RIVER POLLUTION AND CPCB - ENVIRONMENT
News: CPCB report shows fewer polluted river stretches, but worst ones remain unchanged
What's in the news?
● The number of polluted stretches in India's rivers has fallen from 351 in 2018 to 311 in 2022, though the number of most polluted stretches is practically unchanged, according to a report from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in November but made public this week.
River Pollution:
Importance of Rivers in India:
● Irrigation source for agriculture.
● Cradle of civilization.
● Drinking water source for the domestic population.
● Useful potential material for industries.
● Habitat for flora and fauna as several wildlife sanctuaries and national parks were situated on the banks of the river.
● Economic development of the nation - sectors such as inland fisheries mostly dependent on river water.
● Offers livelihood support to farmers and fishermen and several others dependent on the same.
● Contributes to the sustenance of the human and environmental system.
Causes for River Pollution:
1. Garbage dumping:
● High population density around the river banks and the reckless dumping of non-biodegradable waste, especially plastics, is further adding to water pollution.
● Despite warning and strict fines imposed by local administrations on those found dumping garbage into rivers and their estuaries, this uncivilised practice continues unabated.
2. Release of chemicals and effluents:
● Industrialisation along the river belt is polluting the water with chemicals and other industrial effluents.
● While large corporations adopt advanced techniques to treat effluents, smaller firms often have no such considerations and violate environment safety standards.
3. Agricultural run-off:
● Rampant use of fertilisers and pesticides used in field percolate to rivers.
● Inability to educate farmers about consequences of indiscriminate use has led to the poor state of rivers.
4. Rapid urbanisation and Industrialisation:
● Unrestricted flow of sewage and industrial effluents have compounded the problem of polluted rivers.
5. Superstitious beliefs:
● Cremation grounds in rural India are located on the banks of rivers like Varanasi.
● Unfortunately, lots of Indians families that cannot afford cremation consign mortal remains of loved ones to rivers. These human cadavers cause severe water pollution.
● Superstitions like bathing in Ganga help in getting rid of all sins and lack of efforts to remove such superstition has polluted rivers.
6. Sand dredging and mafias:
● High-quality sand from river beds is needed for India’s booming construction industry. This has led to rising pollution in Indian rivers.
● Dredging operators - usually the unlicensed ones - deploy kerosene and diesel-fueled cheap watercraft manned by cheap labour for sand dredging.
7. Lack of e-flow:
● Minimum ecological flow is not maintained due to reservoirs and dams construction on rivers, thus hampering the self-cleaning ability of rivers.
8. Washing & Sewage:
● Laundering clothes on river banks is a common sight in India. Modern detergents are made of chemicals that contaminate river waters.
● Defecating around river banks is yet another horrible practice in rural parts of the country that contributes to rising pollution of rivers in India.
9. Governance issues:
● The failure of many national programmes run by the Centre for river conservation, preservation of wetlands, and water quality monitoring can be attributed to corruption, ineffective law implementation and failure of bureaucracy.
Impacts of River Pollution:
1. Water security of the Nation:
● As nearly half our population depends on river water for their consumption and daily use, the river pollution has a potential to impact the water security of the nation.
2. Food security:
● Fish from polluted rivers is found to be high in mercury, lead and cadmium and hence, unfit for human consumption.
● Also, edible fish is contaminated with Salmonella, Shigella and other harmful microbes found in human faeces. Thus, such fish is unfit for human consumption.
3. Impacts food production:
● While agriculture is impacted adversely by rising pollution of rivers, it is also one of the reasons for contaminating waters.
● Polluted water does not allow seeds to germinate and cause stunted growth, denying farmers of a bumper harvest.
4. Health issues:
● According to Niti Aayog, a whopping 200,000 people lose their lives every year due to various problems caused by consuming contaminated water.
● The health hazards associated with infected water range from cancer to gastrointestinal disorders that occur due to deadly microbes that are creeping into the rivers.
5. Impact on flora & fauna:
● Chemical, effluents and sewage that pollute Indian rivers is causing several species of aquatic life to go extinct or move away to safer havens.
● River contamination threatens biospheres and nature conservation areas. Migratory birds shun these rivers, and hence, they can face extinction.
