Environmental Law

Ans: Ecology is the scientific study of the relationship between living organisms and their physical and biological surroundings. The word comes from the Greek oikos (house) and logos (study). Ernst Haeckel coined it in 1866.

Ecosystem

An ecosystem is a community of living things interacting with each other and with the non-living environment as one functional unit. A.G. Tansley introduced the term in 1935.

Components

• Abiotic (non-living): sunlight, air, water, soil, temperature and minerals.
• Biotic (living): producers (green plants that make food by photosynthesis), consumers (herbivores, carnivores and omnivores) and decomposers (bacteria and fungi that break down dead matter).

Functions

• Flow of energy from the sun through food chains and food webs.
• Cycling of nutrients such as carbon, nitrogen and water.
• Maintenance of balance among populations.

Types

Terrestrial ecosystems (forests, grasslands, deserts) and aquatic ecosystems (ponds, rivers, lakes, oceans, wetlands). Some are natural. Others, such as crop fields and cities, are man-made.

Environmental law protects ecosystems because the loss of one part can disturb the whole.

Ans: The biosphere is the part of the earth in which life exists. It is the zone where the lithosphere (land), hydrosphere (water) and atmosphere (air) meet and support living things. Eduard Suess first used the word in 1875. Vladimir Vernadsky developed the idea.

Extent

It extends from the deep ocean floor to the lower part of the atmosphere, a thin layer of a few kilometres around the earth.

Features

• It is a closed system for matter, but open for energy from the sun.
• It is made of many ecosystems and biomes, such as forests, grasslands, deserts, tundra and oceans.
• It runs on cycles of water, carbon, nitrogen and oxygen.

Protection

• UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme (1971) set up biosphere reserves, where conservation is combined with sustainable use by local people.
• India has designated biosphere reserves, such as the Nilgiri, Sundarbans, Nanda Devi and Gulf of Mannar.
• Human activity, such as pollution, deforestation and climate change, now threatens the biosphere.

Ans: Biodiversity, or biological diversity, means the variety of life on earth. The Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) defines it as the variability among living organisms from all sources, including terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part. It includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems.

Levels

• Genetic diversity: variation of genes within a species, such as different varieties of rice.
• Species diversity: the variety of species in an area.
• Ecosystem diversity: the variety of habitats, such as forests, wetlands and coral reefs.

Importance

It provides food, medicine, fibre, clean air and water, and keeps ecosystems stable.

Threats

Loss of habitat, over-exploitation, pollution, invasive species and climate change.

India

• India is one of the 17 mega-diverse countries. It has four biodiversity hotspots: the Himalayas, the Indo-Burma region, the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka, and the Nicobar Islands (Sundaland).
• The Biological Diversity Act, 2002 provides for conservation, sustainable use and fair sharing of benefits. It sets up the National Biodiversity Authority, State Biodiversity Boards and Biodiversity Management Committees.
• Conservation is done in situ (in natural habitats, such as national parks and sanctuaries) and ex situ (outside, such as zoos and gene banks).

Ans: The ozone layer is a belt of ozone gas (O₃) in the stratosphere, about 15 to 35 kilometres above the earth. It absorbs most of the harmful ultraviolet-B radiation from the sun. Ozone depletion is the thinning of this layer.

Causes

Man-made chemicals called ozone-depleting substances (ODS): chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), halons, carbon tetrachloride and methyl chloroform. They are used in refrigerators, air-conditioners, aerosols and fire extinguishers. In the stratosphere, ultraviolet light breaks them down and releases chlorine and bromine atoms, which destroy ozone molecules.

Ozone hole

Scientists of the British Antarctic Survey (Farman, Gardiner and Shanklin) reported a large seasonal thinning over Antarctica in 1985.

Effects

• Skin cancer, cataracts and weakened immunity in humans.
• Damage to crops and plant growth.
• Harm to plankton and marine life.
• Damage to materials such as plastics.

Legal response

• Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer, 1985.
• Montreal Protocol, 1987: it requires phase-out of ODS. It has been amended several times. The Kigali Amendment (2016) provides for the phase-down of hydrofluorocarbons.
• India: the Ozone Depleting Substances (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000, made under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

Ans: Global warming is the rise in the average temperature of the earth’s surface, caused mainly by the build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere from human activity.

Greenhouse effect

Gases such as carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, water vapour and fluorinated gases trap heat that the earth radiates. A natural level of this effect keeps the earth warm. Burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, agriculture and industry have increased the gases and made the effect stronger.

Effects

• Melting of glaciers and polar ice, and rising sea levels.
• Extreme weather such as heat waves, floods, droughts and cyclones.
• Loss of biodiversity and changes in agriculture.
• Threat to coastal areas and small island States.

Response

• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) assesses the science.
• The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 1992, the Kyoto Protocol, 1997 and the Paris Agreement, 2015 set the legal framework. The Paris Agreement aims to hold the rise in temperature well below 2°C and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5°C.
• India has the National Action Plan on Climate Change, 2008, and has announced a target of net zero emissions by 2070.

Ans: Under strict liability, a person who keeps a dangerous thing on his land for his own purposes is liable for the damage caused if it escapes, even if he took reasonable care. The rule comes from Rylands v. Fletcher (1868).

The case

Fletcher built a reservoir on his land, with the help of contractors. Water escaped through old mine shafts under the land and flooded Rylands’s coal mine. The House of Lords, affirming Blackburn J, held Fletcher liable. Blackburn J said that a person who brings on his land and collects and keeps there anything likely to do mischief if it escapes must keep it at his peril, and is answerable for all the damage which is the natural consequence of its escape.

Essentials

• Bringing and accumulating a dangerous thing on land.
• A non-natural use of the land.
• Escape from the land to a place beyond the defendant’s control (Read v. Lyons (1947)).
• Damage, which must be foreseeable (Cambridge Water Co. v. Eastern Counties Leather (1994)).

Examples

• Escape of water from a reservoir, as in the original case.
• Escape of poisonous fumes, chemicals, gas, electricity or fire from industrial premises.
• In Cambridge Water (1994), a solvent spilled in a tannery seeped into the ground and polluted a borehole. The House of Lords held that the damage was not foreseeable and the defendant was not liable.

Defences

Consent of the plaintiff, default of the plaintiff, act of God (Nichols v. Marsland (1876)), act of a stranger and statutory authority.

In India

The Supreme Court declined to follow the rule’s exceptions for hazardous industries and laid down absolute liability in M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1987).

Ans: Absolute liability is the rule that an enterprise engaged in a hazardous or inherently dangerous activity is absolutely liable to compensate for harm caused by the activity, with no exceptions. It was laid down by the Supreme Court in M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1987), the Oleum gas leak case.

Facts

Oleum gas leaked from a unit of Shriram Foods and Fertilizer Industries in Delhi, a few days after a smaller leak from the same unit. A lawyer died and others were affected. The Court considered what rule to apply to the liability of the enterprise.

The rule

• An enterprise that is engaged in a hazardous or inherently dangerous industry and that harms anyone is strictly and absolutely liable. The exceptions to Rylands v. Fletcher, such as act of God and act of a stranger, do not apply.
• It is not necessary that the thing escaped from the premises. The rule covers persons inside as well as outside.
• The duty is non-delegable. The enterprise must ensure safety, even if the work is done by a contractor.
• The compensation must be related to the size and capacity of the enterprise, so that it has a deterrent effect.

Reasons

The Court said that the English rule belonged to an earlier time. Modern industry needs a rule that protects the community and puts the cost of harm on the enterprise that profits from the risk.

Later law

• Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action v. Union of India (1996) applied it with the polluter pays principle.
• The Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 requires insurance of owners handling hazardous substances and gives no-fault relief.
• Section 17 of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 gives no-fault liability for compensation.

Ans: The National Green Tribunal is a specialised body set up under the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 for the quick disposal of cases about environmental protection, conservation of forests and other natural resources. It was established on 18 October 2010. It replaced the National Environment Tribunal and the National Environment Appellate Authority.

Composition

• A Chairperson who is a retired Judge of the Supreme Court or a Chief Justice of a High Court.
• Judicial Members (at least ten and not more than twenty) and Expert Members (at least ten and not more than twenty), all full-time.
• The Principal Bench is at New Delhi. There are regional benches at Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai.

Jurisdiction

• Original jurisdiction (Section 14) over civil cases that involve a substantial question relating to the environment and arise out of the Acts listed in Schedule I: the Water Act, 1974, the Water Cess Act, 1977, the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, the Air Act, 1981, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 and the Biological Diversity Act, 2002.
• Appellate jurisdiction (Section 16) against orders under some of those laws.
• It does not cover the Wild Life Act, 1972 and the Indian Forest Act, 1927.

Powers

• It can award relief, compensation and restitution of the environment (Section 15).
• It is not bound by the Code of Civil Procedure but follows natural justice. It applies sustainable development, the precautionary principle and the polluter pays principle (Section 20).
• It should try to decide a case within six months of the filing.
• Appeal lies to the Supreme Court within 90 days (Section 22).

