PLASTIC FREE CITY (WELCOME TO PLASTIC BAG FREE KATHMANDU)

Plastic Free City  
(Welcome to Plastic Bag Free Kathmandu)
Published in The Republica, April 14, 2015)

                                                                                            Sandhya Regmi

sandhyaregmi2000@gmail.com         

With the dawn of 2072, Kathmandu valley is set to join the plastic-bag-free club, which includes many countries or their states across the world. With the aim of making Kathmandu valley clean and pollution-free, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment (MoSTE) has imposed the ban from Baisakh 1, 2072—on import, storage, distribution, sell, and use of plastic bags up to 40 microns thickness.

As an informed citizen and environmental specialist, I rejoice over this positive move, and much like the rest of the Kathmanduities, offer it a red-carpet welcome. We may consider this as a first step in our dream of having a clean-green Kathmandu free of not only plastic bags but also of other hazardous wastes, sewages, carbon emission and other forms of air pollutions.

During my last Shimla visit in August 2014, I had an opportunity to witness the plastic-free hilly station, and was fascinated by its greenery and beautification of its surroundings with pine trees. Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh, was in fact among the first cities in India to ban plastic bags in August 2003. More to it, illegally cutting down a single tree in this hilly station may lead one to a heavy penalty, including years of imprisonment. I could not see a single littering anywhere on the street, much less the polythene bags and improper disposal of solid waste. I had then wished deep in my heart the same to come true in my dear Kathmandu soon.  

 Tension with Competing Forces

The process leading to the ban imposition has not been smooth and not been achieved in a single day, due to the tension between competing forces. The dismissal by the Supreme Court on the ground of public health concern—one week before the scheduled ban date—of the writ petition filed for a stay-order against the ban, cleared the last hurdle in the way for the ban imposition. The petition was filed by Nepal Plastic Manufacturers’ Association—that represents 300-strong plastic-manufacturing industries that collectively produce some 30,000 tonnes of plastic bags annually—arguing that the ban was made in a haste and without necessary preparations, including the choice for alternatives to plastics.

Compromise

Apparently, the ban notice represents an act of compromise. It retracts from the earlier decision of the Parliamentary Committee on Environment Protection as well as of the Cabinet to ban all forms of plastic bags. And the notice is silent on the production ban of the bags in the valley. Further, if the ban aims to achieve a clean and pollution-free place as stated by MoSTE, and relates to the public health concern, as held by the Supreme Court, why was the scope of ban limited to the valley?

Enforcement Issue

Yet, success or otherwise of the ban hinges on its enforcement. In the past, similar attempts have failed. In 2011 MoSTE had come up with ‘Plastic Bags Control and Regulation Directives’, barring companies and individuals from production, import and storage of polythene bags thinner than 20 microns, and had even provisioned fines ranging from Rs. 500 to Rs 50,000 for producing and using of such bags. But the regulation could hardly be enforced, due to the fierce protest from the Association that had argued on the ground of investment loss and job loss.

 Addressed Evils

Obviously, the plastic-bag hazards affect human health, and other lives, and degrade environment from multi-fonts. The bags litter the landscape, and take hundreds of years to decompose even if dumped properly. After years of dumping, they may breakdown, but never biodegrade. So, earlier or later, their toxins get released into the environment, thereby adversely affecting the health of organisms that come into contact with the toxin. If not disposed of properly, the bags can clog sewages, prevent ground-water seepage, pollute water bodies, and affect water habitats. When plastic bags are blown by wind into trees and other plants, animals and birds can be mistaken for flowers and plants, and can die after eating the bags. Making the matter worse, the ingested plastic toxin remains intact even after the death and decomposition of the animals and birds, and thus can be ingested by another cycle of victims. If the bags are burnt, they infuse the air with toxic fumes, which once inhaled can damage human health and lead to cancer.

Nor is plastic bag’s production-process environmental friendly. Every year some 100 million barrels of oil are burnt to produce plastic bags around the world, thereby adding air pollution and taking away much of the vital energy resources needed to meet other energy requirements. 

Effect of Ban

The ban is bound to have some effect on the plastic manufacturers, but they would be far from being out. The ban only affects production of the thin plastic bags, and the affected volume is limited to that being consumed within the valley. Concurrently, this will generate a new business opportunity to other support industries that produce biodegradable and recyclable bags, such as papers, jutes and cloths. For consumers, this may mean more frequent recycling of their bags or paying more from their pocket for more expensive alternative bags. Further, unless its hygienic condition is maintained, recycled bag itself may become a source of contamination.  