6. Loss of livelihood:
● Fishermen and fish farms that once flourished on banks of various Indian rivers are finding it increasingly difficult to find sufficient catch of edible fish.
7. Loss of Export Revenue:
● Freshwater fish varieties including the famous Hilsa, Rohu, Katla and prawns from Indian rivers once had a high demand in foreign countries, especially in the Middle East.
● Sadly, river water pollution has caused these varieties of prized fish to get contaminated with disease-causing microbes and chemicals.
● Consequently, several countries have banned imports of freshwater fish from India, including farmed varieties.
Government Initiatives:
1. National Water Mission (2010):
● It ensures integrated water resource management leading to water conservation, less wastage, equitable distribution forming better policies.
2. National Water Policy (2012):
● It proposes a framework for creation of a system of laws and institutions and for a plan of action with a unified national perspective.
3. National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG):
● It provides a five-tier structure at national, state and district level to take measures for prevention, control, and abatement of environmental pollution in river Ganga.
● It aims to ensure continuous adequate flow of water so as to rejuvenate the river Ganga.
4. Namami Gange Project:
● It integrates the efforts to clean and protect the Ganga River in a comprehensive manner.
● It aims to accomplish the twin objectives of effective abatement of pollution and conservation and rejuvenation of National River Ganga.
● The Vision for Ganga Rejuvenation includes restoring the Aviral Dhara (Continuous Flow) and Nirmal Dhara (Unpolluted Flow).
WAY FORWARD:
1. Industries:
Reducing the effluent concentration of the waste input by:
● Wastewater treatment
● Industrial in-plant process control
● Eliminating effluent constituents by pretreatment prior to discharge to sewer systems or by different product manufacturing for an industry.
2. River flow:
● Reducing the upstream concentration by upstream point and non – point source controls.
3. Reducing the effluent volume by:
● Reduction of direct industrial discharge volumes into the municipal sewer system.
● Reduction in infiltration into municipal sewer systems.
● Reduction of waste volumes through process modifications in industries.
Go back to basics -
CPCB:
● The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), statutory organisation, was constituted in September, 1974 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.
● Further, CPCB was entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
Functions:
● It serves as a field formation and also provides technical services to the Ministry of Environment and Forests of the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
● Principal Functions of the CPCB, as spelt out in the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981 as follows.
a. To promote cleanliness of streams and wells in different areas of the States by prevention, control and abatement of water pollution.
b. To improve the quality of air and to prevent, control or abate air pollution in the country.
Air Quality Monitoring:
● The National Air Monitoring Programme (NAMP) has been established with objectives to determine the present air quality status and trends and to control and regulate pollution from industries and other sources to meet the air quality standards.
● It also provides background air quality data needed for industrial siting and town planning.
Water Quality Monitoring:
● The Parliament of India in its wisdom enacted the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 with a view to maintaining and restoring wholesomeness of our water bodies.
● One of the mandates of CPCB is to collect, collate and disseminate technical and statistical data relating to water pollution. Hence, Water Quality Monitoring (WQM) and Surveillance are of utmost importance.
● The key water-quality indicators are as follows.
○ Dissolved oxygen (DO)
○ Water temperature
○ pH
○ Nitrates
○ Transparency.
● CPCB network monitors water quality at 4484 locations across the country. The report categorised rivers into five priority classes.
○ Priority 1: Exceeding BOD levels >30 milligram a litre
○ Priority 2: BOD between 20&30 mg / l
○ Priority 3: BOD between 10 & 20 mg / l
○ Priority 4: BOD between 6-10 mg / l
○ Priority 5: BOD between 3& 6 mg / l
● Two or more polluted locations identified on a river in a continuous sequence are considered as a polluted river stretch.
● Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh had the highest number of Priority 1 river stretches.
Biological Oxygen Demand:
● Biological Oxygen Demand is the amount of dissolved oxygen needed by microorganisms to decompose organic matter (waste or pollutants) under aerobic reaction (in the presence of oxygen).
● Greater BOD, the lower the amount of dissolved oxygen available for higher animals such as fishes.
● The BOD is therefore a reliable gauge of the organic pollution of a water body.
Dissolved Oxygen:
● It is the amount of dissolved oxygen present in the water which is needed for aquatic life to survive. The quality of water increases with an increase in DO levels.