ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE: LAND

ENVIRONMENTA
L ISSUE: LAND

TABLE OF CONTENTS
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ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE: LAND

S.NO.

CONTENT

PAGE NO.

1.

Acknowledgement

2.

Introduction

3.

Causes

4.

5.

6.

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Effects

Legal Control & Judicial Response

Suggestions & Conclusion

5-6

8-10

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ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE: LAND

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I have taken efforts in this project. However, it would not have been possible without the kind
support and help of many individuals and organizations. I would like to extend my sincere thanks
to all of them.

I am highly indebted to my Environmental Law professor MR PRAVEEN K. LOHCHAB for his

guidance and constant supervision as well as for providing necessary information regarding the
project & also for their support in completing the project.

I would like to express my gratitude towards my parents, all the other faculty members of NCU
LAW SCHOOL, GURGAON for their kind co-operation and encouragement which help me in
completion of this project.

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ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE: LAND

I would like to express my special gratitude and thanks to all the online journals for providing
me such useful and relevant information.

My thanks and appreciations also go to my colleagues and people who have willingly helped me
out with their abilities for guiding me in developing the project.

INTRODUCTION
Pollution is generally viewed as a land-based phenomenon and It is from the fact that most
pollution is generated on land. Even the pollution of the air (for example, acid rain) is
largely generated on land. The term land pollution cannot be defined due to the
comprehensiveness involved with the same. Interestingly, land pollution is something which is
entirely overlooked and hence, is not being dealt specifically by any statute or defined in
some statute and is recognized as an important component of environment.
Section 2(a)1 of the Environment Protection Act (EPA), 1986 defines land but the act nowhere
deals in detail with land pollution. Land pollution can be defined as any physical or chemical
alteration to land which cause its use to change and render it incapable of beneficial treatment
without treatment.
Land pollution, in other words, means degradation or destruction of earths surface and soil,
directly or indirectly as a result of human activities. Anthropogenic activities are conducted
1 "environment" includes water, air and land and the interrelationship which exists among and between
water, air and land, and human beings, other living creatures, plants, microorganism and property.
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citing development, and the same affects the land drastically. The degradation of land that could
be used constructively in other words is land pollution.

CAUSES
There are many causes of land pollution. The major causes are:
1. Deforestation and soil erosion: Deforestation carried out to create dry lands is one of the
major concerns. Land that is once converted into a dry or barren land, can never be made fertile
again, whatever the magnitude of measures to redeem it are. Land conversion, meaning the
alteration or modification of the original properties of the land to make it use-worthy for a
specific purpose is another major cause. This hampers the land immensely. Also there is a
constant waste of land. Unused available land over the years turns barren; this land then cannot
be used. So in search of more land, potent land is hunted and its indigenous state is compromised
with.
2. Agricultural activities: With growing human population, demand for food has increased
considerably. Farmers often use highly toxic fertilizers and pesticides to get rid off insects, fungi
and bacteria from their crops. However with the overuse of these chemicals, they result in
contamination and poisoning of soil.

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3. Mining activities: During extraction and mining activities, several land spaces are created
beneath the surface. We constant hear about land caving in; this is nothing but natures way of
filling the spaces left out after mining or extraction activity.
4. Overcrowded landfills: Each household produces tonnes of garbage each year. Garbage like
aluminum, plastic, paper, cloth, wood is collected and sent to the local recycling unit. Items that
cannot be recycled become a part of the landfills that hampers the beauty of the city and cause
land pollution.
5. Industrialization: Due to increase in demand for food, shelter and house, more goods are
produced. This resulted in creation of more waste that needs to be disposed of. To meet the
demand of the growing population, more industries were developed which led to deforestation.
Research and development paved the way for modern fertilizers and chemicals that were highly
toxic and led to soil contamination.

6. Construction activities: Due to urbanization, large amount of construction activities are

taking place which has resulted in large waste articles like wood, metal, bricks, plastic that can
be seen by naked eyes outside any building or office which is under construction.
7. Nuclear waste: Nuclear plants can produce huge amount of energy through nuclear fission
and fusion. The left over radioactive material contains harmful and toxic chemicals that can
affect human health. They are dumped beneath the earth to avoid any casualty.
8. Sewage treatment: Large amount of solid waste is leftover once the sewage has been treated.
The leftover material is sent to landfill site which end up in polluting the environment.

