DisastersHow the transboundary floods are difficult to manage than normal floods?

    • Flooding is still considered to be a natural phenomenon that cannot be entirely prevented. But it is compounded by the lack of transparency in the sharing of hydrological information and also information relating to activities (such as by one riparian state) that are transboundary in their effect (affecting other riparian states), thus serving as an obstacle in understanding the magnitude of flooding.

    Transboundary Flood DisastersWhat is a riparian state?

    • A riparian state is state (or country) located alongside a river.

    What are the International laws governing transboundary waters?

    There are at two international treaties that governs the transboundary water

    • UNWC:
    • United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Use of International Watercourses (UNWC) 1997.UNWC contains a direct reference to floods, which covers harmful conditions and the emergency situations.
    • Article 27 of the Convention says, Watercourse States shall individually and, where appropriate, jointly, take all appropriate measures to prevent or mitigate conditions that may be harmful to other watercourse States, whether resulting from natural causes or human conduct or desertification.
    • Environmental Impact Assessment:
    • The International Court of Justice (ICJ), in the Pulp Mills on the River Uruguay (Argentina vs Uruguay) case of 2010, upheld that conducting a transboundary environmental impact assessment (TEIA) of a planned measure or projects on the shared water course is part of customary international law.
    • In fact, the ICJ noted that the acting state must notify the affected party of the results of TEIA for assessment of its own damages that are likely to occur.
    • UNECE: United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes 1992 (Water Convention).

    Transboundary Flood DisastersHow India manages transboundary flood?

    • Note:Neither India nor China are signatory to UNWC or UNCEC.
    • River Brahmaputra: India has signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with China in 2013 with a view to sharing hydrological information during the flood season (June to September). The MoU does not allow India access to urbanisation and deforestation activities on the Chinese side of the river basin.
    • Rivers Gandak and kosi: Floods are also a recurrent problem in the Kosi and Gandak river basins that are shared by India and Nepal.
    • The India-Nepal Kosi agreement 1954: Agreement aimed at reducing devastating flooding in the river basin. The treaty-based joint bodies have also tried to refine the early warning systems for flood forecasting.

    What are the suggestions?

    • Signing the treaty: Expert suggests, India by becoming a party to either the UNWC and the Water Convention could lay the groundwork for a bilateral treaty on the Brahmaputra but subject to the reservation that it should not insist on the insertion of a dispute settlement mechanism provision.
    • Information exchange: In contravention of procedural customary international law obligation, India considers data on transboundary rivers as classified information, which is one of the key challenges in developing cross-border flood warning systems. India needs to share the hydrological and river information for its own sake.

    Conclusion

    • Climate change has accelerated the frequency and intensity of floods across the world. with Changing climate India should also change its strategy to protect its people, to preserve the soil and to save its resources from the scourge of floods.

    Mains Questions

    Q.Climate change has created a more difficult challenge in flood management. In this context, what measures can be taken to deal with frequent transboundary floods in India. Discuss.

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  • Ranipur TR: 4th Tiger Reserve in UP

    ranipur

    The UP cabinet approved the notification of Ranipur Tiger Reserve under Section 38(v) of the Wild life (Protection) Act of 1972.

    About Ranipur WS

    • Ranipur WS, was founded in 1977, is one of the attractions of Chitrakoot district in Uttar Pradesh.
    • It is spread over 230 sq.km and is noted for its diverse wildlife, but is not very frequently visited by tourists because of the difficult access.
    • The Ranipur TR has tropical dry deciduous forests and is home to fauna such as tigers, leopards, sloth bears, spotted deer, sambhar, chinkara and a number of birds and reptiles, the statement added.
    • The Ranipur TR will be the fourth in UP, after Dudhwa, Pilibhit and Amangarh (buffer of Corbett Tiger Reserve).
    • It will also be the first in the state’s portion of the Bundelkhand region, which it shares with neighbouring Madhya Pradesh.

    Why make it a tiger reserve?

    • RWS has no tigers of its own.
    • But pugmarks of the animals are frequently seen there as tigers from nearby Panna frequent it.

