STUBBLE
BURNING – ENVIRONMENT
News:
Centre faults Punjab’s
farm fires for Delhi’s air pollution problem
What's
in the news?
●
With Delhi’s air pollution plummeting
precipitously and no respite expected in the weeks ahead, a meeting chaired by
the Union Cabinet Secretary and senior officers of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar
Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi concluded that the current crisis was “majorly” on
account of stubble burning.
●
Central government sources said 38% of the
air pollution level was contributed by stubble burning.
Key
takeaways:
●
Data from the Indian Agricultural Research
Institute’s satellite monitoring division suggest that of the 35,350crop
residue burning events recorded in 2023, 65% have been reported out of Punjab.
Stubble
Burning:
●
Stubble burning is a post-harvest practice used to clear fields of paddy crop residue by
burning them. This practice mostly carried out in Punjab, Haryana and UP
contributes solely to the grave winter pollution in the national capital.
●
For farmers, burning the residue becomes
the easiest way of disposing of it owing to lack of time, equipment and
awareness. But this adds to the already poor air quality in India and is one of
the cause of air pollution in India.
Stubble
burning and Air Pollution:
●
Stubble burning, results in emission of harmful gases such as
carbon monoxide, N2O, NO2, SO2, CH4 along with particulate matter and
hydrocarbons. Each tonne of crop residue on burning releases around 3kg of
particulate matter, 60 kg of CO, 1,460 kg of CO2, 199kg of ash and 2kg of SO2.
●
Crop residue fires in Punjab and Haryana
are enhancing concentrations of toxic
gases like benzene and toluene, according to research from Indian Institute
of Science Education and Research (IISER).
●
Stubble burning releases like Volatile
organic compounds (VOC) in air. Also, it leads to a spike in Particulate Matter
levels, contributing between 12 and 60% of PM concentration per ns.
●
Clouds
of ash and smoke containing these harmful pollutants from
stubble burning travel more than 1000 kms aided by the Westerly winds coming
from the Mediterranean region and create obstinate and non-clearing clouds.
●
Smog formed from the smoke increases the
levels of pollutants by manifolds in the air leading to poor visibility and
causing accidents.
Causes
behind stubble burning and its persistence:
●
Paucity of time forces farmers to burn
residue to clear the farms early for preparing them for sowing of wheat in the
Rabi season.
●
Farmers in this region have a traditional
belief that burning crop residue will restore nutrients back to the soil.
●
Mechanisation and employment guarantee
schemes like MGNREGA have led to shortage of farm labourers to carry on
seasonal migration from UP and Bihar to Punjab and Haryana, as was prevalent
earlier. It has become more economical for farmers to burn stubble on field
than getting it transported for other uses.
●
Availability, affordability and awareness
regarding crop residue management machines like ‘Happy seeder’ and ‘Super SMS
attachment’ is inadequate.
Measures
taken by government:
1.
National Policy for Management of Crop Residues:
●
Control of burning of crop residue by
promotion of in-situ management (incorporation in soil, mulching) of crop
residue.
2.
Waste to Energy Programme under the Umbrella scheme of the National Bioenergy
Programme:
●
It supports the setting up of Waste to
Energy projects for the generation of biogas, bioCNG, power, and syngas from
urban, industrial and agricultural residues.
3. Promotion of agricultural mechanization for in-situ crop residue
management in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and NCT of Delhi.
●
It aims to address air pollution and
subsidize machinery required for in-situ crop residue management.
4.
Crop Residue Management Guidelines:
●
For efficient ex-situ management of paddy
straw generated, surplus paddy straw will be collected and biomass collection
depots will be built in the States of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya
Pradesh.
●
It would generate employment
opportunities, reduce air pollution, and would result in new investments in
biomass to the biofuel and energy sectors.
WAY
FORWARD:
1.
Subsidizing Innovative Farm Technologies:
●
Recent innovations like happy seeder,
rotavator, baler, paddy straw chopper, etc. are costly but they could help
farmers to manage crop residues effectively.
2.
New and Improved seed varieties:
●
Using improved varieties of rice and wheat
crops, particularly short-duration crop varieties.
●
For example, Pusa Basmati-1509 and PR-126
mature quickly and also improve the quality of the soil.
3.
Using Bio-Waste Decomposers:
●
These decomposers contain agricultural
micro-organisms which increase the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR).
●
For instance, using Pusa-bio-decomposer,
developed by the scientists at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute,
which turns crop residue into manure in 15-20 days by accelerating the
decomposition process.
4.
Sustainable farm management practices:
●
Such measures include the production of
biochar in-situ management with mechanical intensification.
●
These measures could not only manage the
crop residues but also help control GHG emissions.
5.
Educating and Empowering the Stakeholders:
●
It could be an important step to make
farmers feel that they are also responsible for the crop residue and empower
them to better utilize agricultural waste for financial and environmental
gains.