June 5th, is world environment day.
I no longer hear the chirping of birds in my backyard when I wake up to the sound of my alarm clock. And that in itself is an anomaly, for in the past I was woken up by the chirping of birds; I didn’t need an alarm clock.
Today the world, or at least world leaders, (the populations have their own personal worries) are worried essentially about 3 issues - Terrorism, economic growth and climate change. Evidence shows that all the three are related.
Terrorism is born out of the individual denial of the fruits of economic growth. And economic growth is stalled by the degradation of the environment (Agricultural Production is down and therefore consumption).
In the past it was believed that it was necessary to destroy the environment to generate economic growth. But slowly it has dawned on the powers that be that development must co-exist with the environment.
Evidence indicates that of the three concerns, the environment is the key to the other two and yet it is the first to be dumped at the altar of progress. The reason is simple: pecuniary and other advantages accrue and are visible to the environment degrader within in his / her life time and there is a lot of support from the regulatory framework for the same.
Already, Donald Trump the US presumptive republican presidential nominee has promised to torpedo the Paris Climate Change Agreement that was arrived at after a decade’s painstaking negotiations by more than 160 countries.
According to the Environmental Protection Index (2016), India currently ranks 141 out of 178 countries, which indicates the poor state of environment in our country. It’s the abysmal level of air, ground and water pollution that is creating this ranking for India.
Air Pollution is growing from the burning of fossil fuels (now more than ever required if make in India is to be a success), to the growing number of Diesel automobiles on the road, as the penny wise, pound foolish middle class competes against each other for more comforts, including washing machines, refrigerators, larger led screens and mobiles, to the IT industry with its numerous computers and telecom towers emitting radiation. Four of the 10 cities in the world with the worst air pollution are in India. Almost 90% of the cities monitored have air quality below the WHO standards for Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5).
But more importantly it is the depleting water table and the water pollution in what’s left of the water sources that we have that is killing this planet and its people. Rivers and lakes, the main water sources of most countries in the world, other than the gulf, which can afford to desalinate sea water because of its oil reserves, often bear the brunt of run offs of household sewage (treated and untreated), industrial effluents (mostly treated, but not enough – take the case of the Bellandur lake in Bengaluru) and agriculture pesticide. Half the Indian Population defecates in the open, and there is a very high risk of fecal contamination in the ground water table, adversely affecting the health of the population and making the remaining water sources unusable. Landfills and their treatment are another cause for concern. Recent fires in Mumbai are a direct result of open air combustion and unscientific operation of landfills. India produces more than 1,30,000 tons of waste per day including domestic, bio-medical, industrial, e-waste and toxic waste. All pointers to a barren future that escapes our vision, because it is not the here and now.
However, while pollution dominates the discourse on the world environment day, of more relevance, is the depleting water table all over the country, but more so in urban areas. The elimination of trees to widen roads, construction activity and consumption by high rises with numerous occupants that have migrated from villages which are already water deficient, the growth of water guzzling capital intensive industries, and a lack of conservation among all these entities have contributed to this phenomenon which will greatly impact our society in the future. We have already had a taste of what is to come this summer.
It is here that two simple methods of rejuvenating the water table can be adopted by most high rises, institutions and industries and in fact must be made mandatory by law.
1. Recharging the ground water table: Diverting all water usage in Bathrooms (other than toilets) and kitchens, cleaned floors etc. into the ground away from water sources like bore wells or wells. For this the regular water harvesting method, sans the bore well, can be adopted - All that is needed are 6’ (Depth) x 6’ (Diameter) pits filled with consecutive 1’ layers of 40 Mm jelly, Tile bits or charcoal – whichever is easier to obtain and sand. Into these pits waste water can be diverted through pipes. In fact if this is made compulsory based on land area and built up area, the whole city would benefit, for this is a year round recharging methodology that is not dependent on the monsoon. The Costs, depending on labor and material costs are unlikely to exceed Rs: 65,000 per pit, give or take a little.
2. Recharging Bore wells: Diverting Roof water runoffs during monsoon into pits similar to those above. This can be done into the pits crafted for regular use, or specifically created around bore wells (which will have holes in its casing to absorb the water inflow) so that they may be recharged. Here too costs are unlikely to exceed Rs: 80000 per pit.
I recall that in the early days of my career, I would often approach my superiors with a problem. One of them always asked the same question after listening patiently to what I had to my woes – Are you a part of the problem or a part of the solution? The answer to that question has always helped me solve many a problem.
Today, all of us – the government, and the citizenry must move from being a part of the problem to being a part of the solution.. if we do not want to fight the next war, with our neighbours, whoever they may be, over water.