     

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  • Jaldoot App to capture data on Groundwater Levels

    With the rapidly declining water table threatening to push many regions into drought, the Union government on has launched a mobile application — Jaldoot.

    Jaldoot App

    • Jaldoot is jointly developed by the Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Ministries to monitor the groundwater levels across the country.
    • The App will enable Gram Rojgar Sahyak to measure the water level of well twice a year pre-monsoon and post-monsoon.
    • Jaldoots, that is, officers assigned to measure the water levels, should also upload the geo-tagged photographs through the app on every occasion of measurement.
    • This Mobile app will work in both online and offline mode.
    • So water level can be captured even without internet connectivity and captured date will be stored in mobile and when mobile comes in the connectivity area, data will synchronize with the central server.

    Utility of the App

    • The despite promoting watershed development, afforestation, waterbody development and renovation, rainwater harvesting like initiatives, the ground water level in various parts of the country has depleted.
    • The regular data to be input by the Jaldoots would be integrated with the database of National Water Informatics Centre (NWIC), which can be utilised for analysis and display.
    • The app will facilitate in observing water tables across the country and the resulting data can be utilized for Gram Panchayat Development Plan and Mahatma Gandhi NREGA Plans.

     

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  • Backsliding on climate action

    Context

    Europe is staring at a recession and its appetite for climate action is waning.

    Developed countries moving away from commitment

    • Countries in Europe led by Germany, Austria and the Netherlands are cranking up their coal plants again.
    • Fossil fuels are making a comeback and countries are rejecting the European Union (EU)’s plan to reduce natural gas consumption by 15%. Dutch, Polish and other European farmers are protesting against emission cuts from agriculture.
    • In the U.S. too, the Senate and the Supreme Court have struck blows to climate action.
    • And in the U.S. too, prices of fuel started increasing last year, not just this year.
    • Fossil fuels are making a quiet comeback, since the strength of the U.S. is its oil and gas industry.
    • That is why we have just witnessed a ‘re-calibration’ of U.S. policy towards the Gulf.
    • Coal, oil and gas are not going anywhere in the developed world; they are, in fact, making a comeback.
    • The West had rushed to draw down on fossil fuels even before technology for renewables were in place.

    Global peaking issue

    • Article 4 of the Paris Agreement defines ‘Global Peaking’ thus: “In order to achieve the long-term temperature goal set out in Article 2, Parties aim to reach global peaking of greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible, recognizing that peaking will take longer for developing country Parties.”
    • The developed countries, given their historical emissions, will have to peak first.
    • That’s why the reference is to ‘global peaking’ and not ‘individual peaking’.
    • From this, it logically follows that when developing country parties peak later than developed countries, they will also achieve net zero later than developed countries.
    • Consequently, it is the logical conclusion of the Article 4 of the Paris Agreement that when we consider net zero, we should only consider ‘global net zero’ and not ‘individual net zero’ for 2050.
    • The statement calls on developed countries to do a net negative on mitigation by 2050 rather than just “net zero”, if they are serious about fighting climate change.
    • In effect, the West needs to do a net minus and not just net zero.
    • Thanks to the efforts of India, the phrase used in the 2021 summit-level declarations at both G-20 and Quad is ‘global net zero’. We need to build on this understanding.
    • India stands as beacon of hope in renewables.
    • It is time for all developing countries, especially the small island developing states, to make sure that the developed world doesn’t backslide on its commitments on mitigation yet again.

    Way forward for developing countries

    • With countries of the developed world almost sure to renege on their 2030 Paris Agreement commitments, countries of the developing world must do everything to hold the countries of the developed world to their commitments.
    • The Western nations have already started reinterpreting the Paris Agreement and look to downgrade their commitments.
    • The concept of net zero is being cleverly misinterpreted.
    •  To bring this to the attention of the Global South, India, China and eight other countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America made a cross-regional statement on ‘global net zero’ on June 7 at the UN on World Environment Day.

    Conclusion

    COP 27 in Egypt gives us that opportunity to hold their feet to the fire. It is time for the developed world to make net minus pledges. If we don’t collectively push for it, we will be collectively pushed back.

