SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT – BLUE ECONOMY – REFERENCE TO INDIA

                                                                                                                         

-*Dr. S. Vijay Kumar

           

         In 1983, the United Nations set up the World Commission on Environment and Development called 'the Brundtland Commission' to examine the problems related to this area. The Commission in its report entitled "Our Common Future" published in 1987, used and defined this concept of Sustainable Development for the first time by Ms. Gro Harlem Brundtland, the then Prime Minister of Norway and the chair of the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) as “Meeting the needs of present generation without compromising with the needs of future generations.” In order to be sustainable, development must combine three main elements: fairness, protection of the environment, and economic efficiency. A sustainable development project must be based on a better-developed mode of consultation between the community and the members it comprises. The success of such a policy also depends on consumers accepting certain constraints and citizens observing certain requirements with regard to transparency and participation. Blue Economy refers to  the "sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem." In view of the resources constraint, the aim of Blue Economy is to shift society from scarcity to abundance. This Paper,  attempts to Study “Sustainable Development – Blue Economy” in the context of India with the following Objectives.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------*Professor (Associate) & Head (Retd.), Bharat Jyoti Awardee, Department of Economics, Kakatiya Government (UG&PG) College (NAAC “A” Grade), Ex - Member of Board of Studies, Kakatiya University, Warangal – 506 009 ( Telangana State).

Objectives of the Study:

1). Sustainable Development

2). Challenges and Strategies for Sustainable Development

3). Blue Economy – Evolution – Key Elements – National Strategy

3). Blue Economy – Reference to India

4) Conclusion 

Methodology: The Study is based on information and data accessed from relevant National and International Journals, Reports and Websites.

Sustainable Development: The aim of sustainable development is to define viable schemes combining the economic, social, and environmental aspects of human activity. These three areas must therefore be taken into consideration by communities, companies, and individuals. The ultimate goal of sustainable development is to find a coherent and long-lasting balance between these three aspects. In addition to these three main factors, there is a transverse consideration, which is essential to the implementation of policies and actions with regard to sustainable development: good governance. Governance consists in the procedures of the decision-making process. In matters of sustainable development, the consensus of all the participants in society is required in order to define objectives and implement them: private and public sector companies, associations, NGOs, unions, and citizens.


Sustainable development did not just appear out of thin air; it is the product of a set of transformations in which the exploitation of natural resources, the choice of type of investment, and orientation of technological and institutional modifications are in harmony with present and future needs. As has already been indicated, the aims of sustainable development must be considered by individuals, by companies, and on a planet-wide level. Moreover, the concept of sustainable development is based on a set of requirements. It must allow the basic needs of present and future generations to be fulfilled with regard to demographic constraints, such as: access to water, education, health, employment, and the fight against hunger or malnutrition. Another aim of this type of development is to improve quality of life, which involves easier access to medical care, social services, culture, and therefore also social well-being. In addition, respect for rights and freedoms and the promotion of new forms of renewable energy such as wind, solar, and geothermal power, are important aspects of sustainable development. Sustainable development must allow the planet’s resources and condition to be protected for future generations and natural assets to be shared. The concept of sustainable development also involves narrowing the gaps between rich and poor countries, insofar as these gaps, if maintained or accentuated, could be the cause of violent conflict, which by its very nature leads to regression rather than development.