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EFFECTS
The major effects of land pollution are:
1. Soil pollution: Soil pollution is another form of land pollution, where the upper layer of the
soil is damaged. This is caused by the overuse of chemical fertilizers, soil erosion caused by
running water and other pest control measures; this leads to loss of fertile land for agriculture,
forest cover, fodder patches for grazing etc.
2. Change in climate patterns: The effects of land pollution are very hazardous and can lead to
the loss of ecosystems. When land is polluted, it directly or indirectly affects the climate patterns.
3. Environmental Impact: When deforestation is committed, the tree cover is compromised on.
This leads to a steep imbalance in the rain cycle. A disturbed rain cycle affects a lot of factors. To
begin with, the green cover is reduced. Trees and plants help balance the atmosphere, without
them we are subjected to various concerns like Global warming, the green house effect, irregular
rainfall and flash floods among other imbalances.
4. Effect on human health: The land when contaminated with toxic chemicals and pesticides
lead to problem of skin cancer and human respiratory system. The toxic chemicals can reach our
body through foods and vegetables that we eat as they are grown in polluted soil.
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5. Cause Air pollution: Landfills across the city keep on growing due to increase in waste and
are later burned which leads to air pollution. They become home for rodents, mice etc which in
turn transmit diseases.
6. Distraction for Tourist: The city looses its attraction as tourist destination as landfills do not
look good when you move around the city. It leads to loss of revenue for the state government.
7. Effect on wildlife: The animal kingdom has suffered mostly in the past decades. They face a
serious threat with regards to loss of habitat and natural environment. The constant human
activity on land, is leaving it polluted; forcing these species to move further away and adapt to
new regions or die trying to adjust. Several species are pushed to the verge of extinction, due to
no homeland.
Other issues that we face include increased temperature, unseasonal weather activity, acid rains
etc. The discharge of chemicals on land, makes it dangerous for the ecosystem too. These
chemicals are consumed by the animals and plants and thereby make their way in the ecosystem.
This process is called bio magnification and is a serious threat to the ecology.

