Law for Environmental

Protection
• International concern for environmental
protection
– International concern for Sustainable
Development
– UN conference on Human Environment and
Development-Stockholm-1972
– Result-Stockholm Declaration on the Human
Environment

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
• Report of the world commission on
Environment and Development-1987-
Brundtland Commission
• Sustainable Development Concept
• Cocoyoc Declaration on Environment and
Development-1970

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
• Definition
• “Sustainable development is the
development that meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability
of the future generations to meet their own
needs”

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
• The Earth Summit-
– The United Nations conference on
Environment and Development (UNCED)
popularly known as Earth Summit-1992 at Rio
de Janeiro-
– 150 Governments participated
– Earth summit was inspired by Brundtland
report 1987

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
• The Result of Summit-Agenda 21
– Agenda 21-a comprehensive Blue print for
Global actions for Sustainable Development
– Agenda 21-a voluntary action plan
– Agenda 21-Divided into 4 sections

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
• Section I-Social and Economic
• Section II-Conservation and Management
of Resources for Development
• Section III-Straightening the Role of Major
Groups
• Section IV-Means of implementation

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
• Role of India
– Constitution-Indian constitution is perhaps
one of the rare constitutions of the world
which contains specific provisions relating
to Environmental protection
– India is a signatory to many Environmental
treaties

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
– Indian constitution Article 51 (c ) provides
that India shall respect International
treaties
– Devolves duty on the citizen also to preserve
the nature
– Article 48-A puts duty on the state
regarding the protection of Environment

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
• All signatories to translate the Summit
decisions into action-implementation
• India under obligation to implement
Environmental protection
• Article 253 of the constitution provides for
power of parliament to make law for
implementing any treaty

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (Cont)
• Under this provisions, parliament enacted
many laws for protection of Environment,
prevention of pollution
• International law, unless otherwise
contrary can be construed as binding.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Important legislations:
– The Water (prevention and control of pollution)
Act, 1974
– The Air (prevention and control of pollution) Act,
1981
– The Environment (Protection) Act,1986
– The National Environment Appellate Authority
Act,1997
– The National Environment Tribunal Act, 1995

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• The Water (prevention and control of
pollution) Act, 1974
• Water is the State subject
• Parliament can not legislate on water subject
• States have to agree for parliament legislation
• Majority States resolved for parliament
legislating
• Parliament therefore, passed the water Act

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Salient features of the Act (Water Act)- objectives
• To prevent and control water pollution
• To maintain wholesomeness of water
• To establish control on State Boards for prevention
and control of pollution
• To empower the Boards for prevention/control of
pollution
• To provide penalties for contravention of the
provisions of the Act
• To establish control on state water testing
laboratories.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Central/State pollution control Boards
• Both the Boards have the objective of
pollution control
• Main functions of the Central pollution
control Board
– a) Advise the Central Govt. for control of
pollution of water
– b) Co-ordinate the activities of the State
Boards

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• c) Provide technical assistance and guidance to State
Boards
• d) Plan and organise training
• e) Media program organising
• f) To perform functions of the State Board in case of
default
• g) Collect and public technical date
• h) Lay down standards for stream/well
• i) Plan and organize pollution control programs
• j) Establish laboratories for testing

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Functions of State Boards
– Plan and control/abate pollution of water
– Advise State Govt. on matters of water
pollution
– To collect and spread information
– To investigate and conduct research in
matters of pollution
– To work in tune with CPCB

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
– To inspect sewerage or trade effluents
– To lay down standards of sewerage/trade
effluents etc.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• To create methods of effluent
disposal/sewerage disposal
– in land
– in water
– in stream etc.
To prevent discharge of waste into water
To advise Govt. with respect to location of
polluting industries

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• To establish laboratories
• To Co-ordinate with CPCB

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Prevention and Control of Water
Pollution
• Under this act, State Government has
power to restrict the application of the Act
to certain areas
• It has also power to obtain information
• PCBs have power to take samples of
effluents.
• Report of analysis