Challenges of Sustainable Development: In the field of sustainable development, there are many major challenges to be addressed. They require us to re-think our economy and our growth in favour of a society that is more economical in its use of raw materials and energy. Some of these challenges include: Governance, such as political will to transform development programmes into sustainable long-term practices. Implementation, such as ensuring programmes fit the local context. Instability, such as conflict between nations, climate change, energy consumption, waste production, threats to public health, poverty, social exclusion, management of natural resources, loss of biodiversity, and land use. In this context, sustainable development approaches are now essential obligations. Sustainable development must mainly be able to respond to the various problems raised by demographic growth, the planet’s limited capacity, and social inequality. In 2020, the world’s population will be close to 12 billion, but the Earth does not have unlimited resources, especially since individual consumption has been increasing considerably because the less developed countries wish to catch up with the others. Greenhouse gas emissions are one of the main consequences of human activity that accelerate global warming. This warming carries risks of shortages and the disruption of certain natural cycles such as fresh water, impoverishment of agricultural soil, deforestation, and reduced biodiversity. This means that the future development of all species living on earth, ultimately including human beings, is under threat. In order to be sustainable, development must also be harmonious. At least a certain amount of social cohesion must exist on a planetary scale in order to create the conditions for the peace we need. Major differences between the situations of economic players are sources of tension and conflict. The North/South economic divide and the unequal distribution of the consumption of the planet’s natural resources between the world’s populations are notable potential causes of tension.

STRATEGIES FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: As a general rule, any policy involving a strategy in favour of sustainable development must include the following guidelines, which have international scope and permanent validity: 

·  
Becoming more responsible with regard to the future and future generations: promoting the precautionary principle, the ‘polluter pays’ principle, and the general principle of responsibility. 

·    Taking into account the three aspects already mentioned, in a balanced manner, which assumes that the ‘environmental responsibility’, ‘economic capacity’, and ‘social solidarity’ areas must be handled equally. 

·       
Incorporating sustainable development in all areas of politics. All activities and all processes in the city must be concerned.

·        
Increasing the co-ordination between political areas and improving consistency. Thus, any wide-ranging political decision must be preceded by an early evaluation of its social, economic and ecological consequences. This approach requires transparent decision procedures and the involvement of all participants concerned, as well as the prior determination of conflicts of interest.

·       
Achieving the sustainable development objectives through partnership. All institutional levels must work together constructively and fully assume their role as an interface with civil society and the private sector.

Blue Economy: While, Green Economy is the traditional approach to sustainable development which revolves around the idea of controlling environmental pollution in the process of development. Thus, green economy is a land-locked vision that looks from the land to ocean space. Whereas, Blue Economy refers to  the "sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods, and jobs while preserving the health of ocean ecosystem." In view of resources constraint, the aim of Blue Economy is to shift society from scarcity to abundance. It is to promote smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and employment opportunities within the ocean region’s maritime economic activities. The Blue Economy is determined to initiate appropriate programs for: the sustainable harnessing of ocean resources; research and development; developing relevant sectors of oceanography; stock assessment of marine resources; introducing marine aquaculture, deep sea/long line fishing and biotechnology; and human resource development; among others. 

Evolution of Blue Economy Concept: The concept was taken up in Rio+20 (2012). In this meeting, the Small Islands Developing States (SIDS) held that the concept of green economy has very little relevance for them; instead they wanted a ‘Green Economy in a Blue world’. They felt that this new concept was most suitable for management and sustainable development of ocean resources. These countries feel that their fate is inexplicably linked with the health of the oceans. The idea of blue economy got further boost by Gunter Pauli’s book, “The Blue Economy: 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs” (2010).

Key Elements of Blue Economy: Apart from addressing concerns such as resource scarcity and waste disposal, blue economy aims for holistic and sustainable development along with enhancing human welfare. It is a broad concept as it is not only confined to minerals and marine products, but also includes even maritime activities like shipping services. This concept visualizes oceans as development spaces in which activities like conservation, sustainable energy production, mineral wealth extraction, bio-prospecting (The search for plant and animal species from which medicinal drugs and other commercially valuable compounds can be obtained), marine transport etc. are integrated. They key elements thus can be summarized as follows:

·        Optimum and efficient utilization of resources.

·        Sustainable, inclusive, harmonious and environment friendly development.

·        Exploitation of opportunities in emerging marine industries.

·     Creating and streamlining legal and regulatory institutions which govern the access, use and protection of maritime resources.

