RELEVANCE TO UPSC SYLLABUS: GS 3: ENVIRONMENT: ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION AND DEGRADATION; ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT

 

THE CONTEXT: Air pollution is a big menace for the city of Delhi which faces this issue annually. The problems with poor air quality usually attract attention during late autumn when stubble burning is at its peak in the states neighbouring the NCR. However, data shows that good or even moderately satisfactory air evades the capital’s residents for most parts of the year, especially in winter.

 REASONS:

• Crop Burning:Farmers of the states around Delhi carry out stubble burning which leads to generation of pollution and these pollutants are carried towards Delhi.
• Vehicular Emissions: Vehicle emissions contribute to the dangerous impacts of smog and air pollution. Due to the sheer volume of automobiles on the road, this is a significant source of pollution.
• Construction Dust: Increase in construction and other infrastructure work in the region has led to generation of construction dust, which acts as a pollutant.
• Industrial Pollution: Delhi-NCR’s industries have not embraced environmentally friendly fuels and methods. They emit harmful gases which cause pollution.
• Stagnant Winds: During winter months, the upward movement of air from the layers below is stopped which causes polluted air to be stagnant over the region. Due to stagnant winds, the pollutants generated in the area get trapped over the region which increases the chances of pollution to a great extent.
• Geographical Reason: As Delhi is land-locked from all sides, the north-westerly winds coming from Pakistan and Afghanistan bring in large amounts of dust particles to the region. Due to the presence of Himalayas, which block the escape route of the air, the dust and pollutants settle in the region.
• Lack in programme implementation: There is lack of effectiveness in programme implementation to tackle air pollution. For example, CAQM has not developed a synergy between the different bodies whose work is crucial to ensure clean air pollution. In 2019, the government launched the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) to reduce pollution by 20-30% by 2024 compared to 2017. In 2022, the programme’s goalposts were shifted 40% reduction in pollution by 2026. Most independent studies show that progress under NCAP has been slow.
• Unutilised funds: Recently, Centre told Parliament that cities in Delhi-NCR have utilised less than 40 per cent of the funds allocated to curb air pollution.

RECENT STEPS TAKEN:

• Commission for Air Quality Management is monitoring agency set up in 2021 and it has imposed restrictions under phase III of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).
• GRAP is a set of incremental anti-pollution measures that are triggered to prevent further worsening of air quality once it reaches a certain threshold in the Delhi-NCR region.
• The implementation of Stage-III GRAP mandates immediate action on multiple fronts. The Sub-Committee decides to invoke 8 point action plan as per Stage-III of revised GRAP in the entire NCR with immediate effect.
• The anti-pollution steps under the 8-point action plan by the central commission are:

1. Intensify the frequency of mechanised and vacuum-based sweeping of roads.
2. Ensure daily water sprinkling, along with dust suppressants, before peak traffic hours on roads and pollution hotspots.
3. Intensify public transport services and introduce differential rates to encourage off-peak travel.
4. Enforce a strict ban on construction and demolition activities in the entire NCR, except essential projects.
5. Close down operations of stone crushers.
6. Close down all mining and associated activities in NCR.
7. Impose strict restrictions on the operation of BS III petrol and BS IV diesel LMVs.
8. Make a decision on discontinuing physical classes in schools for children up to class 4 and conduct classes in an online mode.

THE WAY FORWARD:

• Address Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) burning: A study found that Delhi burns 190 to 246 tons of MSW every day, which severely pollutes the air. Therefore, any form of garbage burning must be stopped and authorities need to develop infrastructure for effective collection and disposal of MSW.
• Promote the use of electric and BS-VI vehicles: On an average vehicle can contribute up to 25% to PM 2.5 levels and at some locations, it can spike to 35%. Using Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) can significantly reduce emissions from diesel vehicles. The introduction of more electric, hybrid and BS-VI vehicles can also help reduce the pollution. Improvement of public transport is also necessary to address the problem.
• Limit biomass burning: Burning of crop residue in Haryana and Punjab needs to stop on urgent basis. Instead of burning, the residue can be used for energy production, biogas generation and feeding cattle.
• Tackle fly ash: During summers, fly ash is one of the biggest contributors to PM 10 in Delhi. To deal with the pollutants, water spraying, installation of windbreakers and plantations should be done.
• Need of long-term plan: There are several measures that are being taken from spraying water to implementing GRAP to odd even solution. However, these measures provide temporary relief, therefore, the persistent problem of air pollution needs a long-term solution like drafting out an all-year action plan to improve air quality.
• Enhanced powers to the authorities: Though CAQM has taken various steps, but the agency has functioned more like a regulator whose primary responsibility is to implement the Graded Action Response Plan. There is a need for more independent power to authorities to take pre-emptive actions and allow denser monitoring.