LEGAL CONTROL & JUDICIAL

RESPONSE
There is no specific legislation which deals in regulation of land pollution or which gives it a
definite scope and meaning. Unlike water pollution, air pollution, deforestation etc having a
specific statute to govern, land pollution is in general being touched upon by the Environmental
Protection Act. EPA comprehensively deals with all aspects of environmental problems. The act
defines in section 2(e) "hazardous substance" as any substance or preparation which, by
reason of its chemical or physic- chemical properties or handling, is liable to cause harm to
human beings, other living creatures, plant, micro-organism, property or the environment. The
act requires the person handling the substance according to the procedure laid down 2. The
act provides Central Govt the power to form rules and procedures to deal with such
hazardous substances3. Acting on such powers there are rules enacted by the Govt relating to
hazardous waste, chemical accidents, bio medical waste, municipal solid waste, batteries,
2 Section 8 of Environmental Protection Act, 1986
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ozone depletion etc. India has been a party to various international documents like Rio
Declaration4 and Stockholm declaration5 where the concept of sustainable development was
adopted and emphasized upon. In order to ensure that regulation is necessary, but it is evident
from the lack of any legal control over land pollution that the principle is ignored.
Hazardous Wastes (Management, Handling and Tranboundary Movement) Rules, 2008:
It provides that the occupier shall be responsible for the safe and environmentally sound handling
of such substances generated in his establishment. The hazardous waste generated shall be sent to
a recycler or reuser or reprocessor registered or authorized or should be disposed off in an
authorized disposal facility. An authorization from the state pollution control board has to
be obtained for everybody who is dealing with such substances in any manner. On
satisfaction of having the equipments and facility of treating such substances and
verification of various certificates and documents required, the pollution control board can
reject or accept it. Rule 13 prohibits import of hazardous substances for disposal purpose.
Import of any such substance is allowed only for recycling or recovery or reuse. Export
of such things has to be done with prior informed consent of the importing state to ensure
environmentally sound management of the same along with the examination of the state
pollution control board. No import or export is allowed for substance listed in schedule
IV but wastes mentioned under schedule III shall be regulated as provided in the rules. If the
procedure above is not followed or consent is obtained by fraud or shipping details are not
confirmed with or if any international or national law in violated. In case of such a situation the
waste has to be re-exported within 90 days at the own cost of the doer and implementation is
ensured by the pollution board. Rule 18 provides for state Govt, occupier, operator or any
association of occupiers shall individually or severally be liable for management and
establishing the facility of treating the wastes. Facilities should be set up according to the
guidelines issued by the central pollution control board and shall obtain approval from the
3 Section 6 & 25 of Environmental Protection Act,1986
4 Principle 4
5 Principle 1
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pollution board. The rules provides for caution to be taken for packaging, labelling and transport
of hazardous substances. Rule 25 of the rules incorporates the polluter pays principles and
makes the user liable for all damages caused to the environment as well as the third party due
to improper handling and making him liable to financial penalties under rules by
pollution control board.
In Suo Motu v Vatva Industries Association6 certain industries dealing in hazardous waste was
dumping waste near a village. Noticing this environmental engineer of Gujarat Polluting Board
sought direction from the court for abatement of such activities. The court said that board and
officer are independent people and need not need court orders to act for protection of the
environment. In the case of Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action v UOI 7, the judgment
was related to the toxic chemical wastes deposited from an industry in the village of Udaipur.
The sludge deposited in areas adjoining those industries made the soil reddish and ground
water highly polluted. It has become unfit for cattle to drink and for irrigating the land.
The soil has become polluted rendering it unfit for cultivation, the main stay of the
villagers. The court ordered closure of the industry and were directed to pay compensation
based on polluter pays principle.
In Pravinbhai Jashbhai and Ors. v. State of Gujarat and Anr 8 ,Silver Chemicals is stated to
have produced 375 MT of 'H' acid. Whatever quantity these two units may have produced, it
has given birth to about 2400-2500 MT of highly toxic sludge besides other pollutants. Since the
toxic untreated waste waters were allowed to flow out freely and because the untreated toxic
sludge was thrown in the open in and around the complex, the toxic substances have
percolated deep into the bowels of the earth polluting the aquifers and the sub-terrain supply
of water. It has become unfit for cattle to drink and for irrigating the land. The soil has become
polluted rendering it unfit for cultivation, the main stay of the villagers.

6 AIR 2000 Guj 33

7 AIR 1996 SC 1446
8 (1995)2GLR1210
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These rules deal with any hazardous substance whether in solid, liquid or gaseous state. It does
not specifically deals with land pollution but if any hazardous substance leads to
activities like dumping, land filling etc which leads to land pollution then it is applicable.
Some other acts like The Manufacture, Storage & Import of Hazardous Chemicals Rules, 1989,
Hazardous Micro-Organism Rules, 1989, Bio Medical Waste (Management& Handling) Rules
1998 etc deals with issues related to land pollution.

SUGGESTIONS & CONCLUSION

The suggestions for controlling land pollution can are:

A specific legislation which deals with land pollution in detail should be enacted.
It needs establishment of requirements for phasing out of inadequate over-the-water toilets,

requirements for wastewater treatment at tourist accommodations and service facilities.

Training should be developed for pesticide importers, retailers and users.
Coastal management plan should be established based on local conditions and experiences.
Building expanded environmental awareness programs and groups based on existing

campaigns like the recycling program is necessary.

Provide community solid waste disposal containers in communities at convenient
locations with assurance of adequate pickup and disposal. Establish sewage treatment for
growing urban areas.

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Organic waste matter should be disposed in areas that are far away from residential places.
Inorganic matter such as paper, plastic, glass and metals should be reclaimed and then
recycled. Both these type of wastes should be segregated.

Land pollution is totally neglected in India as it is a problem which does not have a
solution or regulation anywhere in the zillions of law enacted. There are various serous effects
of land pollution which are being discussed by the author but nobody seems to be taking
it seriously. This may be because, the effects of land pollution is not spontaneous. It effects in
long run. The seriousness of the problem has to be understood not only by the legislature
and judiciary but by the public themselves

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