Transcript Apr. 21st - Water Pollution

Water Pollution
OUTLINE

Introduction
Water subject to pollution

Pollutants
Domestic Policy
International Policy
International watercourse

Marine Pollution
• Development of regime




Land-based Sources
 Dumping
 Pollution from Ships
• Liability
Conclusion


Introduction
 Two
types of water subject to pollution
 Surface water – rivers, lakes, oceans

Uses: drinking, recreational [fishing, boating,
swimming], irrigation.
 Groundwater-
occurs beneath a water table in
soils or rocks; subject to pollution from
toxic chemicals.

Uses: drinking, irrigation, etc

Contamination


Nature of sources of contamination [point and nonpoint]
Point source: discharge into surface waters at a
specific location through a pipe, outfall or ditch.]

Non-point: Indirect or
diffuse effect on water
[N/B. more difficult to
control]

e.g. agricultural
activities, urban run-off

Sources of contamination
 For Groundwater
•
-polluting substances leach into a watersaturated region [e.g. toxic chemicals]
•
-Mainly due to migration of pollutants from
sites with high concentrations of chemicals
[e.g. industrial waste sites and farms]

Sources of contamination

For Surface water
• Rivers and lakes
 Point source: -sewage [municipal or private]
- industrial wastes
Non-point source:
• Agricultural activity [e.g. pesticides, fertilizers].
• urban and highway water runoff.
• Ocean [oil spills, dumping, land-based sources]
 Oil spills – during transportation, either accidentally or
intentionally
 Dumping –sewage, chemical disposal, radioactive
materials
 Land-based sources –migration of chemical
substances.

Types of Pollutants [Fund and accumulating pollutants]



I) Fund pollutants

-Environment has some assimilative capacity. If
capacity for absorption higher than rate of injection, they
may not accumulate.
a) Degradable
 degrades/break into component parts within water. Are
normally organic residuals attacked and broken down by
bacteria and become less harmful.
b) Thermal pollution
 caused by injection of heat into watercourses by an
industrial plant or electric utility using surface water
as a coolant, and returning the heated water to the
watercourse.
 c) Plant nutrients [nitrogen and phosphorus][eutrophic/
eutrophication =excess supply of nutrients in a lake]
 stimulate growth of aquatic plant life, e.g. algae and water
weeds.


can produce odor if in excess.
d) Infectious organisms [e.g. bacteria and viruses]


carried into both ground and surface water by domestic and
animal wastes; industrial wastes e.g. tanning and meat
packaging
Are live organisms that may thrive and multiply in water or
decline.
II) Accumulating/stock pollutants

Environment has little or no absorptive capacity [i.e. no
natural process removes/transforms them].
 accumulate over time.

Examples: non-biodegradable bottles, heavy metals [e.g.
lead, mercury]; persistent synthetic chemicals [e.g. dioxin,
and PCBs –polychlorinated biphenyls]
 not easily broken down; so can remain in water for long.
 also accumulate in the food chain.
Water Pollution Control Policy: Domestic Dimension
[U.S.]

Water Pollution Control Act, 1956
 i) Federal financial support for construction of waste
treatment plants
• focused on a control strategy based on subsidizing
construction of waste treatment plants as a particular
control activity.
• Municipalities would receive grant of upto 55% for
construction of waste treatment plants.

ii) Enforcement conference mechanism
• sought to effect direct federal regulation of waste
discharges
• Federal authority could call for a conference of interstate
water pollution problem.

Clean Water Act, 1972
 Two goals
• elimination of discharge of pollutants into navigable
waters by 1985
• achieve water quality for fishing and recreation
[swimming].
 New procedures for implementing the law introduced
• permits for all dischargers [qualification based on meeting
certain technology-based effluent standards]. especially
sewage treatment plants and factories.
 first ‘best practicable control technology currently
available [BPT]
 later, ‘best available technology economically
achievable’[BAT]
 Raised ceiling of subsidizing municipal waste treatment
plants to 75%

Safe Drinking Water Act, 1974, amended 1986
 Improvement on 1972 Act to include drinking water.