THE CONCLUSION: Despite several steps taken for combating air pollution in Delhi, it continues to be a much more serious problem. To significantly improve air quality in Delhi, a host of preventive steps need to be taken to provide a long-term solution to this problem.

UPSC PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS

1. Describe the key points of the revised Global Air Quality Guidelines (AQGs) recently released by the World Health Organisation (WHO). How are these different from its last update in 2005? What changes in India’s National Clean Air Programme are required to achieve revised standards? (2021)
2. What are the key features of the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) initiated by the Government of India? (2020)

 MAINS PRACTICE QUESTIONS

Delhi registered severe air pollution on the Air Quality Index (AQI) recently. In this context, analyse the major factors contributing to Delhi’s pollution and suggest measures that need to be taken to address the persistent problem of air pollution in Delhi.

SOURCE: https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/editorials/delhi-air-quality-aqi-aqi-register-caqm-pollution-monitoring-agency-9110840/#:~:text=The%20persistent%20problem%20frames%20the,So%20far%2C%20mechanisms%20are%20failing&text=Delhi’s%20problems%20with%20poor%20air,the%20states%20neighbouring%20the%20NCR.

RELEVANCE TO UPSC SYLLABUS:GS3: ENVIRONMENT: CONSERVATION, ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION, AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE AND ISSUES

THE CONTEXT:  Stubble burning by farmers in Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh (UP) creates seasonal pollution in northern India. This situation is very serious in northwest India and critical in the National Capital Territory Region.

WHAT IS STUBBLE BURNING?

Stubble (parali) burning is a method of removing paddy crop residues from the field to sow wheat from the last week of September to November.

• It is a process of setting on fire the straw stubble, left after the harvesting of grains, like paddy, wheat, etc.
• It is usually required in areas that use the combined harvesting method which leaves crop residue behind.
• The process of burning farm residue is one of the major causes of air pollution in parts of north India, deteriorating the air quality.
• The rice stubble burning is highest in the state of Punjab followed by Haryana, whereas Uttar Pradesh ranks higher in wheat stubble burning.

HISTORY:

Dry fodder: Till a few decades ago, crop residue, including stubble, was used as dry fodder for livestock or as fuel for the kitchen or incorporated in-situ in soil. It wasn’t burnt, at least not on a large scale.

During the 1990’s: Things started changing in the 1990s. Two factors contributed:

• Free or highly subsidised power supply for groundwater extraction.
• Power supply to the farm sector in Punjab has been free since 1997, while in Haryana, it is subsidised.
• With access to assured irrigation, paddy acreages in Punjab grew from 50 per cent of the net sown area in the mid-1990s to 75 per cent in recent years.
• In Haryana, this jumped from 30 per cent to 40 per cent.

• In the absence of cheap labour, machines like the Combined Harvester appeared:
  • Paddy harvesting and threshing are labour-intensive and this pushed up the demand for labour.
  • This machine only picked the plant’s top part (panicle) and left the remaining stalk of about 2-3 feet (stubble) standing in the field.
  • Clearing this stalk required a separate round of harvesting, collection and disposal and the easy solution was to set it on fire.
  • Manual harvesting: In Manual harvesting, stalks are harvested close to the ground. They were later collected at one place and grain was recovered through manual beating.
  • The remaining stalk was piled in a corner of the field where it decomposed slowly.
  • This occupied a small area and farmers did not mind sparing that for storage of paddy straw.

IMPACT:

• There have been incidences of stubble burning wherever a combined harvester has been used.
• Such incidents are being reported from paddy fields in central and eastern Indian states as well.

Pollution: Stubble burning emits toxic pollutants in the atmosphere containing harmful gases like:

• Carbon Monoxide (CO), methane (CH4), carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and volatile organic compounds (VOC).
• These pollutants disperse in the surroundings and eventually affect air quality and people’s health by forming a thick blanket of smog.

Soil fertility: Soil becomes less fertile and its nutrients are destroyed when the husk is burned on the ground.

