CONCEPT AND MEANING OF “ENVIRONMENT”

Introduction

The concept of environment is as old as the concept of the Nature itself. It is

a composite term reflecting the conditions in which organisms consisting of air,
water, food, sunlight etc., thrive and become living source of life for all the living
and non living begins including plant life. This term also includes atmospheric
temperature, wind and its velocity.

The concept of environment can be understood two dimensionally, namely,

in the narrow sense and border scene. In its narrow and etimological scene
environmental denotes surroundings whereas in its border scenes “it includes
everything invisible, seen and unseen, known and unknown, living and non living
and in, on, under and above the surface of the Earth”.

The word “environ” is derived from French term “environner” which

means “to surround”. From this word, the most well know term of today
“environment” is formulated.

Definitions

Generally ,” The term “Environment” includes “ Water, air and land, and human
beings, other living creatures, plants, micro –organism and property”.

Statutory definitions

Under the India environmental (protection) Act, 1986:- According to the

section 2(a) of the Indian “Environmental (protection) Act, 1986“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 –organism and property”.

ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION

Meaning of pollute means “to make unhealthy impure or to make ritually unclean”.

Pollution means “a polluting or being polluted”.

The word “Pollution” is derived from Latin terms “pollution”, “pollutionis”

Definition of pollution

The Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution in U.K in its third

report gave the following definition to the term “pollution”, namely- “The
introduction by the man into the environmental of substance or energy to the liable
to cause hazard to human health, harm to living resources and ecological systems,
damage to structure or amenity or interference with legitimate uses of the
environment”.

According to section 1(3) of the U.K Environment Protection Act, 1990,

the term “pollution” means “The release (into any environmental medium) from
any process of substance which are cable of causing harm to man or any other
living organisms supported by the environment”.

Pollution occurs when there is the potential for harm. Harm of the man is
not confined to physical injury but encompasses offence caused to any of his sense
or harm to his property, therefore smells and noise which may not cause injury
can constitute pollution. Harm to living organism can include harm to their health
or interference with the ecological system which they form a part.

Definition of “Environmental Pollution”

According to Section 2(C) of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986,
“Environmental pollution means the presence in the environment of any solid,
liquid or gaseous substance present in such concentration as may be, or tend to be,
injurious to environment”.

A factor responsible for causing Environmental Pollution- It becomes

imperative to know what are the major causes of pollution that degrade our
environment to detriment of the human civilization.
1. Growing Population
2. Industrialization
3. Urbanization
4. Indiscriminate use of Science and Technology
5. Modern Agricultural Practices
6. Poverty
7. Deforestation
8. Coal burnt Thermal Power Plants etc.
 Kinds of pollution

Environmental pollution may broadly be classified into two:

1. Natural pollution-Environment is polluted often by natural phenomenon; such

are earthquakes, flood, drought, cyclones, etc.

2. Man - made pollution-Human activities- The environmental pollution can also

be classified further as, Air pollution, water pollution, land pollution, food
pollution, noise pollution & radio-active pollution, etc.

Categories of Pollution:
A. Air Pollution
Air pollution may be said to mean the imbalance in the quality of air so as to
cause ill effects on the living beings. And they said imbalance in the air is caused
by the presence of air pollutants in air. The natural air has got its self purification
process and through this process it could be able to remove the different types of
pollutants which are continuously introduced into the atmosphere. But it is not
always possible. When the rate of pollution is high or the self purifying capacity
of the air comes down, accumulation of pollutants takes place posing a serious
threat to the human health. Both gaseous and particulate pollutants cause severe
damage to the respiratory system. Not only the human health is affected by air
pollution but also the air pollution leaves its impact felt on the animals, plants, and
causes damage to property and materials and also affects the atmosphere.
Effect of Air Pollution-
 It effects the human health to a great extent is quite natural that when there
is any problem in the environment, it is the human being who are the
immediate victims.
 Not only the human health, but also the animals and plant life are seriously
affected by the air pollution.
 The most prominent danger posed recently acquired sinister dimension is
the atmosphere.
 The air pollutants severely affect the atmosphere thereby causing change in
the climate and also account for the increase in temperature throughout the
globe.
 Control and Prevention of Air Pollution- Attempt to control & prevent the
spreading of particulate pollutants into air by taking certain remedial measures.
WHO has suggested adopting procedure to control are-

 Containment, i.e. prevention of escape of toxic substances into ambient air

by engineering device such as inertial separators, electrostatic precipitators,
scrubbers and fabric filters.
 Replacement of certain technological processes or fuels by new ones that
produce less air pollution &
 Reduction of concentration of toxic substances in air by dilution such as
vegetation.

