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Subject: Environment

  • Species in news: Jungle Fowl

    A recent study by scientists has revealed new details about the earliest domestication of chicken from the Jungle Fowl.

    Try this question from CSP 2012:

    Q.What is the difference between the antelopes’ Oryx and Chiru?

    (a) Oryx is adapted to live in hot and arid areas like Africa and Arabia whereas Chiru is adapted to live in steppes and semi-desert areas of cold high mountains of Tibetan Plateau.

    (b) Oryx is poached for its antlers whereas Chiru is poached for its musk

    (c) Oryx exists in western India only whereas Chiru exists in northeast India only.

    (d) None of the statements (a), (b) and (c) given above is correct.

    Jungle Fowl

    • The DNA sequencing of 863 genomes has shown the first domestication of chicken occurred in southwestern China, northern Thailand and Myanmar.
    • The study involved sequencing of genomes from all four species of the genus Gallus, five subspecies of Red Jungle Fowl and various domestic chicken breeds collected worldwide.
    • It revealed single domestication from Red Jungle Fowl sub-species Gallus spadiceous.
    • The study also demonstrated that all five Red Jungle Fowl sub-species were genetically differentiated from each other approximately 50,000 years ago much earlier than domestication.
    • The results contradicted the earlier claim that chickens were domesticated in northern China and the Indus Valley.

    Domestication of Chicken

    • The question of domestication of chickens has intrigued scientists for centuries and has been the subject of debate.
    • Charles Darwin postulated that chickens were domesticated around 4,000 B.C. from a single ancestor, Red Jungle Fowl in the Indus Valley.
    • An important study published earlier from Uppsala University claimed the Grey Jungle Fowl had contributed to chicken domestication.
    • With this, a couple of studies from India, China and other South-Asian countries have argued the monophyletic origin of chicken.

  • Issues with draft EIA Notification 2020

    The changes made in the recent notification gives rise to several issues. These changes and issues that could arise are discussed in this article.

    • Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a process of evaluating the likely environmental impacts of a proposed project or development, taking into account inter-related socio-economic, cultural and human-health impacts, both beneficial and adverse.
    • UNEP defines Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as a tool used to identify the environmental, social and economic impacts of a project prior to decision-making.
    • It aims to predict environmental impacts at an early stage in project planning and design, find ways and means to reduce adverse impacts, shape projects to suit the local environment and present the predictions and options to decision-makers.
    • Environment Impact Assessment in India is statutorily backed by the Environment Protection Act, 1986 which contains various provisions on EIA methodology and process.

    History of EIA in India

    • The Indian experience with Environmental Impact Assessment began over 20 years back. It started in 1976-77 when the Planning Commission asked the Department of Science and Technology to examine the river-valley projects from an environmental angle.
    • Till 1994, environmental clearance from the Central Government was an administrative decision and lacked legislative support.
    • On 27 January 1994, the then Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, under the Environmental (Protection) Act 1986, promulgated an EIA notification making Environmental Clearance (EC) mandatory for expansion or modernisation of any activity or for setting up new projects listed in Schedule 1 of the notification.
    • The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) notified new EIA legislation in September 2006.
      • The notification makes it mandatory for various projects such as mining, thermal power plants, river valley, infrastructure (road, highway, ports, harbours and airports) and industries including very small electroplating or foundry units to get environment clearance.
      • However, unlike the EIA Notification of 1994, the new legislation has put the onus of clearing projects on the state government depending on the size/capacity of the project.

    The EIA Process

    EIA involves the steps mentioned below. However, the EIA process is cyclical with interaction between the various steps.