The Supreme Court held in Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai v. Ankita Sinha (2021) that the Tribunal can act on its own motion.

Ans: The Constitution of India has express provisions on the environment, inserted by the 42nd Amendment, 1976.

• Article 48A (Directive Principle): the State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wild life of the country.
• Article 51A(g) (Fundamental Duty): it is the duty of every citizen to protect and improve the natural environment, including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life, and to have compassion for living creatures.

Right to a wholesome environment

The Constitution does not say that there is a fundamental right to a clean environment. The Supreme Court has read it into Article 21, the right to life and personal liberty:

• Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P. (1985): the Dehradun limestone quarrying case. The Court ordered the closure of quarries that damaged the Doon Valley, and balanced the right to a healthy environment with the need for development.
• Subhash Kumar v. State of Bihar (1991): the right to life includes the right to enjoy pollution-free water and air for full enjoyment of life.
• M.C. Mehta v. Union of India and Virender Gaur v. State of Haryana (1995): a healthy environment is a part of Article 21.
• T. Damodar Rao v. Special Officer, Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (1987): the Andhra Pradesh High Court held that the protection of the environment is part of Article 21.

Articles 48A and 51A(g) are used to give content to Article 21 and to support restrictions on activities that harm the environment.

Sections: Art. 21Art. 48AArt. 51A(g)

Ans: Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The Brundtland Commission (World Commission on Environment and Development) gave this definition in its report Our Common Future (1987).

Elements

• Intergenerational equity: the present generation holds the resources in trust for the future.
• Precautionary principle: where there is a threat of serious harm, lack of full scientific proof is no reason to postpone preventive measures.
• Polluter pays: the polluter bears the cost of the damage.
• Integration of environment and development in decisions.

International basis

Principles 3 and 4 of the Rio Declaration, 1992 say that the right to development must be fulfilled to meet the developmental and environmental needs of present and future generations, and that environmental protection is an integral part of the development process. The Johannesburg Summit (2002) and the Sustainable Development Goals (2015) carry it forward.

Indian cases

• Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum v. Union of India (1996): sustainable development, with the precautionary principle and the polluter pays principle, is part of Indian law.
• Narmada Bachao Andolan v. Union of India (2000): development projects must take account of the environment.
• Essar Oil Ltd. v. Halar Utkarsh Samiti (2004): a balance must be struck between development and the environment.

Ans: The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat was adopted on 2 February 1971 at Ramsar, Iran, and came into force on 21 December 1975. It is the oldest modern global environmental treaty and is the only one that deals with a single ecosystem type.

Objectives

Conservation and wise use of all wetlands, through local and national action and international cooperation, as a contribution towards sustainable development.

Main obligations

• Each party must designate at least one wetland for the List of Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar List) and promote its conservation.
• Parties must plan for the wise use of all wetlands in their territory.
• Parties should establish nature reserves in wetlands and consult each other on shared wetlands.
• The Montreux Record lists sites where the ecological character has changed or is likely to change.

India

• India became a party on 1 February 1982. It now has more than 90 Ramsar sites, such as Chilika Lake, Keoladeo National Park, Loktak Lake and Sundarbans.
• The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 regulate wetlands.
• World Wetlands Day is observed on 2 February.

Ans: The convention commonly called the Bonn Convention is the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS). It was adopted at Bonn on 23 June 1979 and came into force on 1 November 1983. (The question bank gives 1992, but the Convention is of 1979.)

Purpose

It protects migratory species of wild animals, including birds, marine mammals, turtles and fish, that cross national borders. It provides a framework for cooperation between range States.

Main features

• Appendix I: migratory species that are endangered. Parties must strictly protect them, conserve their habitats and prohibit taking.
• Appendix II: species that need international agreements. Range States are encouraged to conclude agreements for their conservation, such as the Agreement on African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA, 1995).
• The parties meet in a Conference of the Parties. The Secretariat is under UNEP and is based in Bonn.

India

India has been a party since 1 November 1983. It signed the Memorandum of Understanding on the Siberian Crane (1998) and hosted the 13th Conference of the Parties at Gandhinagar in 2020. It also protects migratory species under the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972.

Ans: There is no binding treaty called the “Nairobi Convention, 1982”. What took place in 1982 was a Special Session of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), held at Nairobi, Kenya, from 10 to 18 May 1982, to mark the tenth anniversary of the Stockholm Conference of 1972. It adopted the Nairobi Declaration, which is a political, non-binding statement.

Main points

• It reviewed the decade since Stockholm and found that environmental degradation had in many respects become worse. Deforestation, desertification, loss of species and pollution of air, water and soil continued.
• It called for renewed commitment and for stronger international cooperation.
• It recommended a special commission to study the relationship between environment and development.

Result

The UN General Assembly, by Resolution 38/161 (1983), set up the World Commission on Environment and Development under Gro Harlem Brundtland. Its 1987 report, Our Common Future, popularised the concept of sustainable development and led to the Rio Earth Summit of 1992.

(A different treaty, the Nairobi Convention for the Protection, Management and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the Western Indian Ocean, was adopted in 1985.)

Ans: The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was opened for signature at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (the Earth Summit) at Rio de Janeiro on 5 June 1992. It came into force on 29 December 1993. India became a party in 1994.

Objectives

• Conservation of biological diversity.
• Sustainable use of its components.
• Fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the use of genetic resources.

Main provisions

• States have sovereign rights over their biological resources and the responsibility not to cause damage to the environment of other States.
• Each party must prepare national strategies and plans, identify and monitor biodiversity, and conserve it in situ and ex situ.
• Access to genetic resources is subject to prior informed consent and mutually agreed terms.
• Provision for transfer of technology and funding for developing countries.

Protocols

• Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (2000), for safe handling of living modified organisms.
• Nagoya Protocol (2010) on access and benefit sharing, in force from 2014.
• The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (2022) sets global targets, including protection of 30 per cent of land and sea by 2030.

India enacted the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 to implement the Convention.

Ans: The Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was adopted on 11 December 1997 at Kyoto, Japan. It entered into force on 16 February 2005.

Main features

• It sets binding emission reduction targets for developed countries (Annex I parties) and countries in transition. The first commitment period was 2008 to 2012. The overall aim was to cut emissions of six greenhouse gases by about 5 per cent below 1990 levels.
• Developing countries, including India and China, had no binding targets, in line with the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.

Flexible mechanisms

• Emissions trading: countries with spare allowances can sell them to others.
• Joint Implementation: an Annex I country can earn credits from a project in another Annex I country.
• Clean Development Mechanism (CDM): an Annex I country can earn certified emission reductions from projects in developing countries.

Later events

• The Doha Amendment (2012) set a second commitment period from 2013 to 2020.
• The United States did not ratify the Protocol. Canada withdrew in 2011.
• India ratified it in 2002.
• It was succeeded by the Paris Agreement of 2015.

Ans: The Johannesburg meeting of 2002 was the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD), held at Johannesburg, South Africa, from 26 August to 4 September 2002. It is also called Rio+10 or the Earth Summit 2002. It was a summit, not a convention, and it did not create a new treaty.

Outcomes

• Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development: a political commitment to the three pillars of sustainable development: economic growth, social development and environmental protection.
• Plan of Implementation: practical targets, including halving by 2015 the proportion of people without access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation, restoring fish stocks, and reducing the loss of biodiversity.
• Partnerships between governments, business and civil society (Type II outcomes).

Significance

It confirmed the principles of the Rio Declaration of 1992 and Agenda 21. It focused on poverty eradication, changing patterns of consumption and production, and protecting natural resources. It was criticised for lacking binding commitments and time-bound targets.

Ans: The National Environment Tribunal Act, 1995 was passed to provide strict liability for damage from accidents that occur while handling hazardous substances, and for quick relief and compensation for the victims. It was meant to work with the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991.

Main provisions

• A National Environment Tribunal was to be set up by the Central Government.
• The Tribunal consists of a Chairperson and such number of Vice-Chairpersons, Judicial Members and Technical Members as the Central Government decides. A Bench has one Judicial and one Technical Member.
• The owner of a hazardous substance is liable on a no-fault basis for death, injury or damage to property or the environment.
• An appeal lies to the Supreme Court.

Position

The Tribunal was never made functional. The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 repealed this Act and the National Environment Appellate Authority Act, 1997.

Ans: A public nuisance is an act or omission that causes a common injury, danger or annoyance to the public, or to people in general who live or own property in the vicinity, or that must necessarily obstruct, injure or annoy persons using a public right. Section 268 of the Indian Penal Code (now Section 270 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023) defines it.

Features

• It affects a class of people, not a single individual.
• It is a crime. A private person can sue in tort only if he shows special damage beyond that of the public.
• Examples: factories that discharge smoke or effluents, obstruction of a public road, noise, open drains.

Remedies in pollution cases

• Section 133 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (now Section 152 of the BNSS) lets a magistrate order removal of a public nuisance by a summary procedure.
• Section 91 of the Code of Civil Procedure: a suit by the Advocate-General, or by two or more persons with the court’s leave.
• Injunction and damages in a suit for special damage.