B. Water Pollution
Water is said to be the cause of the earth. We can also say that it is the lifeline of
our ecological existence. But this precious gift of the nature which comprises
about 70% of the earth’s surface is not that pure now. Day by day the quality of
water is deteriorating and becoming unfit for human consumption. Like air
pollution ware pollution can also be described to mean the adverse change in
composition or condition of the water such that it becomes less suitable.
Ordinarily by pollution we mean contamination and thus when the water is
polluted or contaminated it becomes totally unfit for use. Some of these include
the municipal sewage, the industrial effluents and agricultural wastes. Generally,
our towns and cities lack proper sewage system and with the growth of
urbanization in the recent past this problem has become more acute thereby
making the sanitary condition very unhealthy and unhygienic. Ultimately it leaves
the people to suffer from various water borne diseases. Besides, the underground
water is also said to be not free from pollution. Which are leached from refuse and
spoil heaps, from fertilizers spread over the land and also the disposal of industrial
wastes mainly contribute to the contamination of ground water. Separate law on
water pollution are-
 During British Rule certain legislations came up to control the fouling of
water.
 Government has declared industrial policy after independence in 1948.
 The second industrial policy resolution in 1956 on eve of 2nd Five year plan.
 IPC 1860 which had some provision relating to public health, safety etc.
 Water (Prevention & Control of Pollution) Act, 1974
Emergency Measures- Besides having the power to lay down standards &
prescribing conditions for controlling the water pollution, the Boards is also
empowered it take certain emergency measures when it appears any poisonous,
noxious or polluting matter is present in any stream or well or land. Purposes
mentioned to
 Removing that matter from the stream or well & disposing it in appropriate
manner
 Remedying or mitigating any pollution caused by its presence in the stream
or well
 Issuing orders immediately restraining or prohibiting the persons concerned
from discharging any poisonous matter in the stream etc.

C. Land Pollution
Land & the soil pollution takes place mainly due to the disposal of solid and semi
solid wastes from agricultural practices and from poor sanitation. Urbanization
coupled with the desire of men to live comfortably may cause either water
pollution or pollution of the air. Disposal of solid wastes into water courses
increase the pollution hazards of water and improper incineration causes severe air
pollution. Dumping of industrial and municipal wastes as well as wastes of
agricultural uses leached and seep into the soil also cause contamination of ground
water. Industrial solid wastes contain toxic chemical and when they are tipped on
the land result in increasing the soil pollution and when these hazardous chemicals
enter into surface or ground water poison the soil and also from the radioactive
wastes when reach the soil get accumulated there which ultimately results in the
health hazards of the living beings. Besides biological agents such as excreta of
human beings, animals and birds also constitute the source of soil pollution. The
contaminated soil affects the human health to a great extent and the man is
exposed to a number of diseases.
D. Radioactive Pollution
From the evolution of the society the man is exposed to some sort of ionizing
radiations occurring from natural sources. But the effect of such radiation was not
so strongly felt till the nuclear tests are carried on. The advent of nuclear weapons
and also the desire to have more and more such destructive weapons has led the
exposure level to radiations causes by such tests increase.
Radioactive pollution of the environment has been defined” as the increase in
natural background radiation, emerging from the activities of man involving the
use of naturally occurring of artificially produced radioactive material”.

Environmental radiation may be of two types-

(1) Naturally occurring radiation- cosmic radiations from natural radio-isotopes
present in the earth’s surface
(2) Man made radiation- terrestrial radiation from natural radio-isotopes present in
the earth’s crust.

Radioactive pollution immediately affects the man and it is his health which is at
stake. There is every possibility that water sources particularly the rivers and
sewers are likely to be affected by such radiation. Man may be exposed to such
contamination directly by the radioactive particles in air, radioactive gases and
absorption of contaminants by respiratory tract and indirectly by consuming food
chains. Such exposure can cause cancer, abnormal birth and mutations in man and
the child in the womb may also get affected by this. The exposure may also cause
generic damages which may affect the future generations.

