[Dec 2007, Volume 4 Quarterly Issue] Pdf File size - The IIPM Think ...

ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS
we permit imports from all over the world
including those originated from rainforests/
worlds critical eco-regions. There
are several restrictions for land in India for
establishing plantations, but enough land
is offered for Indian companies in many
countries in order to attract investment
and creating employment opportunities in
those countries. The proponents of trade
liberalization may argue that this is the
principle of trade and here the comparative
advantage is the natural resources
(mineral/ timber). Theoretically, there is
no inherent conflict between trade and
environment (Ripetto,1994). They admit
that environmental issues are negative externalities
and the same can be internalized
through appropriate policies such as
“Polluter Pays Principle” (PPP). But, the
environmentalists are concerned about
the depletion of these resources due to
unsustainable extraction. If they are unable
to influence the countries that permit
extraction of such resources, they can request/lobbey
for impose regulation of the
products and services in the leading markets
it reaches/ importing countries. Such
regulations can be in the form of certification,
labeling or other environmental
standards. This in turn can be challenged
by the affected countries as environmental
non-tariff barriers are targeted to distort
their international trade. Therefore, these
measures are applied voluntarily in most
cases. The success of these measures is
dependant on the ability to develop techniques
or approaches for sustainable use
of these resources with the active participation
of all stake holders. Forest Stewardship
Council (FSC) certification is an
example for sustainable and resourceful
usage of timber and other forest products.
Presently, in India, these novel approaches
are yet to gain popularity.
What Options Are Available?
Several options are available to minimize
the ecological footprint and enhance the
bio-capacity. This include appropriate
population policy enabling slowing down
the population growth and providing incentives
for those opting for fewer children.
Promotion of policies and programmes
that can influence changes in
consumption patterns at all levels. It is
recgonised that people living below subsistence
need to increase their consumption
to reach out of poverty, others can
reduce consumption and lavish life style.
The quantity of resources used in the production
of goods and services can be reduced.
This can be achieved through energy
efficiency; minimizing waste;
increasing recycling and reuse, use of fuel
efficient transportation systems; reduction
in transportation of goods and services;
technical innovation; Technologies
need to be promoted to increase productivity.
Biocapacity can be enhanced
through implementation of environmentally
sound land management, effective
use of marginal lands, promotion of agricultural
technologies; protecting soil from
erosion. Several options, including carbon
markets are available for prevention
and mitigation of climate change issues.
Inappropriate use of chemicals can degrade
ecosystems and loss of biodiversity.
To address this, organic farming need to
be promoted. Business and Industry
should adopt environmentally credible
procurement policies to minimize their
footprint. For this, several voluntary certification
schemes, such as forest certification
are available. The approach to the
11 th plan has rightly suggested that environmental
issues cannot be addressed by
slowing economic growth in India. Rather,
high economic growth can provide the
resources to prevent and deal with environmental
issues.
References
• FSI (2005) State of forest report-2003,
Forest survey of India, Dehra Dun
• Haripriya Gundimeda, Sanjeev Sanyal,
Rajiv Sinha and Pavan Sukhdev
(2005) Estimating the value of
agricultural cropland and pastureland
in India, Green Accounting for
Indian States Project-(GIST),
(monograph-)Chennai
• Ripetto, R (1994) Trade and Sustainable
Development, United Nations Environment
Programme, Nairobi
• Planning Commission (2006) Towards
more faster and more inclusive growth-
An approach to the 11 th Five Year Plan,
Planning Commission, Govt. of India
• (1998) Looking Back to Think Ahead-
Green India-2047, Tata Energy Research
Institute, New Delhi.
• UNEP (2007) Global Environment
Outlook-4, Environment and Development,
United Nations Environment
Programme, Nairobi.
• Verma, D D, S Arora and R K Rai
(Eds) (2007); 'Perspectives on biodiversity-
A vision for mega diverse countries',
Ministry of Environment and
Forests (MoEF), Government of India,
New Delhi.
• WWF (2006) Living Planet Report-
2006, WWF-International, Gland
• World Bank (2007) Strengthening Institutions
for Sustainable Growth,
Country environment analysis for India,
The World Bank (India Country
Office), New Delhi.
THE INDIA ECONOMY REVIEW
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