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  • The great Indian thirst: The story of India’s water stress

    water stressContext

    • United Nations World Water Development Report of 2022 has expressed global concern over the sharp rise in freshwater withdrawal from streams, lakes, aquifers and human made reservoirs, significant water stress and also water scarcity being experienced in different parts of the world.

    Who publishes the UNs world water development report?

    • The United Nations World Water Development Report (WWDR) is published by UNESCO, on behalf of UN-Water and its production is coordinated by the UNESCO World Water Assessment Program (WWAP).

    What is the level of water stress in India?

    • The Global Drought Risk and Water Stress map (2019): It shows that major parts of India, particularly west, central and parts of peninsular India are highly water stressed and experience water scarcity.
    • Composite Water Management Index (2018): Released by Niti Aayog indicates that more than 600 million people are facing acute water stress.
    • India is the world’s largest extractor of groundwater: Accounting for 25 per cent of the total. 70 percent of our water sources are contaminated and our major rivers are dying because of pollution.

    water stressWhy is Rural to Urban transfer of water becoming an issue in India?

    • Rising urban population: According to Census 2011, the urban population in India accounted for 34% of total population. It is estimated that the urban population component in India will cross the 40% mark by 2030 and the 50% mark by 2050 according to World Urbanization Prospects, 2018.
    • Water use in the urban areas: Water use in the urban sector has increased as more and more people shift to urban areas. Per capita use of water in these centers rises, which will continue to grow with improved standards of living.
    • Shifting of water source in Urban areas: As the city grows and water management infrastructures develop, dependence shifts to surface water from groundwater. For example: In Ahmedabad, more than 80% of water supply used to be met from groundwater sources till the mid-1980s. Due to such overexploitation of groundwater the depth to groundwater level reached 67 meters in confined aquifers. The city now depends on the Narmada canal for the bulk of its water supply.
    • Dependence of urban areas on rural areas for water source and rural-urban disputes over water: Cities largely depend on rural areas for raw water supply, which has the potential to ignite the rural-urban dispute. For example: Nagpur and Chennai face the problem of rural-urban water disputes.

     

    water stressReasons for disputes

    • Diversion of resource: Water is transported to urban areas at the expense of rural areas. Due to the high population in urban areas the water requirement for daily use is very high.
    • High demand of water for industrial purposes: In urban areas the water is heavily used in industries creating water stress.
    • High Agriculture dependence: In the rural areas water is used mainly for irrigation purposes and due to heavy dependence on agriculture the water is very essential in rural areas.
    • Water pollution: In cities, most of this water is in the form of grey water with little recovery or reuse, eventually contributing to water pollution.
    • Bad governance: Politicization of water for vote bank and skewed distribution of water particular regions For example: Andhra and Telangana.

    water stress Climate change exacerbate the rural-urban disputes 

    • Affecting rainfall pattern: Climate change affects the amount of rainfall in the region which is the prime source of both surface water and groundwater.
    • Increase rate of evaporation over surface water: because of high temperature the surface waters of lakes, rivers, canals etc. face high evaporation water loss.
    • Melting of glaciers: glaciers are the sources for perennial rivers of India. Due to global warming, glaciers are melting and hence affecting the perennial nature of rivers.
    • Frequent droughts: It affects the groundwater recharge process and drying of surface waters which creates shortage of water. It exacerbate the rural-urban conflict.

    .

      

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  • What is International Argo Program?

    argo

    The International Argo Program system to observe carbon concentration in the world’s oceans is extremely inadequate to meet the growing and urgent need for information on oceanic carbon, says a report.

    What is Argo?

    • Argo is an international program that uses profiling floats to observe temperature, salinity, currents, and, recently, bio-optical properties in the Earth’s oceans; it has been operational since the early 2000s.
    • The real-time data it provides is used in climate and oceanographic research.
    • A special research interest is to quantify the ocean heat content (OHC).
    • Each instrument (float) spends almost all its life below the surface.
    • The name Argo was chosen because the array of floats works in partnership with the Jason earth observing satellites that measure the shape of the ocean surface.
    • In Greek mythology Jason sailed on his ship the Argo in search of the Golden Fleece.

    What are its aims?

