Radiation not a pollutant, says Pollution Control Committee

Radiation is not a pollutant: Pollution Control Committee

There are no environmental standards and norms prescribed for radiation from mobile towers under environmental laws, autonomous regulatory body Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC) stated in its report to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) December 19, 2022. The matter of radiation from mobile towers does not fall in the ambit of the Environment Act, 1986, it added. The response came over the installation of telecom towers in Delhi Development Authority (DDA) parks at nine locations in Pitampura, Delhi.

Electromagnetic radiations “from a mobile tower below the safe limit prescribed by non-profit International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) and recommended by the World Health Organization have no convincing scientific evidence of causing adverse health effects,” said a letter by the Department of Telecommunications. “There is no clarity yet as to whether mobile towers actually cause harm to human health and environment,” the pollution control authority added.  

Be it the guidelines issued by the CPCB or the various orders passed by the Supreme Court, National Green Tribunal and High Courts, it is yet to be decided as to whether there is any impact of mobile radiation on human health and environment, DPCC further said. The awareness note published by CPCB does not mention that mobile tower radiations in India cause any harm to human health, it added. (National Green Tribunal, India Environment Portal)

SC stays NGT order directing Rajasthan to pay Rs 3,000 crores as environmental compensation

In a major relief to the Rajasthan government, the Supreme Court recently stayed the National Green Tribunal’s order directing it to pay Rs 3,000 crore as environmental compensation for alleged improper management of solid and liquid waste in the state. The state government, in its plea, sought to set aside the interim order. In its order, the NGT had held state authorities accountable for contributing to pollution and failing in their constitutional duties.

As timelines for preventing water pollution and solid waste management, in pursuance of Supreme Court orders and earlier orders of the tribunal, had lapsed, the ‘polluter pays’ principle had to be applied from the date of January 1, 2021, and the compensation had to be equal to the loss to the environment and the cost of remediation,” the NGT had said.

The restoration measures concerning sewage management would include setting up sewage treatment and utilisation systems, and upgrading systems or operations of existing sewage treatment facilities to ensure the full utilisation of their capacities, the tribunal had said. (The Print)

Energy conservation bill gets Rajya Sabha nod

The Rajya Sabha recently approved the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2022, which empowers the Centre to specify a domestic carbon credit trading scheme and makes it mandatory for big power consumers to meet a portion of their energy needs from renewable sources. The domestic carbon market scheme will be a key step in achieving India’s nationally determined contributions under the Paris climate pact, according to the power ministry, which has tabled the bill. The bill was passed by the Lok Sabha on August 8.

The trading scheme will function just like the existing schemes for renewable energy credits and energy savings certificates, power minister RK Singh said in response to these concerns. “It will obligate consumers of power like distribution companies, big consumers like industries with captive power plants to reduce carbon emissions,” he said. “Those who reduce a lot more than asked to will get carbon credits, those not able to achieve will have to buy credits or pay a penalty.”

The bill is futuristic and will play a critical role in achieving India’s climate goals, power minister RK Singh said. “We should be proud that we are discussing this issue today. There is no country that is not impressed by our effort. Developed countries are now defensive because of our progress on climate action and energy transition,” he said.

Proponents of the bill said that the passing of the bill gives legislative teeth to India’s domestic carbon credits trading market. Carbon pricing as an instrument will be critical for India to achieve its net-zero target and this has been a bold and ambitious move by the government of India. However, critics contend that carbon markets serve to sustain the status quo… interest groups mobilize around carbon pricing schemes to render them ineffective or even counterproductive. (India News)

Budget 2023: Tax sops will provide much-needed impetus to agri-tech, agri-finance, and warehousing

Tax incentives to agriculture value-chain players will help enhance business operations, which will in turn help the government achieve its goal of doubling farmer incomes. Some of the much-needed policy and regulatory initiatives in this domain are:

Tax sops for capex in agri-tech: Agri-businesses have embraced agri-tech and agri-fintech in a much larger way than anticipated. With the help of the cloud, internet-of -things (IoT), big data, blockchain, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML), these businesses are collecting, predicting, analysing, and monitoring farm-related data in real-time. These technologies have led to the emergence of new agri-business segments like Farming-as-a-Service (FaaS), Farm-to-Fork (offering local produce in restaurants and markets), Delivery-as-a-Service (DaaS), etc.

It is necessary to provide tax incentives to agriculture value-chain players to enhance and improve business operations through the use of technology. The industry believes such tax incentives in the upcoming budget will encourage investment in new technology.

Exclusion of GST in warehousing: GST is currently applicable to the warehousing business as an input cost for providing the service. Considering the role of these businesses and their value addition to the agriculture supply chain, the government should exempt warehouse rentals from GST.

Subsidised credit: The government provides subsidised capital to NABARD for enhancing farm sector credit. Similarly, NBFCs also play an important role in providing finance to small farmers, and also help provide last-mile disbursement. Such NBFCs should also get subsidised capital, like NABARD. The government should also offer tax benefits to the agri-NBFC sector, as it will help the sector flourish and also help the government achieve its goal of doubling farmer incomes. (Money Control)

Nations adopt Global Biodiversity Framework amid concerns over watered-down targets

After multiple delays due to COVID-19, nearly 200 countries at the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) in Montreal sealed a landmark deal to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF), with four goals and 23 action-oriented targets, comes after two weeks of intense negotiations at COP15, in Montreal, Canada. It replaces the Aichi Biodiversity Targets set in 2010.

The agreement preserves the headline goal to “ensure and enable that by 2030 at least 30 percent of terrestrial, inland water, and coastal and marine areas, especially areas of particular importance for biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services, are effectively conserved and managed,” while recognising “indigenous and traditional territories, where applicable.”

Among the 2030 goals, countries pledged to protect at least 30 percent of terrestrial and marine areas, recognising indigenous and traditional territories. Concerns have been raised about the ambitions of the framework, with many criticising the agreement for vague, watered-down targets, many of which are not quantitative. Currently, 17% and 10% of the world’s terrestrial and marine areas, respectively, are under protection.

Importantly, the agreement includes a commitment to mobilise at least $200 billion per year by 2030 in financial flows from “all sources” including the public and private sectors, to “progressively” close the biodiversity finance gap of $700 billion per year and aligning financial flows with the Framework and the 2050 Vision for Biodiversity.

The next steps will be to draft the National Biodiversity Strategies and Action Plans (NBSAPs) reflecting the GBF targets for country-led implementation of the GBF. The states (in India) will also have to align their State Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plans with the national targets. (Mongabay India)

This is a roundup of important policy matters from December 11 - December 31, 2022.