Polluting prosperity: Regional development and environmental degradation in the Thane-Belapur region (western India)

This dissertation addresses the problem of industrial pollution in Thane-Belapur, which is one of the largest industrial regions in India. The study investigates the ways in which environmental concerns can be integrated with regional industrial development to provide the basis for policies and practices that adequately address the problem of regional industrial pollution.;The process of regional development is described to reveal the forces that contributed to industrialization, impacts of industrialization on the natural environment, the ways in which the natural environment has shaped patterns of urbanization and industrialization, and the social and political response to changes in the environment.;The extent of industrial water pollution in the region is described. It is argued that the regulatory and institutional framework has been largely incapable of dealing with industrial water pollution due to lack of material and informational resources, arbitrary granting of consents to pollute, inadequate regulatory enforcement and penalization, insufficient coordination between government agencies and discouragement of community participation.;It is shown that the region lacks effective solid and hazardous waste management. The disposal practices of five large firms are described. Incineration is discussed in light of controversy over its environmental impacts. It is argued that the planning of a common solid waste disposal facility is predicated on the centralization of collection and disposal, disregarding the extensive informal economy in solid waste recycling.;Small firms in the region lack the resources to deal with issues related to pollution. Large and small firms do not collaborate on pollution abatement. The effectiveness of the state's role in encouraging environmental management within small-scale units is limited. It is argued that the World Bank sponsored common effluent treatment plant is contentious due to the lack of participation from regional actors, displacement of the resident population, inequities in charges for capital and operating costs, and unclear assignment of responsibility for the plant's operation.;It is argued that though industrial estates result in compounding the impacts of pollution, industrial agglomeration can foster collective action for addressing the problem of regional industrial pollution. Pragmatic solutions for an environmentally sustainable paradigm of regional industrial development are explored.