Chapter 23 Environmental Legislation

NIOS Class 12 Environmental Science Chapter 23

INTEXT QUESTIONS 23.1

1. Why is the a need for legislation for solving environmental issues?

Ans: Legislation is needed in order to prevent misuse and degradation of the environment.

2. Why is enforcement of legislation necessary?

Ans: An important aspect of environmental problems is that their impact is not confined to the source area but spills over far and wide.

INTEXT QUESTIONS 23.2

1. On which subject was the United Nations conference held in 1972?

Ans: Human Environment

2. Where was this conference held?

Ans: Stockholm

3. In which year was the EPA passed?

Ans: 1986

4. Which fuel has been made mandatory for public transport vehicles in Delhi to reduce air pollution?

Ans: CNG

INTEXT QUESTIONS 23.3

1. Match the following:

Column “A”	Column “B”
(i) 70% rebate of applicable cess upon installing effluent treatment equipment	(a) 1974
(ii) The Air Act	(b) 1986
(iii) The Environment Act	(c) The Water Cess Act, 1977
(iv) The Water Act	(d) 1981

Ans: (1) c (2) d (3) b (4) a

INTEXT QUESTIONS 23.4

1. Which country has had a forest policy since 1894?

Ans: India

2. In which year was the first Forest Act enacted?

Ans: 1927

3. Expand the abbreviations NBA, SBB, BMC, and IPR.

Ans:

NBA: National Biodiversity Authority
SBB: State Biodiversity Boards
BMC: Biodiversity Management Committee
IPR: Intellectual Property Rights.

4. Name the organization whose prior approval is necessary for foreigners to obtain biological resources and knowledge associated with it.

Ans: National Biodiversity Authority

INTEXT QUESTIONS 23.5

1. Define intimation of environmental legislation.

Ans: Certain issues of multinational concern are addressed by a collection of policies, agreements, and treaties that are loosely called international environmental legislation.

2. What is protocol?

Ans: A protocol is an international agreement that stands on its own but is linked to an existing convention.

3. Explain abbreviations CFCs, CBD.

Ans: Chloro-fluoro carbon (CFC), Convention on Biological Diversity

4. Which gases are responsible for global warming?

Ans: CO₂, methane, NO₂, CFCs and water vapour

TERMINAL EXERCISE

1. What are Environmental legislations and how are they important for environmental improvement and conservation?

Ans: Environmental legislations are laws that are meant to protect the environment. They play a crucial role in regulating the use of natural resources and in protecting the environment. The success of environmental legislations mainly depends on the way they are enforced. Legislation also serves as a valuable tool for educating the masses about their responsibility in maintaining a healthy environment.

2. What are National Legislations and International Legislations? How are they different

from each other?

Ans: National legislations are meant to protect the biodiversity and environment within the country. These are governed by the Central and state governments. Indian legislations are called Acts. On the other hand, International legislations are in the form of conventions, protocols and treaties.

3. Describe in brief some pollution-related acts.

Ans:

(i) The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1974 and Amendment, 1988: The main objective of this act is to provide prevention and control of water pollution and maintain or restore of wholesomeness and purity of water (in the streams or wells or on land).
(ii) The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act of 1977: The Water Cess Act was passed to generate financial resources to meet the expenses of the Central and State Pollution Boards. The Act creates economic incentives for pollution control and requires local authorities and certain designated industries to pay a cess (tax) for water effluent discharge.
(iii) The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act of 1981 and amendments, 1987: To implement the decisions taken at the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held at Stockholm in June 1972, Parliament enacted the nationwide Air Act. The main objectives of this Act are to improve the quality of air and to prevent, control and abate air pollution in the country.

4. What are Ramsar Convention and Montreal Protocol? Describe in brief.

Ans:

The Wetland Convention (Ramsar Convention) is an international convention that came into force in 1975. The convention provides the framework for international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetland habitats. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) serves as the Depositary for the Convention, and its secretariat, the Ramsar Bureau, is in Gland, Switzerland. India became a signatory to this convention in 1981. The Convention aims to halt the loss of wetlands and to ensure the conservation of fauna and flora and their ecological processes.
Montreal Protocol: The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has been addressing this issue since 1977. Under the auspices of UNEP, the nations of the world arrived at the Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer in Vienna in 1985. Through this convention, nations committed themselves to protecting the ozone layer and to cooperating in scientific research to improve understanding of the atmospheric processes and the serious consequences of ozone depletion. The convention provides for future protocols and specified procedures for amendment and dispute settlement.

5. Describe the Environmental Protection Act, 1986.

Ans: The Environment Protection Act of 1986 (EPA) came into force soon after the Bhopal Gas Tragedy and is considered umbrella legislation as it fills many lacunae in the existing legislation. The purpose of the Act is to implement the decisions of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment of 1972, insofar as they relate to the protection and improvement of the human environment and the prevention of hazards to human beings, other living creatures, plants, and property. The Act is an “umbrella” for legislation designed to provide a framework for the Central Government, and the coordination of the

activities of various central and state authorities established under previous Acts, such as the Water Act and the Air Act.