Blue Economy as National Strategy: Many countries have included the concept of blue economy as a part of their national strategy. For example, China has already initiated development Plans on National Marine Economy, which keeps track of progress in various marine sectors. India’s national vision about this sector is clearly articulated in the term SAGAR is a term coined by PM Modi in 2015. Similarly, the European Union has integrated its ‘Blue Growth’ strategy with Europe 2020 strategy for smart, inclusive and sustainable development of its maritime sectors. Ocean bound countries like Mauritius and Seychelles want to adopt blue economy as an important constituent of their national development strategy. Blue economy also reflects in the Goal 14 of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which states: “Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development”.

Blue Economy – Reference to India: India’s national vision about this sector is clearly articulated in the term SAGAR is a term coined by PM Modi in 2015 during his Mauritius visit with a focus on blue economy. The Indian Ocean Region is abundant with resources, particularly in the sectors of fisheries, aquaculture, ocean energy, sea-bed mining and minerals, and provides tremendous economic opportunities to develop marine tourism and shipping activities. Among these resources, fisheries and minerals are the most commercially viable industries. Commercial and artisanal fisheries sustain the livelihoods of more than 38 million people worldwide. In the Indian Ocean, fish production increased drastically from 861,000 tons in 1950 to 11.5 million tons in 2010. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report states that while other world oceans are nearing their fisheries limit, in certain areas, the Indian Ocean’s resources have the potential to sustain increased production. Polymetallic nodules and Polymetallic massive sulphides are the two mineral resources of commercial interest to developers in the Indian Ocean. A strong impetus on Research and Development, and Innovation in the areas of Ocean Energy, Marine Biology and Biotechnology must be provided for the nation to achieve significant market shares in these sectors. It is necessary for India to tap the enormous potential of the Ocean based Blue Economy, which will propel the nation into a higher growth trajectory. The development of Blue Economy can serve as a growth catalyst in realizing the vision to become a $10 trillion economy by 2032. Additionally, the Indian Ocean Region is of strategic importance to India’s economic growth as the most of the country’s oil, and The Indian Ocean Region presents tremendous trade potential for the country. The gas is imported through the sea. Further, this dependency is expected to rise by 2025 exponentially. The Indian Ocean Region presents tremendous trade potential for the country. The countries in the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) exhibited significant dynamism in the past few years as the trade in the region increased by over four times from US$ 302 billion in 2003 to US$ 1.2 trillion in 2012. In this era of advanced technology, oceans will become new centers of economic activity. Oceans already account for significant trade and commerce in the fields of shipping, offshore oil and gas, fishing, undersea cables, and tourism. Besides these areas, there are other emerging industries such as aquaculture, marine biotechnology, ocean energy and sea-bed mining that have the potential to create jobs and spur worldwide economic growth. The Indian Ocean region needs a sustainable and inclusive framework for international partnerships. Countries in the region need to not only coordinate and manage the growing security challenges in the region but also realize the substantial economic potential the Indian Ocean area presents. India has significantly upped its development efforts in Seychelles, Mauritius, Africa, and Sri Lanka. Such an approach earmarks a shift  from the traditional focus on naval operations and anti-piracy efforts to that of environmental protection, national security, infrastructure creation, industrial capacity building and marine development.

Fisheries and Aquaculture: Fisheries, which is a vital oceanic resource forms the core of the Blue Economy, as one of the main resources of the Indian Ocean which provide food to hundreds of millions of people and greatly contribute to the livelihoods of coastal communities. It plays an important role in ensuring food security, poverty alleviation and also has a huge potential for business opportunities. There has been a strong increase in fish production from 861,000 tons in 1950 to 11.5 million tons in 2010 and the world's total demand for fish and fisheries products is expected to rise from 50 million to 183 million tons in 2015, with aquaculture activities predicted to cover about 73% of this increase. Aquaculture, which offers huge potential for the provision of food and livelihoods, will under the Blue Economy incorporate the value of the natural capital in its development, respecting ecological parameters throughout the cycle of production, creating sustainable, decent employment and offer high value commodities for export. To meet the increasing public demand in seafood products, natural fisheries resources are being over-exploited and threatened. Therefore, the urgent need to find a balance between population need and environmental health has provided impetus to the promotion of sustainable fishing and aquaculture. Well-managed fisheries can deliver billions more in value and millions of tonnes more fish each year, while aquaculture has the potential for continued strong growth to supply the food requirements of a growing world.

