ROLE OF NGOs IN ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMNENT

NGOs are defined as private organizations which conduct and pursue

activities to relieve sufferings, promote the interests of poor, provide basic
social
services
or
undertake
community
development.
In wider usage, the term NGO can be applied to any non profiting
organization which is independent from the government. NGOs are typically
value based organizations which depend, in whole or in part, on charitable
donations and voluntary service. Although the NGO sector has become
increasingly professional over the last two decades, principles of altruism
and voluntarism remain key defining characters. NGOs range in their size
and scope from large charities as CARE, OXFAM, World Vision of global fame
to regional, national and community based self help groups. They include
research centers, religious institutions and professional associations. Based
on their functioning NGOs can be divided in two distinct categories.
Advocacy NGOs: This type of NGOs are more focused and deals with a
specific purpose with a view to defend and promote a particular cause.
Commonly dealt issues are health, education and poverty. At times a no of
advocacy NGOs may unite under a single operational NGO while advocating
their particular cause. Physical application usually is not within the domain of
such types. Operational NGOs often move into advocacy when projects
regularly face similar problems and the impact of the projects seems to be
insufficient. All the large development and environment operational NGOs
now run some regular campaigns, at least by supporting campaigning
networks. Similarly, advocacy NGOs often feel they cannot ignore the
immediate practical problems of people in their policy domain. Human rights
NGOs and women's NGOs end up having programs to assist the victims of
discrimination and injustice.
FEATURES: Environmental NGOs typically take up causes related to the
environment such Climate Change, Air Pollution, Deforestation, Ozone Layer
Depletion, Waste Management, Biodiversity and Land Use, Energy,
Conservation, Environmental degradation, Land Degradation Some of the
Prominent examples of Environmental NGO working in India are Greenpeace
India, Awaaz Foundation, Centre for Science and Environment, Goa
Foundation, CERE India, Conserve, Foundation For Ecological Security,
Exnora International, Goa Foundation, WWF India and Winrock International
India. India is the worlds second most populated country in the world with a
population of 1.21 Billion (2011), and is also of the fastest emerging

economies of the world growing at 6.9 % GDP (estimated) for 2011-12.

Large population base and high growth rate of the economy has created
challenges and issue at the environmental front, particularly related to Air
and water Pollution, deforestation and depletion of natural resources at fast
pace. India has to take immediate action to slow and reverse the
environment degradation. India has to work on Environmental sustainability.
As per the World Commission on Environment and Development, sustainable
development is development that meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs
(1987). Environmental Sustainability deals with maintenance or
improvement to the quality of environment for long term.
EXAMPLES OF NGOS IN INDIA
Name

Focus

Greenpeace
India

Climate
Change,
Toxic
Waste, Nuclear
Safety,
Overfishing
Protection,
Environment
degradation

Activities /Impact

Pushed the Indian Govt. for Unlimited

Liability of Supplier which led to increase in
Liability of Suppliers from 5 Billion. To
15Billion in the Nuclear Liability Bill; In
2008, Greenpeace organized the meeting of
major electronic manufacture on e-waste
which leads to the ball rolling for a formal
law governing e-waste; Exposed presence &
sale of Genetically Engineered food in the
country leading to investigation by Director
general of Foreign Trade.
CERE India
Environment
CERE is commissioned by organizations such
Education,
as Tata power, TCS, Hindustan Lever,
Awareness and IndusInd Bank map carbon footprint & help
Advocacy
cap carbon emissions. Conducted lecturers &
workshops in many orgs such as ISB, Oberoi
Hotel, Danik Jagran, Aga Khan Society
EXNORA
Preserving
Formed Community Based Organization
Internationa Nature,
across India. There are 5000 civic exnoras in
l
Presenting
India
targeting
30000
streets
and
Environment
settlements to clean the streets and
degradation,
environment
Waste Mgmt.
AWAAZ
Air
Pollution, Compelled Policy change in State of
Maharashtra
regarding
sand
mining.
foundation
Toxic
Sensitive
areas
,
Facilitated
Infrastructure
Heavy Metal,
Protection
of using alt. technology use of natural &

Foundation
for
Ecological
Security

Tress,
Noise Pollution

recycled sand

Conserve
Ecologically
sensitive area,
Land & water
resources

Work with 2208 villages institution across

27 districts across 6 states in protecting 1,
30,000 hectare of revenue wasteland,
degraded grazing lands forest lands.

ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION, EEFECTS AND HOW TO STOP IT.

Environmental degradation is the deterioration of the environment
through depletion of resources such as air, water and soil; the destruction of
ecosystems and the extinction of wildlife. It is defined as any change or
disturbance to the environment perceived to be deleterious or undesirable.
As indicated by the I=PAT equation, environmental impact (I) or degradation
is caused by the combination of an already very large and increasing human
population (P), continually increasing economic growth or per capita
affluence (A), and the application of resource depleting and polluting
technology (T).
Environmental degradation is one of the Ten Threats officially cautioned by
the High Level Threat Panel of the United Nations. The United Nations
International Strategy for Disaster Reduction defines environmental
degradation as The reduction of the capacity of the environment to meet
social and ecological objectives, and needs. Environmental degradation is of
many types. When natural habitats are destroyed or natural resources are
depleted, the environment is degraded. Efforts to counteract this problem
include environmental protection and environmental resources management.
Explanation; Environmental degradation is a process through which the
natural environment is compromised in some way, reducing biological
diversity and the general health of the environment. This process can be
entirely natural in origin, or it can be accelerated or caused by human
activities. Many international organizations recognize environmental
degradation as one of the major threats facing the planet, since humans
have only been given one Earth to work with, and if the environment
becomes irreparably compromised, it could mean the end of human
existence.

