Environment: Conservation, Pollution, Degradation and Environmental Impact Assessment

What the official syllabus says

Main Examination, Paper IV: General Studies III.

• Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

The paper's title also names Bio-diversity, which is studied here under conservation.

Topics in detail

Ecology and biodiversity

• Ecosystems: structure, function, food chains, energy flow, nutrient cycles, ecological succession
• Biodiversity: genetic, species and ecosystem diversity; India as a megadiverse country; biodiversity hotspots in India
• Threats: habitat loss, invasive species, overexploitation, pollution, climate change; the IUCN Red List categories
• Endemic and threatened species of India

Conservation

• In-situ conservation: national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, conservation reserves, community reserves, biosphere reserves, sacred groves
• Ex-situ conservation: zoos, botanical gardens, seed and gene banks, captive breeding
• Species programmes: Project Tiger (1973), Project Elephant (1992), and programmes for other species
• Laws: the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972; the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 and its amendments; the Biological Diversity Act, 2002; the Forest Rights Act, 2006
• Forests: forest cover and its assessment, joint forest management, compensatory afforestation, community conservation
• Wetlands, mangroves and coral reefs; the Ramsar Convention (1971)
• International conventions: the Convention on Biological Diversity, CITES, the Convention on Migratory Species, the Nagoya Protocol

Environmental pollution

• Air pollution: pollutants (particulate matter, sulphur and nitrogen oxides, ozone), sources, the Air Quality Index, stubble burning, the National Clean Air Programme
• Water pollution: sewage, industrial effluents, agricultural run-off, eutrophication; river cleaning programmes
• Soil pollution: pesticides, heavy metals, overuse of fertilisers
• Noise, thermal, radioactive and plastic pollution
• Waste: solid waste, plastic, e-waste, biomedical and hazardous waste rules; extended producer responsibility; circular economy
• Laws and bodies: the Water Act, 1974; the Air Act, 1981; the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986; the Central and State Pollution Control Boards; the National Green Tribunal (2010)

Environmental degradation

• Land degradation and desertification; the UN Convention to Combat Desertification
• Deforestation, soil erosion, groundwater depletion
• Climate change: greenhouse gases, global warming and its effects on India
• Climate agreements: the UNFCCC (1992), the Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement (2015), Nationally Determined Contributions; common but differentiated responsibilities
• National Action Plan on Climate Change (2008) and its national missions; state action plans
• Ozone layer depletion and the Montreal Protocol
• Carbon markets, carbon credits and green finance

Environmental impact assessment

• Meaning and purpose of EIA
• EIA notifications of 1994 and 2006 under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
• Steps: screening, scoping, public consultation, appraisal, decision, post-clearance monitoring
• Categories of projects (A and B) and the appraisal authorities at the central and state levels
• Issues: quality of EIA reports, weak public hearings, post-facto clearances, monitoring gaps
• Strategic environmental assessment and cumulative impact assessment
• Social impact assessment and its link with land acquisition

Overlaps

Environment and ecology, biodiversity and climate change are also tested in Prelims General Studies Paper I; changes in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes are in General Studies I.