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Sustainable development has emerged out of the fears of depleting natural resources and a subsequent slowing or even closing down of much of the economic activities and production systems. It is the result of rapacious misuse of earth’s precious and limited resource base by those few who had a control over production systems. The concept has emerged as a broad framework to debate and decide on desirable direction of change in social and economic systems, policies, programmes and actions at the national, community or individual levels.
The term ‘Sustainability’ has been defined variously, such as:
• Sustainability refers to a process or state that can be maintained indefinitely. • Natural resources must be used in ways that do not create ecological debts by overexploiting the carrying and productive capacity of the earth.
• A minimum necessary condition for sustainability is the maintenance of the total natural capital stock at or above the current level.
The three pillars of sustainable development – economic growth, environmental stewardship, and social inclusion – carry across all sectors of development, from cities facing rapid urbanization to agriculture, infrastructure, energy development and use, water availability, and transportation. Cities are embracing low-carbon growth and public transportation.
• The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the Earth Summit was a major United Nations conference held in Rio de Janeiro from 3 to 14 June 1992.
• 172 governments participated, with 116 sending their heads of state or government.
• As a follow-up, the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Rio+10) was held in 2002 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
• In 2012, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development was also held in Rio, and is also commonly called Rio+20 or Rio Earth Summit 2012.
The Earth Summit resulted in the following documents:
• Rio Declaration on Environment and Development
• Agenda 21
• Forest Principles
The following Conventions (Rio Convention) were opened for signature:
• Convention on Biological Diversity
• United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
• United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification
Agenda 21 is a non binding action plan of the United Nations with regard to sustainable development. It is a product of the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992.
The Convention on Biological Diversity, known informally as the Biodiversity Convention, is a multilateral treaty. The convention has three main goals: the conservation of biological diversity; the sustainable use of its components; and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from genetic resources.
It is often seen as the key document regarding sustainable development.
• The Convention is legally binding; countries that join it ('Parties') are obliged to implement its provisions.
• 195 UN states and the European Union are parties to the convention.
• All UN member states—with the exception of the United States—have ratified the treaty.
The meeting of the parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity takes place every two years.
• On 29 January 2000, the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity adopted a supplementary agreement to the Convention known as the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety.
• At the 2010 10th Conference of Parties (COP) to the Convention on Biological Diversity in October in Nagoya, Japan, the Nagoya Protocol was adopted.
• The 2012 11th Conference of Parties (COP) was held in Hyderabad, India.
Sierra Leone became the latest country to ratify the Cartagena Protocol on 15th June 2020. Uzbekistan had ratified the protocol on 25th October 2019. The total parties to the Cartagena Protocol as of June 2021 are 173.
The Cartagena Protocol completed its 20th year of adoption in the year 2020.
The dates of the meetings of COP-15 to the CBD, COP-10 to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, COP-4 to the Nagoya Protocol have been revised to 11th-24th October 2021, which were planned to happen in May 2021. It is expected to be held in Kunming, Yunnan Province, China. The upcoming meeting will revolve around discussing and agreeing on the two key documents:
The recently published fifth Global Biodiversity Outlook, and
The updated zero draft of the post-2020 global biodiversity framework.
The Cartagena Protocol is a supplementary agreement to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity, also known as the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing is a 2010 supplementary agreement to the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity.
The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity is an international agreement which aims at sharing the benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources in a fair and equitable way. It entered into force on 12 October 2014, 90 days after the date of deposit of the fiftieth instrument of ratification.
• This treaty was adopted by the Thirty-First Session of the Conference of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations on 3 November 2001. Popularly known as the International Seed Treaty.
Important articles under UNFCCC:
• Article 2 states that GHG concentrations are stabilized in the atmosphere at a level where ecosystems can adapt naturally to climate change, food production is not threatened, and economic development can proceed in a sustainable fashion.
Article 3(1) states that Parties should act to protect the climate system on the basis of "common but differentiated responsibilities", and that developed country Parties should "take the lead" in addressing climate change.