I no longer hear the chirping of birds in my backyard when I wake up to the sound of my alarm clock. And that in itself is an anomaly, for in the past I was woken up by the chirping of birds; I didn’t need an alarm clock.
Today the world, or at least world leaders, (the populations have their own personal worries) are worried essentially about 3 issues - Terrorism, economic growth and climate change. Evidence shows that all the three are related. Terrorism is born out of the individual denial of the fruits of economic growth. And economic growth is stalled by the degradation of the environment (Agricultural Production is down and therefore consumption).
In the past it was believed that it was necessary to destroy the environment to generate economic growth. But slowly it has dawned on the powers that be that development must co-exist with the environment.
Evidence indicates that of the three concerns, the environment is the key to the other two and yet it is the first to be dumped at the altar of progress. The reason is simple: pecuniary and other advantages accrue and are visible to the environment degrader within in his / her life time and there is a lot of support from the regulatory framework for the same.
Already, Donald Trump the US presumptive republican presidential nominee has promised to torpedo the Paris Climate Change Agreement that was arrived at after a decade’s painstaking negotiations by more than 160 countries.
According to the Environmental Protection Index (2016), India currently ranks 141 out of 178 countries, which indicates the poor state of environment in our country. It’s the abysmal level of air, ground and water pollution that is creating this ranking for India.
Air Pollution is growing from the burning of fossil fuels (now more than ever required if make in India is to be a success), to the growing number of Diesel automobiles on the road, as the penny wise, pound foolish middle class competes against each other for more comforts, including washing machines, refrigerators, larger led screens and mobiles, to the IT industry with its numerous computers and telecom towers emitting radiation. Four of the 10 cities in the world with the worst air pollution are in India. Almost 90% of the cities monitored have air quality below the WHO standards for Particulate Matter (PM10 and PM2.5).
But more importantly it is the depleting water table and the water pollution in what’s left of the water sources that we have that is killing this planet and its people. Rivers and lakes, the main water sources of most countries in the world, other than the gulf, which can afford to desalinate sea water because of its oil reserves, often bear the brunt of run offs of household sewage (treated and untreated), industrial effluents (mostly treated, but not enough – take the case of the Bellandur lake in Bengaluru) and agriculture pesticide. Half the Indian Population defecates in the open, and there is a very high risk of fecal contamination in the ground water table, adversely affecting the health of the population and making the remaining water sources unusable. Landfills and their treatment are another cause for concern. Recent fires in Mumbai are a direct result of open air combustion and unscientific operation of landfills. India produces more than 1,30,000 tons of waste per day including domestic, bio-medical, industrial, e-waste and toxic waste. All pointers to a barren future that escapes our vision, because it is not the here and now.
However, while pollution dominates the discourse on the world environment day, of more relevance, is the depleting water table all over the country, but more so in urban areas. The elimination of trees to widen roads, construction activity and consumption by high rises with numerous occupants that have migrated from villages which are already water deficient, the growth of water guzzling capital intensive industries, and a lack of conservation among all these entities have contributed to this phenomenon which will greatly impact our society in the future. We have already had a taste of what is to come this summer.
It is here that two simple methods of rejuvenating the water table can be adopted by most high rises, institutions and industries and in fact must be made mandatory by law.
1. Recharging the ground water table: Diverting all water usage in Bathrooms (other than toilets) and kitchens, cleaned floors etc. into the ground away from water sources like bore wells or wells. For this the regular water harvesting method, sans the bore well, can be adopted - All that is needed are 6’ (Depth) x 6’ (Diameter) pits filled with consecutive 1’ layers of 40 Mm jelly, Tile bits or charcoal – whichever is easier to obtain and sand. Into these pits waste water can be diverted through pipes. In fact if this is made compulsory based on land area and built up area, the whole city would benefit, for this is a year round recharging methodology that is not dependent on the monsoon. The Costs, depending on labor and material costs are unlikely to exceed Rs: 65,000 per pit, give or take a little.
2. Recharging Bore wells: Diverting Roof water runoffs during monsoon into pits similar to those above. This can be done into the pits crafted for regular use, or specifically created around bore wells (which will have holes in its casing to absorb the water inflow) so that they may be recharged. Here too costs are unlikely to exceed Rs: 80000 per pit.
I recall that in the early days of my career, I would often approach my superiors with a problem. One of them always asked the same question after listening patiently to what I had to my woes – Are you a part of the problem or a part of the solution? The answer to that question has always helped me solve many a problem.
Today, all of us – the government, and the citizenry must move from being a part of the problem to being a part of the solution.. if we do not want to fight the next war, with our neighbours, whoever they may be, over water.
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