Topics: Environment | Biodiversity and Environment Conservation | Environmental pollution and degradation
Questions
Q1. Despite their significant contribution to the environment and socio-economic aspects, Mangrove ecosystems in India are facing a severe threat. Comment. (10 Marks)
Q2. Mindless human development has only exacerbated negative impacts on ecologically vulnerable regions of the Western Ghats. In the light of the statement, discuss the measures needed to conserve the fragile ecosystem. (15 Marks)
Q3. Analyze the reasons for high pollution in Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR). Also, examine the steps taken by the Government and constraints leading to pollution not decreasing. (10 Marks)
Q4. Arsenic pollution is becoming a severe environmental issue in India. Enumerating its various sources, discuss the measures to tackle Arsenic pollution. (10 Marks)
Q5. With the increasing incidences of desertification, define desertification. Explain how climate change affects the process of desertification and in turn gets affected by it. (15 Marks)
Model Structures
Q1. Mangrove Ecosystems — Significance & Threats (10 Marks)
Introduction
- Mangroves are salt-tolerant plant communities found in tropical and subtropical intertidal regions — valuable both for environmental protection and socio-economic contribution, yet under significant threat in India. (Definition-based)
- As per the India State of Forest Report 2019, mangrove cover is 0.15% of the country's total geographical area. (Statistic-based)
Main Body
Environmental contribution:
- Coastal protection: Natural barriers against storm surges, cyclones and tsunamis, protecting coastal communities and infrastructure.
- Biodiversity hotspots: Rich habitat for terrestrial and marine species — birds, mammals, fish, and crustaceans.
- Carbon sequestration: Highly efficient carbon sinks storing large amounts of carbon in biomass and soil, helping mitigate climate change.
Socio-economic contribution:
- Livelihood support: Coastal communities depend on mangroves for fishing, honey collection, and non-timber forest products.
- Ecotourism: Unique flora and fauna attract tourists, providing local communities additional income.
- Resources: Timber and fuelwood, when collected sustainably.
- Medicinal benefits: Communities collect medicinal plants and use mangrove leaves as animal fodder.
Threats to mangrove ecosystems in India:
- Deforestation and habitat destruction: Rapid urbanization, infrastructure development, and expansion of agriculture and aquaculture.
- Pollution: Industrial effluents, domestic sewage, and plastic waste dumped into water bodies.
- Climate change: Rising sea levels, more frequent and intense cyclones, and changing rainfall patterns.
- Unsustainable exploitation: Overfishing and over-harvesting degrading ecosystems and reducing biodiversity.
Conclusion
Initiatives like MISHTI (Mangrove Initiative for Shoreline Habitats & Tangible Incomes), announced in the recent budget, are a step in the right direction. Raising awareness among local communities and involving them in conservation efforts is an effective strategy for the long-term survival of these ecosystems.
Q2. Western Ghats — Conservation of a Fragile Ecosystem (15 Marks)
Introduction
Development cannot happen without environmental resources. Therefore, the disruption of resources has negative repercussions on the development process itself and violates the objective of holistic development.
Main Body
Negative impact of human development on the Western Ghats:
- Developmental pressures: Urbanisation, agricultural expansion and livestock grazing pose serious threats — about 50 million people are estimated to live in the Western Ghats region.
- Biodiversity-related issues: Forest loss, habitat fragmentation, degradation by invasive plant species, encroachment and conversion — shrinking wildlife corridors and suitable habitats outside Protected Areas.
- Climate change: Landslides and flash floods ravaged the ghat areas of Konkan in 2021; cyclones are gaining intensity with the warming of the Arabian Sea, leaving the west coast especially vulnerable.
- Threats from industrialisation: In the absence of a Western Ghats ESA policy, more polluting industries, quarries, mines, roads and townships are likely — more damage to the fragile landscape.
Measures needed to conserve the fragile ecosystem:
- Preventive approach: Conserving fragile ecosystems costs less than spending on restoration after calamities; climate impacts would hurt livelihoods and the national economy.
- Engaging all stakeholders: Scientific analysis followed by consensus among stakeholders, addressing respective concerns.
- Addressing local people's concerns: The idea of demarcating an ecologically sensitive area is often seen as against people's developmental aspirations — resolve through detailed public consultations (bottom-up approach).
- Empowering local communities: They have the knowledge, connection to the environment, and motivation to safeguard the region — genuine democratic decentralisation in villages and cities is the way forward.
Conclusion
There is a need to strike a balance between safeguarding the forests and the right to livelihood of the local people.
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Q3. Delhi-NCR Pollution (10 Marks)
Introduction
Delhi ranked fourth on a list of 50 of the world's most polluted cities in terms of PM2.5 levels in 2022, according to the World Air Quality Report. (Statistic-based)
Main Body
Natural reasons for high pollution:
- Delhi is landlocked (unlike Mumbai and Kolkata), so particulate matter and pollutants are not discharged into surrounding areas.
- Change in wind direction: October marks the monsoon withdrawal in Northwest India; predominant northwesterly winds bring dust from northern Pakistan and Afghanistan.
- Dust storms from Gulf countries worsen conditions.
- Temperature inversion: As temperature dips, inversion height lowers and pollutant concentration in the air increases.
Man-made reasons:
- Burning of paddy and other crops in Punjab and Haryana during winter months.
- Vehicular and industrial emissions trapped in winter fog.
- Fireworks in the run-up to Diwali contribute to the build-up.