    • Screening: The project plan is screened for scale of investment, location and type of development and if the project needs statutory clearance.
    • Scoping: The project’s potential impacts, zone of impacts, mitigation possibilities and need for monitoring.
    • Collection of baseline data: Baseline data is the environmental status of study area.
    • Impact prediction: Positive and negative, reversible and irreversible and temporary and permanent impacts need to be predicted which presupposes a good understanding of the project by the assessment agency.
    • Mitigation measures and EIA report: The EIA report should include the actions and steps for preventing, minimizing or by passing the impacts or else the level of compensation for probable environmental damage or loss.
    • Public hearing: On completion of the EIA report, public and environmental groups living close to project site may be informed and consulted.
    • Decision making: Impact Assessment Authority along with the experts consult the project-in-charge along with consultant to take the final decision, keeping in mind EIA and EMP (Environment Management Plan).
    • Monitoring and implementation of environmental management plan: The various phases of implementation of the project are monitored.
    • Assessment of Alternatives, Delineation of Mitigation Measures and Environmental Impact Assessment Report: For every project, possible alternatives should be identified, and environmental attributes compared. Alternatives should cover both project location and process technologies.
      • Once alternatives have been reviewed, a mitigation plan should be drawn up for the selected option and is supplemented with an Environmental Management Plan (EMP) to guide the proponent towards environmental improvements.
    • Risk assessment: Inventory analysis and hazard probability and index also form part of EIA procedures.

    Importance of Precautionary Principle

    • The basis in global environmental law for the EIA is the “precautionary principle”.
    • Environmental harm is often irreparable and it is cheaper to avoid damage to the environment than to remedy it.
    • We are legally bound to the precautionary principle under international treaties and obligations, as well as by Supreme Court judgments.

    What is the issue?

    • Streamlining the EIA process and bringing it in line with recent judgments are the reasons given by the government for latest notification.
    • The Draft EIA Notification disables it, shrinks its scope and removes what teeth it did have.
    • The most devastating blow to the EIA regime is the creation of an ex-post-facto clearance route. 

    1.What is ex-post-facto clearance route?

    • It applies to ongoing or completed project for which an EIA clearance was never sought or granted, and the construction of the project took place regardless.[violating the norms]
    • The project now can be slapped with minor fines for the violations and get cleared.
    • Where such ex-post-facto clearances were being granted previously, the courts cracked down on them as illegal.
    • Therefore, what could not be ratified will now find itself notified.
    • The legality of sidestepping the courts is questionable and will have to be tested.

    How it will affect?

    •  It will become a business decision as to whether the
    • There is an argument that this route will be an “exception”.
    • But it is difficult to believe in India. Our law has a long history of expanding the exception into the rule.

    Time to furnish response shortened

    • The draft notification also shortens the time for the public to furnish responses on the project.
    • For project-affected people, who are frequently forest dwellers or otherwise do not have access to information and technology.
    • This will make it harder to put forth representations.

    2.Monitoring requirements reduced

    • Monitoring requirements have been slackened.
    • The draft EIA notification halves the frequency of reporting requirements from every six months to once a year.
    • It also extends the validity period for approvals in critical sectors such as mining.

    3.Scope of EIA reduced

    • Industries that previously required a full assessment have been downgraded.
    • The construction industry will be one such beneficiary, where only the largest projects will be scrutinised fully.
    • While defence and national security installations were always understandably exempt, a vague new category of projects “involving other strategic considerations” will also now be free from public consultation requirements.

    4.Recent industrial mishaps

    • Oil India Limited’s oil wells in the Tinsukia district, Assam went up in flames this month.
    • It is situated only a few kilometres away from protected forest.
    • Recent processes for expansion and modification apparently took place without fresh environmental clearance.
    • There was a deadly gas leak at LG Polymers’ Visakhapatnam plant in May.
    • The plant had been operating without a valid environmental clearance for decades.

    Consider the question “Examine the changes made in the draft EIA Notification and what are the issues with it? “

    Way Forward

    On a positive note, the 2020 draft notification has a clause dedicated to definitions to several terms related to EIA. It may be beneficial in the sense that it consolidates the EIA rules and has the potential of alleviating some ambiguity in the present law.

    • The ministry, instead of reducing the time for public consultation, should focus on ensuring access to information as well as awareness about the public hearing and its impact upon the whole EIA process.
    • In order to improve ease of doing business, the government should bring down the average delay of 238 days in granting environmental clearance, that emanates from bureaucratic delays and complex laws.
    • Grow now, sustain later should not be the policy, as the notion is dangerously tilted against the concept of sustainable development.

