ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT MMS IV Semester Prof Bharat Nadkarni April 2012 Question Bank 1.

Define ecosystem, Community and Population. Why is it important for a manager to have knowledge about the functioning of Ecosystem? 2. What is Sustainable Development? Describe the important steps required in attaining sus 3. tainable development. 4. Write a detailed note on Earth Summit 1992 held at Rio. 5. Define EMS. What are EMS Standards? What are the basic principles of ISO 14000? 6. What is the role of NGO in environment protection? 7. Describe salient features of Kyoto Protocol and Copenhagen Summit. 8. Write a detailed note on Economic growth and Environment. 9. What is Global Warming? How do you think it can be tackled at individual level? 10.What are the salient features of Environmental Protection act 1986?
The highlights are : a. Concerns not only protection but measures to tackle the problem of pollution and establishing an effective machinery to achieve the objectives of Act. b. The Central Government is also empowered to constitute an authority for exercising the power and frame rules.

c. Any citizen has a right to approach Court (with a notice of sixty days) for alleged environmental offence. d. Its strengthens the penal provision by enhancing the maximum penalty to imprisonment up to five years or fine up to one lakh rupees or both. e. The government has the powers to collect samples of air, water, soil or other substances as evidence at the offence under the Act. f. Special procedure for handling hazardous substances. g. Vested with power of entering and Inspecting any place through any person or agency authorised by it. h. Authorises the Central Government to issue direction for closure, prohibition or regulation of any industry , operation or process. The central government can stop or regulate the supply of electricity or water without obtaining a court order. Salient Features of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 a. As compared to all other previous laws on environment protection, the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 is a more effective and bold measure to fight the problem of pollution. b. The genesis of the Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986, thus, is in Article 48A (Directive Principles of State Policy) and Article 51A (g) (Fundamental Duties) of the Indian Constitution. c. Soon after the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held at Stockholm in 1972, the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 came on the statute book. The Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act came in 1981 and finally came the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. d. The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 has 26 Sections and it has been divided into four chapters relating to i) Preliminary, ii) General Powers of the Central Government, iii) Prevention, Control, and Abatement of Environmental Pollution, iv) Miscellaneous. e. The Act consists of and deals with more stringent penal provisions. The minimum penalty for contravention or violation of any provision of the law is an imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years or fine up to one lakh rupees, or both. The Act also provides for the further penalty if the failure or contravention continues after the date of conviction. It is Rs. 5000/- per day. If the failure of contravention continues beyond the period of one year, then the offender is punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to seven years. f. The Act empowers the Central Government to take all appropriate measures to prevent and control pollution and to establish effective machinery for the purpose of protecting and improving the quality of the environment and protecting controlling and abating environmental pollution.

g. The Central Government or any other person duly authorised is empowered to collect the samples of air, water, soil or other substances as evidence of the offences under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. h. The Act prescribes a special procedure for handling hazardous substances and the concerned person has to handle the hazardous substances according to the procedure of the Act. i. The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 has relaxed the rule of Locus Standi and because of such relaxation even a common citizen can approach the Court provided he has given a notice of sixty days of the alleged offence and his intention to make a complaint to the Central Government or any other competent authority. j. In the commission of the offence under this Act by Government Department, the Act holds the Head of the Department as guilty of the offence unless the head of the Department proves that the offence was committed without his knowledge or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of such offence. k. This Act also empowers and authorises the Central Government to issue directions for the operation or process, prohibition, closure, or regulation of any industry. The Central Government is also authorised to stop, regulate the supply of electricity or water or any other service directly without obtaining the order of the Court in this regard. l. The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 grants immunity to the officers of the Government for any act done under the provisions of this Act or under the powers vested in them or functions assigned to them under this Act. m. The Central Government is also empowered to enter and inspect any place through any person or through any agency authorised by Central Government. n. The Act debars the Civil Courts from having any jurisdiction to entertain any suit or proceeding in respect of an action, direction, order issued by Central Government or other statutory authority under this Act.

11.What are the causes of Deforestation? Review the program of peoples participation in forest management. 12.Describe the functions of key agencies of the Indian government that deal with environmental issues. 13.What are the strategies for sustainable water management? 14.What is relationship between energy and environment?