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Cont…
• PCBs have power to enter any factory and
inspect
• It can prohibit use of stream or well for
disposal of polluting matter
• It can regulate new outlets and new
discharges

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Cont…
• PCBs to undertake emergency measures in
case of pollution of stream or well
• PCBs can also approach for restraining
apprehended pollution of water in streams
or wells
• It can give directions

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Cont…
• Water Act – Chapter VII
• Under this chapter penalties can be levied
for certain acts
- Destruction of notices of PCBs
- Obstructing PCB persons from doing their
duty
- damaging property of PCBs
- non furnishing of information
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Cont…
- Failure to intimate accident
- for willful omission of information
- or making false statement etc.
- punishment including imprisonment with
penalty – Rs.10,000 - 3 months

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Cont…
• Under this act Central water laboratory,
State water Laboratories are set up
• Analysts appointed for analyzing the
samples
• Reports are published by analysts
• PCBs to take the help from local bodies
also

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Cont…
• Section 63 of Water Act gives power to
make rules to Central Government
• Section 64 to State Government
• States shall make rules on matters which
are not dealt with by the Central Rules

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The Air(Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Act, 1981
• Under this act the CPB plays a major role
in control/abatement of pollution
• It has to advise Central Government for
improvement of Air quality
• It has to prevent air pollution
• Co-ordinate the activity of state pollution
control boards

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The Air(Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Act, 1981(Cont..)
• Chapter VI of the air act relates to
prevention and control of air pollution
• The state governments in consultation with
the Board declare air pollution control
areas
• Alter air pollution control areas
• Declare new air pollution control areas

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The Air(Prevention and Control
of Pollution) Act, 1981(Cont..)
• The act provides for control of emission from
auto mobiles
• It also restricts certain industries on the basis
of air pollution
• It declares the level of air pollutants as per
standards
• It applies to the courts to restrain persons
from polluting
• Just like water act it gives power to PCBs to
enter and inspect the factory.
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 Cont…
• The wildlife(Protection) Act, 1972
• The National environment tribunal Act,
1995
• The Environmental Protection Act, 1986
• The Bio-Diversity Act, 2002
• Are the other related environmental
legislations.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Audit issues
– CPCB/SPCBs are major key players in
control of pollution
– Working to CPCB/SPCBs is the focal point
for audit
– Regularity audit and performance Audit
– They act on behalf of Govt.
– Regularity Audit-Compliance Audit

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Areas of compliance Audit
– SAI to audit compliance of international
requirements for pollution control
– SAI to have the concept of Sustainable
Development
– SAI to understand the policy
– SAI not to comment on the policy as it will
be construed as criticism.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• SAI to ensure in audit implementation of
Environmental program in tune with the
established policy
• SAI to verify whether national targets for
pollution control of water has been set
• If so, whether the targets are as per the
International accord

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Whether there is any backlog in achieving the
targets
• Whether the target itself is realistic
• Whether sufficient reasons have been adduced
for non achievement of targets
• Whether there is close monitoring of the
targets and action for non achieving taken at
appropriate levels

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• SAI to audit the budget for environmental
programs
• SAI to comment on the adequacy with
reference to the target set
• SAI to consider the Sustainable
Development concept

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• SAI to comment on the excess spending-
absence of budgetary Control
• SAI to comment on the savings (lack of
implementation)
• Saving in environmental areas will project
a bad picture as saving means less
environmental degradation to that extent
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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Working of the CPCB/SPCBs to be audited on
Performance Audit basis
• Concepts of 3 E Es-Economy,efficiency and
effectiveness,plus 2 EEs, that is ethics and equity
• Working of the Board-includes all objectives and
the results of performance
• To see, how far the targets set by Central Govt.
(CPCB) have been achieved
• Shortfall to be commented

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Working is whether cost effective or not
• Whether extra expenditure/nugatory
expenditure etc. have been incurred.
• Whether there is responsibility
centre/accountability in the Board
• Whether it is compiling reliable data and
reporting

