TOPIC: GS 3 Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment
Making peace with nature
What is the news?
- There has never been a more urgent need to restore damaged
- The COVID19 pandemic is a direct result of the degradation of natural areas, species loss, and exploitation.
- Zoonotic pathogens are more frequently jumping from wildlife to humans, creating public health emergencies.
- Healthier ecosystems and a healthier respect for the wild spaces of our world will give us a healthier planet and healthier people.
- It is time to change how we cultivate our land, use our soils, exploit coastal and marine ecosystems, and manage our forests.
- The damage has been done over decades and the destruction cannot be reversed overnigh
- World Environment Day the UN Environment Programme and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization launched the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration
- It aims to prevent, halt and reverse the degradation of ecosystems on every continent and in every ocean.
India must participate actively in this decade of restoration.
- Ten years of sustained action to protect and revive the country’s ecosystems
- It will help India to end poverty by enhancing livelihoods, combat climate change by reviving natural carbon stores, and halt the collapse of biodiversity by rebuilding homes for wildlife.
- Ecosystem restoration benefits people and nature.
Path towards restoration
In 2019, he announced that India would raise its ambition for restoration, promising an increase in restored degraded land from 21 to 26 million hectares by 2030.
Several steps we can take to build on this commitment.
- There must be a concerted effort to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
- Climate change is dangerous to humans, but also to the fragile ecosystems that sustain all life on earth.
- Globally must reduce net carbon dioxide emissions by 45% by 2030 compared to 2010 and we must reach netzero emissions by 2050 to have a hope of achieving the 1.5°C Paris Agreement target.
- India needs to work towards this by transforming energy systems, land use, agriculture, forest protection, urban development, infrastructure, and lifestyles.
- Crucially, this has to be aligned with conserving and restoring biodiversity and minimizing air and water pollution and waste.
Given the interconnectedness of nature, all problems have to be dealt with simultaneously.
- The goals, targets, commitments, and mechanisms under international environmental conventions that can direct this ambition.
- To transform our economic, financial and production systems towards sustainability.
- Including natural capital in decision making, eliminating environmentally harmful subsidies, and investing in lowcarbon and naturefriendly technologies are key elements of this.
- By making investments in sustainable development financially attractive can shift the financial flows and investment patterns towards sustainability.
- The knowledge base the scientific expertise, and the policymaking knowhow through national and international scientific bodies that can guide this process.
The power to revive our environment lies with us as individuals.
Way Forward
- India must work towards creating food systems that work with nature, reduce waste, and are adaptive to change and resilient to shocks.
- Empowering small-scale farmers and women farmers, changing patterns of consumption and challenging social norms and business practices are key.
- It can be achieved through capacity building and education.
- The power to effect change through cooperation and collaboration, and through changing consume, travel and use energy.
- As UN SecretaryGeneral António Guterres has stated, making peace with nature is the defining task of the 21st century.
Mains Questions
A decade of protecting and reviving the ecosystem will help India in various ways. Explain
Sources : https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/making-peace-with-nature/article34784092.ece
PRELIMS PUNCHERS
- The minimum support price (MSP)
It is an agricultural product price, set by the Government of India to purchase directly from the farmer. This is not enforceable by law. By definition, this rate is to safeguard the farmer to a minimum profit for the harvest, if the open market has lesser price than the cost incurred. The Indian government sets the price for 23 commodities twice a year. MSP is fixed on the recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) since 2009.
MSP stands for “Minimum Support Price”. MSP is the price that farmers get on their crops, the price the government determines according to data given by the CACP (Commission on Agricultural Costs and Prices).
- Dehing Patkai National Park
It is located in the Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts of Assam . On 2021 Forest Department of Assam officially notified it as a national park. It is located in the Dehing patkai landscape which is a dipterocarp-dominated lowland rainforest. The Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary was declared as Dehing-Patkai Elephant Reserve under Project Elephant.
The different trees of this four-layered rainforest are laden with many exotic species of orchids and bromeliads. There is an abundance of ferns, epiphytes, wild banana, orchids, arums, climbers and lianas in this humid forest habitat.
- CODEX ALIMENTARIUS COMMISSION
The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) is an international food standards body established jointly by the Food and Agriculture organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) in May 1963 with the objective of protecting consumer’s health and ensuring fair practices in food trade.
The Agreement on Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS)of the World Trade Organization (WTO) recognizes Codex standards, guidelines and recommendations as reference standards for international trade and trade dispute settlement. It is an intergovernmental body with over 180 members, within the framework of the Joint Food Standards Programme.
- Neptune Declaration
Maritime body MUI urged Indian shipping ministry to take cognisance of ‘Neptune Declaration’. This urgency is necessary for the Implementation of of Maritime India Vision 2030. The “Maritime India Vision 2030” will be formulated by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways of India.
The Neptune declaration primarily focuses on recognising seafarers as key workers by all governments worldwide. A 10-year action plan ‘Maritime India Vision-2030’, aimed at bringing about a comprehensive change in the Indian maritime sector. The declaration highlights the main actions that are required to be taken in order to resolve the crew change crisis. Also to recognize the seafarers as the key workers and provide them priority access to Covid-19 vaccines . Establish and implement the gold standard health protocols which are based on the existing best practice. It will increase the collaboration between the ship operators and charterers so as to facilitate the crew changes.
Sources : https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1648478
PRELIMS QUESTIONS
- Consider the following statement with reference to Codex Alimentarius Commission
- It is established jointly by the Food and Agriculture organization and the World Trade Organization
- The objective is to ensuring fair pricing strategies .
Select the correct statement using code given below.
(a). 1only (b) 2 only
(c). Both of them (d). None of the above
Answer : D
The Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) is an international food standards body established jointly by the Food and Agriculture organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) in May 1963 with the objective of protecting consumer’s health and ensuring fair practices in food trade.
The Agreement on Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS)of the World Trade Organization (WTO) recognizes Codex standards, guidelines and recommendations as reference standards for international trade and trade dispute settlement. It is an intergovernmental body with over 180 members, within the framework of the Joint Food Standards Programme.
- Consider the following statement with reference to Neptune Declaration
- It is to enhance the research of weather in planet Neptune
- The declaration highlights the main actions that are required to be taken in order to resolve the crew change crisis
Select the correct statement using code given below.
(a). 1only (b) 2 only
(c). Both of them (d). None of the above
Answer : B
Maritime body MUI urged Indian shipping ministry to take cognisance of ‘Neptune Declaration’. This urgency is necessary for the Implementation of of Maritime India Vision 2030. The “Maritime India Vision 2030” will be formulated by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways of India.
The Neptune declaration primarily focuses on recognising seafarers as key workers by all governments worldwide. A 10-year action plan ‘Maritime India Vision-2030’, aimed at bringing about a comprehensive change in the Indian maritime sector. The declaration highlights the main actions that are required to be taken in order to resolve the crew change crisis. Also to recognize the seafarers as the key workers and provide them priority access to Covid-19 vaccines . Establish and implement the gold standard health protocols which are based on the existing best practice. It will increase the collaboration between the ship operators and charterers so as to facilitate the crew changes.