    Conclusion

    Environmental regulation must balance damage to the environment with sustainable development and possible benefits but the new notification lays more emphasis on the benefits and so must be reconsidered.

  • “Money Laundering and the Illegal Wildlife Trade” Report

    A first global report on the illegal wildlife trade has been recently published by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

    Try this MCQ:

    Q.The report “Money Laundering and the Illegal Wildlife Trade”  recently seen in news is released by:

    A. TRAFFIC/ B. CITES/ C. IUCN/ D. FATF

    Highlights of the Report

    • FATF has described illegal wildlife trade as a “global threat”, which also has links with other organised crimes like modern slavery, drug trafficking and arms trade.
    • The illegal trade is estimated to generate revenues of up to $23 billion a year.
    • The report flagged a lack of focus on the financial aspects of wildlife crime.

    (1)Economy of illicit wildlife trade

    • It said that criminals are frequently misusing the legitimate wildlife trade, as well as other import-export type businesses.
    • The FATF found that jurisdictions often did not have the required knowledge, legislative basis and resources to assess and combat the threat posed by the funds generated through the illegal trade.
    • The study has highlighted the growing role of online marketplaces and mobile and social media-based payments to facilitate the movement of proceeds warranting a coordinated response from government bodies, the private sector and the civil society.

    (2)Money laundering is prominent

    • According to the report, criminal syndicates are misusing the formal financial sector to launder the proceeds.
    • Funds are laundered through cash deposits, under the guise of loans or payments, e-banking platforms, licensed money value transfer systems, and third-party wire transfers via banks.
    • Accounts of innocent victims are also used and high-value payments avoided evading detection.

    (3)Misuse of front companies

    • Another common trend is the misuse of front companies with links to the legal wildlife trade, said the report.
    • Front companies, often linked to import-export industries, and shell firms are used for the movement of goods and trans-border money transfers.

    Recommendations of the report

    • The report says the financial probe is the key to dismantling the syndicates involved, which can in turn significantly impact the associated criminal activities.
    • It recommended that jurisdictions should consider implementing good practices, as observed during the study.
    • They include providing all relevant agencies with the necessary mandate and tools; and cooperating with other jurisdictions, international bodies and the private sector.
    • The FATF said that legislative changes were necessary to increase the applicability of anti-money laundering laws to the illegal wildlife trade-linked offences.

    Back2Basics

    https://www.civilsdaily.com/news/financial-action-task-force-fatf-2/

  • What is the Anthropause Period?

    Researchers in the UK are set to study the “Anthropause”, a term they have coined to refer to the coronavirus-induced lockdown period and its impact on other species.

    Practice question for mains:

    Q. What is the significance of declaring Anthropocene epoch? Discuss how it is different from any geological events. Discuss the Anthropause Period.

    Anthropause Period

    • Researchers have suggested the lockdown period, which is also being referred to as the “Great Pause”, be referred to with a more precise term.
    • It is referred specifically to a considerable global slowing of modern human activities, notably travel.
    • The unprecedented curbs imposed on millions of people around the world, mainly due to restrictions in travel, led to reports of unusual animal behaviour.
    • For instance, there were pumas sighted in Chile’s Santiago, jackals in the parks of Tel Aviv in Israel, dolphins in the waters of Italy and even a monkey fight on the streets of Thailand.
    • The researchers believe studying this period will provide valuable insights into the relationship between human-wildlife interactions in the 21st century.

    What do the researchers hope to find?

    • As a result of the lockdown, nature appears to have changed, especially in urban environments, since not only are there now more animals, but also some “unexpected visitors.”
    • In their outline, researchers mention how the scientific community can use these “extraordinary circumstance” provided by global lockdowns to understand how human activity affects wildlife.
    • On the other hand, there are some animals for which the lockdown may have made things more challenging.
    • For instance, for various urban-dwelling animals, such as rats, gulls and monkeys who depend on food provided or discarded by humans, the lockdown would have made life more difficult.

