National and international organisations all over the world have reports that clearly point towards the climate changes that the earth is witnessing, even as we are writing about it now. Consider the following statistics:
The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) findings report that:
Green House Gas (GHG) emissions have increased by over 70% from1974-2004.
Last 14 years (1995-2009) were among the warmest since 1850
Global sea level has risen by 1.8mm per year between 1961-2003 as compared to 3.1 mm per year between 1993-2003
In India, surface temperature has warmed by over 1901-2000
The glaciers in the mighty Himalaya are receding
The annual mean temperature has increased by 3 degree C to 6 degree C
ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES INDIA FACES TODAY
India's 1.13 billion populations contribute to approximately 16% of the world's population but occupy only 2 % of the entire world's land area.
The total energy consumption in India as of 2007 is 19.1 quadrillion Btus of which coal is 53%, oil is 31 %, natural gas is 8%, hydro electricity is 6 %, nuclear is 1% and other renewable sources account for 1 %.
The total energy production in India as of 2007 is 13.05 quadrillion Btus. There is a huge energy deficit of about 30 % which India covers by import.
Energy related CO2 emissions as of 2008, is 1494 million metric tonnes which puts a huge stress on the environment.
Increase in urbanisation accompanied with rapid motorisation has led to lack of fuel.
Dumping of industrial waste in India poses a serious threat. For instance, 61000 tonnes of plastic waste was dumped in India not more than a decade ago. Mercury tops the list of hazardous substances that are directly dumped in India. According to the statistics available the dumping of mercury has increased six fold between 1996 and 2002 from 285 tonnes to 1858 tonnes.
Air, water, soil, noise pollution are major problems facing emerging India. For instance, air pollution in Indian cities is among the highest in the world. Over 70 % of the surface water sources in India are polluted and not fit even for bathing. India has the lowest per capita availability of forests in the world, which is 0.11 even though it is the 7th largest country in the world.
Assessments reveal that 3, 30,000 MT of e-waste is generated annually in India alone and an additional 50,000 MT are imported illegally into the country. Of this only 19,000 MT is recycled due to very poor recycling infrastructure.
1.3. THERE IS HOPE: INDIA'S PLANS FOR GREENER INDIA
Although India's environmental issues are grave, there is hope as India has embarked on a path of building a greener nation.
On 2008, India unveiled its first climate change action plan named the National Action Plan on Climate Change. Under this mission, government does not target reduction of emissions but instead promoting sustainable developments through use of clean technologies. Under this plan there are 8 missions for solar power, water, energy efficiency, sustainable habitat, sustainable agriculture etc. For instance, the National Solar Mission plans to generate 20000MW of solar power by 2020.
There is an Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) which has a vision to usher in a green building movement and facilitate in India emerging as one of the world leaders in green buildings by 2015.
Corporates have shown increased interests in Green initiatives. For instance, Infosys found that 49 % of its energy demands came from air-conditioning. So, the company decided to work towards a new goal of carbon neutrality with the plans for green buildings. Similarly, other companies have taken up huge initiatives to go green.
2.1. THE ENERGY CRISIS:
30 % of India's energy requirements are met by means of import. Not only does that put a tremendous strain on India's cash reserves but also added to the domestic production, it contributes to 4.6 % of global CO2 emissions.
Figure 1. India's Oil Production and Consumption 1990-2009
As we can see from the above figure, there is excessive difference between the production and consumption pattern. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI) estimate that the consumption of oil has increased over the years at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.72 % and the trend is expected to rise with increase in population and rapid motorisation. Similarly, consumption of coal, lignite, electricity and natural gas has shown an increase over the years.
The reasons for such a huge deficit are as follows:
India's population has crossed the billion mark and is increasing at a rate of 1.37 %.
True to the nature of developing nations, rapid urbanisation has led to increase in domestic consumption of energy. 20 % of oil usage goes into cooking.
There has been increase in transport with better roads, infrastructure developments and increasing needs of the people.
Increased industrialisation has put a heavy strain on the energy reserves as 50 % of the industrial energy requirements are met by coal. A huge quantity of this coal is imported.
There is a lack of proper fuel efficiency standards in India. For instance, for every 3 kWh of electricity produced only 1 kWh reaches the consumer due to losses in transmission of power over long distances. Even in automobiles, the norms are not as strict as those of developed countries.
Ignorance among the masses about the extent of the problem is clearly shown in their lifestyles. For instance, forgetting to switch off the lights has been found to be a common behavioural pattern.
Implementation is a major road block as despite regulations India still mismanages most of its energy.
Figure 2. Total Energy Consumption in India
As can be seen from the above figure, major sources of consumption at present are the non renewable sources of energy which are depleting at an exponential rate which heightens the demand for inclining towards alternative and renewable sources of energy.