    • The data that Argo collects describes the temperature and salinity of the water and some of the floats measure other properties that describe the biology/chemistry of the ocean.
    • The main reason for collecting these data is to help us understand the oceans’ role in earth’s climate.
    • For example, the changes in sea level (once the tides are averaged out) depend partly on the melting of icecaps and partly on the amount of heat stored in the oceans.
    • Argo’s temperature measurements allow us to calculate how much heat is stored and to monitor from year to year how the distribution of heat changes with depth and from area to area.
    • As ocean heat content increases, sea level rises, just like the mercury in a thermometer.

    How does it work?

    • Each Argo float (costing between $20,000 and $150,000 depending on the individual float’s technical specification) is launched from a ship.
    • The float’s weight is carefully adjusted so that, as it sinks, it eventually stabilizes at a pre-set level, usually 1 km.
    • Ten days later, an internal battery-driven pump transfers oil between a reservoir inside the float and an external bladder.
    • This makes the float first descend to 2km and then return to the surface measuring ocean properties as it rises.
    • The data and the float position are relayed to satellites and then on to receiving stations on shore.
    • The float then sinks again to repeat the 10 day cycle until its batteries are exhausted.

     

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  • Fly ash generation and Disposal

    fly ashContext

    • India depends heavily on coal for power generation. This creates the problem of fly-ash generation and its proper disposal, usage.
    • The National Green Tribunal (NGT) noted September 19, 2022 that there was an urgent need to augment the utilisation and disposal of fly ash in Chhattisgarh.

    What is fly ash?

    • Fly ash is a by-product of coal combustion. It contains Aluminium Silicate, SiO2, CaO, oxides of iron, magnesium and toxic metals like lead, arsenic, cobalt, and copper.
    • It can travel to far places. India is growing to double its power generation in the next decade and with coal being the biggest source of fuel for power generation, the problem of fly ash is going to increase too.

    fly ash Environmental Problems with fly ash

    • A large quantity of fly ash dumped into poorly designed and maintained ash ponds. About a billion tonnes of this toxic ash lie dumped in these ponds, polluting land, air, and water.
    • All the heavy metals found in fly ash—nickel, cadmium, arsenic, chromium, lead, etc—are toxic in nature. They leech into the surrounding soil and can enter food-chains.
    • Fly ash gets easily ingested through respiration, which causes many diseases such as asthma, neurological disorders.
    • Suspended fly ash in the air acts as a global warming agent and heats the earth’s surface.
    • Fly ash settles on leaves and crops and reduces crop productivity.
    • It pollutes the groundwater.
    • There is a reduction in recharging of groundwater due to fly ash filled mine voids.
    • Reduces visibility by creating dense fog in the winter season.

    fly ashIssues with fly ash management

    • The government mandates that all coal power plants (CPPs) reach 100% utilization of fly ash.
    • Along with it, CPPs should give a certain amount of fly ash free of cost for MSMEs to manufacture bricks, tiles and rest of the fly ash should be sold to other industries.
    • CPPs will have to maintain fly ash ponds to reduce its suspension in air.
    • But all these steps for utilization areas are problematic as they do little to mitigate these risks.
    • The pricing of fly ash is increasingly becoming a contentious issue that is hampering its gainful utilization.
    • The current approaches to evaluating risks with fly ash disposal are very limited, and they may underestimate the true risks
    • In spite of initiatives taken by the government, several nongovernmental and research and development organizations for fly ash utilization, the level of fly ash utilization in the country is quite low at only 38% which is less than the global standards.
    • Hence, rather than being utilized, fly ash is being stored despite warnings from regulators.
    • Deposition in storage places has negative influences on water and soil because of their mineral composition as well as morphology and filtration properties.
    • Ash-handling units are the biggest consumers of water in CPPs. The government advocates the designed ash-to-water ratios as approximately 1:5 for fly ash, but the observed ratios have been around 1:20.
    • Certain states have discouraged the use of blended cement and fly ash bricks in public works.

