Climate change is a widely debated topic in the 21st century, with various perspectives and opinions on its causes and potential remedies. Climate change risks have perplexed authorities and made protecting human life and health difficult. The elements that cause climate change, such as the combustion of fossil fuels, air pollutants, short-lived climatic pollutants, etc., have affected both the climate and human health. The Paris Agreement established several commitment periods that each nation was obligated to follow in accordance with their own individual capacities. This will assist in achieving greater human health and environmental benefits. To develop a robust climate change framework, WHO and other UN organizations have moved up to resolve these challenges. From the first international conference in 1988 to the current Conference of Parties, it has been concluded that “humanity is conducting an unintended, uncontrolled, globally pervasive experiment, the ultimate consequences of which could be second only to a global nuclear war.” The recent Katowice Agreement and the climate change package that was put in place demonstrate the seriousness required to resolve the issues of finance, loss and damage, and differentiation mechanisms, which were thoroughly discussed. The paper will focus on the existing legal solutions for providing climate justice to nations. The study will also look at the effectiveness of COP24 in executing adaptation and mitigation plans and adhering to the Paris Agreement in both text and spirit.

In the present study, we studied the concentrations and proportions. We identified the potential sources and health risks of 12 probably carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in rice grain from 31 sites in Thailand and Myanmar. The findings showed that PAH concentrations in rice grain samples from Thailand and Myanmar were in the range of 0.09 to 37.15 ng.g-1 with an average value of 18.22 ± 11.76 ng.g-1 and 0.07 to 150.73 ng.g-1 with an average value of 34.70 ± 40.57 ng.g-1, respectively. The majority group of PAHs in the rice grain samples from Thailand were the five-ring PAHs (78%), followed by four-rings (12%) and three-ring PAHs (9.5%), respectively, while for Myanmar was the five-ring PAHs were the majority (64.02%), followed by six-rings (15.22%) and four-ring PAHs (13.58%), respectively. The diagnostic ratio analysis suggested that pyrogenic origin is a major source of PAHs, and principal component analysis (PCA) identifies the incomplete combustion of fuel as likely the primary source of emissions source of PAHs contamination in rice grain samples. The total values of incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) of PAH content of rice grain for children and adults were 1.95 × 10-8 and 1.44 × 10-8, respectively, for Thailand and 1.83×10-7 and 1.35×10-7 for Myanmar, which showed that the incremental lifetime cancer risk from rice grain was lower than the baseline set is considered to be safe levels.

India has experienced tremendous production, use, and discarding of plastic waste. The municipal and solid wastes proliferation of municipal waste, especially plastic waste, paved the way for the regulatory framework to implement the plastic ban in 18 states and Union Territories of India. In contrast, they have implemented a partial ban on plastic bags respectively. It addressed the phasing out of multi-layered plastics (MLP) and incorporated Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) within the circular economy of plastic waste generation and recycling. It is generally believed that the plastic ban in India has feeble administrative support and effective implementation. Therefore, the government has passed the Draft Plastic Rules, 2009; Plastic Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, 2011; Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 and Draft Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2021. It made vital changes in recycled plastic manufacture and usage at national and state levels. Since the net outcome of the failure is environmental degradation beyond reparable limits, the most vociferous articulation of the banning of the single-use came through the Notification on Plastic and Thermocol Products, 2018, by the Government of Maharashtra. Although the new legal framework carried high deterrent value, the implementation has been heavily flawed. The paper deals with the plastic laws and performance in the context of EPR in Pune city of India. It suggests viable recommendations and strategies from a multi-stakeholder perspective.

Pollutants like arsenic, chromium, or other toxic heavy metals have the most dreadful impact on humans or animals and also become a threat worldwide. Introducing these contaminants into the environment is not just due to the chemical industry but also coexists in combined form in underground rocks, contaminating groundwater during breakdown. Epidemics are now largely blamed on toxic pollution in many different nations worldwide. The issue has gotten worse in underdeveloped nations, where metal contamination of the groundwater affects more than a million people. Different techniques are used to remove toxic pollutants from water, but most are expensive and energy intensive. Adsorption is preferable for removing contaminants such as heavy metals or chemical dyes. As nanomaterials have been demonstrated to be more effective as nanocomposites, we used an adsorbent of nanomaterial to use the adsorption approach. These materials have become more well-liked because of their useful applications and improved characteristics. Magnetic synthesized nanocomposites have magnetic properties, which become beneficial for adsorption as it enhances adsorption capacity. The insertion of the plant or aggregate waste material for nanocomposite synthesis inhibits the growth of bacteria or other microorganisms, preventing the material from getting infected if it is in the environment. In this review paper, we have focused on the green synthesis of nanomaterials used for water treatment.

Lipases are utilized in biodiesel production utilizing various types of substrates. The use of lipase in bioenergy production aims to reduce energy crises and environmental pollution. Lipase-producing indigenous bacteria Bacillus licheniformis (Accession no. OP56979) and Bacillus rugosus (Accession no. OP56980) were isolated from various oil-contaminated sites. The isolated potential lipolytic bacteria were screened for maximum lipase production. Then, the bacteria showing the highest lipolytic activity were subjected to identification using the 16s rRNA technique while other isolated were identified biochemically. Lipase [LipBL-WII(c)] from Bacillus licheniformis having the highest lipolytic activity expressed various characteristics. Characterization of crude LipBL-WII(c) expressed that it showed stability in a wide range of pH (4 to 10) with optimum lipolytic activity observed at pH 8. It was then found to be active at a temperature range from 20°C to 80°C with optimal at 50°C. Lipase activity was also stimulated in metal ions such as Ca+1, Mg2+, and Zn2+ the most. Furthermore, LipBL-WII(c) retained lipolytic activity in the presence of various organic solvents and surfactants. The kinetic parameters (Km and Vmax) for LipBL-WII(c) were ascertained using Lineweaver- Burk plot. LipBL-WII(c) showed a potential for biodiesel production using olive oil as a source. Lipase gave 84% yield of biodiesel production from olive oil. Thus, it could be employed as a potential candidate for green biodiesel production using oil sources.