- Construction activities driven by urbanisation and rising population.
- Open waste burning at landfill sites.
- Over-population — huge solid waste, water waste, construction dust.
Steps taken by the Government:
- Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM): Coordination, research, identification and resolution of air quality problems in Delhi-NCR and adjoining areas.
- Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP): Specific measures triggered by pollution severity levels.
- Cleaner fuel standards: Transition from BS-IV to BS-VI reduced sulphur content and vehicle emissions.
- Public transport expansion: Delhi Metro network expansion and electric buses.
Constraints leading to pollution not decreasing:
- Regional coordination: Lack of effective coordination among neighbouring states on crop burning and industrial pollution.
- Enforcement challenges: Limited resources and inadequate monitoring mechanisms.
- Public awareness and participation: Ensuring compliance remains an ongoing challenge.
- Economic considerations: Balancing environmental concerns with economic growth.
Conclusion
Delhi's pollution problem demands a long-term vision, collective action, and sustained commitment — a paradigm shift in attitudes, policies, and behaviours.
Q4. Arsenic Pollution — Sources & Measures (10 Marks)
Introduction
The Central Ground Water Board highlighted that 21 states have pockets with arsenic levels higher than the Bureau of Indian Standards' permissible limit of 0.01 mg/litre. (Fact-based)
Main Body
Why arsenic pollution is a severe environmental issue:
- Drinking arsenic-contaminated water causes cancer of the skin, bladder, kidney and lung, blood vessel diseases and reproductive disorders.
- Intense groundwater irrigation leads to uptake of arsenic by crops — phyto-accumulation (e.g., paddy farms exposed via groundwater irrigation).
- Entry of arsenic into the food chain, in addition to drinking water, raises the possibility of biomagnification.
- Rice husk used as fodder exposes livestock — potential risk to humans consuming cattle-based food products.
Sources of arsenic:
- Natural: Weathering of rocks and minerals followed by leaching and runoff; widely distributed through air, water and land, highly toxic in inorganic form.
- Anthropogenic: Intense exploitation of groundwater; application of fertilisers; burning of coal and leaching from coal-ash tailings; industrial effluent (alloying agent, glass, pigments, textiles, paper processing).
Measures to tackle arsenic pollution:
- Treatment technologies based on lime softening and iron co-precipitation.
- Innovative technologies — permeable reactive barriers, phytoremediation, biological and electro-kinetic treatment.
- Rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharge to check falling water tables and metal leaching.
- Substitution of high-arsenic sources (groundwater) with low-arsenic safe sources (rainwater, treated surface water).
Steps taken: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development calls for drinking water free of priority chemical contaminants, including arsenic; Jal Jeevan Mission envisions safe and adequate drinking water through household tap connections for all rural households.
Steps needed: Recognise the extent and severity of contamination; develop a national plan of action with coordinated mitigation; work with academic and research institutions to better understand the causes, extent and impact.
Conclusion
All mitigation measures need a bottom-up approach along with public participation to succeed.
Q5. Desertification & Climate Change (15 Marks)
Introduction
- As per the United Nations, desertification is land degradation in arid, semi-arid, and dry sub-humid areas (drylands), resulting from many factors including human activities and climatic variations. OR
- As per MoEFCC, nearly 30% of India is degraded or facing desertification; 26 states have reported an increase in area undergoing desertification in the past 10 years.
Main Body
Main factors responsible for desertification in India:
- Extension of cultivation into marginal lands; inadequate soil and water conservation.
- Intensive cropping systems, poor irrigation management and over-exploitation of groundwater.
Climate change exacerbating desertification:
- Intensifying water scarcity in dryland areas and increasing drought frequency — e.g., the water table in Barkitand village (Giridih district) fell from 8 m below ground (2013) to about 10 m (2017).
- Projected increase in water-driven soil erosion in many dryland areas — decline and leaching of soil organic carbon (e.g., Dhule district of Maharashtra, where land has become shallow and unfit for plantation).
- Total rainfall in the Himalayas has decreased over the past century while winter rain has almost disappeared — 50% of Himalayan springs have dried up or turned seasonal; disappearing springs will impact rivers and cause desertification in the plains.
- The area at risk of salinization is projected to increase — e.g., dwindling rainfall and borewell dependence for water-guzzling horticulture increase soil aridity in Ananthapuramu district of Andhra Pradesh.
- Rising CO₂ levels favour rapid expansion of invasive plant species — exotic annual grasses contribute to desertification and loss of ecosystem services.
- Increasing human pressure on land combined with climate change reduces the resilience and adaptive capacity of dryland populations.
Desertification affecting climate change:
- Desertification exacerbates climate change through changes in vegetation cover, sand and dust aerosols, and greenhouse gas fluxes.
- Degraded land becomes less productive, restricting what can be grown and reducing the soil's ability to absorb carbon.
Government steps:
- Integrated Watershed Management Programme — restoring ecological balance while creating rural employment.
- Desert Development Programme — minimising drought effects and rejuvenating the natural resource base of desert areas.
- UNCCD commitment — restoring 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030; national commitment to Land Degradation Neutrality (SDG target 15.3).
- National Afforestation Programme; National Action Programme to Combat Desertification; National Mission on Green India.
Conclusion
The government needs to focus on a multifunctional landscape approach, farming for multiple benefits, managing the rural–urban interface, creating windbreaks, and conserving land in rangeland, wetland and mining areas to meet the dual challenge of climate change and desertification.
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