Municipal Council, Ratlam v. Vardhichand (1980): the Supreme Court used Section 133 to compel a municipality to clear open drains and to provide sanitation. The Court said that a financial shortage does not excuse failure to perform a statutory duty.

Ans: Public interest litigation (PIL) allows any public-spirited person or organisation to approach the Supreme Court under Article 32 or a High Court under Article 226 for the protection of the environment. This is needed because environmental harm affects the public as a whole, and victims are often poor, scattered or unaware.

Features

• Relaxed rules of standing: a person need not be personally injured.
• The court may take up a letter or a newspaper report.
• The court may appoint expert committees and commissioners, and monitor orders for a long time.
• The court may give directions and impose compensation.

Leading cases

• Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P. (1985): the first major environmental PIL, on limestone quarries in the Dehradun hills.
• M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (various): the Ganga pollution case, the Taj Mahal and vehicular pollution cases, and the Oleum gas leak case.
• Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum v. Union of India (1996): tanneries polluting the Palar river.
• T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India (1996 onwards): protection of forests.
• Narmada Bachao Andolan v. Union of India (2000): large dams and rehabilitation.

Limits

The Court has warned against PIL used for private or publicity ends, and has said that the petitioner must be acting in good faith (State of Uttaranchal v. Balwant Singh Chaufal (2010)). Since 2010, many environmental disputes go first to the National Green Tribunal.

Ans: An endangered species is a species that is at a high risk of becoming extinct in the near future. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies species in its Red List as Extinct, Extinct in the Wild, Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable, Near Threatened and Least Concern.

Causes

Loss of habitat, hunting and poaching, illegal trade, pollution, invasive species and climate change.

Legal protection

• International: the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), 1973, which regulates trade through three Appendices. The Convention on Migratory Species (1979) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) also protect species.
• India: the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 prohibits hunting of species in the Schedules, protects habitats through national parks, sanctuaries and conservation reserves, and regulates trade. The Wild Life (Protection) Amendment Act, 2022 rearranged the Schedules and gave effect to CITES.
• Programmes: Project Tiger (1973) and Project Elephant (1992), and the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
• Species such as the tiger, Asiatic lion, one-horned rhinoceros and Great Indian Bustard are protected. In M.K. Ranjitsinh v. Union of India (2024) the Supreme Court gave directions to protect the Great Indian Bustard and recognised the right to be free from the adverse effects of climate change.

Ans: Acid rain is rain, snow, fog or dry deposits with a pH lower than normal (below about 5.6) because of acids in the atmosphere. Robert Angus Smith used the term in 1872.

Causes

Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, released mainly from burning coal and oil in power stations, factories and vehicles, react with water, oxygen and other chemicals in the air to form sulphuric and nitric acids. Wind carries them far from the source.

Effects

• Acidification of lakes and rivers, which kills fish and aquatic life.
• Damage to forests and soil.
• Corrosion of buildings, bridges and monuments. The marble of the Taj Mahal has been affected.
• Harm to human health.

Control

• Reducing sulphur in fuels, using scrubbers and clean energy.
• International: the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution, 1979. The Trail Smelter arbitration (1941) held that a State must not allow its territory to be used to cause injury by fumes in another State.
• India: the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981. In M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1997), the Taj Trapezium case, the Supreme Court restricted polluting industries around the Taj Mahal.

Ans: The polluter pays principle says that the person who causes pollution must bear the cost of the damage and of restoring the environment. The OECD adopted it in 1972 as an economic principle. Principle 16 of the Rio Declaration (1992) promotes it.

Indian law

• Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action v. Union of India (1996): chemical industries at Bichhri, Rajasthan, had polluted the soil and water. The Supreme Court held that the polluter must pay for the remedial measures, and that the burden of proof rests on the polluter. It linked the principle with absolute liability.
• Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum v. Union of India (1996): the principle is part of the law of the land, as a feature of sustainable development. The Court ordered tanneries to pay compensation and to set up pollution control equipment.
• M.C. Mehta v. Kamal Nath (1997): the cost of restoring the environment is to be paid by the polluter.
• Section 20 of the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 requires the Tribunal to apply it.

Scope

The liability is for compensation to the victims and for the cost of restoring the damaged environment. It is not only a right of the victim. It is a principle that the State enforces on behalf of the public. It works with the precautionary principle.

Ans: The public trust doctrine says that certain natural resources, such as air, water, the sea, the shores and forests, are held by the State in trust for the free and unrestricted use of the public. The State is the trustee, not the owner, and must not transfer them to private use if it harms the public.

Origin

It comes from Roman law and the English common law. In the United States, Illinois Central Railroad v. Illinois (1892) held that the State could not give away the bed of Lake Michigan. Professor Joseph Sax revived the doctrine in 1970.

India

• M.C. Mehta v. Kamal Nath (1997): a private motel (Span Motels) diverted the course of the river Beas to protect its resort. The Supreme Court applied the doctrine, held that the State’s lease of forest land and the riverbank to the motel was a breach of the trust, and directed the company to pay compensation for restoration.
• Jamshed Hormusji Wadia v. Board of Trustees, Port of Mumbai (2004): the doctrine applies to the management of public property, which must be done fairly.
• Fomento Resorts and Hotels Ltd. v. Minguel Martins (2009): the doctrine protects public access to the beach.
• Centre for Public Interest Litigation v. Union of India (2012): natural resources must be allocated in a way that serves the public good.

The doctrine draws on Article 21 and on the duty in Article 48A.

Ans: Climate change is a long-term change in the average weather patterns of the earth. Article 1(2) of the UNFCCC defines it as a change of climate that is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere, in addition to natural climate variability observed over comparable time periods.

Causes

Emission of greenhouse gases from fossil fuels, deforestation, agriculture and industry.

Effects

• Rising temperatures, melting ice and rising sea levels.
• More frequent floods, droughts, heat waves and cyclones.
• Threat to food and water security, health and biodiversity.
• Migration and loss of coastal land.

Response

• Mitigation (reducing emissions) and adaptation (coping with the effects).
• International: UNFCCC 1992, Kyoto Protocol 1997 and the Paris Agreement 2015, which is in force since 2016. The IPCC assesses the science.
• India: the National Action Plan on Climate Change, 2008, with eight missions (including the National Solar Mission). India has announced a net zero target for 2070. In M.K. Ranjitsinh v. Union of India (2024) the Supreme Court recognised a right to be free from the adverse effects of climate change, as part of Articles 14 and 21.

Ans: The right to development is the right of every person and every people to take part in, contribute to and enjoy economic, social, cultural and political development, in which all human rights and freedoms can be fully realised. The UN Declaration on the Right to Development (1986) says it is an inalienable human right.

International basis

• Principle 3 of the Rio Declaration (1992): the right to development must be fulfilled so as to equitably meet the developmental and environmental needs of present and future generations.
• Principle 4: environmental protection is an integral part of the development process.

Conflict with the environment

Development often needs the use of natural resources, such as land, forests and water, and it may cause pollution. Courts therefore balance the two through sustainable development.

Indian position

• Narmada Bachao Andolan v. Union of India (2000): the Court allowed the dam to proceed, but required rehabilitation and environmental safeguards.
• Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P. (1985): the Court closed quarries, despite the loss of jobs, to protect the Doon Valley.
• Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum v. Union of India (1996): development is not to be stopped, but must be sustainable.

Developing countries argue that they have a right to develop and to be given help in doing so, under the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.

Ans: Article 21 says that no person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law. The Supreme Court has read it widely, and it is now the main constitutional basis for environmental protection in India.

Environmental rights under Article 21

• Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P. (1985): the right to life includes the right to a healthy environment, and the Court ordered the closure of mines that harmed the Doon Valley.
• Chhetriya Pradushan Mukti Sangharsh Samiti v. State of U.P. (1990): the right to a pollution-free environment.
• Subhash Kumar v. State of Bihar (1991): the right to enjoy pollution-free water and air is part of the right to life.
• T. Damodar Rao v. Special Officer, Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (1987): the Andhra Pradesh High Court held that environmental protection is an aspect of Article 21.
• Consumer Education and Research Centre v. Union of India (1995): the right to health and medical care, including for workers exposed to asbestos.
• In re Noise Pollution (2005): the right to live in a noise-free environment and to sleep.

Principles developed

The Court developed the polluter pays principle, the precautionary principle, the public trust doctrine and absolute liability, all of which flow from the right to life. A person can seek relief under Article 32 or Article 226.

Sections: Art. 21

Ans: Transboundary pollution is pollution that originates in one State and causes harm in another State or in areas beyond national jurisdiction. Examples are acid rain, pollution of shared rivers, nuclear accidents and hazardous wastes.

