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SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Today's concerns
Environmentalists and economists around the world are seeking answers to questions such as"Is such rapid and widespread development sustainable? Can forests be cleared endlessly for cultivation, habitation, roads, etc.? Can the fossil fuels be mined and pumped out in a never-ending stream? Can intensive farming be carried out throughout the year? Can fossil fuels be burned in endless quantities? How long will our natural resources last at this galloping rate of consumption?"
What is sustainable development?
 The World Commission on Environment and Development defines `Sustainable development' as `development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of the future generations to meet their own needs'. Simply put it means that our development and excessive consumption should not deplete natural resources and pollute the environment to the extent that it will not support survival of future generations.
That the earth cannot provide for our needs indefinitely is abundantly clear. We must act now to slowdown our thoughtless and wasteful use of resources.
The symptoms of unsustainability
It is in experiencing the present quality of our lifestyle that we become aware and conscious of the need for better standards and conditions that sustainable development alone can ensure. The overwhelming symptoms of unsustainability surround us:
- Population explosion
- Poverty and disease
- Scarcity of clean air, water and housing
- Accumulation of garbage and hazardous wastes
- Global warming, rising sea levels and unpredictable climate patterns
- Excessive consumption of fossil fuels and natural resources,
- Mass extinction of species
Several international conferences have been held on the subject of sustainable development.
It is evident that 25 years after the first conference in Tbilisi and 9 years after the Earth Summit at Rio, there has not been an appreciable change in lifestyles or the level of awareness.
 A question of time
Much more has to be done to ensure sustainable development and the time in which to do it is racing ahead. Planning for sustainable development is not an exercise for the future, but must be implemented with immediate effect so that living sustainably becomes more than a concept and a way of life.
POPULATION PRESSURE
Increasing numbers of people place enormous pressures on the environment. More land is required to accommodate them. But much more fertile land is required to grow food and fodder for their livestock. To make space, forests are being cleared. Between 1980 and 1995,180 million hectares of forestland were cleared in the developing countries, destroying habitats, changing climate patterns and lleading to extinction of species at a never-before-encountered rate.
We are now 6 billion and if predictions are right, on the way to being 9 billion by the year 2030. The snowballing world population count has gathered extra momentum and size in the last 1000 years, swelling from a modest 2 billion in 1950 to a mighty 6 billion in 2000. Roughly one-sixth i.e. i billion are in India.
With a mere 2.5% of the world's land, India is groaning under the pressure of supporting 1/2 the world's buffaloes, 1/6 of the world population of people and 1/7 of the cattle and sheep in the world. Out of a total land area of 328.73 mha, 142.21 mha comprise the area under cultivation. In a bid to increase food production both grazing lands and wastelands have been brought under the plough, depriving the cattle and further degrading the land.
Concern and care for the environment is the least priority of the impoverished majority who have no motivation to study, earn or improve their health.
A CASE OF SCARCITY AMIDST PLENTY
Though there is a surplus of food, about 800 million people around the world, of which 20% are in the developing nations, do not have access to enough healthy food. About 200 million children worldwide are also suffering from malnutrition and in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa, their numbers are likely to increase by 50% by 2050.
The Green Revolution . . .
The Green Revolution which was seen as the solution to repeated occurrences of famine and hunger. Boosted food grain production to 200 million tonnes from 50 million tonnes in 1950 but has left a legacy of severe environmental degradation.
Land degradation due to
- Soil erosion
- Pollution by pesticides and fertilisers
- Water-logging due to over-watering
- Salinisation
- Loss of genetic biodiversity due to monoculture and pollution of waterbodies
- Family run farms have vanished
Costs of production have increased
Research and innovation
Tremendous investments have to be made in research for sustainable solutions. Developing countries at present spend less than 0.5 % of their gross domestic agricultural product on research.