There are a number of ways in which environmental degradation can work.

In a classic case, resources simply become depleted. Air, water, and soil are
all resources which are vulnerable to depletion through overuse, as are
natural resources like minerals and oil deposits. Habitat pressures which
force animals into a small area can also contribute to resource depletion, as
the animals consume a high volume of material in a small area.
Pollution is another cause of environmental degradation. When the
environment becomes polluted, it means that toxic substances have
rendered it unhealthy. Pollution can come from a variety of sources,
including vehicle emissions, agricultural runoff, accidental chemical release
from factories, and poorly-managed harvesting of natural resources. In some
cases, pollution may be reversible with costly environmental remediation
measures, and in other instances, it may take decades or even centuries for
the environment to cope with the pollution.
Simple damage is also a common issue. Clear cutting, unsustainable
development, and erosion are all forms of environmental damage. If the
damage is extensive, the environment may not be able to reach a state of
balance on its own, and the problem could become compounded. Erosion as
a result of bad agricultural practices, for example, can strip the earth of its
valuable topsoil, leaving coarse, useless soils behind. This infamously
occurred in North America during the Dust Bowl of the 1930s, in which
drought, poor farming practices, and severe weather led to a widespread
stripping of fertile topsoil from farmlands.
Types of environmental degradation
Deforestation
Deforestation is the excessive cutting down of trees and clearing of forests
for different purposes. In other words, it is the destruction of forests. These
directly and indirectly affect us. Thus, deforestation is a serious type of
environmental degradation.

Soil erosion:
Soil erosion can be defined as the destruction of the top layer of the soil as a
result of natural or human activities. Soil erosion refers to the carrying away
of
soil.
Soil
erosion
is
also
serious
type
of
environmental
degradation. It affects crop production, pollutes water resources and causes
many
other
direct
and
indirect
problems
to
human
beings.

Landslide
The downward slide of land on hilly slopes is called landslide. Our country is
mountainous. Excluding the Terai region, the entire country has hills and
mountains spread all around. Many a time, due to various reasons the land
on hilly slopes gets destroyed. Landslide often occurs naturally. However, as
a result of various human activities, the occurrence of landslide in our
country has increased. No single monsoon season goes without news of
some major or minor landslide occurring. The Krishna Vhir, between
Katmandu And Narayan-ghat has become notorious landslides troubling
travelers throughout the year. Landslides also harmfully affect human beings
and their possessions.
Flood
The overflow of water from rivers and streams into nearby lands is called a
flood. Flood is a serious type of environmental degradation in our country.
Environmental problem is directly related to surface water. As result of the
excess amounts, sometimes flowing water breaks its embankment and
overflows into nearby lands as flood. A large numbers of rivers flowing
directly from the Himalayas. Every year, during the monsoons, many of
these rivers flood nearby land causing great destruction to human beings
and property
Pollution
Pollution can be defined as an undesirable change in our air, water and land
resources, which directly or indirectly cause harm to us. Pollution is also a
major type of environmental degradation. Its impact is seen on almost all
component of the environment including air, land and water. Pollution may
be in the form of addition of undesirable chemicals e.g.; poisonous gases
into the air by factories or it may be in the form of reduction of something
useful from the environment e.g.; death of all fishes in the rivers. Pollution
may be of the following types:
Air pollution, water pollution, noise pollution, land pollution, sound pollution.
How to Control its impact/How to Manage;
Water pollution:There are numerous wastewater treatment technologies. A wastewater
treatment train can consist of a primary clarifier system to remove solid and
floating materials, a secondary treatment system consisting of an aeration
basin followed by flocculation and sedimentation or an activated sludge
system and a secondary clarifier, a tertiary biological nitrogen removal
system, and a final disinfection process. The aeration basin/activated sludge
system removes organic material by growing bacteria (activated sludge).

The secondary clarifier removes the activated sludge from the water. The
tertiary system, although not always included due to costs, is becoming
more prevalent to remove nitrogen and phosphorus and to disinfect the
water before discharge to a surface water stream or ocean outfall.

Air pollution:Engineers apply scientific and engineering principles to the design of

manufacturing and combustion processes to reduce air pollutant emissions
to acceptable levels. Scrubbers, electrostatic precipitators, catalytic
converters, and various other processes are utilized to remove particulate
matter, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, volatile organic compounds (VOC),
reactive organic gases (ROG) and other air pollutants from flue gases and
other sources prior to allowing their emission to the atmosphere.
Scientists have developed air pollution dispersion models to evaluate the
concentration of a pollutant at a receptor or the impact on overall air quality
from vehicle exhausts and industrial flue gas stack emissions.
To some extent, this field overlaps the desire to decrease carbon dioxide and
other greenhouse gas emissions from combustion processes.