Principles

• Trail Smelter arbitration (United States v. Canada, 1941): a smelter in Canada caused damage to farmland in the United States. The tribunal held that no State has the right to use or permit the use of its territory in such a manner as to cause injury by fumes in or to the territory of another State.
• Corfu Channel case (1949): every State has an obligation not to allow its territory to be used for acts contrary to the rights of other States.
• Principle 21 of the Stockholm Declaration (1972) and Principle 2 of the Rio Declaration (1992): States have the sovereign right to exploit their resources, and the responsibility to ensure that activities within their jurisdiction do not cause damage to the environment of other States.
• Pulp Mills on the River Uruguay (Argentina v. Uruguay, 2010): the International Court of Justice recognised the duty to carry out an environmental impact assessment for activities that may have a significant transboundary effect.

Treaties

• Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution, 1979.
• Convention on Early Notification of a Nuclear Accident, 1986, made after Chernobyl.
• Basel Convention, 1989, on the transboundary movement of hazardous wastes.
• Espoo Convention, 1991, on environmental impact assessment across borders.

Ans: Noise pollution is unwanted or excessive sound that disturbs people and harms health or the quality of life. Sources are traffic, aircraft, industry, construction, loudspeakers, generators and fireworks.

Effects

Hearing loss, stress, high blood pressure, loss of sleep, poor concentration and irritation.

Legal control

• Air Act, 1981: the Act was amended in 1987 to include noise within the meaning of “air pollutant”.
• Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000, under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986: ambient noise standards for industrial, commercial, residential and silence zones, with separate limits for day and night. A loudspeaker or public address system may not be used between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., except in limited cases.
• Public nuisance: Section 268 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 133 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
• Motor Vehicles Act and Rules: limits on horns and silencers.

Cases

• Church of God (Full Gospel) in India v. K.K.R. Majestic Colony Welfare Association (2000): no religion requires the use of loudspeakers, and noise pollution can be controlled.
• In re Noise Pollution (2005): the right to a noise-free environment is part of Article 21. The Court restricted noise at night.

Ans: A coastal ecosystem is the zone where land and sea meet. It includes beaches and sand dunes, estuaries, lagoons, mangroves, salt marshes, seagrass beds and coral reefs.

Importance

• It is a breeding ground and nursery for fish and shellfish.
• Mangroves and dunes protect the coast from storms and erosion.
• It supports fishing, tourism and ports, and the livelihood of coastal communities.
• It stores carbon.

Threats

Pollution from land and ships, unplanned construction, shrimp farming, sand mining, oil spills, rising sea levels and climate change.

Legal protection in India

• Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986: first issued in 1991, revised in 2011 and 2019. It regulates activities within a set distance from the high tide line and divides the coast into zones. There is a no-development zone near the shore, and ecologically sensitive areas such as mangroves and corals get the highest protection.
• Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 and the Biological Diversity Act, 2002 protect species and habitats.
• S. Jagannath v. Union of India (1997): the Supreme Court banned intensive shrimp farming in the coastal ecologically fragile areas, and ordered compensation for the damage.

Ans: Ecology is the branch of biology that studies how organisms interact with one another and with their physical environment. Ernst Haeckel introduced the term in 1866.

Levels of study

• Organism: one living thing.
• Population: members of one species in an area.
• Community: all populations in an area.
• Ecosystem: the community together with its non-living environment.
• Biosphere: all ecosystems together.

Branches

• Autecology: the study of a single species.
• Synecology: the study of communities.

Basic ideas

• Everything is connected to everything else.
• Energy flows in one direction, and matter circulates.
• Every ecosystem has a limit to its capacity to support life.

Relevance to law

Environmental law is based on ecological science. It aims to protect the processes that keep ecosystems healthy, such as clean air and water, soil and biodiversity.

Ans: Trespass is the direct and unjustified interference with another person’s possession of land. It is actionable without proof of damage. In environmental matters, it can be used as a remedy where pollution directly enters another person’s land.

Elements

• Interference with land in the possession of the plaintiff.
• The interference is direct, such as throwing waste or discharging effluents directly on the land.
• It is intentional or negligent.

Use against pollution

• Dumping waste, spilling chemicals or discharging effluents onto the plaintiff’s land is a trespass.
• Where the effect is indirect, such as smoke or noise drifting across, the claim is for nuisance.
• The plaintiff can claim damages or an injunction, without proving actual loss.

Trespass and nuisance

Trespass is direct and is actionable per se. Nuisance is indirect and needs proof of damage. A plaintiff may rely on both. Limits: only a person in possession of the land can sue.

Ans: Strict liability is liability without proof of fault. In the rule in Rylands v. Fletcher (1868), a person who for his own purposes brings on his land and keeps there something likely to do mischief if it escapes is liable for the damage that results from its escape, even if he was not negligent.

Requirements

• A dangerous thing is accumulated on the land.
• It is a non-natural use of the land.
• The thing escapes.
• The plaintiff suffers damage that was foreseeable.

Defences

Plaintiff’s consent or default, act of God, act of a stranger and statutory authority.

Limits in environmental cases

• It does not apply to injuries from things that do not escape, such as an explosion inside a factory (Read v. Lyons).
• The exceptions, such as act of God and act of a stranger, limit its use.
• In India, the Supreme Court replaced it for hazardous industries with absolute liability (M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1987)).

Ans: Environmental jurisprudence is the body of legal principles and decisions that guide the protection of the environment. In India it has been developed mainly by the Supreme Court and the High Courts.

Core principles

• Sustainable development: balancing development with the environment.
• Precautionary principle: act to prevent harm even without full scientific certainty.
• Polluter pays: the polluter bears the cost.
• Public trust doctrine: the State holds natural resources in trust for the public.
• Intergenerational equity: resources are to be preserved for future generations.
• Absolute liability: hazardous enterprises are liable without exception.

Sources and development

• Constitution: Articles 21, 48A and 51A(g).
• Statutes: the Water Act, the Air Act and the Environment (Protection) Act.
• International law: the Stockholm and Rio Declarations.
• Judicial innovation: relaxed standing, expert committees, continuing mandamus and special environmental benches. Judgments include Rural Litigation (1985), M.C. Mehta (1987), Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum (1996) and Kamal Nath (1997).

Newer ideas

The rights of nature. In 2017 the Uttarakhand High Court declared the Ganga and Yamuna to be legal persons. The Supreme Court stayed that order.

Ans: The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is the main environmental body of the United Nations. The General Assembly created it by Resolution 2997 (XXVII) of December 1972, after the Stockholm Conference. Its headquarters is in Nairobi, Kenya.

Functions

• To assess the state of the global environment and to monitor trends.
• To develop international environmental law and policy and to encourage new treaties.
• To coordinate environmental work within the UN system and to promote cooperation between governments.
• To help countries build their capacity, with advice and technology.

Structure

It was governed by a Governing Council. Since 2012, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), in which all member States take part, is its top decision-making body. It has an Executive Director and a Secretariat.

Work

The Regional Seas Programme, the Montreal Protocol on ozone, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (together with the World Meteorological Organization), and the secretariats of several conventions, including CITES, the Convention on Migratory Species and the Basel Convention.

Ans: Hazardous wastes are wastes that, because of their chemical, toxic, flammable, explosive, corrosive or infectious nature, can cause danger to health or the environment, whether alone or with other wastes. In India they are regulated by the Hazardous and Other Wastes (Management and Transboundary Movement) Rules, 2016, made under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. They replaced the earlier rules of 1989.

Main features

• Authorisation: an occupier who generates or handles hazardous waste needs authorisation from the State Pollution Control Board.
• Manifest system: a record of waste from generation to disposal, so that it can be traced.
• Duties of the occupier: safe storage, labelling, packaging, transport and disposal, and proper records.
• Restrictions on import and export, in line with the Basel Convention.

Related laws

• Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 (insurance and no-fault relief).
• Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules, 1989.
• Bio-Medical Waste, E-Waste and Plastic Waste Rules.
• Basel Convention, 1989 on the control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal.

In Research Foundation for Science v. Union of India (2005) the Supreme Court dealt with the import and disposal of hazardous waste and applied the Basel Convention.

Ans: The word environment comes from the French environner, meaning to surround. It means everything that surrounds a living being and affects its life.

Legal definition

Section 2(a) of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 says that environment includes water, air and land and the inter-relationship which exists among and between water, air and land, and human beings, other living creatures, plants, micro-organisms and property.

Components

• Physical (abiotic): the lithosphere (land and soil), the hydrosphere (water) and the atmosphere (air).
• Biological (biotic): plants, animals, micro-organisms and human beings.
• Cultural or man-made: buildings, roads, industry, cities, institutions and culture.

Natural and man-made

The natural environment exists without human action, such as forests and rivers. The man-made environment is created by humans, such as towns and dams.

Importance

• It supplies air, water, food, energy and raw materials.
• It absorbs and recycles wastes.
• It supports biodiversity and the climate.
• It is the basis of health and economic development.

Environmental law

Environmental law is the set of rules that protect the environment from pollution and damage, and that regulate the use of natural resources. It covers the Constitution, statutes, rules, court decisions and international treaties.

Ans: Conservation means the wise use of natural resources so that they last. Protection means preventing harm to the environment. Both are necessary for the following reasons.