    fly ashThe above issues can be addressed by

    • Greater regulatory oversight and price control,
    • Revision of cement blending standards,
    • Research in improving fly ash quality,
    • Reducing the cost of transportation,
    • Provisions for overcoming information asymmetries,
    • Incentivising use in brick kilns for producing fly ash bricks,
    • Overall sensitization of key decision-makers on the matter.
    • Instead of dumping it on ash ponds, can be used for construction due to its reuse as pozzolan, and replacement of portland cement by hydraulic cement
    • Due to its grain size distribution, enhanced strength permeability, it can be used to construct embankments at road construction, concrete dams like GHATGHAR DAM
    • Strong penalties for those production units who do not use proper filtration devices
    • Moving to renewable energy production away from coal-based thermal production.

    Conclusion

    • Utilization of Fly Ash is not only possible but also essential. In this context “Fly Ash Mission of Government of India” is a slow but steady start, the pace of which needs to be ramped up. An honest effort is required by the concerned stakeholders to improve the perceptions of fly ash-based cement or concrete; increase its use, particularly for government works; and impart scientific knowledge about fly ash, its uses, and possible impacts.

    Mains question

    Q. What is fly ash? Discuss the environmental challenges it poses. Suggest how to address the situation.

     

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  • The heavy rainfall and the crazy Banglore flood: A case to study

    floodContext

    • The recent events of heavy downpours in short period of time and the recent example of Banglore flood, highlights how cities in India and elsewhere need to adapt to climate change as it brings more extreme rainfall in the future.

    What is heavy downpour?

    • A downpour or cloudburst is a sudden and unexpected heavy fall of rain.
    • It is usually local in nature and of brief duration. Most so-called cloudbursts occur in connection with thunderstorms.
    • Heavy downpour in short period causes flood, damage to buildings and infrastructure can disrupt transport, communications and connectivity, loss of crops and livestock.

    The heavy rainfall and the Banglore flood causes

    • Rise in built up area: Lakes and natural depressions may not always fill up during many monsoons so the people who are unaware of hydrology tempts to build and buy in the catchment areas of water-bodies, which will be disastrous when it rains heavily as there is rise in the quantity.
    • Water-logging: rainwater and sewage water are forced to build up, which results in water-logging. The highway acts as a dam for the water ,Garbage frequently clogs drains, which limits the flow of sewage, and they are too small to support the weight of the expanding population.
    • Physical shrinkage of water-bodies: Destruction of lakes is a major issue .lakes can store the excess water and regulate the flow of water however the pollution of natural water bodies and converting them for development purposes has increased the risks of floods. Unplanned growth, Rise in population, rise in the built up areas along streams, canals, around the lakes, leaving no storage capacity.
    • Compromised runoff potential and health hazards: Choked and encroached drains and lakes, ill designed infrastructure and missing pipes compromising run off potential. Not only the physical quantity of the runoff that poses a hazard. When polluted drains and lakes overflow, the flood can pose a health hazard especially to vulnerable and exposed marginal communities living in informal settlements.
    • Zero or limited ability to allow infiltration of water: Encroachments in and around wetlands and green lands harming the natural way of water infiltration and ground water recharge.
    • Lack of vision in rain water harvesting: Ignorance towards the tradition rain water harvesting techniques and no or limited vision for creating new systems of rain water harvesting. Exceptionally heavy monsoon rains have been exacerbated by poor urban planning in the Indian tech hub, showing the need for improved water systems.

    floodWhat are the reasons behind the frequent floods in urban areas?