A report released in October 1995 by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) states that 1.5 billion hectares of agricultural land, permanent pastures, and forest and woodlands have already been degraded and each year about 5 to 10 million additional hectares will become so degraded that they cannot be used.
In India, 30,000 varieties of rice used to be grown, while only 10 are grown today. 75% of our genetic diversity of agriculture has been lost and only 150 varieties are grown. Of these just 3 varieties supply 60 % of the energy derived from plants.
WATER - THE ELIXIR OF LIFE
Many of the major water sources of the world have become dreadfully polluted and only intense monitoring has kept pollution at bay from others.
How much water is there?
The volume of water available on the earth is 1.4 billion cu km. of which more than 97 % is saline and present in the oceans. Less than 3 % of water on earth has originated from the ocean, passing billions of times through the water cycle. The amount of water on earth has been constant for millions of years. Nearly 77% (28 million cu km) of the freshwater on earth is frozen in the Antarctic ice cap and Greenland. The freshwater actually available for use is a mere 0.5 % (8 million cu km) of the total quantity of water and is found in lakes, rivers and underground.
An unquenchable thirst?
About 20% of the water in rivers is withdrawn annually. Groundwater provides for the needs of 20 % of the world's people. Today, as much as 40% (2.4 billion) of the population live in water scarce areas. And this could increase to 48% (3.5 billion) 2 by the year 2025. How to quench the thirst of 9 billion people in 2050, half of who are already facing conditions of drought and scarcity?
Engineering the waterways
Rivers around the world have been exploited for navigation, irrigation and harnessing water for flood control by suitably engineering their course. Acclaimed as monumental achievements, they have affected the hydrological cycle.
The World Commission for dams has estimated that there are 4291 dams in India, second only to China with 22,000 dams. Bakra, Tehri and Sardar Sarovar are amongst the ten largest dams in the world.
The huge lake formed by restraining a river behind a wall submerges thousands of villages, forests and fields, causing immense damage to cropland, livelihoods and biodiversity.
A convenient sewer
Waterways have come to be viewed as the dumping ground of agricultural runoff, industrial effluents and domestic sewage. Water-borne diseases due to contamination of water with sewage is a major cause of infant mortality in South East Asia where typhoid, jaundice, cholera, dysentery, etc., are common. Corals have now become afflicted by an infection similar to cholera, acquired in the same way from sewage.
Dwindling fish-catches Fish are a cheap and protein rich food for more than a billion Asians. However, throughout the world, the cost of fish has increased owing to reduced yields. Habitat destruction or conversion, interference in water flow patterns and pollution has brought down the yield in both inland fisheries and the oceans.
Pumping the earth dry
There are about 17 million energised tube wells in operation all over India running on subsidized power or diesel. Lacking in sufficient storage capacity, barely 10% of the water that falls as rain is stored and utilized. Out of 36.1 mhm (million hectare metres) ground water available for irrigation, 11.52 mhm have been extracted, leaving only 24.58 mhm for future use.
Catch that water
Rainwater harvesting is a simple and efficient method to recharge the groundwater or even the daily water supply. At present, rainwater falling on rooftops, open areas and roads finds its way into the sewers or storm water drain, ending up in the river or sea. The same water after filtration, can be directed to flow into a recharge well or the underground sump.
THE FRAYING WEB
Each and every living species ranging from the invisible microorganism to the giant dinosaurs that once roamed the earth has a well-defined role as predator, prey, pollinator or scavenger. The key to his puzzle lies in the web of life which links every species of a habitat in a complex ecological network showing how each is simultaneously a predator and prey.
Within each ecosystem are a myriad living components like microbes, plants, animals, and fungi and nonliving components such as climate and nutrients, all of which are connected by an energy flow originating from the sun. The loss of a single species will immediately impact several species both below and above it in the food web.
The tropical rainforests, of which 1/3 are found in Brazil, cover only 7% of the earth's surface, but support half the world's living species and 80% of these are found in the Southern hemisphere.