• Life support. Air, water, soil and forests are essential for human life. Their loss threatens survival.
• Health. Polluted air, water and food cause diseases such as asthma, cancer, cholera and heart disease.
• Resources are limited. Many resources, such as fossil fuels, minerals and groundwater, are non-renewable or renew slowly. Careless use exhausts them.
• Biodiversity. Species and ecosystems are being lost at a fast rate. Their loss breaks food chains and reduces the benefits that nature gives, such as medicine and pollination.
• Climate stability. Forests and oceans regulate the climate. Protecting them helps to control global warming.
• Economic reasons. Agriculture, fisheries, forestry and tourism depend on a healthy environment. Damage causes economic loss.
• Intergenerational equity. The present generation holds the earth in trust for the future. Sustainable development requires it.
• Legal and moral duty. Article 21 (right to life), Article 48A and Article 51A(g) of the Constitution require it, and international law, such as the Stockholm and Rio Declarations, accepts it.
• Prevention is cheaper than cure. It costs far less to prevent pollution than to clean it up. Some harm, such as the extinction of a species, cannot be undone.
• Disasters. Events such as the Bhopal gas leak (1984) and the Chernobyl accident (1986) show the cost of neglect.

Ans: Ancient India saw nature as sacred and as a part of life. Many texts and rulers gave rules for protecting trees, animals, water and air.

1. Vedic and religious thought

• The Vedas worship the earth (Prithvi), water, air, fire and the sky. The Prithvi Sukta of the Atharva Veda calls the earth mother. Hymns pray for peace in the air, water, plants and forests.
• The idea of the five elements (panchamahabhuta): earth, water, fire, air and space. Harm to any one harms the whole.
• The Upanishads taught that the same life is found in all beings. The Ishavasya Upanishad calls on people to enjoy the world through renunciation and not to covet.
• The Manusmriti and other smritis prescribed penalties for cutting green trees and polluting water.
• Ahimsa (non-violence) in Jainism and Buddhism protects all living beings.
• Trees such as the peepal, banyan and tulsi, rivers such as the Ganga, and animals were held sacred. Sacred groves in many parts of India still conserve forest patches.

2. Kautilya’s Arthashastra

It treated forests as a State resource. There was a forest department, and certain forests were protected. It prescribed fines for cutting trees and for killing animals in the protected forests. It also set rules to keep cities clean and to stop the dumping of rubbish.

3. Ashoka

• The Edicts of Ashoka (3rd century BC) forbid the killing of certain animals and birds, and the burning of forests without cause.
• Ashoka planted trees along roads and dug wells.

4. Medicinal knowledge

Ayurveda, Charaka and Sushruta records, and the Vrikshayurveda, record the care of plants and the uses of herbs.

5. Community practices

The Bishnoi community of Rajasthan protects trees and animals. In 1730, Amrita Devi and others gave their lives to save khejri trees at Khejarli. This is an early example of protest for the environment, and it inspired the Chipko movement of the 1970s.

Conclusion

The ancient approach was based on harmony with nature, duty and restraint, and not on rights alone. Modern environmental law, including Article 48A and Article 51A(g), draws on this tradition.

Ans: Environmental degradation is the decline in the quality of the environment, through the depletion of resources such as air, water and soil, destruction of ecosystems and the extinction of wildlife. Pollution is the presence in the environment of substances in quantities that harm life.

Causes

• Population growth increases the demand for food, water, energy and land.
• Industrialisation: factories release smoke, gases, effluents and solid waste.
• Urbanisation: waste, sewage, traffic, loss of green spaces.
• Deforestation: clearing of forests for farming, mining, roads and dams.
• Agriculture: chemical fertilisers and pesticides contaminate soil and water.
• Energy use: burning of coal, oil and wood.
• Mining and quarrying scar the land and pollute water.
• Transport: vehicle exhaust and noise.
• Consumption and non-biodegradable waste such as plastics.
• Poverty and lack of awareness, and weak enforcement of laws.

Types of pollution

Air, water, soil, noise, thermal, radioactive and marine pollution.

Effects

• On health: respiratory and heart disease, cancer, waterborne diseases, hearing loss, birth defects.
• On climate: global warming, ozone depletion, acid rain.
• On ecosystems: loss of biodiversity, destruction of habitats, eutrophication of lakes.
• On the economy: loss of crops and fisheries, health costs, damage to buildings.
• On society: displacement and disputes over resources.

The Bhopal gas leak (1984), in which methyl isocyanate escaped from a Union Carbide plant, killed thousands of people and shows the effects of industrial pollution.

Ans: Causes in brief: rising population, industrial growth, urbanisation, deforestation, the use of fossil fuels, chemical farming, mining, growing consumption and waste, and weak enforcement of laws.

Remedial measures

1. Legal and institutional

• Enforce the Water Act, 1974, the Air Act, 1981 and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
• Strengthen the Pollution Control Boards with staff, funds and powers.
• Use the National Green Tribunal for quick relief.
• Apply the polluter pays and precautionary principles.
• Require environmental impact assessment before projects are approved.

2. Technical

• Install effluent and sewage treatment plants and air pollution control equipment.
• Shift to cleaner and renewable energy such as solar and wind.
• Promote clean fuels and public transport.
• Reduce, reuse and recycle waste, and manage solid and hazardous waste safely.

3. Conservation

• Afforestation and protection of forests.
• Protect wetlands, coasts and wildlife through protected areas.
• Save water, harvest rainwater and recharge groundwater.
• Organic farming and integrated pest management.

4. Planning and economic

• Sustainable development in planning.
• Taxes and incentives, for example on pollution and for green technology.
• Land use planning and green belts.

5. Social

• Environmental education and awareness, as Article 51A(g) requires.
• People’s participation, through public hearings and local bodies.
• Non-governmental organisations and public interest litigation.

6. International cooperation

Implementing the Paris Agreement, the Montreal Protocol and the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Ans: Before the statutes on pollution, victims relied on the common law of torts. These remedies are still available, in addition to the statutes.

1. Nuisance

• Private nuisance: an unreasonable interference with the use and enjoyment of land, such as smoke, smell, noise or effluent from a neighbour. In St. Helen’s Smelting Co. v. Tipping (1865) the House of Lords held a copper smelter liable for fumes that damaged the plaintiff’s trees and crops.
• Public nuisance: an act that affects the public. It is a crime under Section 268 of the Indian Penal Code (now Section 270 of the BNS). An individual may sue only for special damage. Section 133 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and Section 91 of the Code of Civil Procedure provide remedies. See Municipal Council, Ratlam v. Vardhichand (1980).

2. Negligence

The polluter owes a duty of care to those who may be affected. If he fails to take reasonable care and causes harm, he is liable (Donoghue v. Stevenson (1932)).

3. Trespass

The direct entry of pollutants onto the plaintiff’s land, such as dumping waste or discharging effluent.

4. Strict liability and absolute liability

For hazardous things that escape, Rylands v. Fletcher (1868), and in India, M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1987).

5. Riparian rights

A riparian owner has a right to the natural flow of water, undiminished in quantity and quality. Upstream pollution is a violation.

Remedies available

• Damages for loss.
• Injunction to stop the pollution (Sections 36 to 42 of the Specific Relief Act, 1963). Courts consider the public interest and may refuse an injunction if damages are adequate.
• Abatement of the nuisance by the plaintiff, with notice.

Limits

Each plaintiff must prove damage and the defendant’s liability. Suits are slow and costly. The remedies do not prevent harm. This is why statutes and the National Green Tribunal were created.

Ans: Noise is controlled by the Government mainly through rules, standards, licensing and enforcement.

1. Statutory framework

• Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, as amended in 1987, treats noise as an air pollutant and lets the Pollution Control Boards deal with it.
• Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 authorises the Central Government to make rules and to give directions. Section 5 allows directions for closure and stoppage of services.
• Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000 fix ambient air quality standards for noise for four areas: industrial, commercial, residential and silence zones, by day and night. They also restrict the use of loudspeakers, public address systems and horns.

2. Specific controls

• Loudspeakers: no use between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., except for specified emergencies, and a permit from the authority is required. The State Government may allow limited relaxation on a few days each year.
• Silence zones: an area of at least 100 metres around hospitals, educational institutions, courts and religious places.
• Vehicles: the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 and the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 prescribe noise limits and ban pressure horns and unnecessary horn use.
• Generators and industry: noise limits for diesel generator sets and for industrial units.
• Fireworks: noise limits, and a ban on bursting after set hours (Arjun Gopal v. Union of India (2017) dealt with fireworks and pollution in Delhi).
• Aircraft and railways: limits for aircraft noise, and the planning of airports away from homes.

3. Institutions

• The Central and State Pollution Control Boards monitor noise levels.
• The police and magistrates enforce the rules. The District Magistrate and the police are the authority for loudspeakers.
• Local bodies control noise through licences and by-laws.

4. Penalties

Contravention of the Noise Rules is punishable under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (Section 15). Public nuisance provisions in the Penal Code and Section 133 of the Code of Criminal Procedure are also used.