Road Ahead

Towards realizing the goal of making the capital and the country clean and pollution free, besides the plastic ban, the state must go through another long to-do list. But for now, the real test is whether or to which extent the enacted ban can effectively be implemented. Obviously, making it a success or otherwise hinges not only on the efforts of the state authorities, but also of Kathmanduities.  

(Regmi holds a Masters Degree in Environmental Engineering from the National University of Singapore)

RAGS TO RICHES (WHAT CAN NEPAL LEARN FROM LEE QUAN YEW'S SINGAPORE)

Rags To Riches 
(What Can Nepal Learn From Lee Quan Yew's Singapore) 


(Published in The Kathmandu Post, April 14, 2015)

                                                                                            Sandhya Regmi

sandhyaregmi2000@gmail.com         

“Whoever governs Singapore must have that iron in him. Or give it up. This is not a game of cards! This is your life and mine! I've spent a whole lifetime building this and as long as I'm in charge, nobody is going to knock it down.” This inspirational quote fairly reflects the doctrine applied by political genius Lee Quan Yew in repositioning Singapore’s map from the third world to the first. The visionary prime minister from 1959 to 1990 and influential politician until 2011, died on 23^rd March at the age of 91.

When I first entered Singapore in 2001, soon after my 2-year stay in Japan as a researcher at the University of Tokyo, the first thing that astonished and welcomed me was the brilliant greenery and dazzling cleanliness of the perfectly managed & preserved metropolitan garden city, which I had not seen even in the highly developed European countries during my stay in Germany and visit in its neighboring countries. Singapore looked like the princess clad in silk and satin. Chewing gum was banned, littering was fined, and grafting was canned. The place that practically guarantees highly honorable, respectable, and safe life for women and children alike—free from both environmental and social pollutions. I recall my days, commuting by train, bus and on walk, all the way from the National University of Singapore, sometimes reaching my residence, Bedok North, at midnight, without any feeling of insecurity.

In 50 years, under the Singaporean Lion’s visionary leadership, the country got transformed from an impoverished British colonial outpost with swampy island having no natural resources—a stinking fisherman’s village suffering from poverty, malaria, and dunge fever—into a dreamland. Today Singapore stands tall on the global map as a knowledge-based economy, with one of the highest GDP per capita ($55,182) in the world, just 2% unemployment, third in the global education club, among the 3 least corrupt nations (including Finland and New Zealand), and almost the lowest crime rates. A clean and green city. A dream city in the real world.

This miraculous achievement by Lee’s Singapore has brought into limelight the issue on whether or to which extent other countries may draw from Lee and his Singaporean model. In Nepal’s context, Lee’s doctrine pyramid may be dissected as follows: 

 Lessons for Nepal

(1)

The vision for prosperous country and people forms the top block of the pyramid. Nepal needs a vision that goes beyond beggar’s mentality that seeks to limit the vision to the threshold of poverty or literacy over a decade or two, and yet fails to achieve it. We need a vision that is founded on stability, health, and prosperity of people and the country. In the past, some of our politicians had lip-served to make Nepal like Singapore. But a vision differs from such day-dreams in that a vision is premised on the state’s robust and time-bound plan and strategy with discrete roadmap to achieve the underlying goal.

(2)

Sincerity and accountability of the state operators could constitute the second block. In fact, until it is installed in the system, the accountability can easily be swapped to the top of the pyramid in a country where, even after spending billions of rupees taxed from the people’s toil and spending over five-year period, our 601-member strong team of constitutional assembly has failed even to deliver a 100-page document. Why not put them to test to see if they are playing the ‘game of cards’, or if they are really working with the feeling of the ‘life’ that Lee was referring to? Look at his spirit: "Even from my sickbed, even if you are going to lower me to the grave and I feel that something is going wrong in Singapore, I will get up." Hello, politicians of Nepal ! wake up to your conscience.

   (3)

The requirement for the elimination of prevailing practice of power abuse and corruption by authorities in all organs of the state does not need to be overemphasized. The recent case of Dr. Govinda KC’s Satyagraha typifies the extent to which the country is swamped with the evils at all levels of the state administration. We need to do introspection on why the state decisions are being sold or abused, and how the matter could be resolved. While the moral and ethics work for the majority, it does not seem to do so for all. So, craft strict punishment codes to account for such abusers. No mercy to corrupts. No shelter to criminals. No undue favour to anyone. Lee’s Singapore did not drop the ‘iron’ despite the mercy plea by the US president Bill Clinton in 1994: the American graffiti convict Michael Fay was not spared from canning.