Renewable Ocean Energy: The world population is expected to increase to an estimated 9 billion people in 2050, which is 1.5 times greater than the current population, resulting in an increase in countries' demands on fossil fuels. Recently there has been a collapse in the price of crude oil, but the possibility of an eventual normalization (of return to higher prices) should not be disregarded and thus necessitates the continued attention of IORA Member States to consider alternative renewable sources of energy. Renewable sources of energy such as solar and wind are already being implemented worldwide. However, additional incentives in renewable energy are strongly in demand to further decrease the burden on fossil fuels. The time is therefore appropriate to explore the potential of renewable energy derived from the ocean. The ocean offers vast potential for renewable "blue energy" from wind, wave, tidal, thermal and biomass sources. In line with the above efforts, it is also proposed to bring together the offshore oil and gas community with the renewable ocean energy community to undertake a gap analysis in relation to Oil and Gas exploration. In this regard the potential for the development of the offshore oil and gas industry in the Indian Ocean region should also be taken into consideration.

Sea Ports and Shipping: The seaport and maritime transport sector is one of the important priority sectors under the Blue Economy, in which Member States are showing a greater interest. In spite of the continuous rise of maritime transport and shipping transactions in the region, uneven distribution of trade exists among the rim countries, where only a handful are benefiting economically from maritime exchanges and transportation. Some Member States unfortunately are struggling to keep pace with the rapid development and complexity of maritime trade as they face challenges in terms of congestion, new information technology and equipment, improvement of port infrastructure and professional services. In this regard, regional cooperation is important for unlocking the bottlenecks to ports development and maritime economy expansion in the Indian Ocean so as to enhance blue growth through economic cooperation and trade relations between Member States.

Offshore Hydrocarbons and Seabed Minerals: With the decreasing inland mineral deposits and increasing industrial demands, much attention is being focused on mineral exploration and mining of the seabed. The seabed contains minerals that represent a rapidly developing opportunity for economic development in both the Exclusive Economic Zones of coastal nations and beyond the limits of national jurisdiction. Seabed exploration in the Indian Ocean has already started, but the major constraints in the commercialization of these resources lie in the fact that Member States have limited data on the resources their exclusive economic zone (EEZ) possesses, lack capacity for exploration, mining and processing of these minerals. Therefore, improved information is needed to assess the potential across the region.

Marine Biotechnology Research and Development: Marine biotechnology (or Blue Biotechnology) is considered an area of great interest and potential due to the contribution for the building of an eco-sustainable and highly efficient society. A fundamental aspect is related to aquaculture, whereby new methodologies will help in: selective breeding of species; increasing sustainability of production; and enhancing animal welfare, including adjustments in food supply, preventive therapeutic measures, and use of zero-waste recirculation systems. Aquaculture products will also be improved to gain optimal nutritional properties for human health. Another strategic area of marine biotechnology is related to the development of renewable energy products and processes, for example through the use of marine algae. In addition, the marine environment is a largely untapped source of novel compounds that could be potentially used as novel drugs, health, nutraceuticals and personal care products; Blue Biotechnology could be further involved in addressing key environmental issues, such as in bio-sensing technologies to allow in situ marine monitoring, in bioremediation and in developing cost-effective and non-toxic antifouling technologies. Finally, marine derived molecules could be of high utility as industrial products or could be used in industrial processes as new enzymes, biopolymers, and biomaterials.