Declining diversity
In the past 50 years we have brought down the number of crops grown to less than 100 and the number of animals reared to less than 24. Only 12 crops are feeding most of humanity today. Even among them, only the so called "elite crops" which have better yield, resistance to pests, superior taste, quick growth and require less watering are preserved by the farmers, while the old and rare varieties are forgotten.
The sixth mass extinction of species is in progress
Man is winning in the battle between ecology and man. Saving the elephant comes a poor second to survival of human beings.The population of 6 billion which is on the rise and projected to hit 9 billion in 2050, is involved in a rapid destruction of ecosystems in its quest to clear more and more land for housing, cultivation, laying of roads and dams, grazing cattle, etc.
The rate of extinction of species is at an all time high since the dinosaurs were wiped out 65 million years ago. Biologists estimate that 3 species of plants, animals, fungi, and microscopic organisms such as bacteria go extinct every hour. Millions of species are in danger of being lost - even before we know what cure or property lies hidden in them.
MONUMENTS OF WASTE
Garbage and wastes surround us on all sides. It will no longer disappear or be kept out of sight.
 Changing lifestyles are the cause for garbage accumulation. Our personal needs and wants have increased over the years, both to cope with busy schedules and in proportion with soaring incomes _ for some. The developed north undoubtedly generates more waste and garbage than the developing south.
Technological advance is in a way to be blamed for the massive quantities of waste that we are generating today. Electronic goods are running our lives today. No sooner is a model released than a newer, faster model with more features is ready to hit the market. The drive to possess the latest is pushing the old, but not yet outdated, into the dustbin.
Synthetics: alien to nature
What we use and throw is a reflection of how far we have alienated ourselves from nature. Instead of drawing from the environment for our needs, we are introducing synthetic products into it, which have no breakdown relation with nature.
Natural processes are capable of breaking down waste products to harmless end products. But the rate at which we are producing waste is far in excess of the natural breakdown process. The waste products are increasingly made of heavy non-biodegradable plastics and other synthetics. In fact even paper and rags take years to rot.
Status of municipal solid waste generation, collection, treatment and disposal
Class I cities and 345 Class-II towns, show that more than 52,000 tonnes of solid waste is generated every day, with overall per capital contribution of 0.346 kg/day. Out of this, only 2,832 tonnes of waste gets to be treated.
The daily per capita solid waste generated in India ranges from about 100 g in small towns to 500 g in large towns. The recyclable content of waste ranges from about 13% to 20%. In India, paper, plastic, glass, rubber, ferrous and non-ferrous metals are salvaged from this waste to produce low-cost products extensively used by the lower-income groups of the society. However, about 70% of them do not have adequate capacity for collection and transportation of MSW (municipal solid waste). The uncollected waste usually finds its way into sewers and is eaten by the cattle, left to rot in the open, or burnt.
The daily per capita sewage generation is about 150 litres. The total sewage generated in India, about 5 billion litres/day in 1947, grew to 30 billion litres/day in 1997. However, the total treatment capacity available is only about 10% of this quantum generated.
It is up to every one of us to explore ways and means of cutting down on the contents of our garbage bin.
What's in the air?
"..all things share the same breath _ the beast, the tree, the man, they all share the same breath" -Chief Seattle
Pollution of the atmosphere is a major concern today as it has given rise to phenomenal global happenings:
- Global warming
- Ozone depletion
- Smog and acid rain
Industries, agriculture, combustion of fossil fuels like petroleum, coal and natural gas, cooling systems, chemicals from explosives, paints and cleaning agents, etc., disperse vapours or fine solid particles in the air. These then cause changes either by their presence in the atmosphere itself or on drifting down to earth.
The heat is on
Water vapour, carbon dioxide, ozone, methane, nitrous oxide, and the chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are known as Greenhouse Gases. Their accumulation in the air traps heat and raises the temperature. There has been a slow and steady rise in global temperatures amounting to an increase of 0.50C since 1600. Starting with the melting of the polar ice cap, it is also going to cause rising sea levels, reduced agricultural yields, reduced water flows, increased health hazards, uncertain weather, more ecological refugees and a lot of yet to be noticed problems.