5. Judicial support

Church of God (Full Gospel) in India v. K.K.R. Majestic Colony Welfare Association (2000) and In re Noise Pollution (2005) gave directions to enforce the rules and treated a noise-free environment as part of Article 21.

Ans: Forests are protected by several statutes, listed here in order of time.

1. Indian Forest Act, 1927

• It allows the State to declare areas as reserved forests, protected forests and village forests.
• It regulates the transit of forest produce and imposes penalties for offences such as unauthorised felling and grazing.
• In a reserved forest, all acts are prohibited unless permitted.

2. Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972

It protects wild animals and their habitats through sanctuaries, national parks and conservation reserves.

3. Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980

• It was passed to stop the diversion of forest land. Section 2 requires the prior approval of the Central Government before a State can de-reserve forest land, use it for non-forest purposes, or lease it to a private body.
• The 2023 Amendment gave the Act the name Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam, 1980, and it exempts certain categories of land from the Act.

4. Other laws

• National Forest Policy, 1988: it aims at a third of the country under forest or tree cover, and gives priority to ecological needs, and the needs of local people.
• Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006: recognises the rights of forest dwellers over forest land and resources.
• Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act, 2016: funds for afforestation to compensate for forest land diverted.
• Biological Diversity Act, 2002, and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 and state forest laws.

Penalties and enforcement

Forest officers can seize produce and tools, and arrest offenders. The National Green Tribunal hears cases under the Forest (Conservation) Act.

Ans: The law on forests rests on the Constitution, legislation and the decisions of the Supreme Court.

1. Constitutional provisions

• Article 48A: the State shall endeavour to safeguard the forests and wild life.
• Article 51A(g): the duty of citizens to protect and improve the natural environment, including forests.
• Seventh Schedule: the 42nd Amendment (1976) moved “forests” and “protection of wild animals and birds” from the State List to the Concurrent List. This allowed Parliament to make central laws, such as the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.
• Article 21: the right to a healthy environment.

2. Statutes

The Indian Forest Act, 1927, the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 (now Van (Sanrakshan Evam Samvardhan) Adhiniyam), the Forest Rights Act, 2006 and the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act, 2016.

3. The Supreme Court and forests

• T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad v. Union of India (1996): the Court held that the Forest (Conservation) Act applies to all forests, whether recognised, classified or defined as forest in the dictionary sense, regardless of ownership. It banned tree felling in many areas, regulated sawmills and mining, and has been monitoring forest issues since then through a continuing mandamus.
• Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P. (1985): the Court stopped quarrying to protect forest and hills.
• Samatha v. State of Andhra Pradesh (1997): land in Scheduled Areas cannot be leased to private companies for mining.
• Orissa Mining Corporation v. Ministry of Environment and Forests (2013): the Court said that the gram sabhas must decide the religious and cultural rights of forest dwellers over a hill before a mining project (the Niyamgiri case).

4. Policy

The National Forest Policy, 1988 sets the goal of one-third of the country under forest or tree cover and stresses participation of local communities, through Joint Forest Management.

5. Tension

The law seeks a balance between protecting forests and the livelihood needs of tribal and forest-dwelling communities, and the needs of development.

Ans: Several laws and treaties protect wildlife and aquatic ecosystems.

1. Wild life and endangered species

• Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972: it bans hunting of wild animals listed in the Schedules, protects habitats through sanctuaries, national parks, conservation reserves and community reserves, regulates trade in wildlife, and sets up the National Board for Wild Life and State Boards. The 2022 Amendment rearranged the Schedules and gave effect to CITES.
• Authorities: the National Tiger Conservation Authority, the Central Zoo Authority and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau.
• Programmes: Project Tiger (1973) and Project Elephant (1992).
• International: CITES (1973), the Convention on Migratory Species (1979) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (1992).
• Animal Welfare Board of India v. A. Nagaraja (2014): the Court recognised animals as having rights under the law.

2. Marine life

• Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 protects marine species such as turtles, dolphins and corals, and marine protected areas.
• Maritime Zones Act, 1976 declares India’s territorial sea, contiguous zone and exclusive economic zone.
• International: the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, 1982 (UNCLOS) and the MARPOL Convention on pollution from ships.
• Marine fisheries are regulated by State laws.

3. Coastal ecosystems

• Coastal Regulation Zone Notification (1991, 2011, 2019) under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 regulates development along the coast and protects mangroves and coral reefs.
• S. Jagannath v. Union of India (1997): the Court stopped intensive shrimp farming in ecologically fragile coastal areas.

4. Lakes and wetlands

• Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017 regulate activities in wetlands.
• Ramsar Convention, 1971: sites such as Chilika and Loktak are listed.
• National Lake Conservation Plan funds the clean-up of lakes. The Water Act, 1974 protects them from pollution.
• The courts have ordered the protection of lakes from encroachment, in line with the public trust doctrine.

Ans: The statute is the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960 (Act 59 of 1960). The question bank gives 1961. It is a central law for the humane treatment of animals, and has been amended in 1982.

Main features

• Object: to prevent the infliction of unnecessary pain or suffering on animals, and to amend the law relating to prevention of cruelty to animals.
• Animal Welfare Board of India (Section 4): a statutory body to advise the Government, to promote animal welfare and to recognise animal welfare organisations.
• Cruelty (Section 11): the Act lists acts of cruelty, such as beating, kicking or overloading an animal, keeping it in a cage that is too small, abandoning it, mutilating it, and using an animal in fights. Cruelty is punishable by a fine and, for repeat offences, imprisonment.
• Experiments on animals (Chapter IV): they are allowed only for specified purposes, under the control of a Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CPCSEA).
• Performing animals (Chapter V): exhibition and training of animals for performance need registration and are controlled.
• Slaughter: an animal must be killed without unnecessary pain. Slaughter in the manner required by religion is exempt (Section 28).
• Powers of police and magistrates: a police officer may arrest a person who commits cruelty, and a magistrate may order the destruction of an injured animal.

Decided cases

• Animal Welfare Board of India v. A. Nagaraja (2014): the Supreme Court banned jallikattu and bullock-cart races. It held that animals have a right to live with dignity, and that the five freedoms apply. It linked the Act to Articles 21 and 51A(g).
• In 2023, a Constitution Bench upheld the Tamil Nadu amendment to the Act that allows jallikattu in a regulated form.

Criticism

The penalties in the Act are low, and enforcement is weak.

Ans: Pollution is the presence in the environment of any substance that is, or may be, injurious to the environment. Section 2(b) and (c) of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 define “environmental pollution” as the presence in the environment of any environmental pollutant, which is any solid, liquid or gaseous substance present in such concentration as may be, or tend to be, injurious to the environment.

Kinds

Air, water, soil, noise, radioactive, thermal and marine pollution.

Related Acts

• Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974: controls water pollution. It set up the Central and State Pollution Control Boards. It requires consent for discharging effluent.
• Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977: a cess on water use by industries.
• Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981: controls air pollution, including noise, through standards and consent.
• Environment (Protection) Act, 1986: an umbrella law that allows the Government to make rules on all aspects of the environment.
• Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991: compulsory insurance and no-fault relief for accidents with hazardous substances.
• National Green Tribunal Act, 2010: a tribunal for environmental disputes.
• Hazardous and Other Wastes Rules, 2016, the Noise Pollution Rules, 2000, the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 and the Bio-Medical Waste Rules, 2016.
• Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 and Biological Diversity Act, 2002 protect natural resources.
• Penal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure: provisions on public nuisance and on fouling water and air.

The courts also provide remedies under Articles 32 and 226 and the law of torts.

Ans: The control of pollution in India works through institutions, standards, permission and penalties.

1. Institutions

• Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change: makes policy, rules and notifications under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
• Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB): set up under Section 3 of the Water Act, 1974. It advises the Central Government, sets national standards and coordinates the State Boards.
• State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs): set up under Section 4 of the Water Act. They enforce the Acts within a State.
• National Green Tribunal: hears environmental cases.
• Courts under Articles 32 and 226.

2. Regulatory tools

• Consent to establish and to operate: an industry needs consent from the State Board before it discharges effluent (Section 25 of the Water Act) or emits air pollutants (Section 21 of the Air Act).
• Standards: limits on emissions, effluents and noise.
• Environmental impact assessment (EIA): an EIA Notification of 2006 requires environmental clearance before some projects start, with a public hearing.
• Directions: the Boards may issue directions for closure, and stoppage of electricity or water (Section 33A of the Water Act and Section 31A of the Air Act). The Central Government may do so under Section 5 of the Environment (Protection) Act.
• Inspection and sampling: powers of entry, inspection and taking samples.
• Zoning and area-specific rules: such as the Coastal Regulation Zone and action plans for polluted cities.

3. Penalties

Penalties under each Act, and under the Environment (Protection) Act, for breach of the rules. Offences by companies make the persons in charge liable.

4. Other measures

• Environmental audits and eco-labelling (Ecomark).
• Public participation, and public interest litigation.
• Incentives for clean technology.