    Why is studying the lockdown important?

    • Expanding human populations continue to transform their environments at unprecedented rates.
    • Further, because the reduction in human activity during the lockdown on both land and sea has been “unparalleled” in recent history, the effects have been “drastic, sudden and widespread”.
    • Essentially, this gives them a chance to study the extent to which modern human mobility affects wildlife.
    • The study can be linked can help provide insights that may be useful in preserving global biodiversity, maintaining the integrity of ecosystems and predicting global zoonoses and environmental changes.

    Back2Basics

    https://www.civilsdaily.com/news/anthropocene-as-earths-new-epoch/

  • We need National Plan for Covid-19

    The Disaster Management Act (DMA) 2005 has been invoked by the government to deal with the pandemic. However, National Plan as provided under the Act to deal with Covid-19 is nowhere to be found. Also, the creations of PM CARES violated the provision of the DMA-2005. These two issues are discussed here.

    Provisions of DMA 2005

    • The Act, along with other things provides the constitution of a National Authority, a National Executive committee.
    • It also provides for the constitution of an advisory committee of experts in the field to make recommendations and to prepare a national plan.
    • This plan must provide for measures for prevention or mitigation.
    • The Act lays down “guidelines for minimum standards of relief, including ex gratia assistance.

    Provision of various Funds under DMA 2005

    • It enables the creation of a National Disaster Response Fund in which the central government must make due contribution.
    • It also requires “any grants that may be made by any person or institution for the purpose of disaster management” to be credited into the same Fund.
    • It also provides for a National Disaster Mitigation Fund, exclusively for mitigation.
    • The Act also provides for State and local-level plans and for creating State Disaster Response Fund among others.

    Provision of disaster management plan

    • After the direction by the SC, the government came out with a National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP), 2016.
    • This Plan dealt with various kinds of disasters; it was amended in 2019.
    • Bu this National Plan not in place now.
    • Without it, the fight against COVID-19 is ad hoc and has resulted in thousands of government orders.
    • These orders are confusing those who are to enforce them as well as the public.

    NDRF and PM CARES issue

    • On April 3, 2020, the government of India agreed to contribute its share to the NDRF.
    • But a public charitable trust under the name of Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund) was set up to receive grants made by persons and institutions out of the NDRF, in violation of Section 46 of the Act.
    • The crores being sent to this fund are not even audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India.
    • It is a totally opaque exercise.
    • The government of the day has not only ignored the binding law but also circumvented it.
    • The government has been fighting the crisis in an ad hoc and arbitrary manner instead of the organised steps as mandated by the Act.
    • In so doing, the experts have been sidelined.

    Consider the question “Describe the various provision of the DMA 2005 to deal with the disaster. In light of this, examine whether the creation of PM CARES conflicts with the provision of his act”

    Conclusion

    The national plan to deal with the pandemic and making PM CARES more transparent would help the government in its fight against the corona crisis.

  • In news: Athirappally Waterfalls

    The Kerala government recently gave the go-ahead for the proposed 163-megawatt (MW) Athirappally Hydroelectric Project.

    Information about some of India’s tallest waterfalls is provided in the B2b section. Kindly pen them down along with their respective states. They can be asked in the match the pair type question.

    Athirappally Waterfalls

    • The famous Athirappally Waterfalls is located on the Chalakudy River in Thrissur district of Kerala.
    • It originates from the upper reaches of the Western Ghats at the entrance to the Sholayar ranges.
    • It is the largest waterfall in Kerala, which stands tall at 80 feet and is nicknamed “The Niagara of India”.
    • Controversy about a state-proposed hydroelectric dam on the Chalakudy River above the waterfalls began in the 1990s and continued through 2021.

    Issues with the Hydel project

    • A number of families belonging to the Kadar tribal group are facing displacement here.
    • The dam will also affect irrigation and tourism possibilities in the downstream parts of the Chalakudy River.
    • The falls and its surroundings are part of a crucial biodiversity-rich region coming under the Ecologically Sensitive Zone 1 of the Western Ghats.
    • The Ghats themselves are a UNESCO World Heritage Site and are one of the eight “hottest hot-spots” of biological diversity in the world.

