Environmental Sustainability

CO1
Global Environmental Issues, socio-environmental
Interactions; impact of consumerisation and global
economy; Sustainability: Fundamentals, Science
behind sustainability, challenges, potential; role of
technology, policies.

By Dr. Thamim M
 Global Environmental Issues
1. Global Warming.
2. Ozone Depletion
3. Pollution
4. Deforestation
5. Declining of Biological Diversity.
6. Acid Rain
7. Land Desertification.
 Global Warming
Global warming refers to the phenomenon of gradual temperature rise of
atmosphere, soil, water and vegetative cover on Earth’s surface year by year,
major cause of which is “greenhouse effect” due to emission of such
greenhouse gases (GHG) as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous
oxide (N2O).
 Ozone Depletion

Ozone depletion is the gradual thinning of Earth's ozone layer in

the upper atmosphere caused by the release of chemical
compounds containing gaseous chlorine or bromine from industry
and other human activities. The thinning is most pronounced in
the polar regions, especially over Antarctica.
 Pollution
Pollution is the introduction of any substance (Solid, Liquid or Gas) or
any form of energy (Heat, Noise or radioactivity) to the natural
environment at faster rate than it can disperse, dilute, decomposed,
recycled or stored in some harmless form.
Pollutant is a substance or energy introduced into the environment
that has undesired effects or adversely affect the usefulness of a
resource.
Pollution is classified as
1) Point Source 2) Non-point source
Types of pollution:
1) Air pollution 2) Water pollution 3) Soil pollution
4) Noise pollution 5) Light pollution 6) Thermal pollution
7) Radioactive pollution
 Air Pollution
Air is present in the Earth’s atmosphere. It is a clear gas in which
living things live and breath. It has indefinite shape and volume
occurs, no colour and smell. It is a matter as it has mass and weight.
Air creates atmospheric pressure.

Air pollution occurs when harmful substance including particulates

and biological molecules are introduced into the Earth’s atmosphere.

Air pollutant is a substance in the air that can

have adverse effects on humans and the
ecosystem. The substance can be solid, liquid
or gas.

Air pollutant can be natural or man made. It

can be classified as primary or secondary
pollutant. New Delhi 2019
Primary Air pollutant:
Chemical pollutant released directly into air in harmful form.
E.g.- Car Exhaust, Smoke stake- CO, SO2, NO.
Particulate matter- Soot, Ash
Toxic Metal- Pb, Hg
Volatile Organic Compound- CH4, C3H8, CFCs
 WATER POLLUTION
Water Born Diseases
S.No. Pathogen Diseases
1 Salmonellatyphosa Typhoid Fever
2 S. Typhimurium Enteric Fever
3 S. Scott Muelleri Gastroenteritis
4 Lice Typhus
5 Hook-worm Skin Disease
6 Mosquitoes Malaria, Yellow Fever
7 Vibrio cholerae Cholera
8 Shigella dysenteriae Bacterial Dysentery
Physiological Pollution
Caused by several climatic agents Chlorine, SO2, Phenol, Hydroxy
Benzene etc.,
Chlorinated water converts phenol to ortho or para chlorophenol
which has offensive odour.
Types of Water Pollutant & Adverse Effect
Water pollutants may be of 05 types
➢ Organic Pollutants
➢ Inorganic Pollutants
➢ Suspended Solid & Sediments
➢ Radioactive pollutants
➢ Thermal Pollutants
Organic Pollutant
Food stuff (Fats, proteins, and carbohydrates), cotton, petroleum,
rubber, antibiotic, dead plants and animals etc. are organic
compounds.
Enter into the water system through domestic sewage, industrial
waste from paper mills, waste from slaughterhouses, food
processing plants, run-off from croplands, Oil, Vegetables, and Dead
animals.
➢ Vegetables impart acidity, colour and taste to water.
➢ Dead animals & insects are responsible for growth of bacteria.
➢ Sewage causes depletion of dissolved oxygen
➢ Accumulation of waste in water bodies retards the self regulatory
capabilities of aquatic organisms.
➢ Sewage makes water bodies rich in nutrients like phosphates and
nitrates.
➢ Industrial effluent poison the biological purification mechanism of
sewage treatment and pose many pollution problems
➢ Pathogens are dangerous for human health