Ans: The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 was passed after the Bhopal gas leak (1984) and to implement the decisions of the Stockholm Conference (1972), under Article 253 of the Constitution. It came into force on 19 November 1986. It is an umbrella (enabling) law, with the aim of protecting and improving the environment and preventing hazards to human beings and other living creatures.

Salient features

• Wide definition (Section 2): “environment” includes water, air and land and the inter-relationship among them and with human beings, other living creatures, plants, micro-organisms and property. “Hazardous substance” and “environmental pollutant” are also defined.
• Powers of the Central Government (Section 3): to take all measures it thinks necessary to protect and improve the environment. These include setting standards, restricting areas for industries, laying down procedures for handling hazardous substances, and creating authorities.
• Directions (Section 5): the Government may direct the closure, prohibition or regulation of any industry or process, or stoppage or regulation of electricity, water or any other service.
• Rule-making power (Section 6): rules on standards of quality, emission limits, restriction on location, and handling of hazardous substances.
• Prohibition (Section 7): no person may emit or discharge an environmental pollutant in excess of the prescribed standards.
• Hazardous substances (Section 8): they must be handled only with prescribed procedures and safeguards.
• Information and reports (Sections 9 and 10): duty to give information on accidents. Powers of entry and inspection.
• Samples (Section 11): the right to take samples for analysis.
• Penalties: after the 2023 amendment (from 1 April 2024), contravention for which no penalty is provided is punishable with a penalty of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15 lakh, with an additional Rs 10,000 per day if it continues (Section 15). Before that, the Act provided imprisonment up to five years or a fine up to Rs 1 lakh.
• Offences by companies (Section 16) and by government departments (Section 17).
• Cognizance (Section 19): on a complaint by the Government or an authorised officer, or by any person who gives a notice of sixty days. This allows citizens to take action.
• Overriding effect (Section 24): the Act prevails over other laws to the extent of inconsistency.

Rules under the Act

Many rules and notifications have been made under it, such as the EIA Notification, the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, the Noise Rules, and the rules on hazardous, bio-medical, plastic and e-waste.

Ans: The National Environment Tribunal was provided by the National Environment Tribunal Act, 1995. It was meant to give quick compensation for damage from accidents when handling hazardous substances. It was never made functional, and the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 repealed the Act.

Composition

• The Tribunal consists of a Chairperson and such number of Vice-Chairpersons, Judicial Members and Technical Members as the Central Government considers fit.
• A Bench consists of one Judicial Member and one Technical Member.

Qualifications

• Chairperson: a person who is or has been a Judge of the Supreme Court or of a High Court, or who has held the office of Vice-Chairperson for at least two years.
• Vice-Chairperson and Judicial Member: a person who is, has been, or is qualified to be, a Judge of a High Court, or who has been a member of the Indian Legal Service and held a post in Grade I of that Service for at least three years.
• Technical Member: a person with adequate knowledge of, or experience in, the legal, administrative, scientific or technical aspects of environmental problems, or one who has held office as a Judicial Member or Technical Member for at least three years.

Jurisdiction and powers

• It was to decide claims for compensation for death, injury or damage to property or the environment, from an accident involving a hazardous substance, on the principle of no-fault liability.
• It could award relief and compensation, and had the powers of a civil court.
• An appeal lay to the Supreme Court within 90 days.

Position

It was replaced by the National Green Tribunal, which has Judicial and Expert Members and a wider jurisdiction.

Ans: The National Environment Appellate Authority Act, 1997 (Act 22 of 1997) set up the National Environment Appellate Authority to hear appeals against the grant of environmental clearance. Its purpose was to restrict the areas in which industries or operations may be carried out, or may be carried out subject to safeguards, under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

Composition

• A Chairperson, who has been a Judge of the Supreme Court or a Chief Justice of a High Court.
• A Vice-Chairperson, who has held for at least two years the post of Secretary to the Government of India or an equivalent post, and who has expertise in the administrative, legal, managerial or technical aspects of environmental problems.
• Not more than three other Members with professional knowledge or practical experience in conservation, environment management, law or planning and development.

Jurisdiction and procedure

• A person aggrieved by an order granting environmental clearance could appeal to the Authority within 30 days. The Authority could allow an appeal filed late, but not after 90 days, if there was sufficient cause.
• It had to dispose of the appeal within 90 days, extendable by another 30 days for reasons recorded in writing.

Position

The Authority worked from 1997, but its power was narrow. The National Green Tribunal Act, 2010 repealed the Act, and appeals against environmental clearance now go to the National Green Tribunal.

Ans: A multinational company (MNC) operates in more than one country, usually through subsidiaries. When it causes environmental harm, questions arise about who is liable, and in which country.

1. Liability under Indian law

• Absolute liability: M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1987) applies to any enterprise engaged in a hazardous activity, whether it is an Indian or a foreign company. The amount of compensation depends on its size and capacity.
• Polluter pays: Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action v. Union of India (1996) made the polluting chemical companies pay for restoration.
• Bhopal gas leak (1984): methyl isocyanate leaked from the Union Carbide India plant, owned mainly by the American parent, Union Carbide Corporation. The Bhopal Gas Leak Disaster (Processing of Claims) Act, 1985 allowed the Government to act on behalf of victims. In 1989 the case was settled for US$ 470 million, and the Supreme Court upheld the settlement in 1991.
• Statutes: the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, the Public Liability Insurance Act, 1991 and the National Green Tribunal Act, 2010.

2. International and foreign law

• There is no binding international treaty on the liability of MNCs. Soft law includes the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (2011).
• Foreign courts have in some cases allowed claims against the parent company: Vedanta Resources v. Lungowe (UK Supreme Court, 2019) and Okpabi v. Royal Dutch Shell (UK Supreme Court, 2021).

3. Difficulties

• The separate legal personality of the subsidiary makes the parent hard to sue.
• Jurisdiction and enforcement of judgments across countries.
• Different standards in host and home States.

4. Other duties

The Companies Act, 2013 requires corporate social responsibility spending (Section 135) and sets duties of directors to protect the environment (Section 166(2)).

Ans: The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment was held at Stockholm, Sweden, from 5 to 16 June 1972. It was the first major world conference on the environment, and 113 countries took part. It adopted the Stockholm Declaration, with 26 principles, and an Action Plan with 109 recommendations.

Main principles

• Principle 1: man has the fundamental right to freedom, equality and adequate conditions of life in an environment of a quality that permits a life of dignity and well-being. He has a solemn responsibility to protect and improve the environment for present and future generations.
• Principle 2: natural resources must be safeguarded for the benefit of present and future generations.
• Principle 8: economic and social development is essential for a favourable living and working environment.
• Principle 13: an integrated and coordinated approach to development planning.
• Principle 21: States have the sovereign right to exploit their resources under their environmental policies. They also have the responsibility to ensure that activities within their jurisdiction or control do not cause damage to the environment of other States or of areas beyond national jurisdiction.
• Principle 22: States should cooperate to develop international law on liability and compensation for such damage.

Outcomes

• The creation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in December 1972.
• World Environment Day on 5 June.
• A model for later treaties and national laws.

India

The Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, addressed the Conference and said that poverty was the greatest polluter. India followed up with the Water Act, 1974, the 42nd Amendment (Articles 48A and 51A(g)) and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, which states that it implements the decisions of the Conference.

The Declaration is soft law and does not bind States, but it has shaped customary law, especially Principle 21.

Ans: The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was created by UN General Assembly Resolution 2997 (XXVII) of 15 December 1972, as a result of the Stockholm Conference. It has its headquarters at Nairobi and is the main global authority on the environment.

Roles

• Assessing and monitoring: it keeps the state of the global environment under review. It publishes reports such as the Global Environment Outlook and the Emissions Gap Report.
• Setting the agenda: it brings emerging issues, such as ozone depletion, climate change and plastic pollution, to the attention of governments.
• Developing law: it promotes new treaties and national laws, and the development of environmental law through its programmes.
• Coordination: it coordinates environmental activity in the UN system and acts as an advocate for the environment.
• Capacity building: it helps developing countries with technical and financial help, together with the Global Environment Facility.
• Convening: since 2012, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) is the world’s highest decision-making body on the environment.
• Awareness: World Environment Day, campaigns and the Champions of the Earth awards.

Secretariats it hosts

The Ozone Secretariat (Vienna Convention and Montreal Protocol), the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Convention on Migratory Species, the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions, and the Minamata Convention on mercury.

Ans: Since 1972, UNEP has contributed to global environmental protection in the following ways.

1. Treaties

• Ozone layer: the Vienna Convention (1985) and the Montreal Protocol (1987), which has phased out most ozone-depleting substances and is regarded as a success.
• Biodiversity: UNEP began the process that led to the Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) and promoted CITES (1973) and the Convention on Migratory Species (1979).
• Hazardous wastes and chemicals: the Basel Convention (1989), the Rotterdam Convention (1998), the Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants (2001) and the Minamata Convention on mercury (2013).
• Climate: together with the World Meteorological Organization it established the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (1988), which led to the UNFCCC (1992).