2.2. OUR PROPOSED ENERGY SOLUTION PLAN:
For each major problem that India faces with regards to energy, we hereby propose solutions and their implementation.
2.2.1. SUBSTITUTING NON RENEWABLE SOURCES:
While, complete replacement of non renewable sources by renewable sources is a utopian fantasy at present, but there is hope for considerable decrease in dependence on the non renewable sources.
Geographically India is situated at an advantageous position as barring some regions; sunlight is in abundance for most parts of the year. Tidal energy can be another advantageous edge for the Indian peninsula. Similarly, wind energy, geo thermal energy, nuclear energy and hydro power are the other renewable sources that can be tapped.
2.2.2. TRANSPORTATION:
India's transport sector is the single biggest user of oil and oil products-roughly 30 per cent of the total oil consumption. Bringing changes in this sector could translate into huge savings of energy in the country. The transport sector is the largest consumer (62%) of diesel in India.
Passenger road transport is necessary for driving economic growth; hence, putting a cap on it cannot be an ideal solution. The need of the hour is strategic planning by policy makers.
Shorter distances and lesser frequency of trips
Planned route designs in cities and highways to reduce distance travelled
Improved traffic management and better land use
Use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) like telecommuting and virtual organisations to reduce transportation needs. The advantage of virtual mobility alternatives is that they remove the need for transportation whenever applied.
The most important step however is to bring about a change in people's attitude towards transport. Citizens need to be more environments conscious and practice restraint in unnecessary usage.
Limiting emissions per passenger per unit:
Government needs to provide appropriate incentives for private consumers to shift to public modes of transport. This can be encouraged by increasing vehicle charges, congestion charges, parking charges, toll taxes and road pricing for private vehicles.
Petroleum cards can be provided to citizens which keeps a tab on their consumption. It has been seen that it is the middle and upper classes that rely heavily on personal conveyances. Providing this petrol cards to them would ensure that every time the consumption exceeds a certain threshold, additional taxes will be imposed on them. This will dissuade unnecessary usages. The implementation of this plan can be done in the lines of the UID project.
Encouraging car pooling, cycling, and walking for short distances. For this the road ministry has to plan cities with proper pedestrian and cycling paths.
Transport bodies should develop more rapid transit systems which are comfortable and reasonably priced. For example the Volvo buses run by the state transport in Bengaluru are highly successful and run side by side with other cheaper alternatives.
Mass rapid transit systems like the Metro rails in Delhi should be replicated in most cities.
Bringing down the emissions per km
Switch to cleaner fuels like CNG and bio fuels.
Solar power vehicles and electric vehicles can be used as a substitute. Implementing this in a mass manner may be impossible at present but it can be done in phases.
Government should guide automobile industries towards committing resources for R & D in alternative sources of fuel and provide them with suitable subsidies and incentives for making these automobiles affordable.
Government should make it mandatory for all auto companies to spend a certain percentage of their R & D for producing eco friendly automobiles.
People driving hybrid or other eco friendly cars must be given subsidies in term of vehicle taxes, road taxes, toll taxes, etc. By doing so, government will actually be changing people's behaviours with regards to energy usage.
There is an urgent need to introduce better practices like improved fuel efficiency standards, improved maintenance, stringent fuel quality and emission norms.
Decongestion of roads and proper planning of routes should be done.
In India, road ways far surpasses railways as a freight transport system. This puts a heavy toll on India's energy usage. So, it is necessary for the government run railways to make freight transport by railways more attractive in terms of cost, quality of service and speed. This will drastically reduce the emission per km. For this objective, the railway ministry must work out a plan to increase its reach in terms of locations, frequency and people.
2.2.3. INDUSTRIES
Power generation and industries together account for 30 % of India's oil consumption.
Efficiency of machines has to be increased in industries for better usage of fuels.
Companies must substitute non renewable with renewable sources wherever and whenever possible. Medium and large scale industries need to install solar power sources or any alternative source to meet a part of their requirements.
Government and industries need to work hand in hand to build green buildings for factories and offices. These buildings minimise energy consumption, optimise energy efficiency, conserve natural resources and generate less wastes. While the interest in such buildings has increased over recent years, mass implementation in industries needs government regulation.
In most service industries, like IT, people have to often work late into the night. In such situations, the per capita consumption is higher even though fewer persons are actually working in the office. This requires a change in the behaviour by use of common or limited working spaces at night to avoid unnecessary wastage.
IT companies today account for a considerable percentage of GHG emissions. There is need to improve their usage and efficiency standards. Green IT is a solution towards this end. Cloud computing technology, virtualisation, green data centres, telecommuting, power management, e waste, thin client architectures, and other alternative solutions can tremendously reduce ICT's consumption pattern.