Inorganic Pollutant

Inorganic water pollution consist of inorganic salts, metal

compounds, mineral acids, metallic complexes, finely divided metals,
organometallic compounds, and polyphosphate detergents.
Inorganic pollutants can be categorized as

➢ Acid and alkalies - HCl, HNO3, H2SO4, H3PO4, Cl2, NH3, SO2, oxides
of nitrogen
➢ Toxic Inorganic compounds - Free Chlorine, NH3, Anion of
carbonate, nitrate, nitrite, fluoride, chloride, sulphate, phosphate,
and CuS.
➢ Toxic metals- Pb, Cd, Co, Mn, Cr and Hg

Acid and alkalies destroy the bacteria and other micro-organism in

water and affects self purification capability.
Toxic metals are carcinogenic and have adverse affect on aquatic
ecosystem and human health
 Suspended solid and Sediments
Soil erosion by natural anthropogenic process (Mining, Construction
and agriculture) increases sediments in water.
Industrial effluent contains Inorganic, organic particles or liquids
which remain suspended in water and affects its turbidity.

Suspended solids and sediments reduce direct penetration of

Sunlight.
Reduces photosynthetic activity in aquatic plants and reduces D.O.

Radioactive pollutant
Radioactive pollutants enter into the water from nuclear power
plants, nuclear reactors, fission and fusion by-product.

Radioactive pollutants are carcinogenic and stops enzyme inhibition

and cell division.
 Socio-Environmental Interactions

It can be defined as interactions between the human

social system and (the “rest” of) the ecosystem.

To analyze Socio-Environmental interactions it is important to be aware of

specific characteristics of the human social system. The type of society strongly
influences people’s attitude towards nature, their behaviour, and therefore
their impact on ecosystems. Important characteristics of human social systems
are population size, social organization, values, technology, wealth, education,
knowledge, and many more. Especially values and knowledge strongly influence
people’s “view of life” and consequently define the way people act. The choice
of possible actions is then limited by the available technology.
Impact of consumerization
 Impact of consumerization

1. Consumerism is related to the constant purchasing of new goods, with little

attention to their true need, durability, product origin, or the environmental
consequences of their manufacture and disposal.

2. Consumerism interferes with the sustainable use of resources in a society by

replacing the normal common sense desire for an adequate supply of life’s
necessities, with and insatiable quest for things that are purchased by larger and
larger incomes.

3. Especially in developed countries, landfills are being rapidly filled with cheap
discarded products that fail to work within short time and cannot be repaired.

5. The inordinate amount of waste that is generated by consumer-oriented

societies around the world is now a serious environmental issue.
 Sustainability?
Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the
ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
 Challenges of Environmental Sustainability