• Article 4 states that all Parties make general commitments to address climate change through, for example, climate change mitigation and adapting to the eventual impacts of climate change. Kyoto protocol:
The Kyoto Protocol was an international treaty which extended the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change that commits state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, based on the scientific consensus that global warming is occurring and that human-made CO2 emissions are driving it.
Signed: 11 December 1997
Signatories: 84 (1998-1999 signing period)
• The Kyoto Protocol is an international agreement linked to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which commits its Parties by setting internationally binding emission reduction targets.
• The detailed rules for the implementation of the Protocol were adopted at COP 7 in Marrakesh, Morocco, in 2001, and are referred to as the "Marrakesh Accords."
• There are currently 192 Parties to the protocol. USA never ratified Kyoto Protocol. Canada withdrew in 2012.
• There are two commitment periods of Kyoto Protocol: • The first commitment period under the Kyoto Protocol was from 2008-2012.
• The second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol or Doha Amendment for 2013-2020 period was adopted in 2012. (In Doha, Qatar, on 8 December 2012, the "Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol" was adopted.)
• The amendment includes new commitments for parties to the Protocol who agreed to take on commitments in a second commitment period and a revised list of GHGs to be reported on by Parties.
Classification of Parties:
• Annex I: Developed countries (US, UK, Russia etc) + Economies in transition (EIT) (Ukraine, Turkey, some eastern European countries etc)
• Annex II: Developed countries. Annex II is a subset of Annex I. Required to provide financial and technical support to the EITs and developing countries to assist them in reducing their greenhouse gas emissions.
• Annex B: Annex I Parties with first or second-round Kyoto greenhouse gas emissions targets. The first-round targets apply over the years 2008–2012 and the second-round Kyoto targets, which apply from 2013–2020. They have compulsory binding targets to reduce GHG emissions.
• Non-Annex I: Parties to the UNFCCC not listed in Annex I of the Convention are mostly low[1]income developing countries. No binding targets to reduce GHG emissions
• LDCs: Least-developed countries. No binding targets to reduce GHG emissions.
•Developing countries may volunteer to become Annex I countries when they are sufficiently developed.
The Kyoto Protocol emission target gases include:
• Carbon dioxide (CO2),
• Methane (CH4),
• Nitrous oxide (N2O),
• Sulphur Hexafluoride (SF6)
, • Groups of hydro fluorocarbons (HCFs) and
• Groups of Per fluorocarbons (PFCs). 1.8 Flexible Market Mechanisms – Kyoto Protocol
• Countries bound to Kyoto targets have to meet them largely through domestic action— that is, to reduce their emissions onshore.
• But they can meet part of their targets through three “market-based mechanisms”. The Kyoto Flexible Market Protocol mechanisms:
• Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• Emission Trading
• Joint Implementation (JI)
The United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP20 or CMP10 was held in Lima, Peru, from December 1 to 12, 2014.[
This was the 20th yearly session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 20) to the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the 10th session of the Meeting of the Parties (CMP 10) to the 1997 Kyoto Protocol.
The conference delegates held negotiations towards a global climate agreement.
The overarching goal of the conference was to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) to limit the global temperature increase to 2 degrees Celsius above current levels.
The twenty-first session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) and the eleventh session of the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP) took place from 30 November to 11 December 2015, in Paris, France.
• Previous summit was held in 2014 in Lima, Peru. No agreement was reached in Lima. All agreements and decisions were reserved for Paris Summit 2015.
• Paris Summit is one of the most important environmental conferences because of the INDC commitments made by major polluters.
• The conference objective is to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on climate to be signed in 2015 and implemented by 2020.
• Prior to the conference, 146 national climate panels publicly presented draft national climate contributions (so-called Intended Nationally Determined Contributions, INDCs).