In most of the research works, similar metal electrodes were used, resulting in high operating costs, and the reuse of the treated water was not explored. The major goal of this research is to lower the cost of the electrocoagulation (EC) process by employing electrodes made of different metals and to investigate whether it is possible to reuse the water that has been treated by doing so. It was done to optimize the operational parameters such as pH, voltage, time, electrolyte, and dye concentrations. The energy and electrode consumption was calculated as 0.29 kWh.m-3 and 3.5×10-2 kg.m-3, respectively. The HPLC and LC-MS studies shows the degradation of dye and the formation of intermediary compounds, which were less toxic. The sludge obtained from the EC process was subjected to EDX and XPS analysis to know the composition of metals and the formation of metal hydroxide coagulants. The phytotoxicity of the treated water after EC was examined using Trigonella foenum-graecum seeds. The results showed an utmost color removal efficiency (CRE%) and COD removal of 99.78% and 92.86% with an operating cost of US$ 0.028, which is comparatively 98.12% lower than the other conventional electrodes. The treated toxicity test of water was comparable to the toxicity test of tap water.

Due to the increase in population and urbanization, the availability of freshwater with standard quality to the human population is of great challenge. Recently there has been a demand for fresh water in surface and groundwater, so it is necessary to go for advanced isotopic techniques for identifying surface and groundwater resources. Isotopes are atoms of elements having the same atomic and different mass numbers. The isotopes found their wider application in water resources-related problems. The isotopes in water resources proved to be an effective tool in solving many critical hydrologic problems where conventional methods cannot be used due to their limitations. This research article discusses isotope application in water resources and focuses on different types of stable and unstable isotopes and their applications at Global and National levels. The methodology and research steps are proposed based on research gaps identified through various literature studies. The study will be conducted in the Kelambakkam zone, south of Chennai sub-urban. This research paper will discuss the sequential steps in identifying recharge and discharge mechanisms in study zones through stable isotopic techniques. The hydro-chemical analysis will also be done by measuring water quality in the Kelambakkam zone. The electrical resistivity survey for aquifer mapping will also be developed to identify the groundwater recharge zones. The proposed study will give complete information about recharge and discharge in the study area and recommend suitable groundwater harvesting structures.

The River Chief System is an administrative model of water environment governance currently adopted in China. Under this system, the chief CPC and government leaders at various levels serve as “river chiefs” and are responsible for organizing and directing the management and protection of the rivers and lakes within their remit. This paper tries to reveal the actual effectiveness of the River Chief System based on the behaviors of grassroots river chiefs (GRCs). First-hand data about GRCs is obtained through a questionnaire survey. Whether the water environment governance target is achieved and the water quality change of the river sections in the charge of GRCs is quantitatively assessed It has been found that, except for implementing “one policy for one river” and making river patrols, the behaviors of GRCs have no positive effect on river pollution prevention and control, implying the ineffectiveness of the River Chief System. The framework design of the River Chief System should be optimized, and a system with professionals to support GRCs in performing their duties should be established. Moreover, the tendency to use environmental regulation as a mandatory policy tool should be weakened. These measures are of great practical significance to the implementation of the green development concept and the furthering of the River Chief System overall.

In view of the environmental problems generated by the large-scale production of fly ash, increasing attention is now being paid to the recycling of fly ash as a good source of nutrients. To reduce the cost of fly ash disposal and best utilization, it aimed to convert the fly ash into valuable vermicompost. Stated throughout the experiment, we opted for a soil sample and fly ash and pressed with different concentrations (control, 20%, 50%, 80% and 100%). Subsequently, all the mixtures were vermicomposted for 60 days by adding 100 Earthworms (Eisenia foetida) in each pile. The X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy measured the composition of the metal in fly ash as well as the nutritional content in the soil. This is followed by examining the morphological characteristics and cytogenetic study of Ricinus communis L. The present study indicated that E. foetida mitigates the toxicity of fly ash and is hence used as valuable vermicompost.

Plastics are the most rapidly growing materials in terms of production and consumption. The durability, inertness, light weight, flexibility, and low cost are the key characteristics that make plastic suitable for application in various fields, including the construction, automotive, electronics, and packaging industries. Due to widespread usage in daily life and many industrial processes and operations, more than 300 million tons of plastic waste are produced globally annually. Indiscriminate use of plastics such as polyethylene causes environmental pollution and impacts human health due to irreversible changes in the ecological cycle. Due to its low biodegradability, polyethylene accumulation has recently emerged as a momentous environmental concern. The conventional methods, such as recycling or disposing of polyethylene, are exorbitant, and incineration results in the emission of toxic chemical compounds. Therefore, the most recent research progressively focused on the biodegradation of polyethylene with the application of bacteria as novel approaches to counteract plastic waste. This review summarizes the type of polyethylene and the environmental issues. It also briefly discussed the genes and enzymes of bacteria involved in the degradation of polyethylene. In addition, it attempts to address factors influencing degradation and techniques used for monitoring degradation.