    Back2Basics: Waterfalls in India

    • Vajrai Falls (560m): Satara, Maharashtra
    • Kunchikal Falls (455m): Shimoga, Karnataka
    • Barehipani Falls (390m): Odisha
    • Nohkalikai Falls (340m): East Khasi, Meghalaya
    • Dudhsagar Falls (310m): Karnataka, Goa

  • What is the Arctic Heatwave warming up Siberia?

    The Arctic Circle has recorded temperatures reaching over 38 degrees Celsius in the Siberian town of Verkhoyansk, likely an all-time high. The temperatures seem to have been 18 degree Celsius higher than normal in June a/c to the BBC.

    Try this question from CS Mains 2017:

    Q.How does the Cryosphere affect global climate?

    What is happening in the Arctic?

    • Since the past month, the most above-average temperatures were recorded in Siberia, where they were about 10 degrees Celsius above normal.
    • Siberia has been recording higher-than-average surface air temperatures since January.

    Are Arctic heatwaves common?

    • This is not the first time that rising temperatures in the Arctic have created alarm.
    • The rising temperatures are attributed to large-scale wind patterns that blasted the Arctic with heat, the absence of sea ice, and human-induced climate change, among other reasons.
    • There has been an increase of heatwave occurrences over the terrestrial Arctic. These frequent occurrences have already started to threaten local vegetation, ecology, human health and economy.

    A cause of worry for all

    • Warming in the Arctic is leading to the thawing of once permanently frozen permafrost below ground.
    • This is alarming scientists because as permafrost thaws, carbon dioxide and methane previously locked up below ground is released.
    • These greenhouse gases can cause further warming, and further thawing of the permafrost, in a vicious cycle known as positive feedback.
    • The higher temperatures also cause land ice in the Arctic to melt at a faster rate, leading to greater run-off into the ocean where it contributes to sea-level rise.

  • Seabed 2030 Project

    The Seabed 2030 Project has finished mapping nearly one-fifth of the world’s ocean floor.

    The ocean relief can be divided into various parts such as Continental Shelf, Continental Slope, Continental Rise or Foot, Deep Ocean basins, Abyssal plains & Abyssal Hills, Oceanic Trenches, Seamounts and Guyots.

    Revise these ocean bottom relief features from your basic references.

    Also revise India’s Deep Ocean Mission.

    The Seabed 2030 Project

    • The global initiative is a collaboration between Japan’s non-profit Nippon Foundation and the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO).
    • It is the only intergovernmental organisation with a mandate to map the entire ocean floor and traces its origins to the GEBCO chart series initiated in 1903 by Prince Albert I of Monaco.
    • The project was launched at the UN Ocean Conference in 2017, and coordinates and oversees the sourcing and compilation of bathymetric data from different parts of the world’s ocean.

    What’s so special about this project?

    • In the past, satellites and planes carrying altimeter instruments have been able to provide large swathes of data about the ocean floor.
    • The Seabed 2030 Project, however, aims to obtain higher quality information that has a minimum resolution of 100 m at all spots.
    • It is using equipment such as deepwater hull-mounted sonar systems, and more advanced options such as Underwater Vehicles (AUVs).
    • For this, the project aims to rope in governments, private companies, and international organisations to acquire data.

    Progress of the project

    • Since the launch of the project in 2017, the surveying of the ocean bed as per modern standards has gone up from around 6 per cent to 19 per cent.
    • The project has added 1.45 crore square kilometres of new bathymetric data to its latest grid.

    Why is the study of the ocean floor important?

    • Ocean topography: The knowledge of bathymetry — the measurement of the shape and depth of the ocean floor, is instrumental in understanding several natural phenomena, including ocean circulation, tides, and biological hotspots.
    • Navigation: It also provides key inputs for navigation, forecasting tsunamis, exploration for oil and gas projects, building offshore wind turbines, fishing resources, and for laying cables and pipelines. This data becomes highly valuable during disaster situations.
    • Climate Change study: Importantly, the maps would also ensure a better understanding of climate change, since floor features including canyons and underwater volcanoes influence phenomena ocean currents. These ocean currents act as conveyor belts of warm and cold water, thus influencing the weather and climate.
    • Marine conservation: A map of the entire global ocean floor would also help further achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal to conserve and sustainably use oceans, seas and marine resources.