EPA regulations set maximum levels for pollutants for
community water systems.
All community water systems must prepare and
distribute annual reports about the water they provide,
including information on detected contaminants,
possible health effects, and the water's source.
Domestic policy on international waters: Ocean

I) Oil spills – covered under the Clean Water Act:



prohibits discharges of harmful quantities of oil into
navigable waters
industry assume responsibility for any damage [clean up;
compensation for environmental restoration.
II) Dumping
 Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act, 1972.
• address discharges of waste


within U.S. territorial limits
by U.S. vessels or persons in any ocean waters.
Domestic Policy on Non-Point sources

Unlike point source, is largely state responsibility


Federal grants for state-initiated plans for waste treatment
management.
Federal programs for aiding control of non-point sources
• e.g. Conservation Reserve Program
 aimed at removing 40-45 million acres of erodible
land from cultivation.
International Dimension:
Transboundary watercourses
International Watercourses






rivers, lakes, or groundwater sources shared by two or more
states.
Geographical problem: how much of the watercourse is to be
included?
i) portion that crosses or defines a boundary.
Problem: impedes efficient environmental management of
transboundary waters .
ii) entire watershed or river basin [basin approach]
 associated lakes, tributaries, groundwater systems, and
connecting waterways wherever they are located.
Problem:
 limitations on use of a substantial portion of a country’s
water system and its associated catchment areas
 requirements to provide an environmental good on
watercourse states for themselves as well as others
[neighbors].
Pollution permissible uses.

Greater tolerance of polluting uses?
 Few modern treaties endorse an absolute prohibition of
pollution. Modern trend require states to regulate and
control river pollution, prohibiting only certain forms of
pollutant discharges.

Example
North America: - prohibition of boundary waters only when
human health or property were injured.
 Until 1973, U.S. maintained it did not have an obligation to
deliver quality water to Mexico from Colorado river, provided
its polluting use of the river for irrigation was reasonable.
State practice, however, points to prohibition of certain toxic
discharges.


1997 UN Watercourses Convention



watercourse states prevent, reduce, and control pollution of a
watercourse causing significant harm to other states.
 Not absolute prohibition, but means states act with due
diligence.
Thus, pollution permissible if,
• Insignificant harm,
• Significant but unavoidable by exercise of due diligence.
Significant of above to pollution and environment:
 Protection of river environment and its living resources
must compete with other equitable claims.
• No claim [e.g. industrial waste disposal vs. fishing] has
priority [although ‘special regard’ must be given to ‘vital
human needs’]
Unusual example

1976 Rhine Chlorides Convention [force, 1985]


reduce French Chloride discharges into the river, and
prevent increases in discharges by other states.
Reversal of the polluter pays principle
 cost of measures taken by France to reduce chloride
distributed across all riparian states including injured
ones.
PROTECTION OF MARINE ENVIRONMENT


PROTECTION OF MARINE ENVIRONMENT
Development of regulation of marine pollution was
slower than that of other aspects of the sea [[e.g.
Fisheries 1911 convention on Fur Seals]
Two stages in development
Laissez Faire : London Convention for Prevention
of Pollution of the Sea by Oil.
• did not entirely prohibit discharge of oil from
ships at sea. 1954.
 Duty to protect environment from Pollution:
UNCLOS phase
1982 United Nations Convention on Law of the Seas
[UNCLOS]
 formulated obligation in terms comprehensive of
all sources. [ships, land-based sources, seabed
operations, dumping, and atmospheric pollution]


I) On land-based sources

Unlike pollution from ships and dumping, no requirement
for adherence to any minimum international standards.
 Each state determine what measures to take, and
which substances to act on.

Reason for generality:
 balance environmental protection measures against
economic imperatives

Regional regimes
International Policy on Dumping

Both London Dumping Convention and UNCLOS initially sought
to control, not prohibit, dumping.
 Dumping was permissible unless proven harmful.

Consequent to Rio in 1992 where the precautionary principle
was adopted, dumping is now prohibited unless there is no
alternative, and can be proved to be harmless to environment
[shift in burden of proof]
III) POLLUTION FROM SHIPS
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
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purpose of regulation is minimize the risk and give coastal
states adequate means of protecting themselves and securing
compensation
MARPOL, 1973/ amended 1978 ].
Jurisdiction to regulate Pollution
 Flag state –the state in which the ship is registered or
whose flag it is entitled to fly.
 cooperation of coastal states, port states and flag states in
the system of certification, inspection and reporting .
Responsibility and Liability for Damage


Two Conventions
 1969 Convention on civil Liability for Oil Pollution
Damage; updated by 1992.
 1996 Convention on Liability and Compensation for the
Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances by sea.
State responsibility for damage

Civil liability

Who claims liability costs:
• e.g. fisherfolks and hoteliers.
• Environmental Damage
 Compensation for impairment of the environment;
limited to costs of reasonable measures of
reinstatement.
Conclusion
 Non-point
source control is the least
developed of water pollution control
programs/policies.


What is the source of this difficulty?
In what two ways [at both domestic and
international levels] can the difficulty be
addressed/mitigated?