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Description
In the face of realities today-global warming, clearly discernible climate changes, rapidly deteriorating air and water quality, as well as floods, droughts, and relentless deforestation-action aimed at the preservation of the earth's natural environment is an imperative worldwide. This handbook provides a comprehensive study of legislation, regulations, and case law relating to environmental protection in India.
Sahasranaman examines key issues related to environmental protection including sustainable development, environmental impact assessment, water resource management, waste management, forest conservation, wildlife protection, climate change, disaster management and rehabilitation, the intergenerational equity principle, and environmental taxes. Taking the impact of the 1 972 UN Conference on the Human Environment as the starting point, he explains the provisions of various international conventions, constitutional amendments, and legislation enacted in India to tackle the gravest problems. He keeps the international context foregrounded throughout and provides valuable comparative analysis.
Sahasranaman analyses the response of the Indian Supreme Court and High Courts to public interest litigation and their interpretation of environment protection as an extension of the fundamental right to life, and a human right. He critically examines the concepts evolved by the courts in India, and in other countries, to meet the challenge to the environment, including the polluter pays principle, the precautionary principle, the absolute liability principle, the public trust doctrine, and the reversal of the burden of proof.
Lucid and authoritative, this volume will be an essential reference work for students and scholars of environmental law and the Constitution of India, legal professionals, officials in state pollution control boards, policymakers in the fields of industry and environment, and NGOs working on environmental issues.
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Contents
Introduction : The Environment and the Constitution
I - Development of Environmental Jurisprudence
1. Basic Environmental Protection Laws
2. The Concept of Sustainable Development
3. The Public Trust Doctrine
4. Absolute Liability of the Polluter
5. Reversal of the Burden of Proof
6. The Significance of Pubic Interest Litigation
7. Environment Impact Assessment: An Early Warning System
8. Commitments under International Law
II - Dealing with Different Kinds of Pollution: Law and Policy
9. Pollutants in the Air
10. Defilement of Fresh Water Bodies
11. Marine Pollution
12. Degradation of Land and Forests
13. Endangered Wildlife
14. Safe Disposal of Waste
15. The Relevance of the Law on Public Nuisance
III - The Environment and the Tasks Ahead
16. The Challenge of Climate Change
17. The Need for Environmental Courts
18. Enforcing the 'Polluter Pays' Principle: Environmental Taxes
19. Disaster Management and Rehabilitation
Bibliography
Statute Index
Case Index
Subject Index
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Author Details
P.B. Sahasranaman is Advocate, High Court of Kerala and Supreme Court of India. He began his two-decade-long environmental law practice with M.C. Mehta in the well known Goshree case, which led to the reduction of the reclaimed area of the Kerala backwaters from 250 hectares to 25 hectares. He has fought successful cases on many issues including implementation of the Coastal Zone Management Plan, waste management, and prevention of excessive sand mining along the rivers of Kerala. He is a member of the Kerala State Law Reforms Commission.
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