Heat penetration: Stubble burning generates heat that penetrates into the soil, causing an increase in erosion, loss of useful microbes and moisture.

Silica content in paddy straw: Paddy straw has high silica content and is not preferred as animal feed. If ploughed back into the field, it interferes with subsequent crop operations. Only some farmers use farm machines like happy seeder and straw management machines to incorporate the stubble back into the soil instead of setting it on fire.

 

INITIATIVES:

• Applying a decomposer to encourage in-situ management of stubble.
• Using the direct seeding of rice (DSR) technique.

Baling machines (balers) for paddy straw:  These machines are already in use in Punjab and Haryana, which has made it feasible to put paddy and other crop straws in the value chain.

• The total cost of procuring the entire stubble burnt in the field in Punjab comes to Rs 2,000 crore and, in Haryana, about Rs 1,000 crore.

Production of biofuel: A small market for paddy straw sold in compact bales has already emerged in both the states (Haryana and Punjab) for production of biofuel such as Bio CNG and ethanol and as direct fuel in brick kilns, furnaces, and thermal plants. Some enterprising farmers have sold parali(stubble) at Rs 180 per quintal this season.

MEASURES TO REDUCE POLLUTION DUE TO STUBBLE BURNING:

The Commission on Air Quality Management in NCR and Adjoining Areas (CAQM) has developed a framework and action plan:

In-situ Crop Residue Management: CRM machines procurement, setting up of Custom Hiring Centers, high yield and short duration paddy varieties, staggering of harvesting schedule, extensive use of bio-decomposer by IARI.

Ex-situ Crop Residue Management: Biomass Power Projects, Co-firing in Thermal Power Plants, Feed stock for 2G Ethanol plants, Feed stock in Compressed Biogas plant, fuel in industrial boilers, WTE plants, packaging materials etc.

• Prohibition of stubble /crop residue burning.
• Effective monitoring /enforcement.
• Schemes to reduce the generation of paddy straw.
• IEC activities for the plan of action.
• Standard protocol for recording and monitoring of fire counts.

THE WAY FORWARD:

Finding an alternative to paddy: An alternative crop like maize will also produce large amounts of stubble like paddy, and only a small part of that will have demand as dry fodder.

Reducing the duration of the rice crop: It is believed that early harvest would leave a longer period for the next crop. It would address the farm-fire problem. It will mitigate the environmental problem to a small extent.

Rethinking the policy: Rethinking the policy of providing free power. This is also needed to avert the over-exploitation of groundwater.

Direct Cash/benefit transfer (DBT): A simple shift to a metered supply of power will not be acceptable without compensating farmers’ income for the cost of power. One possibility is to give a direct cash/benefit transfer (DBT) instead of a power subsidy. By indexing the DBT amount to inflation in power tariffs, this amount can grow annually and remain relevant for farmers. This will make diversification away from paddy feasible.

Creating a market: Create a market for paddy straw/stubble. Unless stubble is made valuable for farmers, they will continue to burn it. We need to create an effective market for stubble that at least compensates them for the extra effort and cost involved in its harvest, collection and disposal.

Subsidised supply of machinery: Further modifications and subsidised supply of machinery for in-situ use of paddy stubble will also be very helpful in preventing farm fires in some areas.

Happy seeder: Mounted on a tractor, this machine is used to cut and lift straw, sow wheat and rice in soil and deposit straw over the sown area, instead of burning the stubble.

Law against the burning: A law against the burning of any crop straw should be strictly enforced.

THE CONCLUSION: With market avenues for crop residue, legal backing against polluting practices and administrative support, the proposed system can work to prevent stubble burning while saving the health of millions of lives and contributing to the economy.

PREVIOUS YEAR QUESTIONS:

1. Q) What are the major reasons for declining rice and wheat yield in the cropping system? How crop diversification is helpful to stabilize the yield of the crop in the system? (2017)
2. Q) How do subsidies affect the cropping pattern, crop diversity and economy of farmers? What is the significance of crop insurance, minimum support price and food processing for small and marginal farmers? (2017)

MAINS PRACTICE QUESTION:

1. Q) Comment upon the various measures taken by the Union and the state governments to address the problem of stubble burning. What more needs to be done according to you to find a permanent solution to this problem? Explain

SOURCE: How to solve the problem of stubble burning | The Indian Express