    • Meteorological factors: change in the weather patterns, increase in the temperature leading to heavy rainfall, sudden downpour, cloudburst, thunderstorms, hailstorms etc.
    • Hydrological factors: Natural surface infiltration rate, soil moisture level, presence or absence of Overbank flows, Presence of impervious cover, the occurrence of high tides impeding the drainage in coastal cities.
    • Man-Made factors:
      • Unplanned urbanization: Unplanned settlement is one of the main cause of urban flooding. Blocking of natural drainage pathways through construction activity and encroachment on catchment areas, streams, rivers, lakebeds. Reduced infiltration and ground water recharge of water, destruction of lakes, Land-use changes (e.g. surface sealing due to urbanization, deforestation) increase runoff and sedimentation. Inefficiency or non-maintenance of infrastructure etc.
      • Outdated Drainage systems: The old and ill-maintained drainage system is one of the main factor making cities in India vulnerable to flooding
      • Encroachments on and around water-bodies: Illegal Habitations started growing into towns and cities alongside rivers and watercourses. As a result of this, the capacity of the natural drains has decreased, resulting in flooding.
      • Climate Change: Climate change due to various anthropogenic events has led to extreme weather events, increasing temperature which resulting in heavy rainfall in one part while drought and dry spells in other.
      • Poor Solid Waste Management System: Indiscriminate disposal of solid waste, poor waste management system, clogging drains because of accumulation of non-biodegradable wastes are major concerns. Domestic, commercial and industrial waste and dumping of it into the drains also contribute significantly to reducing their capacities.
      • Reduced Seepage: use of hard and non-porous construction material making the soil impervious, reducing the seepage capability in no of cities in India.
      • Weak Implementation and lack of awareness:Even with provisions of rainwater harvesting, sustainable urban drainage systems, etc, in regulatory mechanisms like the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), adoption at user end as well as enforcement agencies remains weak.
      • No Community Participation:Flood control measures planned without participation of the affected community are unsustainable as they do not meet the needs of relevant stakeholders.

    What can be done to prevent the urban floods and prevent losses?

    • Developing climate Resilient Infrastructure: using permeable material for roads and pavement, green roofs and harvesting systems in buildings. To reduce the burden of road infrastructure in cities Outer Ring Road should be explored. Innovative approaches like Sponge Cities wetland restoration, flushing systems using collected rooftop water, public spaces as flexible water retention facilities can be applied to Indian urban areas.
    • Use of technology in Early Warning Systems and Communication: Early-warning systems using sensors across waterbodies and drains, and a network of communication for hotspots of emerging flood risk in the wet-season should be put in place. Providing real-time data where traditional systems fail. Tools such as predictive precipitation modelingcan help do that and are also able to link it with the adaptive capacity of urban land use.
    • Proper management and regular upgrade of Urban Drainage System: drains need to be cleaned on a regular basis to permit the free flow of water .Proper management of the drainage system is necessary to ensure that the water does not get stored in one place. Watershed management and emergency drainage plan should be clearly enunciated in policy.
    • Rainwater Harvesting: It will serve the twin purposes of lowering the peak runoff and raising the groundwater table. Many municipal corporations in India have already made rainwater harvesting compulsory. 
    • Conservation of Water Bodies: Urban water bodies like lakes, tanks, and ponds also play a very important role in the management of urban flooding by reducing the flood water run-off by capturing it.
    • Holistic approach: Improved monitoring, forecasting, and decision-support systems. Find out the different method for improving the preparedness for urban flooding.
    • Responsibility on every stakeholder: Locally, citizens, local ward officials and staff will need to work together to minimize dumping of solid waste and garbage in storm-water drains. As this is a socio –political problem, public participation awareness and responsibility of citizen is the need of the hour. To develop a long-lasting solution, all parties must acknowledge the issues and adopt a thorough strategy.

    What we as citizens can do on a personal level to prevent the urban environment?

    • Raising voice at all available forums and platforms
    • Making politicians and bureaucrats accountable
    • Refuse to buy a house in the encroached lands.
    • Applying methods of rain water harvesting on individual level.

    Way ahead

    • Exceptionally heavy monsoon rains have been exacerbated by poor urban planning in the Indian tech hub, showing the need for improved water systems.
    • Urbanization is a global and inevitable process, and with cities as engines of the economy, built-up areas will continue to grow. But we need to draw upon these experiences and the growing perils of climate change and extreme rain events and change course.
    • According to UN projections, by 2050 more than 68% of the world’s population could be concentrated in urban areas.
    • In this context, resilience-based strategies should be adopted to improve the capacity to handle the crisis arising out of climate change.
    • Wetlands are the kidneys of the earth, let’s keep it healthy.

     

    Mains Question

    Q. What are the factors causing flood in the urban cities? What are the measures to prevent the urban flooding keeping in mind the sustainable development? Discuss.

     

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