It was announced in October, 2015 (Lima summit urged every country to announce its INDCs by Nov, 2015)
1. Reduce emission intensity by 33 to 35 per cent by 2030 compared to 2005 levels.
2. Produce 40 per cent of electricity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030, if international community helps with technology transfer and low cost finance.
3. Create an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2030 through additional forest and tree cover.
• The agreement would come into force thirty days after the date on which at least 55 Parties to the Convention accounting in total for at least an estimated 55 % of the total global greenhouse gas emissions have deposited their instruments of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession with the Depositary.
• India has ratified the Paris Agreement on climate change on the 147th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi (2nd October, 2016).
• With this, India became 62nd country to ratify the agreement. These 62 countries including India are responsible for almost 52% of Green House Gases (GHG) emissions.
• On 5 October 2016, the threshold for entry into force of the Paris Agreement was achieved.
• The Paris Agreement came into force on 4 November 2016.
• To date the Paris Agreement has been signed by 194 Parties and ratified or otherwise joined by 159 Parties representing 68% of global emissions.
The International Solar Alliance (ISA) is an initiative proposed by our Prime Minister Narendra Modi and was launched by him at the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris along with the President of France. It was launched on 30th November 2015.
PM Modi said, “The Sun is the source of all energy. The world must turn to solar, the power of our future”. It is an alliance of the “sunshine countries” i.e., the countries lying in between the two tropics – Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn with an objective of efficient utilization of solar energy. The alliance was formed with the intent to reduce the dependence on non-renewable sources of energy like fossil fuels. Modi referred to the sun-rich countries as “Suryaputras” and spoke about the huge potential of these countries to make use of the abundant natural resource, solar energy.
The 2017 UN Climate Conference takes place in Bonn, Germany, from 6-18 November. Leaders of national governments, cities, states, business, investors, NGOs and civil society will gather to speed up climate action to meet the goals of the Paris Climate Change Agreement.
The COP is organized by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
• Details about the conference: The 2017 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) Conference which was the 23rd Conference of the Parties (CoP), the 13th meeting of the parties to the Kyoto Protocol (CMP 13) and the second meeting of the parties for the Paris Agreement (CMA2) concluded on 18th November 2017 in Bonn, Germany.
• The conference came to an end with the adoption of ‘Talanoa’ Dialogue, which is a year[1]long process to assess countries progress on climate change.
"Talanoa is a traditional word used in Fiji and across the Pacific to reflect a process of inclusive, participatory and transparent dialogue. The purpose of Talanoa is to share stories, build empathy and to make wise decisions for the collective good. The process of Talanoa involves the sharing of ideas, skills and experience through storytelling.
As per COP23 decision, it has been structured around three questions to arrive at answers with consensus: Where are we? Where do we want to go? How do we get there?
• The dialogue will be conducted in a manner that promotes enhanced ambition. It will help parties to UNFCCC review their actions and discuss way forward in terms of raising ambitions before 2020.
• Agreement on this stocktaking process is an important outcome of the Conference.
• It will consider efforts of Parties on mitigation action and financial and technical support, as appropriate, as one of its elements, in the pre-2020 period under 1997 Kyoto Protocol
• The conference provided countries around world an opportunity to showcase their actions taken to fulfil pledges under landmark 2015 Paris agreement.
• It also made progress on framing rules for implementing Paris Agreement post-2020 and brought rich nations on board to walk the talk on pre-2020 commitments. However, the differences over climate financing continued.
• The overall outcome of the Conference was, however, a mixed one for developing countries, including India
The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), adopted in 1994, is the sole legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management.
The Convention addresses specifically the arid, semi-arid, and dry sub-humid areas, known as the drylands, where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and peoples can be found. Parties to the Convention meet in Conferences of the Parties (COPs) every two years, as well as in technical meetings throughout the year, to advance the aims and ambitions of the Convention and achieve progress in its implementation.
The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, also known simply as the Montreal Protocol, is an international treaty designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the production of numerous substances that are responsible for ozone depletion.
