Images depicting climate change, social inequality, sustainable development and biodiversity are among the photographs and videos to be on show at the 2013 Environmental Photographer of the Year exhibition.

Presented by the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM), the seventh annual show will be hosted at the Royal Geographical Society in London between 10 April–3 May, and will feature a shortlist of images selected from more than 3,000 entries.

Three winners will be announced on 9 April and the total prize fund of £7,000 will be divided as follows:

Environmental Photographer of the Year: £5,000
Young Environmental Photographer of the Year (Under 18): £1,000
Environmental Video of the Year: £1,000

Entries for the six categories (The Natural World, The Underwater World, Changing Climates, Quality of Life, A View of the Western World and Building Our Future)were accepted from amateurs and professionals alike, with the shortlist decided on 28 January.

The 3,000 entries were judged on 'impact, composition, originality and technical ability' by the 2013 selectors:

• Nick Reeves OBE, Executive Director of CIWEM
• Nick Roberts, Atkins Strategy Director
• Dr David Haley, Senior Research Fellow at MIRIAD Manchester Metropolitan University and Visiting Professor at Zhongyuan University of Technology; and
• Adam Hinton, documentary photographer

Below are some of the shortlisted entries to CIWEM’s Environmental Photographer of the Year competition, accompanied by the relevant photographer statements:

Igor F. Petkovic, Trashfighter, 2009

'During my research travel through western Africa on the topic of waste and recycling, I focused on children at dump sites. Through my series "Trashfighters", I wanted to show the living realities of these people, fighting on the waste for their everyday survival. With my team of T.O.Y.S. we made stops in the outskirts of Nouakchott, the main capital of Mauritania. We interviewed women who are recycling plastics as a part of the Zazou project. On the way I saw these two boys looking and smiling at us through the television frame. They were very excited at seeing us in the area. So I took this picture of them. I like the real happiness shining from their faces, although they are living in difficult and uncomfortable conditions.

'The Zazou Project is an Urban waste management and income generating activity for women from the outskirts of Nouakchott. In 2005, the Gret initiated the “Zazou” (plastic bag) project intended to improve the living conditions of women in the suburban districts of Nouakchott and to create income generating activities by setting up a plastic recycling business.'

Pierpaolo Mittica, Residents going back home to take their belongings, Tomioka, Fukushima “No-Go Zone”, Japan, 2011

'At the time of the Fukushima evacuation, the inhabitants fled from the radioactive cloud leaving everything behind. 134,000 people were forced to evacuate. Once a month, residents of the evacuated towns have special permission from the authorities to return to their homes to check that everything is in place and to remove their personal belongings. A recent survey among the evacuees has determined that 80% of the evacuees were absolutely not aware of what was going on and had no information on the type of protection to be taken.'

Kai Löeffelbein/Laif, E-Waste in Ghana #01, 2011

'According to a United Nations evaluation, up to 50 million tonnes of toxic electronic waste accumulate annually in the whole world. In the US, it is estimated that 50 - 80 per cent of the waste collected for recycling is being exported. Because the US has not ratified the Basel Convention, this is legal. With the voluntary ratification of the Basel Convention, countries are forbidden by law to further export toxic electronic waste to countries that are not members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). But inspections of 18 European seaports found as much as 47 per cent of waste destined for export, including e-waste, was illegal. Germany, for example, ship up to 100,000 tonnes of electronic waste overseas per year. In order to bypass the conditions of the Basel Convention, this merchandise is declared second-hand-goods or even development aid. Trading with electronic waste has become a lucrative business in which millions are earned while professional recycling is quite expensive.'

Lu Guang, Polluted Landscape, 2012

'Due to the vast exploitation of coal mines, meadows in Holingol City are left degraded and no cattle or sheep exist there. In order to maintain the image of the city, the local government sculptured more than 120 sheep, as well as cattle, horses and camels in the Horqin Grassland.'

Steve Morgan, GPAction, 2011

'180 km off the Greenland coast, 18 international activists from five inflatable speedboats, launched from the Greenpeace ship, Esperanza, climb ladders onto the 53,000 tonne oil exploratory rig, Leiv Eiriksson. Greenpeace was attempting to stop the Leiv Eiriksson oil rig from drilling in Baffin Bay - one of the most pristine and fragile natural areas in the world, home to important and vulnerable wildlife including almost all of the world’s Narwhal population as well as blue whales, sea bird colonies, and polar bears.'

William Eckersley, Swan on Nest of Rubbish, SE2, 2010

'In trying to capture London without its occupants and hopefully explore the innate "beauty or ugliness, genius or folly" of its built environment, I was often drawn to the large quantities of rubbish and detritus that litter our streets.'