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Whether the CPCB has undertaken any
major project
• If so, the project to be subjected to
Performance Audit
• Whether the CPCB is compiling data on
which further planning is to be done
• If so, whether the data is reliable and
complete
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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Audit at Ministry level
• A Macro level analysis-
– Whether the Ministry has compiled reliable
and complete data regarding pollution
problems.
– Whether the data regarding quality of
water in each area is available
– Whether the details of pollution level of
various rivers/lakes/streams are available

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
– Whether CPCB is networking with other
SPCBs for pollution control activities.
– Whether the wholesomeness of water is
regularly tested and data made available to
the concerned
– Whether the concerned has taken any
action for improving the quality of water
– Water quality is essential as it affects the
health of the people.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• SAI to check the budget for unit wise allocation of funds
for environmental activities
• SAI to check whether monitoring system exists within
the Ministry to review progressive expenditure
• SAI to check whether grants given to various NGOs are
utilized properly.
• SAI to verify the mechanism of Ministry’s monitoring
of utilisation of grants by the departments as well as the
NGOs
• SAI to verify whether Ministry has data regarding
submission of audited statement of Accounts for grant
utilization by NGOs
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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• SAI to verify the implementation of environmental
policy at the Ministry level
• SAI to see whether a reliable and documented MIS
exists in the Ministry to measure achievement against
international targets
• SAI to ensure that the Government reports to its
parliament regarding implementation of International
treaties/accords
• SAI to monitor the directives of the parliament to
Ministry regarding compliance of Environmental
laws.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Regional/state level implementation
– States have to comply with the directives of the
Central Ministry (CPCB) through the state CPCBs
– Targets and achievement of environmental issues
desired by Ministry to be reviewed/commented
– SAI to ensure that targets set are realistic
– SAI to verify the performance indicators
– SAI to ensure that the performance indicators are
measurable and realistic

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• State/Regional level implementation is through the
state PCBs
• MIS available at the SPCBs are checked for
reality/integrity and correctness
• Implementation especially with reference to
international accords are to checked thoroughly and
reported
• Shortfall in targets to be commented
• Cost benefit analysis in terms of environmental issues
is to be checked and reported.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Program level Audit
• Financial Audit
– Grant accounts are kept on cash accounting basis
– This method will reveal only 1 year position
– Accrual system gives a wider perspective of
environmental issues
– It will give a totality of the issue-liability or asset
– In case of non compliance of certain treaty provisions
liability arises
– In accrual system such liability will be shown in totality

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• In units of commercial nature:
– Certification of Financial Statements will focus on
environmental assets/liability
– In case of creation of environmental assets such as
ETPs, Gas chambers etc. the methods of
depreciation to be checked
– Assets of environmental nature shall have speedier
wear/tear
– Certification to take care of additional depreciation
and high maintenance cost.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Penalties on account non compliance of
directives of SPCBs to be checked in
accounts of commercial concerns
• All legal matters either beneficial for
detrimental to be accounted for in F S
• Legal cases contingent liability to be
reflected/disclosed in accounts.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• The auditee units wher implementation of
environmental issues is going shall be
audited to see:
– that all PCB directions are complied with
– that all requisite returns are submitted in
time
– that all dues to the PCBs such as water cess
are paid in time

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
– all targets set by PCBs have been achieved
– all precautions for control of emission of
noxious gas, pollution of Water, air etc
have been taken and documented.

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Performance Audit
– Auditee units carrying out environmental
activities are subjected to Performance
Audit
– Governmental schemes/projects are also
audited for performance appraisal
– Units/Schemes are assessed for:
• achieving of targets
• providing for targeted benefits to the public

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Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• economic implementation of the schemes
avoiding wasteful, nugatory and extra
expenditure
• efficient running of the unit or implementation
of the scheme/project where by budgets are
fully utilised
• effective working/running of the schemes ,
projects

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 Law for Environmental
Protection (cont)
• Overall legislative compliance of the law
provisions will be seen:
– at National level
• State/Regional level through PCBs
• program/project level at the local level
• SAI shall ensure that the law provisions are not
only complied with but also reported to
Parliament. In case of failure at the Executive
level SAI shall report to the Parliament through
Audit Reports.

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