1. Global warming due to CO2 emissions: The climate change is accelerating

and threatens the whole global ecosystem by causing serious meteorological
disasters like droughts, fires and floods, which are becoming increasingly
frequent and more extreme. So, it is strongly advised to mitigate the climate
change.
 Challenges of Environmental Sustainability
2. Air pollution and water contamination: Experts estimate that nearly 90% of
humanity breathes polluted air. That’s why, it is important to reduce air
pollution and minimize the use of chemicals, treating more wastewater – to cut
rates of respiratory illnesses, thus preventing seven million deaths a year.
Contaminated water also causes major health problems.
 Challenges of Environmental Sustainability
3. Pollution of the oceans, seas, and inland waters: The oceans have become
the giant waste dumps for plastic and other synthetic materials. Due to the
economic advancement of many economically underdeveloped regions – there
are serious environmental problems related to the oceans such as damage to
ecosystems from dumping pollutants, wastewater, and fuel spills.
4. Slow energy transition and insufficient share of renewable energy: Quite a
number of the world’s population lacks access to electricity and depends on fossil
fuels for cooking. This situation requires an energy transition towards a cleaner,
more accessible and efficient model based on the use of renewable energy sources
to build communities that are more sustainable.
5. Uncompromising food production harms: Overexploitation of natural resources
and disturbance of the environment depletes the soil and damages the marine
ecosystems. It requires focus and consideration in order to change the food
production model and food habits, including a more plant-based diet featuring local
ingredients to save energy and reduce gas emissions.
6. Animal species extinction and destruction of their natural habits: The experts
from UN call for protecting biodiversity and undertake conclusive actions to put an
end to these threats and conserve our natural heritage, including our increasingly
threatened forests. Animal species extinction and destruction of their natural
habits.
7. Significant development of modern cities and agglomerations without a
transparent and comprehensive urban strategy.
8. Hydric stress and water scarcity: The lack of this resource affects more than 40%
of the world population, and according to the World Economic Forum, agriculture
accounts for more than 70% of the water used in the planet’s most arid countries.
The responsible use of hydrological resources will improve food and energy
production, as well as protecting the biodiversity of our water ecosystems and
helping us slow climate change.
9. Overpopulation and waste management: The world population is expected to
exceed 8.5 billion by 2030, forcing us to considerably reduce the amount of
waste we generate through prevention, reduction, reuse and recycling as part of
the circular economy, with the aim of minimizing the impact on health and the
environment.,
 Solutions for sustainability
Public electric transport: It’s not only individual vehicle owners who have better
access to electric vehicles (EVs) than ever before. Although eBuses have higher
acquisition prices due to upfront battery costs, their total cost of ownership is lower.
They also eliminate local particulates, including SOx, NOx, and CO2, which are all a
major issue in most cities today.

Electric trucks: With personal electric vehicles grabbing more and more
market share, commercial fleets could follow suit rapidly. Adoption of
battery electric commercial vehicles (BECVs), especially in the light- and
medium-duty segments, could surpass the car EV sales mix in some
markets by 2030.

Cheap energy storage: The new age of electric vehicles has rapidly expanded the
market for lithium and cobalt batteries—and reduced their price. Industry and utilities
are finding broader use for them as energy-storage solutions. With prices for batteries
rapidly dropping, they are proving valuable to reduce power costs, increase reliability
and resiliency, and make power systems more flexible to operate.
Long-term storage: A new series of innovators believe they are close to developing long-
duration storage technologies. What’s clear is that if long-term energy storage works, the
price of power will decline significantly. These long-term solutions could eliminate the
cost incurred through the underutilization of assets and save money by inserting lower-
cost generators such as solar and wind in the power supply.

Plastic recycling: 260 million tons of plastic waste is generated across the globe every year,
but only 16% gets recycled. The plastics industry has the opportunity to adopt a circular
model, which aims to eliminate waste across sectors while creating economic, societal,
and environmental benefits. One promising circular process is pyrolysis, which uses heat
and the absence of oxygen to reconvert plastic waste back into liquid feedstock. The
benefits are economic as much as environmental.

LED light efficiency: Energy-efficient LED lighting is quickly replacing traditional