Tourism: Marine tourism, with its related marine activities (including cruise tourism), is a growing industry that represent an important contributor to the economy of countries and for generating employment. However, these activities, if not managed sustainably, could develop a parasitic relationship with the environment, leading to destruction and degradation of marine habitats and environment, loss of biodiversity, marine pollution and over-exploitation of resources. This necessitates actions for environmental protection in order to prevent any irreversible impacts (for example sedimentation over coral organisms by sheer human physical impact, beach erosion, and mangrove clearance) that may arise from marine tourism industry. Protecting local marine resources is one of the most urgent needs in promoting sustainable tourism. Sustainable coastal tourism can assist with the preservation of artisanal fishing communities, allow for subsistence fishing, protect the environment, and make positive contributions to sustainable economic development. In view of addressing these issues, there is a need to: create more and increase the size of marine protected areas (MPAs); establish and promote sustainable marine tourism; create opportunities for financing MPAs; develop more marine parks, among others. In addition to providing areas for recreation and enjoyment, marine parks support billions of dollars of vital ecosystem services worldwide.

Reference to Blue Economy  in the Union Budget 2019-20 By Finance Minister Mr. Piyush Goyal: The government has pitched for development of India’s Blue Economy with the Finance Ministry proposing an impressive Rs. 550 crore under Sagarmala. This allocation was up from Rs 381.08 crore (revised estimates) allocated during 2018-19. Underlining importance of developing India’s 7,500 km long coastline and converting them into industrial hubs, Centre’s launched its flagship programme for port development and modernization, Sagarmala, in 2015. It aims at promoting “port-led direct and indirect development” and augmenting infrastructure facilities to “transport goods to and from ports quickly, efficiently and cost-effectively”. The total budgetary support to shipping sector was Rs 1,902.56 crore, down by 1.86 percent from Rs 1,938.76 crore during FY19. Mentioning the ambitious Sagarmala initiative of the government, he said India’s long coastline has the potential of becoming the strength of the economy, particularly through exploitation of the Blue Economy, to ensure better standards and quality of life for a large number of people living in the coastal areas. "Our efforts in the Sagarmala programme will be scaled up and we will develop other inland waterways faster," the minister said adding that "for the first time, container freight movement has started on inland waterways from Kolkata to Varanasi". He said the government will introduce container cargo movement to the North East as well by improving the navigation capacity of the Brahmaputra river while will develop waterways.

Conclusion: To conclude, According to UNEP, a switch to a blue economy would unlock the potential of the marine-based economy while reducing ocean degradation and alleviating poverty. India’s commitment to strengthen its cooperation with the regional partners and build a sustainable ocean economy aligns well with its domestic mega-modernization projects that will enable the nation to harness the full potential of the Ocean based Blue Economy.

References:

Chopra Kanchan and Kadekodi G.K. (1999), 'Operationalising Sustainable Development: Economic-Ecological Modeling for Developing Countries' Concept Publishers, New Delhi.

Govt. of India, 'Economic Survey -1998-99.

Jayanta Bandyopadhyay and Bidisha Malik (2003), ‘Ecology and Economics in Sustainable Water Resources Development in India’, in Kanchan Chopra et al (eds) ‘Water Resources Sustainable Livelihoods and Eco-system Services’, Concept Publishers, New Delhi.

Prakash, H. et al (2005), ‘Environment and Sustainable Development’, Southern Economist, 43(21).

Sengupta Ramprasad (2001), ‘Ecology and Economics : An Approach to Sustainable Development’, Oxford University Press, India.

Sustainability: Wikipedia

Websites:

 "Blue Economy - IORA - Indian Ocean Rim Association." www.iora.net. <http://www.iora.net/blue-economy/blue-economy.aspx>.

"Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine ..." http://www.undp.org/.  <http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/oceans/>.