    Try this PYQ from CSP 2012:

    Q.Consider the following factors:

    1. Rotation of the Earth
    2. Air pressure and wind
    3. Density of ocean water
    4. Revolution of the Earth

    Which of the above factors influence the ocean currents?

    (a) 1 and 2 only

    (b) 1, 2 and 3

    (c) 1 and 4

    (d) 2, 3 and 4

  • ‘Decarbonizing Transport in India (DTI)’ Project

    http://www.newsonair.com/writereaddata/News_Pictures/NAT/2020/Jun/NPIC-2020622172010.jpg

    NITI Aayog in collaboration with International Transport Forum (ITF) is set to launch the “Decarbonising Transport in India” project with the intention to develop a pathway towards a low-carbon transport system for India.

    Note the following things about ‘Decarbonising Transport in India (DTI)’ Project:

    1. Associated international institution

    2. Whether the institution is a UN body or not

    3. If India is a member of that body

    The DTI Project

    • The India project is carried out in the wider context of the International Transport Forum’s “Decarbonising Transport” initiative.
    • It is part of the “Decarbonising Transport in Emerging Economies” (DTEE) family of projects, which supports transport decarbonisation across different world regions.
    • India, Argentina, Azerbaijan, and Morocco are current participants.
    • The DTEE is a collaboration between the ITF and the Wuppertal Institute, supported by the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment.

    Objectives of the project

    • The project will design a tailor-made transport emissions assessment framework for India.
    • It will provide the government with a detailed understanding of current and future transport activity and the related CO2 emissions as a basis for their decision-making.

    About International Transport Forum (ITF)

    • The ITF is an inter-governmental organisation within the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) system.
    • It is the only global body with a mandate for all modes of transport.
    • It acts as a think tank for transport policy issues and organises the annual global summit of transport ministers.
    • The ITF’s motto is “Global dialogue for better transport”.
    • India has been a member of ITF since 2008.

    Back2Basics: OCED

    • The OECD is an international, intergovernmental economic organization of 36 countries.
    • OECD was founded in the year 1961 to stimulate world trade and economic progress.
    • OECD originated in 1948, as the Organisation for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC).
    • The Organisation for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC) was founded to govern the predominantly US-funded Marshall Plan for post-war reconstruction on the continent.
    • The OEEC was instrumental in helping the European Economic Community (EEC). The EEC has evolved into the European Union (EU) to establish a European Free Trade Area.
    • India is NOT a member of OECD.

  • Species in news: Golden Langurs

    Primatologists have observed that the Gee’s golden langur (Trachypithecus geei) induce stillbirth of babies killed inside the womb of females, besides practising infanticide.

    Try this question from CSP 2013:

    Q. In which of the following States is lion-tailed macaque found in its natural habitat?

    1. Tamil Nadu
    2. Kerala
    3. Karnataka
    4. Andhra Pradesh

    Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

    a) 1, 2 and 3 only

    b) 2 only

    c) 1, 3 and 4 only

    d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

    Golden Langurs

    IUCN status: Endangered

    • It is an Old World monkey found in a small region of western Assam, and in the neighbouring foothills of the Black Mountains of Bhutan.
    • Long considered sacred by many Himalayan people, the golden langur was first brought to the attention of the western world by the naturalist E. P. Gee in the 1950s.
    • Their habitat lies in the region, south of the Brahmaputra River, on the east by the Manas River, on the west by the Sankosh River, all in Assam, India, and on the north by the Black Mountains of Bhutan
    • Chakrashila WLS in Assam is India’s first wildlife sanctuary with golden langur as the primary species.
    • They are listed in Appendix I of CITES and Schedule I of Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.