6. What is the main aim of the Biodiversity Act and its salient features?

Ans: The Biodiversity Act, 2000, aims at regulating access to biological resources so as to ensure equitable sharing of benefits arising from their use. The main intent of this legislation is to protect India’s rich biodiversity and associated knowledge against its use by foreign individuals and organizations without sharing the benefits arising out of such use, and to check biopiracy.

Salient features of the biodiversity legislation

The Act provides for the setting up of a National Biodiversity Authority (NBA), State Biodiversity Boards (SBBs), and Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs) in local bodies.
NBA and SBB are required to consult BMCs in decisions relating to the use of biological resources or related knowledge within their jurisdiction, and BMCs are to promote conservation, sustainable use, and documentation of biodiversity.
All foreign nationals or organizations require prior approval of the NBA for obtaining biological resources and associated knowledge for any use.
Indian individuals /entities require approval of the NBA for transferring results of research with respect to any biological resources to foreign nationals/organizations.

7. What are the main objectives of the climate convention?

Ans: Convention provides a framework to be respected by each party, which has to adopt its own national legislation to make sure that the Convention is implemented at the national level. Climate protocol shares the concerns and principles set out in the climate convention. At the global level, countries around the world have expressed a firm commitment to stop climate change and strengthen international action and broader participation under the auspices of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

8. Write a short note on (a) Water Act, (b) Air Act, (c) Wildlife Act, (d) Forest Act.

Ans:

(a) Water Act

Water Act of 1974 and Amendment, 1988: The main objective of this act is to provide prevention and control of water pollution and maintain or restore of wholesomeness and purity of water (in the streams or wells or on land). Some important provisions of this Act are given below:

The Act vests regulatory authority in State Pollution Control Boards and empowers these Boards to establish and enforce effluent standards for factories discharging pollutants into water bodies. The State Pollution Control Boards control sewage and industrial effluent discharges by approving, rejecting or imposing conditions while granting consent to discharge.
The Act grants power to the Board to ensure compliance with the Act by including the power of entry for examination, testing of equipment, and other purposes, and the power to take a sample for analysis of water from any stream or well, or a sample of any sewage or trade effluents.
The 1988 amendment strengthened the Act’s implementation of the pollution provisions. The board may close a defaulting industrial plant or withdraw its supply of power or water by an administrative order; the penalties are more stringent, and a citizen’s suit provision supports the enforcement machinery.

(b) Air Act

Air Act of 1981 and amendments, 1987: To implement the decisions taken at the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held at Stockholm in June 1972, Parliament enacted the nationwide Air Act. The main objectives of this Act are to improve the quality of air and to prevent, control, and abate air pollution in the country.

Important provisions of this Act are given below:

To enable an integrated approach to environmental problems, the Air Act expanded the authority of the central and state boards established under the Water Act to include air pollution control.
States not having water pollution boards were required to set up air pollution boards.
Under the Air Act, all industries operating within designated air pollution control areas must obtain a “consent” (permit) from the State Boards.
The states are required to prescribe emission standards for industry and automobiles after consulting the central board and noting its ambient air quality standards.
The Act granted power to the Board to ensure compliance with the Act, including the power of entry for examination, testing of equipment and other purposes, and the power to take a sample for analysis of air or emission from any chimney, fly ash or dust or any other outlet in such a manner as may be prescribed.
The 1987 amendment strengthened the enforcement machinery and introduced stiffer penalties.

(c) Wildlife Act

Wild Life Act of 1972 and Amendment, 1982: The Wild Life Act provides for state wildlife advisory boards, regulations for hunting wild animals and birds, establishment of sanctuaries and national parks, regulations for trade in wild animals, animal products, and trophies, and judicially imposed penalties for violating the Act. Wildlife wardens and their staff administer the act.

An amendment to the Act in 1982 introduced a provision permitting the capture and transportation of wild animals for the scientific management of animal populations.
India is a signatory to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES, 1976).
Under this convention, export or import of endangered species and their products are governed by the conditions and stipulations laid down therein.
The Indian government has also started some conservation projects for individual endangered species like the Hungal (1970), Lion (1972), Tiger (1973), Crocodiles (1974), Brown-antlered Deer (1981,) and Elephant (1991-92).

(d) Forest Act

Forest (Conservation) Act of 1980: The Forest (Conservation) Act was promulgated in 1980 to make certain reforms over the preceding Act of 1927. The 1927 Act deals with the four categories of forests, namely reserved forests, village forests, protected forests, and private forests.

A state may declare forestlands or waste lands as reserved forest and may sell the produce from these forests. Any unauthorized felling of trees, quarrying, grazing, and hunting in reserved forests is punishable with a fine or imprisonment, or both.
The state governments are empowered to designate protected forests and may prohibit the felling of trees, quarrying, and the removal of forest produce from these forests.
The preservation of protected forests is enforced through rules, licenses, and criminal prosecutions. Forest officers and their staff administer the Forest Act.