India records rise in number of jumbos

In response to a question in the Lok Sabha on the ‘census of wild animals’, the environment ministry said that the updated 2017 figures showed 29,964 elephants on average. It recorded a slight increase from the 2012 census, which said there were 29,576 elephants on average.

According to the 2017 report, released by the ministry, Karnataka has the highest number of elephants (6,049), followed by Assam (5,719). Updated figures in Kerala shows that there are 5,706 elephants in the state.

World Elephant Day

The objective behind celebrating the World Elephant Day on August 12 every year is to focus attention of various stakeholders to support conservation policies to help elephants, including improving enforcement policies to prevent the illegal poaching and trade of ivory, conserving elephant habitats, providing better treatment for captive elephants and reintroducing some captive elephants into sanctuaries.

Asian elephants are confined to South Asia and Southeast Asia and about 60 per cent of global population of Asian elephants is found in India. As an acknowledgement of the important role played by the elephants in the social, religious and cultural life of people in India, elephants were declared as the National Heritage Animal in 2010.

Project Elephant

In order to conserve Asian Elephants, Project Elephant was started in 1992. Its objectives are…

* Conservation and protection of viable population of wild elephants in their natural habitats in the country.

* Restoration of natural habitats and traditional corridors / migratory routes or movement paths used by the elephants, wherever necessary, through eco-restoration, acquisition etc.

* Ensuring safeguards against poaching and other threats.

* Mitigation and control of human elephant conflicts.

* Welfare and management of captive elephants.

* Creating a viable mechanism to ensure inter-state and regional and national level coordination in protecting and conserving the elephant and its ranges.

Plastic bags banned in 18 states: CPCB

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has notified the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that 18 states have imposed a complete ban on the use of plastic carry bags, while in five other states, a partial ban has been imposed at religious and historical sites.

Negative impact on environment

* Plastic bags pollute the land and water. As they are lightweight, plastic materials can travel long distances by wind and water.

* The majority of plastic bags is made of polypropylene, a material derived from petroleum and natural gas. Both of them are non-renewable fossil fuel-based resources, which contribute to global climate change.

High cost of production

* The production of plastic materials are very energy intensive. The energy used to produce nine plastic bags is equivalent to that of what is needed to drive a car for 1 km. Using these resources to make plastic bags is not advisable since the life of a bag is just about 12 minutes.

* Most of the plastics are not recyclable. Though some kinds of plastic bags can be recycled, many don’t possess the technology or plants to recycle them. The actual recycling rate for plastic bags is about 5-6 per cent.

Threat to marine life

* Most of the plastic bags end up in the oceans. It is estimated that 46,000-100,000 plastic fragments are floating within every square mile of the world’s oceans.

* Due to their size, they are often mistaken for food by animals, birds and marine life. Ingesting plastic particles lead to health issues or can even result in death by suffocation.

Harmful to human health

* Toxic chemicals from plastic bags can damage the blood and tissues. Frequent exposure can lead to cancer, birth defects, impaired immunity, hormone changes, endocrine disruption and other ailments.

Central Pollution Control Board

The CPCB was constituted in 1974 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974. Later, it was entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.

Its functions are…

* To promote cleanliness of streams and wells by prevention, control and abatement of water pollution.

* To improve the quality of air and to prevent, control or abate air pollution.

* To coordinate the activities of the State Pollution Control Boards and resolve disputes.

* To lay down, modify or annul the standards for streams or wells, and lay down standards for the quality of air.

India to launch Deep Ocean Mission in Oct

After making forays into space, India will launch its resourceful Deep Ocean Mission by October to enter the hitherto untapped 75,000 sq km of area in international waters to tap vast marine resources.

Mission features

* The government had unveiled a blueprint of the programme last year. Among the key proposals are an offshore desalination plant that will work with tidal energy, and developing a submersible vehicle that can go to a depth of at least 6,000 metres with three people on board.

* A major target of the mission will be looking for metals and minerals.

Background

* India has been allotted a site of 75,000 sq km in the Central Indian Ocean Basin (CIOB) by the UN International Seabed Authority for exploitation of polymetallic nodules (PMN).

* These are rocks scattered on the seabed containing iron, manganese, nickel and cobalt. Being able to lay hands on even 10 per cent of that reserve can meet India’s energy requirements for the next 100 years.

* It has been estimated that 380 million metric tonnes of polymetallic nodules are available at the bottom of the seas in the central Indian Ocean.

* India’s Exclusive Economic Zone is spread over 2.2 million sq km.

What are PMN?

* Polymetallic nodules (also known as manganese nodules) are potato-shaped, largely porous nodules found in abundance carpeting the sea floor of world oceans in deep sea. Besides manganese and iron, they contain nickel, copper, cobalt, lead, molybdenum, cadmium, vanadium, titanium, of which nickel, cobalt and copper are considered to be of economic and strategic importance.

Seabed Authority

The International Seabed Authority (ISA) is a UN body set up to regulate the exploration and exploitation of marine non-living resources of oceans in international waters. India actively contributes to the work of the ISA. Last year, India was re-elected as a member of the ISA council. India’s nominees on legal and technical commission and finance committee of the ISA were also elected last year.