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ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION IN INDIA: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES Ministry of Environment and Forests Government of India 31 st August, 2010. STRUCTURE OF PRESENTATION . Environmental Challenges Air Pollution issues Water Pollution Issues Innovations in environmental regulation
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ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION IN INDIA: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES Ministry of Environment and Forests Government of India 31st August, 2010
STRUCTURE OF PRESENTATION • Environmental Challenges • Air Pollution issues • Water Pollution Issues • Innovations in environmental regulation • Strengthening and Management issues • Key Questions & Working Group Strategy
CHALLENGES • Pressures on Environment Due to Economic Growth, Infrastructure Development, Urbanization and Changing Life Styles • Promoting Intersectorality and Integrating Safety, Health and Environment • Institutional Reforms to Keep Pace with Legislation • Enhancing Institutional Capacities and Strengthening Implementation • Mainstreaming Science Based Approach • Appropriate Technological Applications • Balancing Environment & Development
STATUS OF POLLUTION IN INDIA • Trends in pollution • Levels of SO2 and lead in ambient air : decreasing • PM10 beyond norms in majority of cities and NOx is the emerging pollutant • Medium level cities are front runners in air pollution • Number of polluted river stretches increasing • Database Issues • 43 Critically Polluted Industrial Clusters Identified :REFINEMENT • 17 categories of highly polluting industries & grossly polluting industries shortlisted: GAPS IN DOCUMENTATION & REPORTING • Red/Orange/Green categories : NEED FOR HARMONISATION • Status of Compliance • 17 categories: compliance 71%; GPI: compliance 68% - INTEGRITY OF DATA TO BE ENSURED • SSI Compliance-- STATUS NOT ASSESSED: 70% of pollution load Status of Industrial Pollution in the Country has to be delineated clearly : Right Now
AMBIENT AIR QUALITY MONITORING • NAAQS revised in 2009 (12 Pollutants) • Protocol to be finalized for 4 pollutants (CO, O3, C6H6, As):CPCB • Roadmap for National Monitoring Network (2 + 5 yrs) to be drawn • Not all pollutants to be monitored at all locations • Capacity Building issues • Costing issues • INPUTS FOR NEXT 5 YEAR PLAN BY DEC 2010
ONLINE EMISSION MONITORING • To supplement the existing inspection based regulation • Initiated by CPCB (Delhi) and Tamil Nadu PCB (Manali) • Supported by CREP recommendations • Issues : • Respective roles of SPCBs/PCCs and Industry • Financing : capital cost and O&M cost • Phasing : select industries/Critically Polluted Areas • Analysis and linkage to regulation
IMPLEMENTATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL STANDARDS • Recent Standards notified by MoEF (March, 2008 to July, 2010) : Revision-3, New-12 • HOW DO YOU ENFORCE THESE STANDARDS ? • Issues: • Prescribing relevant parameters in consent order/NOC to industry • Capacity building of inspectors • Measuring Equipments for new parameters • Sensitizing industry • Stock taking meetings at State/Regional Level
NOISE REGULATION • Amendment to Noise Rules, 2000: Poor Implementation • Ambient Noise Monitoring Network being initiated in 7 + 18 cities • Issues Relating to Noise Network: • Roadmap (including costing) for next Plan period • Issues Relating to Noise Rules: • Standards for ‘Airport Zone’ and scope of ‘Silence Zone’ • Advance notification by State Government of 15 days exemption • Constitution of Authority by State Government • Availability and use of Noise meters • Implementation of ‘night time’ • Capacity Building of SPCBs • Analysis and Feedback to Stakeholders
SCHEME FOR ESTABLISHMENT OF CETPs This Centrally Sponsored Scheme needs greater attention CETP Scheme is being recast at GoI level: AUGMENTATION OF FUNDING/SCOPE Evaluation of ZLD CETP at Tirupur by NEERI proposed Issues: Pending UCs : Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan 2 CETPs of last Five-Year-Plan still incomplete 16 States have not forwarded any proposal Availability of limited funds
NEGLECTED AREAS IN WATER POLLUTION GROUND WATER POLLUTION: Linkage with Source and Mitigation Measures Needed Ground Water Monitoring : Presently 497 Stations Linkage with soil pollution and its sources Proper documentation and analysis of ground water monitoring results Efforts to mitigate ground water pollution LAND DEGRADATION: Evaluation and Corrective Measures to be Undertaken by SPCBs Development of database on Land degradation on account of : Discharge of effluents Mining Activities How the land is to be restored ? Loss of Ecology Authority/National Green Tribunal : Linkage with SPCBs
CRITICALLY POLLUTED AREAS 43 CPAs/Industrial clusters in 16 States have Comprehensive Environmental Pollution Index (CEPI) greater than 70 identified: WHAT NEXT? A temporary moratorium has been imposed till August, 2010 Revised Action Plans : submitted by 10 States for 27 CPAs -GAPS Issues of financing & implementation of Action Plans in a timebound fashion Refinement in application of CEPI
