The statement of intent1 delivered by Prime Minister Modi at COP26 Glasgow laid down very ambitious targets for India. These targets if achieved will have a significant impact on the environmental footprint of a growing nation. The target metrics were laid down along with the introduction of a concept statement designed around a lifestyle that brings environmentally conscious living to the forefront of our daily lives2 .
Along with this admirable step in social engineering, the government is quietly and consistently adding teeth to the existing legislation in various areas, with a special focus on waste management to improve circularity in the metals, critical materials and plastics domain. The rules are typically notified by the MoEF under the two main environmental protection acts that govern almost all the legislation in the environmental domain; The Air Act 1981 and the Water Act 1988.
New rules in e-waste management, plastic waste management, battery waste management along with relevant amendments to the hazardous waste management rules of 2016 have introduced the concept of Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) to push the onus of accountability for recycling onto the producers of the various products reaching end – of - life.
With older versions of the rules lacking clarity on the definitions of “end” recycling and no oversight on the recycling certificate generation process, EPR credits often became a paper trading exercise. In part this was encouraged by loopholes in the rules that allowed opportunities for self-policing by the vested interest groups of producers, producer responsibility organizations (PROs) and recyclers.
Suitable amendments or newer notifications of all these rules have placed the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) at the crux of the process flow, with online portals controlled by the nodal agency responsible for vetting capacity and validating transfer of any recycling credits. This puts the CPCB at the heart of the authorization process for recycling, significantly increasing their footprint beyond drafting of legislation and issuing of guidelines which was their preferred ambit in the past.
Authority of the SPCBs has been restricted to the issuing of consents and disseminating knowledge with dual layering of the approval process to the portal ensuring that the central government retains ultimate authority on the validity of the players in the ecosystem. Additionally, audits by the CPCB as well as potential technology tie backs to the GST portal of both recyclers and producers will introduce significant transparency to the process and make it difficult for bad actors to engage in the dubious practices common in the past. I
It is apparent that the government is taking the migration to a circular economy seriously. This is particularly significant as oversight of the prevailing circularity in key commodities and critical materials is likely to have serious implications on our ability to be self reliant in many key areas such as electric mobility and defence.
However, change is a slow process and inefficient interfaces across the multitude of stakeholder bodies and technical difficulties in the implementation of migration to digitalization (of for e.g. the portals which will be the heart of the transactional process for credits) means step changes in results are hard to see from the ground.
It is interesting to note that along with the specific and more clear rules being formulated around the critical waste (e-waste, plastic, battery and hazardous) streams of interest, the government also seems to have taken note of the mushrooming of activities under the banner of ESG. Specifically for activities taken up under the environmental impact aspect of ESG. Typically, the quantification, reporting, veracity and validity of actions/projects and the documentation of actual environmental benefits accrued, typically remained in the hands of unregulated consultants and often self-certified expert bodies. This often resulted in somewhat glorified reporting by participatory actors with sometimes little actual environmental benefit ever being realized. Here again the government has framed new rules called the Green Credit Rules 2023.
While the details on the implementation remain scant, the regulatory and oversight intent is hard to miss. Again, the government has chosen the portal route to remain master of any data flows for activities undertaken in this area. This new framework will push a majority of data around material flows in recycling and activities and their impact in the environment and green credit space directly to the CPCB. This will hopefully trigger suitable amendments to initiate improvements in the status quo.
While these green shoots are great to see, especially from the trenches of the waste management battlefield, it is important to understand and account for nuance. The legislative space here is fertile in possibilities and can yield tangible fiscal, employment opportunity and environmental benefits.
However, careful study of the marriage of complexity and opportunity in each area is critical. A one-size one-style solution approach may lead us to miss the forest for the trees.
References:
1: https://www.mea.gov.in/Speeches-Statements.htm?dtl/34466/National+Statement+by+Prime+Minister+Shri+Narendra+Modi+at+COP26+Summit+in+Glasgow)
2: https://www.mygov.in/life/#:~:text=In%20this%20context%2C
%20the%20concept,towards%20%E2%80%9Cmindful%20and%20deliberate%20utilisation%2C
