According to the 2024 Environment Performance Index (EPI), India is ranked 176th out of 180 countries with an EPI score of 27.6, surpassing only Pakistan, Viet Nam, Laos, and Myanmar.
- Estonia topps the 2024 EPI with an EPI score of 75.3 followed by Luxembourg and Germany at 2nd and 3rd spot.
Note: Previously, India was ranked 180th in the EPI 2022 and 168th in the EPI 2020.
About EPI:
i.EPI is a biennial index released by the Yale Center for Environmental Law & Policy and the Center for International Earth Science Information Network Earth Institute, Columbia University with support from The McCall MacBain Foundation. This index was first published in 2002.
ii.EPI assesses countries based on UN Sustainable Development Goals(SDGs), the Paris Agreement 2015, and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework 2022.
ii.The 2024 EPI compares and analyses environmental performance across 180 countries using 58 indicators across three main categories: Ecosystem Vitality; Environmental Health; and Climate Change.
iii.2024 index includes 2 new categories-
- Biodiversity and habitat, which assess protection efforts and reveal encroachments in many countries
- Projected greenhouse gas emissions, which track progress towards achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
iv.The Global West and Eastern Europe rank highest, while Sub-Saharan Africa and Southern Asia rank lowest among the eight assessed regions.
Top 5 countries:
| Rank | Country | EPI Score | 10-year Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Estonia | 75.3 | 17.3 |
| 2 | Luxembourg | 75.0 | 4.1 |
| 3 | Germany | 74.6 | 4.4 |
| 4 | Finland | 73.7 | 8.3 |
| 5 | United Kingdom | 72.7 | 2.1 |
Points to note:
i.Estonia’s rise to the top ranking is attributed to a 59% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions since 1990 and its extensive network of protected areas, covering 20% of its lands and seas.
ii.Denmark, which topped the 2022 EPI, is ranked 10th in EPI 2024 with an EPI score of 67.9.
Bottom 5 countries:
| Rank | Country | EPI Score | 10-year change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 176 | India | 27.6 | 4.6 |
| 177 | Myanmar | 26.9 | -2.7 |
| 178 | Laos | 26.1 | 1.0 |
| 179 | Pakistan | 25.5 | -3.9 |
| 180 | Viet Nam | 24.5 | -4.6 |
India’s category-wise score:
| Category | Rank | EPI Score | 10-year challenge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ecosystem Vitality | 170 | 30.5 | 2.3 |
| Environmental Health | 177 | 13.3 | 2.1 |
| Climate Change | 133 | 35.0 | 10.2 |
click here for a detailed overview of India’s EPI score.
India’s Performance:
i.India ranks poorly in air quality (177th), projected emissions (172nd), and Biodiversity & Habitat (178th), mainly due to heavy reliance on coal, contributing significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and high air pollution levels.
ii.In South Asia, it is the largest emitter of transboundary pollution, impacting neighbouring countries like Bangladesh.
iii.Despite its low overall rankings, India has made strides in climate change efforts (133rd), driven by investments in renewable energy and a goal to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070.
- India shows relatively better performance in categories like solid waste management, forests, and agriculture.
iv.The report estimates that India will need an additional USD 160 billion per year in climate change mitigation investments to meet its goals.
About Yale University:
President – Peter Salovey
Location– New Haven, Connecticut, The United States of America(USA)
About Columbia University:
President– Minouche Shafik
Headquarters– New York, USA
