Q.2 What is environmental protection act?
What are objectives of it? Explain the following terms:
(i)
Environment (ii)
Environmental Pollutant
(iii) Environmental Pollution (iv) Hazardous Substance
Ans. Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986: -
In response to the 1972 United Nations
Conference on the Human Environment at Stockholm, India enacted ‘The
Environment (Protection) Act, 1986’ and the corresponding ‘Environment
(Protection) Rules, 1986’. This is a general enactment that empowers the
Central Government to prevent, control and abate environmental pollution. For
the effective implementation of the Act, the various provisions of this Act
have been amended from time to time.
Objectives
of The Act: -
The objectives of the Act are:
(a) Protection and improvement of the
environment;
(b) Prevention of hazards to all living
creatures (plants, animals and humans) and property; and
(c) Maintenance of harmonious relationship
between humans and their environment.
(i) Environment – according to the Act
‘includes water, air and land and the interrelationship which exists among and
between water, air and land, and human beings, other living creatures, plants,
micro-organisms and property’.
(ii) Environmental Pollutant –
according to the Act ‘includes any solid, liquid or gaseous substance present
in such concentration as may be injurious to environment.’
(iii) Environmental Pollution – means
‘the presence of any environmental pollutant in the environment’.
(iv) Hazardous Substance – means ‘any
substance which is liable to cause harm to human beings, other living creatures
and property or environment by reason of its chemical or physiochemical
properties or handlings’.
Q.3 “Non-governmental organization (NGO)
are playing on extremely important role regarding protection of environment”.
Comment on this statement with example.
Related
Questions -
Q. Discuss the role of NGOs in
environmental protection.
(AKTU. - 2008-09, 11 - 12, 12 - 13)
Q. Explain how the initiatives taken by
Non-governmental organizations are helpful in creating the public awareness and
implementation of environmental protection programmes. (AKTU. - 2009 - 10)
Q. Write short note on Role of NGO in
environmental awarencess. (AKTU. - 10-11)
Ans. Role of NGOs: -
It is becoming increasingly clear that
NGOs have a far better understanding of the people living with meager means
than government agencies or the academic bodies. Their nearness to the grass
roots, and even more, their action programmes, put NGOs in the most appropriate
position to undergo the learning process needed to understand the poor and
powerless before preaching to them about environmental issues. NOGs are often
able to reach target groups that government agencies cannot. This is again
particularly pertinent to India with its diversity in social and environmental
problems. Thus NGOs hold a great potential to be efficient and effective
alternatives to government agencies in the delivery of programmes and projects.
Example:
-
There are several examples of
NGOs which have protested against environmentally unsound development projects
and successfully stopped them. They have appealed to people to make appropriate
alternative developmental patterns and have involved people in afforestating
degraded lands, preventing poaching of wildlife and in carrying out programmes
for creating or intensifying environmental awareness. They have successfully
mobilized people’s opinion often forcing administration to set up inquiry
committees or take even more drastic action such as closure of the offending
industries, factories, etc.
Q.4 Discuss objective of environmental
education. What are the guiding principles of environmental education?
Ans. Objective of Environmental Education: -
The chief objective of environmental
education is that individuals and social groups should acquire awareness and
knowledge, develop attitudes, skills and abilities, and participate in solving
real life environmental problems in order to improve the quality of life.
Environmental education is the
starting point for any initiative in the field, an important instrument in an
attack on environment crisis.
Principles
of Environmental Education: -
According to UNESCO (1971), the
guiding principles of environmental education should be as follows:
(a) The environment must be comprehended as a
system which is a functional unit composed of organized, interacting and
independent parts.
(b) Environmental education should be
compulsory, right from the primary upto the post-graduate stage.
(c) Environmental education should have an
inter-disciplinary approach by including physical, chemical, biological (i.e.
biophysical aspects) as well as socio-cultural aspects of the environment. It
should build a bridge between biology & technology.
(d) Environmental education should take into
account the historical perspectives, the current and the potential historical
issues.
(e) Environmental education should emphasis
the importance of sustainable development i.e. economic development without
degrading the environment.
(f) Environmental education should reflect the
necessity of including environmental impact-analysis in proposed developmental
projects in order to minimize environmental damages.
(g) Environmental education should emphasis
the necessity of seeking international co-operation in environmental planning.
(h) Environmental education should lay more stress on practical
activities and first hand experiences.