INNOVATIONS IN ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATION Third party audit On-line emission monitoring Industrial self-monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) Administrative Adjudication Linkage with National Green Tribunal Proposed NEPA SPCBs TO BE ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN THESE INITIATIVES
THIRD PARTY AUDIT (TPA) • National Workshop on “Innovative Instruments for Environmental Regulation” • TPAs can be a good supplement to the monitoring of SPCBs. • How to ensure the integrity and accountability of TPAs? • Criteria for selection of TPAs • Liability of TPAs in case of incorrect reports – penalty • Issue of remunerations/fees to TPAs • How to integrate TPAs with ‘decision making’? • Legal Issues • Operational Issues • Deployment of TPA for auditing Industrial Performance of CPAs
Annual Environmental Statement (AES) • Rule 14 of E(P) Rules: Every Unit requiring consent or authorization shall submit an AES to the SPCBs • National Workshop: The format of the AES needs to be devised differentially for various categories. • Issues: HOW DO YOU TRANSFORM AES INTO AN EFFECTIVE TOOL OF INDUSTRIAL REGULATION? • Preparation of industry specific Pro-forma: Scale and Category of Industry • Analysis of AES – Outsourcing • Linking AES with enforcement • Phasing of AES industry-wise • USEPA workshop proposed in Jan,2010
RE-ENGINEERING OF SPCBs • Professionalisation and business process re-engineering • Strengthening technical manpower • Augmentation of Resource base • Capacity building • Consent and Database management: IT enabled • Innovative approaches to environmental regulation • Technological applications How do you bring the State Governments on board?
BEST PRACTICES IN REGULATION • Certain industry friendly business processes flagged by DoIPP, GoI • In operation in progressive SPCBs: Need for replication • Common Consent/Authorisation under Water Act, Air Act & E(P) Act • Pre-clearance: Zoning • Prior consent/authorisation for longer period for green category of industries • Common Return/Common Application Form under the Water Cess Act and other Acts • Single Window Clearance
STREAMLINING WATER CESS 100% Backlog of Cess shall be cleared in 2010-11 Reforms undertaken by the Government of India: Netting of receipts Provision for adequate budgetary allocation Collective Action to be taken at the level of SPCBs Demand Management : Municipalities /Industries – Statement of SPCBs awaited Timely utilization of funds: UCs awaited from 11 SPCBs/PCCs + 3 show under utilization/statement of expenditure upto 30.09.2010 to be submitted by Oct. 07, 2010 Water Cess : Federal oversight
WATER CESS SCENARIO: TURNAROUND (Rs. in lakhs) * Rs. 6111.00 lakhs released by GOI in August, 2010
CAPACITY BUILDING OF SPCBs • No Institutionalized training protocol for New Recruits and Mid Level Officers – Huge Gaps • TNA of SPCBs done by CSE: 4 years training programme to commence in October, 2010 • EPTRI, Hyderabad being reorganized as NEPTRI • CPCB and existing constitutions at SPCB level to be integrated • Holistic training programme to be drawn along with financial requirements
IT AND DATABASE MANAGEMENT Thinness of database has become a huge bottleneck in sound environmental management Gaps in ambient monitoring /17 categories inspection/inventorisation Up-gradation of MIS/Statistical Cells in CPCB/SPCBs needed Only 3 SPCBs have a progressive IT regime NIC PROJECT ON ON-LINE CONSENT MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING SYSTEM: Promotion of Efficiency/transparency Creation of environmental data bank & Web-enabling of environmental data System to be adopted by SPCBs proactively with business process re-engineering wherever feasible
PROFESSIONALIZATION OF SPCB MANAGEMENT • Parliamentary Standing Committee: Technically Qualified Chairmen and Member Secretaries • Water Act: Qualification of Chairman and Member Secretary: • Debate on Technical vs. Professional • Issue of Full-time Chairman/Member Secretary • EXISTING SCENARIO ChairmanMember Secretary Background • IAS /IFS 20 21 • Political 02 00 • Technical 10 13 • Non-Technical 02 00 Nature of Assignment • Full Time 18 28 • Addl. Charge 16 06
SEVEN BASIC QUESTIONS TO BE ANSWERED TODAY • Are we seriously into the game of addressing industrial pollution? • How do you ensure that performance of industry comes to the fore honestly? • How do we strengthen the database and inventorization system? • Is it possible to improve compliance through innovative mechanisms and isolate habitual defaulters? • How do you mobilize the necessary resources for robust CPCB and SPCBs? • What is the timeframe for application of an IT based consent mechanism system in SPCBs &PCCs? • Are we ready to apply the boundary-conditions concept for effective regulation in CPAs/industrial estates/highly polluting industries? Six Working Groups proposed to be constituted to finalize common strategies in 3 to 6 months