2. Regional programmes

The Regional Seas Programme (1974) covers many sea areas, such as the Mediterranean (Barcelona Convention, 1976). The Nairobi Convention (1985) covers the Western Indian Ocean.

3. Science and monitoring

Global Environment Monitoring System, the Global Environment Outlook reports, and early warning on emerging issues.

4. Law and policy

The Montevideo Programmes for the development of environmental law, guidelines and model laws. In 2022 the Environment Assembly agreed to start negotiations on a global treaty on plastic pollution.

5. Awareness and capacity building

World Environment Day, assistance to countries in drafting laws and building institutions, and projects financed by the Global Environment Facility.

Limits

UNEP has no power to enforce treaties. It depends on voluntary contributions and has limited funds.

Ans: The right to a clean environment is both a moral right and, today, a legal right.

Moral basis

Every person needs clean air, water and land to live. Ethical traditions, including the Indian tradition of duty towards nature and the idea of intergenerational equity, treat the right as arising from human dignity, even without a law.

Legal basis in India

• Constitution: there is no express fundamental right to a clean environment. Article 48A and Article 51A(g) are a directive and a duty. The Supreme Court has read the right into Article 21.
• Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra v. State of U.P. (1985): the Court ordered the closure of limestone quarries in the Doon Valley, and treated the right to a healthy environment as part of the right to life.
• Subhash Kumar v. State of Bihar (1991): the right to life includes the right to enjoy pollution-free water and air.
• Virender Gaur v. State of Haryana (1995) and Charan Lal Sahu v. Union of India (1990) affirmed it.
• Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum v. Union of India (1996) and M.C. Mehta v. Kamal Nath (1997): the principles of precaution, polluter pays and public trust protect the right.
• Statutes: the Water Act, the Air Act and the Environment (Protection) Act give specific legal rights, and remedies before the National Green Tribunal.

International law

• Principle 1 of the Stockholm Declaration (1972) speaks of the fundamental right to an environment that permits a life of dignity.
• The UN Human Rights Council (2021) and the UN General Assembly (2022) recognised the right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment as a human right. These resolutions are not binding.
• Regional treaties such as the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Article 24) provide for it.

Conclusion

In India it is a legal right, as a part of Article 21, and it can be enforced by writs and by the National Green Tribunal. It is also a moral right, which has helped to shape the law.

Ans: Plastic pollution is the build-up of plastic products in the environment. Much of the plastic produced ends up in rivers and oceans.

Effects on marine ecosystems

• Ingestion: turtles, seabirds, fish and whales mistake plastic for food. It blocks the gut and causes starvation.
• Entanglement: animals are trapped in discarded fishing nets (“ghost nets”), ropes and rings, and are injured or drowned.
• Habitat damage: plastic smothers corals and seabeds.
• Microplastics: small pieces of less than 5 mm, from broken plastic and from products such as cosmetics and synthetic clothes, enter the food chain from plankton upwards.
• Chemicals: plastics carry toxic additives and absorb pollutants from the water.
• Spread of species: floating plastic carries organisms to new areas.
• Large accumulations such as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Effects on human health

• Microplastics and chemicals enter people through seafood, salt, drinking water and air.
• Chemicals such as bisphenol A and phthalates may disturb hormones and affect fertility and development.
• Burning plastic releases toxic fumes.
• Plastic waste clogs drains and gives breeding grounds for disease-carrying mosquitoes.
• Loss of fisheries affects food security and livelihoods.

Legal response

• India: the Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016, as amended, which impose extended producer responsibility, and which ban identified single-use plastic items from 1 July 2022.
• International: MARPOL Annex V prohibits dumping of plastics from ships. The Basel Convention was amended in 2019 to control plastic waste trade. In 2022 the UN Environment Assembly agreed to negotiate a treaty on plastic pollution.

Ans: The Supreme Court has been the main force in developing environmental law in India. It has done so by reading the Constitution broadly, by relaxing standing and by developing new principles.

1. Constitutional rights

The Court held that the right to a healthy environment is part of Article 21 (Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (1985); Subhash Kumar (1991)). It used Articles 48A and 51A(g) to give content to this right.

2. Relaxed standing and procedure

Through public interest litigation, any person could bring an environmental case. The Court appointed expert committees, used letters as petitions and monitored implementation through continuing mandamus.

3. New principles

• Absolute liability in M.C. Mehta (1987).
• Sustainable development, the precautionary principle and the polluter pays principle in Vellore Citizens’ Welfare Forum (1996), and Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action (1996).
• Public trust doctrine in M.C. Mehta v. Kamal Nath (1997).
• Burden of proof on the industry that it has not harmed the environment (A.P. Pollution Control Board v. M.V. Nayudu (1999)).
• Intergenerational equity.

4. Landmark orders

• Closure of quarries in the Doon Valley (1985).
• The Ganga pollution case: closure of polluting tanneries (M.C. Mehta, 1987).
• The Taj Trapezium case (1996 to 1997): restrictions on industries around the Taj Mahal.
• Vehicular pollution in Delhi: conversion of buses to compressed natural gas, and unleaded fuel.
• T.N. Godavarman Thirumulpad (1996 onwards): the protection of forests.
• Narmada Bachao Andolan (2000): large dams and rehabilitation.
• M.K. Ranjitsinh (2024): the right against the adverse effects of climate change.

5. Institutional development

The Court called for environmental courts with judicial and technical members (M.V. Nayudu), which led to the National Green Tribunal in 2010. It created Green Benches.

6. Criticism

Critics say that the Court has entered the domain of the executive, that some orders have affected livelihoods, and that implementation is weak. Supporters say that it filled gaps left by weak enforcement.

Ans: The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 is the main general law on the environment. Its success has been mixed.

Strengths

• Umbrella law: it fills the gaps left by the Water and Air Acts, and covers land, hazardous substances and the whole environment.
• Wide powers: the Central Government may issue directions for closure and for stoppage of power and water, make rules, and set standards (Sections 3, 5 and 6).
• Delegated legislation: many important rules were made under it, such as the EIA Notification, the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification and the rules on hazardous waste, plastic, bio-medical waste, e-waste and noise.
• Citizen suit: under Section 19, any person can complain after giving sixty days’ notice.
• Judicial support: the courts have given an expansive reading to it.

Weaknesses

• Weak enforcement: pollution control authorities lack staff, funds and independence. Industry often follows the law only on paper.
• Centralised power and wide discretion: too much power rests with the Central Government, with little guidance and few checks. The Act does not make the standards of review clear.
• Weak penalties: the old penalties were low, and prosecutions were few. After the 2023 amendment, most offences carry only monetary penalties of Rs 10,000 to Rs 15 lakh, which critics say may reduce deterrence.
• EIA process: public hearings and expert appraisal are often seen as weak, and clearances are seen as given easily. Proposals to dilute the process, such as the Draft EIA Notification, 2020, drew strong objections.
• Executive orders instead of statute: key rules are made by notification and are changed often, with less parliamentary scrutiny.
• Gaps: no specific provision on climate change or on the rights of affected communities.
• Persistent problems: poor air quality in cities, polluted rivers and unregulated waste show the limits of the system.

Suggestions

• Strengthen and make the regulators independent.
• Raise penalties and compensation, and use the polluter pays principle.
• Improve public participation and transparency in the EIA.
• Use technology for monitoring.

The Act gives a good legal framework, but its effect depends on enforcement, institutional strength and public participation.

Ans: Common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR) is a principle of international environmental law. It means that all States share the common responsibility to protect the environment, but their responsibilities differ because of their different contributions to the problem and their different capacities to deal with it.

Origin

Principle 7 of the Rio Declaration (1992) states it. It says that, in view of the different contributions to global environmental degradation, States have common but differentiated responsibilities, and that developed countries acknowledge the responsibility they bear in view of the pressures their societies place on the global environment and of the technologies and financial resources they command.

In the UNFCCC (1992)

• Article 3(1): the Parties should protect the climate system for the benefit of present and future generations of humankind, on the basis of equity and in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities. Accordingly, the developed country Parties should take the lead in combating climate change and its adverse effects.
• Annex I lists developed countries and countries with economies in transition. They are to take the lead in reducing emissions. Annex II countries must give financial resources and technology to developing countries. Other countries are non-Annex I.
• The Convention recognises that the largest share of historical and current emissions has come from developed countries, that per capita emissions in developing countries are still low, and that their share will grow to meet their development needs (Preamble).

In later instruments

• Kyoto Protocol (1997): only Annex I parties had binding emission targets.
• Paris Agreement (2015): all parties make nationally determined contributions. The agreement is to be implemented to reflect equity and CBDR and respective capabilities, in the light of different national circumstances (Article 2(2)). Developed countries should continue to take the lead, and provide finance.
• Finance: developed countries pledged to mobilise US$ 100 billion a year by 2020. At COP29 (2024) a new goal of US$ 300 billion a year by 2035 was agreed.

Debate

Developing countries, including India, insist on CBDR, citing historical responsibility and the need for development. Developed countries argue that the division in the Convention is out of date, because some developing countries are now large emitters. The Paris Agreement uses a more flexible approach.