15.Short Notes a. Triple Bottom Line Concept Triple Bottomline Concept : 3 Ps PROFITS Why Organisations which make losses are nuisance to the society. 1. Not giving value for Shareholders money invested. 2. Misutilises scarce natural resources incl raw materials. 3. Wastes employees talent and potential and promotes inefficiency. 4. Not paying taxes which are utilised for economic development of the country. 5. Not paying creditors and upsets economy. 6. Jeopardises employees future. In a way - Pushing them in to unemployment market. PLANET Preventing Environmental Pollution 1. Growing cost of compliance 2. The cost of breaking the law 3. The polluting enterprise is more vulnerable to changes in environmental legislation 4. Polluters will increasingly find it difficult to obtain finance and insurance cover 5. The polluting enterprise will find it harder to attract and retain talent 6. The polluting enterprise can be attacked as being anti social and uncaring 7. The polluting enterprise can find itself left behind by competitors which adopt greener products and processes PEOPLE Preserve, promote and nurture Social and Cultural values 1. Set an example : Be a Role Model 2. Respect others. 3. Respect & Obey Elders. 4. Be considerate to your workers. 5. Do not tell a lie for personal benefits. 6. Do not misguide for personal benefits. 7. Keeping promises 8. Atithi Devo Bhava an Indian culture. 9. Create a level playing field 10. Zero politics and Sense of purpose.

b. Earth Summit +5

c. Greenhouse Effect
The Greenhouse Effect The "greenhouse effect" is the heating of the Earth due to the presence of greenhouse gases. It is named this way because of a similar effect produced by the glass panes of a greenhouse. Shorter-wavelength solar radiation from the sun passes through Earth's atmosphere, then is absorbed by the surface of the Earth, causing it to warm. Part of the absorbed energy is then reradiated back to the atmosphere as long wave infrared radiation. Little of this long wave radiation escapes back into space; the radiation cannot pass through the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The greenhouse gases selectively transmit the infrared waves, trapping some and allowing some to pass through into space. The greenhouse gases absorb these waves and reemits the waves downward, causing the lower atmosphere to warm. How Do Humans Contribute to the Greenhouse Effect? While the greenhouse effect is an essential environmental prerequisite for life on Earth, there really can be too much of a good thing. The problems begin when human activities distort and accelerate the natural process by creating more greenhouse gases in the atmosphere than are necessary to warm the planet to an ideal temperature. Greenhouse Gases

Solution
Electric vehicles Alternative Energy - e.g .solar energy market-based approaches charging extra tax on company who crossing carbon emission limit. Plant a tree. Look for Energy Star

What is the Greenhouse Effect? The Sun powers Earths climate, radiating energy at very short wavelengths, predominately in the visible or near-visible (e.g., ultraviolet) part of the spectrum. Roughly one-third of the solar energy that reaches the top of Earths atmosphere is reflected directly back to space. The remaining two-thirds is absorbed by the surface and, to a lesser extent, by the atmosphere. To balance the absorbed incoming energy, the Earth must, on average, radiate the same amount of energy back to space. Because the Earth is much colder than the Sun, it radiates at much longer wavelengths, primarily in the infrared part of the spectrum (see Figure 1). Much of this thermal radiation emitted by the land and ocean is absorbed by the atmosphere, including clouds, and reradiated back to Earth. This is called the greenhouse effect. The glass walls in a greenhouse reduce airflow and increase the temperature of the air inside. Analogously, but through a different physical process, the Earths greenhouse effect warms the surface of the planet. Without the natural greenhouse effect, the average temperature at Earths surface would be below the freezing point of water. Thus, Earths natural greenhouse effect makes life as we know it possible. However, human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels and clearing of forests, have greatly intensified the natural greenhouse effect, causing global warming. The two most abundant gases in the atmosphere, nitrogen (comprising 78% of the dry atmosphere) and oxygen (comprising 21%), exert almost no greenhouse effect. Instead, the greenhouse effect comes from molecules that are more complex and much less common. Water vapour is the most important greenhouse gas, and carbon dioxide (CO2) is the second-most important one. Methane, nitrous oxide, ozone and several other gases present in the atmosphere in small amounts also contribute to the greenhouse effect. In the humid equatorial regions, where there is so much water vapour in the air that the greenhouse effect is very large, adding a small additional amount of CO2 or water vapour has only a small direct impact on downward infrared radiation. However, in the cold, dry polar regions, the effect of a small increase in CO2 or

What is the Greenhouse Effect?