   (4)

To put the country into the track of prosperity, Nepal must put the state-endorsed anarchism to an end once and for ever. Sparing peaceful demonstrations, ban and criminalize any and all forms of strikes: political, trade-unions, educational institutes, and any other. At best, a strike is an abuse of democracy and others’ right. At worst, it provides cover to anarchists at the cost of the country and people.    

  (5)

Lee’s Singapore has proved the world that human resource is the most powerful of all the resources. For inclusive prosperity of the country rich in human resources, Nepal must devise mechanisms for and provide access to quality education, medical facilities, housing and other basic needs to all its citizens.

   (6)

And finally the country must stop begging, instead focus on enacting and implementing investor-friendly laws and regulations. The resource-starved Singapore—which even lacked drinking water in its land—was not transformed by begging or by any ODA fund, but by genius policy formulation and implementation. By crafting and implementing such genius policies, Nepal can score better, considering the abundance of natural-resources advantages that we additionally have.

         

(The author was a researcher at the National University of Singapore from 2002-2004)  

LET'S DEAL WITH LUMBINI'S ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

LET'S DEAL WITH LUMBINI'S ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

(Published in The KTM POST, November 30, 2014)

                                                                                           (Sandhya Regmi)

International Conference on Buddhism

A three day International Conference on Buddhism took place in Lumbini, the sacred birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama the Buddha – the apostle of peace - from 15^th to 17^th November 2014 for the promotion, preservation and protection of Buddhist Cultural Heritage. The conference was jointly organized by the Sitagu International Buddhist Academy of Myanmar and the Teravada Buddhist Academy ‘Vishwa Shanti Vihar’ of Lumbini Buddhist University of Nepal. The conference was a landmark achievement in itself with the participation of the most venerable monks and respectable nuns from over 32 countries across the world. The participants included professors, educationist, cultural experts, archaeological & environmental professionals, research scientists, dignitaries, officials of governmental and international non-governmental organization, universities, educational institutions, Buddhist organizations and communities.  

The conference provided a golden opportunity for many enthusiastic participants like me to be a part of and interact with the educational, intellectual and spiritual Gurus. The elegant gathering ran through a series of intellectual sessions on Buddhist Heritage, Buddhist Culture, Buddhist Educational System, and Environmental Conservation & Sustainable Development of Lumbini.  For me the event enriched with Buddhist Education and Self-Enlightenment. As a firm believer in Buddhism, an admirer of Buddha’s teachings & philosophies, and an artist of Buddha portraits, my enthusiasm met the event.

Further,  my Environmental Engineering background  gave me an opportunity to pour out my opinions and ponder for a better environmental management system and the protection & preservation of both the natural and social environment of the internationally recognized world top class authentic pilgrimage site, which at the moment is found to be at risk of deterioration due to serious environmental pollution threats, and needs immediate attention by all concerned individuals and authorities at the local, national and the international levels.  

Air Pollution in Lumbini

A comprehensive and quantitative air quality assessment was conducted at the Lumbini World Heritage Site and its vicinity by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2013 in the project entitled the Heritage Air Quality and Weather Assessment for Lumbini Protected Zone (HAWA-LPZ) through scientists from Indian Institute of Tropical Meterology (IITM), Pune, India.  The results showed that during the winter season the air quality of Lumbini and vicinity is alarmingly poor and unhealthy mainly due to the temperature inversion phenomenon and the trapped local industrial pollution where PM2.5 (fine particles) touch unhealthy level of 270 µg/m3 and PM10 (bigger particles) hit the level of 350 µg/m3 both far exceeding the National Ambient Air Quality Standard (NAAQS 2012) of Nepal and the WHO guidelines. This high level of air pollution is extremely dangerous and poses serious health hazards especially the respiratory and heart diseases on human beings and threats to biodiversity in and around the heritage site. An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) conducted by the IUCN in 2013 confirms an estimated release of about 912.6 metric tons of carbon emission per day from 4 cement industries in the Lumbini area. The carbon emission is carcinogenic to humans and has been declared by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the WHO as a leading environmental cause of cancer deaths.        

Tourists and Pilgrims visiting Lumbini are yet ignorant about the fact that the early morning fog visible in the sacred garden is not just the fog rather the smog, which is the high concentration of smoke particles accumulated in air, which can do substantial damage and are sometimes poison and carcinogens; and the Buddhist monks and nuns living in the monasteries are unknowingly breathing into their lungs this carcinogenic air while practicing yoga, pranayama and meditation. The deteriorating air quality of Lumbini and surrounding has caused significant adverse impacts and been proved hazardous both to the social and natural environment, and thus requires immediate preventive and mitigation measures.

