Editing Hazardous waste (section)

=== In India ===

==== Environmental Act and Hazardous Waste Rules ====
In 1984, a deadly methyl isocyanate gas leak known as the [[Bhopal disaster]] raised environmental awareness in India.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Broughton |first=Edward |date=2005-05-10 |title=The Bhopal disaster and its aftermath: a review |journal=Environmental Health |volume=4 |issue=1 |pages=6 |doi=10.1186/1476-069X-4-6 |doi-access=free |issn=1476-069X |pmc=1142333 |pmid=15882472}}</ref> In response, the Indian government produced the Environmental Act in 1986, followed by the Hazardous Waste Rules in 1989.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Sharma |first=Dinesh C. |date=June 2005 |title=By Order of the Court: Environmental Cleanup in India |journal=Environmental Health Perspectives |volume=113 |issue=6 |pages=A394–A397 |doi=10.1289/ehp.113-a394 |issn=0091-6765 |pmc=1257623 |pmid=15929881}}</ref> With these rules, companies are only permitted by the state to produce hazardous waste if they are able to dispose of it safely.<ref>{{Cite web |date=July 28, 1989 |title=The Hazardous Wastes Rules, 1989 |website=Government of Punjab |publisher=Ministry of Environment and Forests |url=https://ppcb.punjab.gov.in/sites/default/files/documents/Hazardous%20Waste%20(Management%20%26%20Handling)%20Rules%2C%201989.pdf }}</ref> However, state governments did not make these rules effective. There was around a decade delay between when hazardous waste landfills were requested and when they were built. During this time, companies disposed hazardous waste in various "temporary" hazardous waste locations, such as along roads and in canal pits, with no immediate plan to move it to proper facilities.<ref name=":3" />

==== Supreme Court action ====
The Supreme Court stepped in to prevent damage from hazardous waste in order to protect the [[right to life]]. A 1995 petition by the Research Foundation for Science, Technology, and Natural Resource Policy<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vandana Shiva {{!}} Indian Environmentalist, Activist & Scientist {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vandana-Shiva |access-date=2024-04-07 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> spurred the Supreme Court to create the High Powered Committee (HPC) of Hazardous Waste, since data from pre-existing government boards was not usable.<ref name=":3" /> This committee found studies linking pollution and improper waste treatment with higher amounts of hexavalent chromium, lead, and other heavy metals. Industries and regulators were effectively ignoring these studies.<ref name=":3" /> In addition, the state was also not acting in accordance with the [[Basel Convention]], an international treaty on the transport of hazardous waste. The Supreme Court modified the Hazardous Waste Rules and began the Supreme Court Monitoring Committee to follow up on its decisions. With this committee, the Court has been able to force companies polluting hazardous wastes to close.