World Air Quality Report 2021: Report presented an overview of the state of global air quality in 2021. Report prepared by IQAir, a Swiss group that measures air quality levels based on the concentration of Particulate Matter (PM) 2.5. Need of World Air Quality Report: Air pollution is now considered to be the world’s largest environmental health threat, accounting for seven …
What is the BBNJ Treaty? The “BBNJ Treaty”, also known as the “Treaty of the High Seas”, is an international agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, currently under negotiation at the United Nations. This new instrument is being developed within the framework of the UNCLOS, the main international agreement governing …
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Context: Ministry of Earth Science has unveiled India’s Arctic Policy, titled ‘India and the Arctic: building a partnership for sustainable development’. Major Provisions of India’s Arctic Policy: Six Central Pillars: Science and research. Environmental protection. Economic and human development. Transportation and connectivity. Governance and international cooperation. National capacity building. Objectives: It aims to strengthen national capabilities and competencies in science …
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Context: Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change released DPRs on rejuvenation of 13 major rivers through forestry interventions. These 13 rivers are Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, Sutlej, Yamuna, Brahmaputra, Narmada, Godavari, Mahanadi, Krishna, Cauvery and Luni. What are the Interventions Proposed? The DPRs recognise the merit of adopting a holistic riverscape approach for forestry interventions in three …
State of India’s Environment Report 2022: The report is the annual publication of the Centre for Science and Environment, and Down To Earth magazine. The report focuses on climate change, migration, health and food systems. It also covers biodiversity, forest and wildlife, energy, industry, habitat, pollution, waste, agriculture and rural development. CSE is a public interest research and advocacy organisation based in …
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Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report: The report analyses near-term, mid-term and long-term impacts of climate change due to an average increase of temperature by 1.5°C. It suggests immediate measures that the world’s leaders must take. Threats identified: Food Security: The scientists opine that “unsustainable agricultural expansion, driven in part by unbalanced diets” has increased the …
ISFR 2021 : Analysis Forest Cover: ISFR 2021 recorded a total forest cover of 21.71% of the country’s geographical area. While ISFR 2001 recorded the total forest cover as 19.5% of the geographical area. In the last 20 years, India’s forest cover has increased by 38,251sq km. But, during this period, dense forests have reduced by 10,140 sq km, and open forests have increased by 48,391 …
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Context: At CoP26 Glasgow Summit, India has committed to achieve a net-zero target by 2070. In a study by Griscom (2017), natural climate solutions that also include forests can provide up to 37% of emission reduction and help in keeping the global temperature below 2° C. Degradation of existing forests continues In India. As per …
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Flyways: A flyway is a geographical region within which a single or a group of migratory species completes its annual cycle i.e. breeding, moulting, staging and non-breeding. According to India’s “National Action Plan (NAP) for Conservation of Migratory birds”, at least 370 species of migratory bird from 3 flyways (CAF, East Asian Australasian Flyway and Asian East African Flyway) are reported to …
Context: Comptroller and Auditor General of India(CAG) has conducted a performance audit of groundwater management and regulation to analyse the extent of groundwater scarcity in the country. CAG Audit Report on Groundwater The audit was conducted on the basis of five years of data (2013-2018) on groundwater management and regulation in India. Key findings: Between 2004 …