How hot can it get?
Models of climate change predict that the global temperature will rise by about 1-3.5°C by the year 2100, the largest over the last 10,000 years. Low level lands, particularly , live in fear of being rubbed off the world map in a couple of decades. Thousands of species are facing serious threat owing to loss or pollution of their habitat. How high can the temperature rise and how many more species have to be exterminated before the earth ceases to be the living planet?
Rising sea-level
As the temperature rises, so will the level of the sea due to the melting ice caps. In the last century, the sea-level rose by 20 to 30 centimetres and is expected to rise by 1 metre this century. There will be a spate of migration from the coast to the interior, placing a strain on the resources available over there. China, India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines will in particular be affected.
A hole in the protective curtain
The use of chloroflurocarbons in refrigerating and air-conditioning units and also in aerosols has precipitated the issue of ozone depletion. A hole has been torn in the thin veil of ozone just above the Antarctic. Ultraviolet radiation which used to be filtered by the ozone layer is now streaming in and we are all exposed to its harsh effects viz. skin cancer and cataract in humans and blindness in rabbits and salmon have been noted.
Who is polluting the air?
The activities of everyday life, particularly agriculture, burning fossil fuels, large scale energy consumption and temperature controlled living and storing are themselves responsible for creating the greenhouse-like conditions. Rice cultivation, animal waste, decaying vegetation, landfills, etc., release vast quantities of methane and nitrous oxides - a legacy of fertilizer aided agriculture. Refrigerating and cooling systems, fire extinguishers and propellants use chloroflurocarbons (CFCs) that contribute to about 20 % of the warm-up and ozone depletion.
Vehicular emissions
India has 23 cities with a million people or more. These people own 33% of motor vehicles in the country which contribute to more than half the pollution above our cities. The exhaust of motor vehicles contains a deadly cocktail of gases and particulate matter: lead, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, sulphur dioxide, particles of unburned carbon, water vapour, etc.
The multiplication of diesel vehicles (purely on consideration of economic reasons), a lax emission testing system, adulteration of fuel with kerosene and poorly maintained vehicles, have created a situation that cries out for immediate attention.
Pollution and health
By far the most serious fallout of a polluted atmosphere is the spread of illness and death through air borne particles and toxins. Many of the pollutants are carcinogenic and have become the cause of asthma, lung cancer, still births, deformed babies and suppression of the immune system. A study by the Centre for Scientific Education, New Delhi has revealed that 52,000 premature deaths occur each year due to the poor air quality, particularly suspended particulate matter.
DEVELOPMENT VS. ENVIRONMENT
Growth, change, progress, improvement .. all come to mind when we think of development. Yet `development' in the context of the environment has come to be regarded as a dirty word. At no other period in the history of man have the environment and development been viewed as such avowed enemies. The mere mention of development implies definite environmental degradation with long-term impacts. To get where we are today we have lost so much of our natural resources and beauty. What will be there for the next generation or even 50 years hence?
Development cannot cease
Man is an inventive, innovative creature and his mind is constantly darting from one problem to another. His mind cannot be stilled and new ideas will be born everyday. There are millions of people waiting for development to relieve their darkness and lack of transportation, communication, drinking water, sanitation, education and medical facilities, etc. Development will have to continue with new products, new processes and new problems.
Is sustainable development possible?
It is naïve to expect development to be aseptic and devoid of side effects. When houses, roads and dams are built the habitat has to be destroyed; when goods are produced, resources are used and by products are thrown out; when the population increases, more resources, more food and more land are stripped from the environment.
How can we develop and yet safegaurd the environment? Herein lies the dichotomy as to how development and sustainable development can co-exist.