E. Noise Pollution
The word “noise” simply connotes unwanted sound or ordinarily by noise we can
mean a sound which is unpleasant that exerts a pressure on our mind. From this
the natural interpretation comes that the sound and the noise are the same thing.
But from environmental point of view these two are not same. When the effects of
sound are undesirable we may term it as noise. The sources of noise are numerous.
With the progress of the society we can notice the changes in the life style of the
people. Corresponding to such change the societal conditions also changed which
ultimately contributed significantly for spreading the noise forcing the number or
the reasons of such noise to increase. However, taking into consideration all the
factors that are responsible for generating noise, the sources are broadly classified
into two are:
(i) Industrial- include noise generated by various industries operating in
and outside the cities.
(ii) Non-industrial- include transportation, use of loudspeakers, street
noise, construction work, aircraft, railways, automobiles etc. Of these
extensive use of loudspeakers is contributing a lot in generating the
noise.
Effects of Noise Pollution-
 Loss of Hearing
 Speech Interference
 Loss of Efficiency
 Annoyance
 Diseases- 1.sudden changes in the noise level affects the heart beat
severely, blood pressure of the persons also fluctuates depending upon the
noise being generated.
2. Vasoconstriction is a physiological effect in which the small
blood vessels of the body constrict & reduce the flow of blood even for
short noises and persists for several minutes after cessation of the noise,
cardiovascular system resulting in cardiac arrests.
3. Mental illness and emotional distress
4.children are worst victims of such noise creates hearing
problem but certain neurological disturbances make them irritable &
hyperactive, in some cases mental development & growth also slowed
down
 Interference with Sleeping i.e. apparent physiological effect of noise
concern is sleeps and stress reaction

Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

EIA is an exercise to evaluate the beneficial & adverse effects of developmental

projects on the environment including socio-economic, cultural and aesthetic
concerns. According to Divan and Rosecrans, it is “an effort to anticipate measure
and weight the socio-economic and bio-physical changes that may result from a
proposed project. It assists decision makers in considering the proposed project’s
environmental costs and benefits. Where the benefits sufficiently exceed the costs,
the project can be viewed as environmentally justified”.

EIA is a “management tool to improve decision making and to ensure that

development options are environmentally and socially sound and sustainable”.
Objective of EIA

 the effects of a project on environment must be assessed in order to take

account of the concerns to protect human health to contribute by means of a
better environment to the quality of life
 to ensure maintenance of the diversity of species
 to maintain the reproductive capacity of the eco-system as a basic resource
of life

In order to ascertain the impact of various developmental projects both on the

society as well as land, water, air, flora and fauna etc., the developmental projects
are required to prepare an EIS covering following:

 effect on land including land degradation and subsistence,

 deforestation & compensatory a forestation,
 air & water pollution including ground water pollution,
 noise pollution & vibrations,
 flora & fauna & loss of biological diversity,
 socio-economic impact including human displacement, cultural loss &
health aspects,
 risk analysis & disaster management,
 recycling & the reduction of waste,
 efficient use of inputs
 description of significance effects
 a decision of the project- design scale, location, size
 a non technical summary
 mitigating measures

Benefits of EIA

 cost saving modifications in project design

 reduced cost and time of project implementation
 avoiding impacts & violation of laws and regulations
 increased project acceptance

Process of EIA- There is 2 stages in EIA are:

1. Preliminary Assessment : carried out in the early stages of planning

 2. Detailed assignment : carried out during project planning until the project
plan is completed and is reported formally as an environment impact
statement

The key elements of an EIA are the following:

1. Scoping – identify the key issues and corners of instead practice

2. Screening – deciding where an EIA is required based on information
collected
3. Identify and evaluating alternatives – listing alternatives diets and
techniques and the impact of each
4. Mitigating measures dealing with uncertainty – reviewing proposed action to
prevent or minimize the potential adverse efforts of this effort of their
project
5. Issuing environmental statement – reporting the findings of the EIA

Sustainable Development

Introduction

In the world of environment two contradictory demands emerged. One is the

protection and preservation of the environment for the present as well as the future
generation and the other one is the continuing process of economic development.
The international community was interwoven with the complex problem of
balancing the two concepts because both are necessary for the society. We cannot
go for the one at the cost of the other. From the very beginning the controversy
between Environment and development was there so in order to synthesize the
controversial imperatives that affect the economy, the term “Sustainable
development” emerged which in literal term means the process or the way in which
the economic planning should be given shape so as not to disturb the ecology. We
can say, in other words, sustainable development is a process through which
development activities can be sustained for the coming generations.
Progress in Sustainable development

Since progress of mankind pollution of environment go side by side as an

interdependent phenomenon, modern thinking is geared around for drawing up of a
line of control over both these contingencies, whereby the degree of exploitation of
nature and natural resources as well as the degree of economic development
should be maintained at such rate which will assure substance both to the present
generation and to coming generations in a healthy atmosphere. This state of
equilibrium is term as “sustainable development”.

