India on track to achieve national commitment of land degradation neutrality: PM

India on track to achieve national commitment of land degradation neutrality: PM

Subject : Environment

Context : “We are on track to achieve our national commitment of land degradation neutrality. We are also working towards restoring 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030,” he said during his virtual keynote address at the High-Level Dialogue on Desertification, Land Degradation and Drought at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

Concept :

Land Degradation Neutrality

• Land degradation neutrality (LDN) is a condition where further land degradation (loss of productivity caused by environmental or human factors) is prevented and already degraded land can be restored.

LDN has been defined by the Parties to the Convention as:

• – A state whereby the amount and quality of land resources, necessary to support ecosystem functions and services and enhance food security, remains stable or increases within specified temporal and spatial scales and ecosystems.

Benefits of LDN

• As land is fixed in quantity, there is ever-increasing competition to control land resources and capitalize on the flows of goods and services from the land.
• LDN represents a paradigm shift in land management policies and practices.
• It is a unique approach that counterbalances the expected loss of productive land with the recovery of degraded areas.
• This has the potential to cause social and political instability, fueling poverty, conflict and migration.

About UNCCD:

• Established in 1994.
• It is the sole legally binding international agreement linking environment and development to sustainable land management.
• It is the only convention stemming from a direct recommendation of the Rio Conference’s Agenda 21.
• To help publicise the Convention, 2006 was declared “International Year of Deserts and Desertification”.
• The Convention addresses specifically the arid, semi-arid and dry sub-humid areas, known as the drylands, where some of the most vulnerable ecosystems and peoples can be found.
• Aim : Its 197 Parties aim, through partnerships, to implement the Convention and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The end goal is to protect land from over-use and drought, so it can continue to provide food, water and energy.
• The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change is the nodal Ministry for this Convention.