incandescent bulbs and is expected to achieve 84 percent market share by 2030. LED
lights will reduce energy consumption by 40 percent by 2030, which adds up to $26 billion
in savings adjusted to today’s energy prices.
Accessible solar power: Renewable energy continues to become cheaper and more
accessible. While expanding the grid is part of the access solution, countries in
sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean, which account for a majority of the world’s
unelectrified population, are exploring renewable solutions like solar energy to
bring energy quickly and inexpensively to millions. Innovative financing plans can
help to bring a smart solution for communities that are too far from a reliable grid
connection.
Carbon capture and storage: Instead of just focusing on completely decarbonizing
the major industrial commodities behind plastics and cement, we can also consider
safely capturing the carbon emitted when these commodities are produced.
Carbon capture and storage allows industry to capture carbon at its source,
compress it, and move it to a suitable permanent storage site. Several industries are
already working to put captured carbon dioxide to profitable use, including
manufacturers who use it to make plastics, such as polyurethane. Emerging
technologies are quite promising in this area.
Hydrogen in the energy transition: It’s difficult to imagine how we meet
ambitious global warming benchmarks without including hydrogen as a critical
part of the solution. Hydrogen-led pathways to cleaning up the environment
forecast hydrogen powering more than 400 million cars, 15 to 20 million buses,
and more than 20 percent of passenger ships and locomotives by 2050
Policies
The Kyoto Protocol is an international treaty which extends the 1992
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate change (UNFCCC)
that commits State Parties to reduce six greenhouse gas emissions
[Carbon dioxide (CO2), Methane (CH4), Nitrous oxide (N2O),
Perfluorocarbons (PFCs), Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and Sulfur
hexafluoride (SF6)].
The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on December 11,
1997, and entered into force on February 16, 2005. There are
currently 192 parties (Canada withdrew effective December 2012) to
the Protocol.
As of 2012, 37 countries have signed and ratified the treaty and
191 states are participating and there are 28 articles in the Kyoto
Protocol
The Kyoto protocol didn't meet targeted emission reductions but
increased awareness and international cooperation toward resolving
the global climate crisis.
 Major articles of Kyoto Protocol
Article Description
Article 6 1) Empower and educate stakeholders on policies related to climate
& change (Awareness)
Article 10 e 2) Fosters international cooperation and provides mechanisms for
countries to meet their emission reduction targets in cost-effective
ways
Article 10 Participating parties to cooperate in the promotion, development,
transfer of and access to environmentally sound technologies,
particularly to developing countries
Article 11 Recognizes the need for funding mechanisms to assist developing
countries in technology transfer.
Article 3 Allows developed countries to meet their targets by providing
carbon sinks or removals of carbon through various forest and land
management practices that are measured as changes in carbon
stocks.
Article 2 Addresses emissions from fuel used for international aviation and
maritime transport and encourages developed countries to pursue
limited or reduced emissions from these sources.
The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone
Layer (a protocol to the Vienna Convention for the protection of the
ozone layer is an international treaty designed to protect the ozone
layer by phasing out the production of numerous substances that are
responsible for ozone depletion. It was agreed on 16 September 1987,
and entered into force on 1 January 1989.
An international agreement, signed by most of the industrialized
nations, to substantially reduce the use of Chlorofluorocarbons (CFC).
Montreal protocol on the substances that deplete ozone layer was
designed to reduce the production and consumption of ozone
depleting substances in order to reduce their abundance in
atmosphere and thereby protect earth’s fragile ozone layer.

The protocol sets limits on the production of Chlorofluorocarbons

(CFC), halogens and related substance that releases chlorine or
bromine to ozone layer of the atmosphere.

If the parties of the Montreal Protocol were to eliminate all the

emissions of ozone-depleting substances soon after 2006, then its
effects would have been advanced by 15 years & visible in 2035
instead of 2050, which is equal to the global ozone layer level of pre
1980.
 The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010
The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 (No. 19 of 2010) (NGT Act) has been
enacted with the objectives to provide for establishment of a National Green
Tribunal (NGT) for the effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to
environment protection and conservation of forests and other natural
resources including enforcement of any legal right relating to environment and
giving relief and compensation for damages to persons and property and for
matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981

The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 (the "Air Act") is an act to
provide for the prevention, control and abatement of air pollution and for the
establishment of Boards at the Central and State levels with a view to carrying
out the aforesaid purposes.

The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974

The Water Prevention and Control of Pollution Act, 1974 (the "Water Act") has
been enacted to provide for the prevention and control of water pollution and to
maintain or restore wholesomeness of water in the country. It further provides
for the establishment of Boards for the prevention and control of water pollution
with a view to carry out the aforesaid purposes. The Water Act prohibits the
discharge of pollutants into water bodies beyond a given standard, and lays
down penalties for non-compliance.
The Environment Protection Act, 1986
The Environment Protection Act, 1986 (the "Environment Act") provides for the
protection and improvement of environment. The Environment Protection Act
establishes the framework for studying, planning and implementing long-term
requirements of environmental safety and laying down a system of speedy and
adequate response to situations threatening the environment. It is an umbrella
legislation designed to provide a framework for the coordination of central and
state authorities established under the Water Act, 1974 and the Air Act. The term
"environment" is understood in a very wide term under s 2(a) of the Environment
Act. It includes water, air and land as well as the interrelationship which exists
between water, air and land, and human beings, other living creatures, plants,
micro-organisms and property.

The Wildlife Protection Act, 1972

The Forest Conservation Act, 1980

The Biological Diversity Act, 2002

Thank You