Industrial waste management is another issue that needs to be addressed. Hazardous waste from industries needs to be processed and recycled in order to produce cleaner fuel.
An energy conscious culture should be ingrained as a part of every organization's cultures and values. This will improve the behaviour of the workers and management towards energy conservation which will translate into their personal and domestic lives.
Government should enable smoother transition to alternative sources of energy by the industries by providing them with incentives, subsidies and guidance. The National action plan must integrate industries not merely by regulating them but by arriving at mutually discussed implementation plans.
Government initiated Audits can be conducted in industries to check the fuel utilization and efficiency. Where ever found lacking, the company can be ordered to improve within a stipulated period of time.
Industries that sell Eco-friendly products and processes must be nurtured by the Government. This will initiate a trend where industries gradually move towards greener products and processes. For instance, Wipro's GreenWare laptops which reduces e-waste substantially. Another example is, smaller initiatives like the local "Reliance Fresh" retail store providing additional credit points to members who bring their own carry bags.
2.2.4. DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION:
20% of oil consumption is used for cooking. Changing the domestic consumption pattern can significantly alter the amount of Carbon dioxide emissions.
Change in attitude followed by a change in behaviour is the foremost necessity. Only then can any action plan be implemented successfully.
To bring about change in behaviour, government must first increase awareness through the media of educational institutions, organizations, televisions, internet, mobiles, and other forms of advertising.
This process should not be random but rather well planned. The government needs to market the idea of a green nation to its citizens. Accordingly, strategies must be formed and tactics be implemented.
"Little drops of water make the ocean." This saying is perfectly applicable in the case of domestic consumption. For instance, if each household saves energy by switching off lights when not needed, closing taps, ensuring that they separate waste at household level, monitoring overhead water tank from overflowing, using showers instead of buckets or tubs for bathing, using Air conditioners judiciously, switching off computers when not in use, gardening, planting of trees, choosing vendors, brands offering Eco-friendly products and processes, using public transport, cycling or walking for short distances and imbibing nature friendly values in the younger generation.
68 million rural households in India are deprived of electricity. This can be a blessing in disguise. For instance, a simple affordable solar product like the "Cosmolite Mighty Lamp" has found numerous takers in such villages. Since such villages are not used to the ease of electricity usage; a readymade and renewable solution like the Cosmolite lamp is more easily accepted by them as compared to urban consumers.
LPG and kerosene are the major fuels for cooking in India. Bio fuels can be not just efficient but also economically cheaper alternatives. There can be two alternative ways to implement usage of bio fuels in urban and semi urban areas. The first alternative can be to have bio gas plants for individual societies or streets which are fed by the waste generated in that area itself. Another alternative is to have huge bio gas plants maintained and operated by the local municipalities or government where the entire cities waste is recycled and reused.
Government should make it mandatory for houses in regions with plenty sunlight to have solar panels on the rooftops. In case of housing societies, larger panels can be used. While this energy may not completely replace non renewable sources, but it can substantially reduce emissions.
So far we have been dealing only with energy crisis, in detail. This was necessary due to the extent of the problem it poses. Now we shall discuss in brief about other environmental issues and their possible solutions.
3.1. DEFORESTATION CHALLENGES:
India has the lowest per capita availability of forests in the world, which is 0.11. This makes change necessary. India cannot afford to lose its remaining forests. Strict action needs to be taken for increasing the cover and quality of forests in India.
Conservation and sustainable management of existing forest resources is a must.
Enhancing tree cover in urban and semi urban areas is advisable.
Industries must be located at areas that do not affect forest covers or fertile lands.
The roles of Forest department must be enhanced to improve the present condition.
3.2. WATER CONSERVATION:
Rain water harvesting must be made mandatory in households.
Domestic consumption must be regulated to avoid excessive usage.
Overhead water tanks must be monitored carefully.
Existing water bodies must be cleaned.
Drip irrigation can be followed.
Households must be encouraged to water the plants in the evenings to avoid unnecessary evaporation of water.
Nationalisation of rivers must be done.
4. CONCLUSION
In summary, India is facing many challenges as an emerging nation that brings environmental issues upfront. India can meet these challenges provided properly defined goals are set and plans to implement strategies are set into action.
The approach is to integrate the efforts of the government, businesses and society to progress our nation towards going green. While the government will have to show the direction and guide the nation, it is finally in the hands of the businesses and the society to actually bring the optimistic plans to fruition.
Energy consumption stands as the single major problem. Energy habits must be improved to remove dependence on non renewable sources. Promoting habits beneficial to the environment by means of incentives and subsidies is necessary. Promoting industries that thrive on less power or fuel efficient systems is also advisable.
Afforestation, water conservation and unique initiatives by individuals or organisations are also helpful in reducing the CO2 emissions and leading India into a brighter, sustainable and developed future.
