The rising demand for processed food products like sugar, coffee and tea has grown and is attracting a lot of investments in the agro and food processing industries, tying up commercial agriculture to economic development. Agro based industries are water intensive and have serious impacts on the environment Enforcing stringent environmental standards on these high impact industries could act as an impetus to place India as one of the serious players in the world market of commodities. Most of the processed foods require sugar and sugar industry in India requires serious environment management to compete in the global market.
Sugarcane, as a crop is responsible for severe biodiversity lost as sugarcane growers destroy habitats to make way for plantations resulting in substantial soil degradation. This fact is evidenced by the visible destruction of the Great Barrier Reef, off the coast of Australia, and the Everglades of Florida, where flourishing ecosystems have been destroyed due to indiscriminate use of fertilizers and illegal discharge of waste water into these water bodies.
Sugar mills, most often, located in countries with large population of poor people, release foul odours and emissions discharging substantial amounts of waste water, causing fertilizer run-off leading to decreasing levels of soil fertility. These adverse impacts can be mitigated through use of sustainable technologies and promotion of Better Management Practices (BMPs) within the sugar industry.
WWF report on improving farming and processing practices in the sugar industry.
BMPs, as tools, reduce the negative impacts of produce on natural resources in a sustainable way and enhance the value of such resources. BMPs used in the production process of sugar are developed through partnerships with various stakeholders. They tend to increase rural incomes of millers through increased yields and sustained soil health, benefiting businesses that consume sugar as a raw material.
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports prepared on behalf of upcoming or existing sugar mills require environmental monitoring that extends all through the year although sugar milling is a seasonal activity. It is imperative that EIA reports be comprehensive enough to be presented for public hearing at the initial stages of any project and useful to adopt BMPs along the way. The report shall reflect a comparative note on pollutant levels in effluents monitored against those set by the World Bank for the sugar industry.
The EIA report so prepared should reflect a cost-benefit analysis of the environmental impacts, implementation of mitigation measures, availability of global technologies which can help project proponents assess the economic viability of a project. With specific reference to sugar mills, the reports should carry details of the pollution control equipments installed for treatment of flyash from molasses, bagasse, dust fall, liquid wastes and disposal methods of solid wastes, details relating to handling of lime sludge, press mud, bagasse, spentwash and processing of all by-products in the EIA report increasing the scope for improvement in pollution prevention measures. The report shall indicate waste minimization practices that include recycling, reusing effluent water, condensate and cooling water, declare any leakage in valves, glands and pipes to stop wastage and reduce water consumption. These are just the bare essentials of an EIA report prepared for a sugar mill.
An Environmental Management Plan (EMP) lists out mitigation measures specific to the location of the sugar mill, tillage practices, soil fertility and degradation levels of cropland. An EMP should endeavor in implementing technical, social and institutional measures for mitigation and provide methods to compensate the loss of natural resources and biodiversity. It should reflect the details of investments made towards research and development of green harvesting methods.
Environmental auditing, policy statements and management systems.
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