Environmental assessment and environmental management framework

This environmental and social assessment for the India National Agricultural Innovation Project discusses potential environmental risks and measures to mitigate them. Activities in the production, harvesting, storage and transportation, food processing and packaging and marketing stages, activities mainly covered under Components 2 (Horticulture) and 3 Livestock Development) will lead to potential environmental impacts. Among them are stress on water resources, increased salinity and land degradation; soil and groundwater contamination due to pesticide use; eutrophication and impact on aquatic animals; health and safety, including occupational safety, issues; pesticide/ and insecticide residues in the food chain, disposal of pesticide/fertilizer containers; biodiversity loss; crop failures; uncontrolled cultivation of genetically engineered varieties; impacts on natural habitats; deforestation and vegetation loss; loss of soil fertility; land use change; crop residue disposal; air quality reduction; wasted food products; waste generation and disposal; disposal of plastic and other biodegradables; wastewater generation and treatment; surface water quality; the release of uncontrolled genetically modified organisms; and the generation of hazardous bio wastes and their disposal. Likely social risks include unequal access to inputs, marginalization and increasing disparities, vulnerability to crop failure and animal diseases, increased poverty and indebtedness, more dependence on external resources, increased workload for women and children, greater competition for natural resources, changes in land use, changes in occupational patterns, increased incidence of diseases, health and safety hazards, communities' deprived of benefits, risk of bio-piracy, increased unemployment but increased role of middlemen, cash crops displacing food crops, exotic varieties replacing indigenous varieties, fodder razing area shortage, gender discrimination, and social conflicts. Mitigation against most of these impacts are possible, both at project development and implementation, and these will be identified from among the measures suggested in the framework. Among these measures are included rainwater harvesting and choosing crops requiring less water, irrigation, soil conservation, integrated pest management, protective equipment, disposing of hazardous waste, reviving traditional practices (except for burning crop residue), community consultation, improving grazing areas, intercropping and crop rotation, crop diversification, terracing, recycling organic waste, and gender sensitization.