The Sun powers Earths climate, radiating energy at very short wavelengths, predominately in the visible or near-visible (e.g., ultraviolet) part of the

spectrum. Roughly one-third of the solar energy that reaches the top of Earths atmosphere is reflected directly back to space. The remaining two-thirds is absorbed by the surface and, to a lesser extent, by the atmosphere. To balance the absorbed incoming energy, the Earth must, on average, radiate the same amount of energy back to space. Because the Earth is much colder than the Sun, it radiates at much longer wavelengths, primarily in the infrared part of the spectrum (see Figure 1). Much of this thermal radiation emitted by the land and ocean is absorbed by the atmosphere, including clouds, and reradiated back to Earth. This is called the greenhouse effect. The glass walls in a greenhouse reduce airflow and increase the temperature of the air inside. Analogously, but through a different physical process, the Earths greenhouse effect warms the surface of the planet. Without the natural greenhouse effect, the average temperature at Earths surface would be below the freezing point of water. Thus, Earths natural greenhouse effect makes life as we know it possible. However, human activities, primarily the burning of fossil fuels and clearing of forests, have greatly intensified the natural greenhouse effect, causing global warming. The two most abundant gases in the atmosphere, nitrogen (comprising 78% of the dry atmosphere) and oxygen (comprising 21%), exert almost no greenhouse effect. Instead, the greenhouse effect comes from molecules that are more complex and much less common. Water vapour is the most important greenhouse gas, and carbon dioxide (CO2) is the second-most important one. Methane, nitrous oxide, ozone and several other gases present in the atmosphere in small amounts also contribute to the greenhouse effect. In the humid equatorial regions, where there is so much water vapour in the air that the greenhouse effect is very large, adding a small additional amount of CO2 or water vapour has only a small direct impact on downward infrared radiation. However, in the cold, dry polar regions, the effect of a small increase in CO2 or water vapour is much greater. The same is true for the cold, dry upper atmosphere where a small increase in water vapour has a greater influence on the greenhouse effect than the same change in water vapour would have near the surface. Several components of the climate system, notably the oceans and living things, affect atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases. A prime example of this is plants taking CO2 out of the atmosphere and converting it (and water) into carbohydrates via photosynthesis. In the industrial era, human activities have added greenhouse gases to the atmosphere, primarily through the burning of fossil fuels and clearing of forests. Adding more of a greenhouse gas, such as CO2, to the atmosphere intensifies the greenhouse effect, thus warming Earths climate. The amount of warming depends on various feedback mechanisms. For example, as the atmosphere warms due to rising levels of greenhouse gases, its concentration of water vapour increases, further intensifying the greenhouse effect. This in turn causes more warming, which causes an additional increase in water vapour, in a selfreinforcing cycle. This water vapour feedback may be strong enough to

approximately double the increase in the greenhouse effect due to the added CO2 alone. Additional important feedback mechanisms involve clouds. Clouds are effective at absorbing infrared radiation and therefore exert a large greenhouse effect, thus warming the Earth. Clouds are also effective at reflecting away incoming solar radiation, thus cooling the Earth. A change in almost any aspect of clouds, such as their type, location, water content, cloud altitude, particle size and shape, or lifetimes, affects the degree to which clouds warm or cool the Earth. Some changes amplify warming while others diminish it. Much research is in progress to better understand how clouds change in response to climate warming, and how these changes affect climate through various feedback mechanisms.

d. Carbon Trading
A system whereby countries or individual companies are set emission targets. Those that cannot meet their targets can buy credit from countries or companies that bear theirs. In economics, carbon trading is a form of emissions trading that allows a country to meet its carbon dioxide emissions reduction commitments, often to meet Kyoto Treaty requirements, in as low a cost as possible by utilizing the free market. It is a means of privatizing the public cost or societal cost of pollution by carbon dioxide. Carbon trading is the term applied to the trading of certificates representing various ways in which carbon-related emissions reduction targets might be met. Participants in carbon trading buy and sell contractual commitments or certificates that represent specified amounts of carbon-related emissions that either: o are allowed to be emitted; o comprise reductions in emissions (new technology, energy efficiency, renewable energy); or o comprise offsets against emissions, such as carbon sequestration (capture of carbon in biomass). People buy and sell such products because it is the most cost-effective way to achieve an overall reduction in the level of emissions, assuming that transaction costs involved in market participation are kept at reasonable levels. It is cost-effective because the entities that have achieved their own emission reduction target easily will be able to create emission reduction certificates "surplus" to their own requirements. These entities can sell those surpluses to other entities that would incur very high costs by seeking to achieve their emission reduction requirement within their own business. Similarly, sellers of carbon sequestration provide entities with another alternative, namely offsetting their emissions against carbon sequestered in biomass. (The Carbon Trade, BBC News, Thursday 20 April 2006). There are two kinds of carbon trading. The first is emissions trading. The second is trading in project-based credits. Often the two categories are put together in hybrid trading systems. (Carbon Trading, 2006.Made in USA-A Short History Of Carbon Trading)

e. f. g. h.

Civil Society Ozone Depletion E Waste Desertification