The year 2023 marked the 50th edition of World Environment Day, celebrated under the theme “Solutions to Plastic Pollution”. Plastic is known to disrupting hormonal growth and carcinogens.
The chemicals that are used in the production of the main feedstocks for plastics have some known human health impacts which include neurological, cancer, reproductive, and developmental toxicity, impairment of the immune system, birth defects etc.
The research showed that dangerous human health impacts occur at every stages of the plastic lifecycle. It ranges from wellhead to refinery, from store shelves to human bodies, and from waste management to the current impacts on water, air, and soil.
It is unhygienic for human body to be exposed to the toxins released from plastics. The utilisation of plastic products normally leads to inhalation and/or ingestion of large amount of microplastic particles and hundreds of toxic substances with known or suspected carcinogenic, or endocrine disrupting effects.
The lawmakers of the world need to get involved in the prevention of plastic pollution. Presently, awareness and sensitization is going on all over the globe on plastic pollution. Various governments are planning different measures to reduce the volume of plastic waste.
In India there are already many laws to deal with the problems of environmental pollution. These are Environment Protection Act 1986, the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1974, the Water Cess Act 1977 and The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981.
The law in respect of management and conservation of forests and biodiversity is contained in the Indian Forest Act 1927, the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980, the Wild Life (Protection) Act 1972 and the Biodiversity Act 2003.
In the long period of their implementation no evidence exists, both in its content and application, that these laws have the potential to meet the challenges of mass environmental disasters.
Central and state governments and the CPCB and SPCBs have adopted a soft attitude towards polluting industries and have done little more than issuing warnings.
The result is that these laws are practiced more in violation than conformity and a large number of industries operate without proper safety and pollution control measures.
For successful implementation of the CAC policy, certain facilities are of paramount importance. These are infrastructure of the regulatory agencies, a thorough understanding of environmental problems, and most importantly the monitoring and enforcement capabilities of the regulatory agencies.
It depicts the ground realities as to the limitations of legal facilitation for good environmental management and the inadequacies of the institutions and their personnel in effectively enforcing the laws.
It also raises a variety of questions that directly concern the competence and the nature of functioning of the courts of law in dealing with intricate and complex environmental issues.
Apart from addressing questions as to appropriateness, limits and limitations of judicial intervention, there is also a felt need to explore supplementary and alternative mechanisms to ensure good environmental governance, in this part of the world.
Global warming leads to rising temperatures of the oceans and the earth’s surface, causing natural disasters that include flooding, melting of polar ice caps, rise in sea levels and also unnatural patterns of precipitation such as flash floods, hurricanes, wildfires, drought, excessive snow or desertification.
The list of issues surrounding our environment is long, but there are three major ones: global warming and climate change; water pollution and ocean acidification; and loss of biodiversity.
There is need for a framework for strategic planning, policy review and action for sustainable development – for economic progress, social justice and inclusion, protection of the climate, environment and biodiversity, and ensuring no one is left behind.
Author is an Environment Activist.
DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author.
The facts, analysis, assumptions and perspective appearing in the article do not reflect the views of GK.