A new beginning
The way to sustainable development depends on a complete change of mindset regarding business and economy, followed by a redesigning of production systems making it cyclical: reduction of inputs and waste and reuse/recycling of used products. We have to rethink our relation with nature. The use of artificial inputs and the wasteful ways of production reveal that we do not yet understand that "we are nature and nature is us".
Prescription for sustainable development
- Adoption of energy and resource saving processes
- New technology for minimization of wastes and toxins
- Biodegradable, renewable and recyclable products
On the way to sustainable development
"Our planet will not be saved by any one big decision; it will be saved by many individual choices and voices" - Barbara Y.E. Pyle
Until now we did not see ourselves or our lifestyle as a threat to the environment or to ourselves. This brute power that we have unleashed on the environment has to be restrained and changed to a responsible one.
Taking stock
- 800 million people are undernourished and an additional 3 billion will have to be fed in the next 30 years
- 1/3 of the world's population is living in areas of water scarcity and is likely to become 2/3in another 30 years
- Global energy use has increased by 70% since 1971 and is projected to rise by 2% every year for the next 15 years. As a result greenhouse gases will increase 50% above current levels
- Fossil fuels account for more than 90% of the global commercial energy and 80% of carbon dioxide emissions
- 1/2 the world's forests have been lost to agriculture, pastures and human settlements
- Bioinvasions or introduced species are threatening to push 20% of the endangered vertebrate species into extinction
- 58% of the coral reefs and 34% of the fish species are at risk from human activities
SOMETHING HAS TO BE DONE
We have come face to face with the ravages perpetrated on the environment. We see the bald and barren slopes of mountains once covered in dense green forests, we taste tainted, murky water where sparkling waters once flowed, we gasp for breath in our cities choked with traffic, we feel the impact of our wastes and effluents in our indifferent health, we experience it in the burning heat of summer that is getting longer and hotter, we hear it in the still of the night bereft of the noisy singing of the cricket or the friendly croaking of the frog and with every mouthful of food we swallow a dash of poison as well.
The blame
We have embraced each new convenience as it appeared in the market. We live in a profit driven economy where our lifestyles are artificial, consumerist and unhealthy. Each one of us is individually contributing to the pollution and waste by way of synthetic detergents, toilet cleaners, soaps, shampoos and hair colourants, use and throw packaging and non-recyclables and disposal of nutrient rich biodegradable waste.
Environmental problems can be approached from three levels.
- Immediate local problems such as water pollution, soil erosion, solid waste, grazing, loss of species, etc., can be attended to by the community itself.
- Regional problems like acid rain, deforestation, floods and air pollution would require action at the regional or national level.
- Global issues of climate change and depletion of the ozone layer and the associated problems involves world bodies who have to seek the commitment of nations around the world.
Think globally, act locally 
Any environmental problem local or regional, can become bigger and assume the proportions of a gigantic global issue. `Think globally, act locally " is the motto for all. If communities address their local issues then the bigger problems cease to exist. We each have to act in a small way for the larger good.
The proponents of change have initiated the process of striving towards sustainability and it is upto each and every one of us who is aware and conscious of these issues to act now in whatever way will help this movement.
EDUCATION - THE ONLY HOPE OF THE FUTURE
Education about the environment is critical as it
- brings about a change in values, behaviour and lifestyle for sustainable living
- provides knowledge, knowhow and skills for management of resources, sustainable production and consumption
- involves entire communities in identifying unsustainable practices
- induces communities to attempt and implement sustainable solutions for local problems
- ensures support for sustainable development by increasing awareness and level of information in people
Think sustainable
The transition to sustainable living or development can be catalysed by a change in thinking and shift in values. Values such as a concern for human rights, responsibility for the earth and the welfare of future generations are needed for the success of sustainable development. We have been entrusted with the responsibility of creating a safe and supportive environment for tomorrow and what emerges will depend on the decisions we take today: decisions founded on moral and ethical values.
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