Environment Performance Index: Ranked lowest, India claims report used ‘unscientific methods’

The Centre on Wednesday rejected the Environmental Performance Index 2022, in which India was ranked at the bottom of a list of 180 countries.

The index, prepared by the Yale University and the Columbia University along with the World Economic Forum, was released on Tuesday. It has 40 performance indicators across 11 categories to assess countries on climate change performance, ecosystem vitality and environmental health.

“The lowest scores go to India [18.9], Myanmar [19.4], Vietnam [20.1], Bangladesh [23.1], and Pakistan [24.6],” the Environmental Performance Index 2022 said. Denmark is ranked first in the index with a score of 77.9.

“These indicators provide a gauge at a national scale of how close countries are to established environmental policy targets,” the report said.

However, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on Wednesday said the index “has many indicators based on unfounded assumptions”. In a statement, the government said that some of the indicators it used are “extrapolated and based on surmises and unscientific methods”.

India said that the report uses a new indicator called projected greenhouse gas emissions in 2050. This indicator calculates the average rate of change in emission over the last decade. It takes into account the extent of renewable energy capacity and use, additional carbon sinks, energy efficiency of various countries.

The Centre said crucial carbon sinks like forests and wetlands in India have not been factored in to calculate the projected emissions.

“Historical data on the lowest emission trajectory has been ignored in the above computation,” the statement added. “The weight of indictors in which the country was performing well has been reduced and reasons for the change in assignment of weights has not been explained in the report.”

China, India, Russia and the United States will be amongst the four largest contributors to the greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, according to the projections. They will also collectively contribute to 50% of the total emissions.

India, the government said, has achieved the target of 40% of installed electricity capacity from non-fossil fuel-based sources.

The chances of accurate assessment of air quality are reduced due to regions having less extensive monitoring networks and emissions inventories, it added.

The ministry said that the indicators on water quality, water use efficiency and waste generation per capita, which are closely linked to sustainable consumption and production, are not included in the index.

“Indicators like agro biodiversity, soil health, food loss and waste are not included even though they are important for developing countries with large agrarian populations,” the statement said.

The index

In the last decade, India’s score has fallen by 0.6 points.

“India, with increasingly dangerous air quality and rapidly rising greenhouse gas emissions, falls to the bottom of rankings for the first time,” the Environmental Performance Index 2022 said.

India has seen a loss of biodiversity, resulting in a score of 19.3 on ecosystem vitality, according to The Quint.

This parameter measures how well countries are preserving, protecting, and enhancing ecosystems. It comprises 60% of the total score and is made of seven categories, namely biodiversity and habitat, ecosystem services, fisheries, climate change, pollution emissions, agriculture and water resources.

In terms of health, India has scored 12.5, considering factors such as poor air quality, drinking water, sanitation, waste management and recycling, The Quint reported.

Under the climate policy category, India is ranked 165 with a score of 21.7.