INTRODUCTION: –
In the current fast- paced world, the actions of the majority of the countries are driven by the goal of maximizing urbanization and becoming a world power sooner or later, Now, to achieve this goal multiplicity of developmental projects are undertaken by the countries, whether developing, underdeveloped, or developed. In the current times, with the spike in developmental and beautification projects the major concern has been the environmental protection and blurring goal of “sustainable development. In an era that is marked by global environmental concerns- climate change and biodiversity loss- Transboundary pollution has emerged as a global concern. In this type of pollution, the pollutants travel across the borders, either by air particles or water, rivers, that causes environmental damage which is no longer confined to the country of origin and leads to a crisis in the world at large, and that is why, it can be termed as “pollution across borders”.
CAUSES AND EFECTS: –
Pollution is a major threat to the human health and the environment. As per the statistical data, 8.1 million premature deaths around the globe are a result of the increasing air pollution levels. While the death toll may be different in different areas and some areas may experience high levels pollution that others, but the world at large is affected because of the evils of pollution in one way or another. While some countries may be affected by air pollution others may be affected by water pollution and some may be affected by the land pollution and worsening soil quality affecting the produce of that country. Transboundary Pollution, in the environmental law is referred to as a pollution that originates in one country but causes environmental damage in another. This damage can be caused via various pathways like air or water currents crossing borders. And, while many countries are focused on reducing the domestic emissions to achieve the goal of sustainable development, the role of transboundary pollution by foreign origins are greatly overlooked.
According to the reports of WHO (World Health Organization), 99% of the global population breathes air that exceeds the WHO guideline limits containing high level of pollutants, posing a great risk to one’s life[1]. Not only this, but because of the transboundary pollution, one of the widely seen effects is Acid Rain, reduction of crop yield, impacts on human health, impacts on soil fertility, harsh impacts on forest and crop growth.
CASE STUDIES: A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE: –
- The Indo Gangetic Plains- In a course of time, with the rise in urban-beautification projects, there has been a significant rise in destruction of the green belt of the green areas for urban development, because of which there has been a rise of emissions posing a great environmental threat. Out of many examples, one of the most striking examples is that of The Indo-Gangetic Plains, which spreads over India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, where transboundary air pollution is one of a significant challenge which is a result of pollution spills from the listed countries. The Indo-Gangetic plains also become a prey to the post-harvest agricultural burning, that causes this region to experience high levels of hazardous air pollutants during the months of October and November.
- Acidification In Sweden– All the precipitation are naturally acidic in nature because it absorbs carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Acid Rain is precipitation that has a pH of less that 5.5. Human Activity such as burning of fossil fuels, produces nitrogen oxide and Sulphur dioxide which are released into the atmosphere, which has a greatly negative impact accounting for majority of the problem of acid rain. Now, acidification and acid rain are a major problem because it leads to corrosion of metals and thereby reducing the societal value of buildings, bridges and cultural objects like statues and monuments, also it has a direct impact at the living and non-living organisms affecting the environment. The situation in Sweden is such that most soils in Sweden is of a poor quality making it unfit for any produce. Over 18,000 lakes of Sweden are acidified and around 4000 of them are badly affected. The appropriate amount of aluminium that can be present in the environment is 0.2mg/l whereas the picture in Sweden depicts a sad picture with aluminium levels rising up to 1.7mg/l[2]. While efforts have been made by the Swedish government to mitigate the risks, it persists as a problem because of the Transboundary pollution of which Sweden is a prey.
Not only around the globe, but also in India itself we get to see the effects of the transboundary pollution, almost every other year during the months of October- November, we witness that Delhi-NCR, is covered in deep thick layer of smog, i.e., smoke and fog largely smoke like particles, and the residents witness the AQI of “severe” category making it almost difficult to breathe, rendering any sort of air purifiers absolutely ineffective. While state and central governments continue with their state centric approach to solve this issue, it remains ineffective. Because one of the prime causes of this “smog” like condition is the burning of crops in the regions of Punjab and Haryana, and while this cause is discussed and known of, still the initiatives being city-centric, fails to provide a durable solution. There have been studies that reflects the inter-state transboundary dispersion of air pollution that takes place in India as the transboundary air pollution which is received by a state in India exceeds 50 percent[3].
LEGAL FRAMEWORKS GOVERNING TRANSBOUNDARY POLLUTION: CROSSING BORDERS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTABILITY: –
In the International law, all states are under a duty to act in a good faith and not harm the ecosystem of another state. There is a widely accepted rule of “no-harm rule”, which acts as a cornerstone of international law as regards to the transboundary pollution, hence, the states are under an obligation to ensure that steps are taken to prevent and minimize the transboundary pollution and don’t cause any environmental damage to fellow countries.
India is one of the prime examples of inter-state transboundary pollution, where Delhi-NCR is covered in smog during the winter season because of the pre-harvest burning of crops in the regions of Punjab and Haryana, which mandates for transboundary accountability to be effective. However, efforts have been made to minimize the transboundary pollution and render accountability by various agreements and treaties on an international level, as follows: –
- Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movement of Hazardous waste and their Disposal (Basel Convention)– This convention governs and regulates the transboundary movement of hazardous waste, particularly from well-developed to less-developed countries, with the motive of minimizing waste production and creating an environmentally sound society[4].
- Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution (CLRTAP)– This convention serves as a testimony to the international efforts aimed at reducing and preventing the air pollution, particularly transboundary air pollution. It sets out principles to be followed by nations to minimize and prevent air pollution[5].
- United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)– This framework addresses the prime challenge of climate change, including the transboundary effect. It aims to stabilize the greenhouse gas concentrations to prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system[6].
- ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution– This agreement was made with an objective to prevent and monitor the transboundary haze pollution which happens because of land/ forest fires, which is required to be mitigated by national and international efforts and cooperation[7].
Hence, these are few of the many international efforts that have been taken, to mitigate the evils of the transboundary pollution.
CONCLUSION: –
In an era marked by globalization, the problem of transboundary pollution is the one lingering over us. Transboundary Pollution is not a problem of one country or a state but the world at large, and the efforts of global community is required as it is only by fostering collaboration that cross border environmental impacts can be minimized and a more resilient planet can be made for future generations.
Author(s) Name: NAME- Shweta Srivastava (Trinity Institute of Professional Studies, Affiliated to Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University)
References:
[1] Sunil Dahiya, ‘Together for Clean Air: Governance of Transboundary Air Pollution for blue skies’ (7 September 2023), <https://energyandcleanair.org/together-for-clean-air-governance-of-transboundary-air-pollution-for-blue-skies/> accessed 15 July 2025
[2] Jacque Cartwright, ‘Transboundary Pollution’ (16 May 2024), <https://www.savemyexams.com/dp/geography/ib/17/hl/revision-notes/6-global-risk-and-resilience/6-2-environmental-risks/6-2-1-transboundary-pollution/> accessed on 16 July 2025
[3] Kalyani Tembhe, ‘India’s air quality needs transboundary accountability to be effective’(8 November 2023), <https://www.downtoearth.org.in/pollution/india-s-air-quality-management-needs-transboundary-accountability-to-be-effective-92706> accessed 16 July 2025
[4] Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, 1989, Art 4
[5]Convention on Long- Range Transboundary Air Pollution, 1979, Art 3
[6] United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, 1992, Art 2
[7] ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution, 2002. Art 3