Every anthropogenic activity has its impact on the environment. More often than
not, it would be harmful to the environment than the mankind. Human activities
causing impact on the integrity of ecosystem which provides essential resource of
the service for the well being of the mankind. Environment consequence requires
assessment and consequential adjustments while undertaking industrial or other
productive activities for socio-economic development. Environment auditing in
one such strategy of balancing environment and industrial production.

Efforts in International Preospect

Modern law relating to environmental protection has the object of achieving

“sustainable development”. This problem has been taken up for enforcement by the

1. UNO ever since the Stockholm conference on the protection of human

environment, 1972.
2. Declarations and protocols such as Nairobi Declaration, 1982,
3. Rio Declaration, 1992,
4. Kyoto protocols to the UN framework Conventions on climate change,
5. World Summit on sustainable Development, 2002,
6. Delhi ministerial declarations on the climate change and sustainable
Development, 2002 etc.

One of the principles underlying Environment law is that of “Sustainable

development”. It requires that development should take place in a manner whereby
ecology is also sustainable.

The UNESCO has set up the UN commission on the Sustainable

development on 16-2-1993, inter alia, for enhancing the intentional cooperation
and rationalizes the inter-government decision making capacity of environment
and development issues.
Sustainable Development in Indian scenario

In the developing countries like India, exploitation of natural resource is

essential for economic progress through industrial development. While
international and national laws and policies have already provided various
guidelines – legal or executive, the concept of sustainable development requires
still a special attention and emphasis to bring awareness among the industrialists
and other engaged in the exploration of the nature and man – made resources for
economic progress.

Sustainable development – judicial trends

Essential features of sustainable development –is a balancing concept

between ecology and the development and has been accepted as a part of the
customary international law through its salient features have yet to be finalized by
the international law jurists. Some such salient features were that of inter
generational equity, conversation of natural resources, environmental protection,
the “Precautionary principle” including “polluter pays principle”, obligation to
assist and co-operate etc.

Mining activities at Aravalli Hill range shall be permitted on the basis of

sustainable development.
 Unit-III

1. Constitutional provisions for the protection of environment

(a) 42nd Amendment and environment protection:

Directive Principles of State Policy: Art. 47 Duty of the State to raise the level of nutrition and
the standard of living and to improve public health

Art. 48 Organization of agriculture and animal husbandry

Art. 48 A Protection and improvement of environment & safeguarding of forests and wild
life.

(b) Fundamental Duty Art.51A(g) : To protect and improve the natural environment including
forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and to have compassion for living creatures;

(c) Fundamental Rights and environmental protection: Provisions of Part III of Indian
constitution do not directly speak about environmental protection, but the pro active role of
judiciary has made creative interpretation of these provisions to involve environmental
protection.

1. Right to Equality and Environment protection

Art. 14 guarantees Rt to equality to every citizen of India. When this provision is read in
the light of Stockholm Declaration, it becomes manifest that principle of equality has
been recongnised in environmental management. Man has fundamental right to freedom,
equality and adequate conditions of life, environment.

2. Freedom of Trade and Commerce and Environment:

Art. 19(1)(g) guarantees fundamental freedom of trade and commerce, but it is not
absolute one, State can curtail this freedom by imposing restrictions when such freedom
is used to the detrimental of the environment.

3. Right to Life and Environment

Art.21 guarantees right to life and personal liberty, it is the fundamental to the
fundamental rights. The words of art.21 have been expanded to cover environmental
 protection by the creative interpretation of judiciary. Pollution free environment is a
Fundamental right u/art. 21 healthy environment enables quality of life being the essence
of the right guaranteed under Art. 21. Right to clean and healthy water and air, these are
the some of the implicit rights under right to life which indirectly speaks about
environmental protection.

4. Right to Constitutional remedies and Environment Art. 32 and Art. 226

Fundamental rights are enforceable in nature, under Art. 32 and Art. 226 Supreme Court
and High Courts are empowered to enforce fundamental rights respectively. Many of
writ petitions were filed in the form of Public Interest Litigation (PIL) to halt the loss of
environment.

(d) Art. 246 – Legislative powers of Union and States:

This provision empowers Union Govt and State Govts to enact laws according to lists in
VII Schedule. Many of the entries speak about environmental protection; Govts can take
legislative measures for the protection of environment.

These are the constitutional measures for the protection of environment. Though some of the
provisions may not expressly speak about environment, but judiciary has played a vital role in
the protection of environment by applying creative interpretation.