Solid Waste Mismanagement in Lumbini

The growth of tourist infrastructure, increasing population especially the visitors, the increasing commercial and industrial activities in the area have contributed to the increase in waste generation in the world heritage site inscribed on UNESCO’s list.  Furthermore, the increase in number of visitors after the completion of the ongoing international airport in Bhairahawa will generate more waste and will impose serious adverse impacts on the environment, if an efficient waste management system is not timely established.       

The currently practiced SW Management is ineffective as there has been no proper segregation, collection, transportation and disposal of waste. Waste has been swept only from the cleaning routes and not from main roads, pedestrian paths and gardens, and waste has been dumped direct in open areas and even at the backyard of the Mayadevi temple. While we were taken to visit the Lumbini museum as a part of the conference activities, it was alarmingly unhygienic to see the area covered with litter producing foul odor, an extremely neglected SW disposal scenario totally ignored by the local residents and authorities. Hence a systematic and scientific SW management mechanism is required timely to preserve the environment of this internationally significant pious heritage site.   

Degradation of Monuments in Lumbini 

The most important monuments - the spiritual, cultural and social assets of the sacred garden of Lumbini – namely the Marker Stone, the Nativity Sculpture and the Asoka Pillar are undergoing degradation due to industrial and vehicular emission in the vicinity of the heritage site apart from the growth of algae and microscopic fungi and bacteria. The emitted SO2 and NO2 react with water vapor in the air in the presence of oxidizing agents to form sulfuric and nitric acid—the acid rain—which is very corrosive and attacks limestone, marble and metals of ancient sculptures and monuments. Not only the precious monuments of Lumbini, but also the world’s most cherished buildings - the Taj Mahal of Agra, the Colosseum of Rome and the Lincoln Memorial of Washington D.C. are slowly dissolving away because of the action of the weathering.

Actions to be taken

I propose to take the following actions to deal with the environmental issues of Lumbini.

1)    A comprehensive environmental study needs to be carried out to map out and update environmental issues (including air, water, solid waste noise pollutions) and to identify specific measures to be taken to deal with the issues. Any master plan for Lumbini development must address all the environmental issues.

2)  A stringent legal framework specifically devised to protect environment of Lumbini might be needed. This needs to be considered after due consultation with all stakeholders.

3) The major pollutants in and around the heritage site are the industrial emissions. Most of the industries set up in the periphery of Lumbini poorly regulated and exceed the acceptable pollution threshold, and do not comply with the laws and standards. Hence the Ministry of Science, Technology & Environment (MOSTE) and its Department of Environment (DOE) should urgently undertake compliance monitoring of Legislation, Regulations and Standards in the industrial sector of Lumbini.

4) Immediate and stringent legal actions should be taken to exclude all carbon-emitting industries especially the brick kilns and cement factories and all other major environmental polluting industries established within the Lumbini Protected Zone (LPZ)—which is the region covering a 15 km aerial distance from the Lumbini Project Area (LPA). Any new industry to be established should be outside the LPZ, and need to comply strictly with the Regulation, Bylaws and Standards of the Environment Protection Act (EPA).         

5) The vulnerable population of Lumbini including the monks and nuns living in the monasteries, the visitors & pilgrims as well should be made aware of the fact that all the environmental pollution has adverse impact on human health, biodiversity, air quality, water quality, noise quality and also on the precious historical monuments, sculptors and masonry. In any environment related project undertaken by the government, the participation of these local people, authorities and institutions are of utmost importance.

6) Environmentally Friendly Renewable Energy Technologies (RET) especially the solar PV and Electric Vehicles (EV) should be promoted in the heritage site in order to minimize the industrial pollution, the vehicular emission and thus prevent the related irreversible impact of acid rain’s degradation of monument.  

7) The 3R principle of waste Reduction, Recovery and Reuse should be adopted in order to minimize the waste generation and its final disposal.

I take this opportunity to urge all stakeholders to come forward and create a working front through which we could contribute in preserving the environment of Lumbini. At the individual level, I am willing to participate and contribute in dealing with the environmental issues of Lumbini, with governmental and non-nongovernmental institutions and the stakeholders.

(The author is an Environmental Engineer and has conducted research on Energy & Environment at the University of Tokyo and the National University of Singapore)