Signed: 16 September 1987
Effective: 1 January 1989
Signatories: 46
Condition: ratification by 20 states
• With International cooperation this treaty has successfully led the phase-out operation of production & consumption of major Ozone Depleting Substance (ODS) viz. CFCs, HCFCs, Carbon tetrachloride (CTC) and Halons globally in span of 27 years.
• Hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) took the place of above ODS, which worked as an alternative to CFCs & HCFCs and is now commonly used as refrigerants and coolants in refrigerators and air-conditioners.
• Gradually, it was noticed that these HFCs though are not Ozone depleting but possess great greenhouse gas effect and contribute to global warming about 12,000 times more than CO2, CH4. It can also be said that HFCs solved one problem and created another.
The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol is an international agreement to gradually reduce the consumption and production of hydrofluorocarbons.
It is a legally binding agreement designed to create rights and obligations in international law.
The Montreal Protocol is a most effective international environmental treaty to phase out the Ozone Depleting Substances (ODSs) from the atmosphere.
It came into force in 1989.
It has 197 member parties to the protocol and become a first international treaty with complete ratification.
It has undergone several amendments and Kigali amendment is the eighth amendment to this protocol.
It has successfully curbed the 98% production of chlorofluorocarbons and other ODSs and significantly contributed to the repair of the ozone hole.
Timelines for different groups under Kigali Amendment:
• All signatory countries have been divided into three groups with different timelines to go about reductions of HFCs.
• First group: It includes richest countries like US and those in European Union (EU). They will freeze production and consumption of HFCs by 2018. They will reduce them to about 15% of 2012 levels by 2036.
• Second group: It includes countries like China, Brazil and all of Africa etc. They will freeze HFC use by 2024 and cut it to 20% of 2021 levels by 2045.
• Third group: It includes countries India, Pakistan, Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia etc. They will be freezing HFC use by 2028 and reducing it to about 15% of 2025 levels by 2047.
• It is a scientific intergovernmental body under the auspices of the United Nations.
• It was set up at the request of member governments.
• It was first established in 1988 by two United Nations organizations, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
• Membership of the IPCC is open to all members of the WMO and UNEP.
• The IPCC produces reports that support the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
CITES is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals. It was drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The convention was opened for signature in 1973 and CITES entered into force on 1 July 1975.
Effective: 1 July 1975
Signed: 3 March 1973
Location: Geneva, Switzerland
Language: Chinese; English; French; Russian; Spanish
Condition: 10 ratifications
Depositary: Government of the Swiss Confederation
Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species in the wild, and it accords varying degrees of protection to more than 35,000 species of animals and plants.
In order to ensure that the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade(GATT) was not violated, the Secretariat of GATT was consulted during the drafting process
National Action Plan for Climate Change (NAPCC) is a Government of India's programme launched in 2008 to mitigate and adapt to the adverse impact of climate change. The action plan was launched in 2008 with 8 sub-missions and currently had 9 submissions.[1] The plan aims at fulfilling India's developmental objectives with focus on reducing emission intensity of its economy. The plan will rely on the support from the developed countries with the prime focus of keeping its carbon emissions below the developed economies at any point of time.[2] The 8 missions under NAPCC are as follows:
Among all the components of the environment air and water are necessary to fulfill the basic survival needs of all organisms. So, to protect them from degradation the following acts have been passed.
The main objective of this act is to provide prevention and control of water pollution and maintaining or restoring of wholesomeness and purity of water (in the streams or wells or on land). Some important provisions of this Act are given below:
To implement the decisions taken at the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held at Stockholm in June 1972, Parliament enacted the nationwide Air Act.
The main objectives of this Act are to improve the quality of air and to prevent, control and abate air pollution in the country. Important provisions of this Act are given below:
Notably, the 1987 amendment introduced a citizen‘s suit provision into the Air Act and extended the Act to include noise pollution.
• Wildlife wardens and their staff administer the act.
• An amendment to the Act in 1982, introduced a provision permitting the capture and transportation of wild animals for the scientific management of animal population.
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