Biodiversity & Environment
CPCB Notifies Contaminated Sites
- 11 Mar 2020
- 3 min read
Why in News
- According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), there are 128 sites in India contaminated by toxic and hazardous substances.
- West Bengal led the list with 27 sites followed by Odisha at 23.
Incidents of Contamination
- Oil contamination due to leakage of underground oil pipelines of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited in Tamil Nadu.
- Pesticide and heavy metal contamination in creeks at Eloor, Kerala.
- Chromium contamination at Rania, Ranipet, Tamil Nadu, and Lohianagar, Uttar Pradesh.
- Improperly disposed electronic waste lying on the banks of river Ramganga, Moradabad.
- Mercury contamination of the soil at Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, and Ganjam, Odisha.
The Central Pollution Control Board
- CPCB is a statutory organisation which was constituted in September, 1974 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.
- It was entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
- It serves as a field formation and also provides technical services to the Ministry of Environment and Forests of the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
- Principal Functions of the CPCB, as spelt out in the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981
- to promote cleanliness of streams and wells in different areas of the States by prevention, control and abatement of water pollution.
- to improve the quality of air and to prevent, control or abate air pollution in the country.
India’s Record
- Independent organisations have warned that India has a poor track record in dealing with chemical accidents.
- According to ToxicsLink, an organisation that deals with hazardous waste disposal, there have been four major chemical accidents recorded, on average, every month between 2016-2019 and several accidents are not duly recorded.
- A committee constituted by the NGT in a report on the state of the management of hazardous waste (HW) in India noted that the inventory was not very comprehensive.
