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Subject: Environment

  • Air Pollution

    What PM2.5 Pollution Really Means and How Can Delhi Cope Up With This?

    On the morning of 29 November, Beijing woke up to air pollution levels not seen in over a year. The city’s government immediately issued an alert and ordered factories to stop or reduce production.

     

    The same morning, Delhi woke up to pollution levels much higher than Beijing’s.

    And it hosted the Delhi half marathon.

    In the name of health awareness, the runners breathed air laced with pollutants exponentially beyond safe levels. And they inhaled 10-20 times as much air as a sedentary person does.

    In sharp contrast, the embassies of Norway and the United States have taken urgent steps to safeguard their personnel. While Norwegian officials are set to get “hardship pay” for working in New Delhi, the US embassy’s school has cancelled outdoor activities for its students.

    The stark difference in attitudes, perhaps, is because most Delhiites know little about how exactly the city’s air is killing them. Slowly. Daily.

    The government has largely failed to make people aware of how the pollution affects them, what the main pollutants are, what precautions they should take, the types of masks they should wear, and suchlike.

    It only dumps air pollution data on a rather glib website, on a page full of numbers and technical terms befitting a chemistry textbook.

    There is no air warning system in Delhi that could alert citizens, shut down schools and prohibit outdoor activity when pollution reaches hazardous levels.

    Most of all, though, the residents should know what exactly makes Delhi’s air so toxic. Even if you know what it is – the toxin is called PM 2.5 – there is no easy way to know how harmful it is.

    So, here’s a primer.

    Why are we talking about PM2.5?

    Delhi’s air is not polluted as much with poisonous gases as it’s with really tiny particles known as PM2.5. And its levels are consistently 16-20 times higher than the prescribed standard. At the time of the half marathon, it was 48 times the limit.

    Greenpeace recently found that even inside Delhi’s classrooms, PM2.5 levels were 11 times the limit.

    What is PM2.5?

    PM stands for particulate matter, while the number refers to the size of the particles. So, PM2.5 is like extremely fine dust whose particles are just 2.5 microns wide — that’s thirty times smaller than the width of a human hair.
    The tiny size makes it harder to prevent PM2.5 from getting into the body, making it deadlier.

    What exactly is PM2.5 made up of?

    There is no easy answer to this since the toxin is identified more by its size than what it contains. It could be a variety of solid or liquid chemicals.

    According to the United States’ Environment Protection Agency, a PM2.5 particle, depending on where it’s emitted from, could contain compounds of any of these four materials:

    Carbon – from cars, trucks, waste burning
    Nitrate – from cars, trucks, thermal power generation
    Sulphate – from thermal power generation
    Crustal – suspended soil and metals
    While individual particles obviously can’t be seen without special equipment, large amounts are visible as haze or smog.

    Why is PM2.5 bad?

    1. Being tiny, these particles easily reach the lungs. From there, they can travel through the bloodstream and reach the heart.
    2. Long exposure to PM2.5 can worsen asthma and heart conditions. They also cause runny nose, sneezing and coughing.
    3. 5 coming from diesel vehicles contains carbon and is a carcinogenic.
    4. It can also cause other heart and lung diseases, or make them worse.
    5. It slow down development of lungs in children and can leave them with reduced lung function for the rest of their lives, according to the WHO.
    6. Illnesses caused by PM2.5 kill at least 3.1 million people a year across the world.
    7. The WHO estimates that exposure to PM2.5 reduces a person’s life expectancy by an average of 8.6 months.

    How much of PM2.5 is safe?

    The WHO says there is no safe level, PM2.5 is harmful in any amount. Still, there are standards on how much PM2.5 is too much.
    As per the WHO’s own standards, the average PM2.5 levels should not exceed 10 mg per cubic metre in one year.
    In one day, it should be under 25. Indian safety limits, however, are more relaxed – at 60.
    WHO says PM2.5 level mustn’t exceed 25 mg/cubic metre. Yet, India has relaxed the limit to 60

    What’s the best protection from PM2.5?

    1. Protecting yourself from PM2.5 doesn’t require gas masks, but cotton masks that can block very fine particles.
    2. It is recommended to use an N-95 mask, the same one used to protect against the H1N1 virus.
    3. Unfortunately, planting more trees does nothing to solve the problem.
    4. Since PM2.5 are particles and not gases, they can’t be processed by the leaves.
    5. In fact, a high tree density can make the exposure worse because the extra moisture in the air would trap the particles instead of letting them fly away with the wind.
    6. The only way to cut down PM2.5 levels is to stop it at the source – cars, factories, waste burning, thermal power plants. Until then, strap on the N-95s.

    Only way to reduce PM2.5 is to stop it at source – cars, factories, waste burning, thermal plants

     

    Source - CatchNews | Pic - Vox-cdn

    Everything that you want to know on Delhi’s Odd-Even Policy

    Delhi Government releases blueprint for Odd-Even formula December 25, 2015. In an attempt to curb alarming levels of pollution in the Indian capital, Delhi, authorities have announced that private cars with even and odd number plates will be allowed only on alternate days. Let’s see it in brief!

     

    How will odd-even policy work out?

    • The Odd-Even formula plan seeks to curb the number of vehicles plying in the national capital by limiting 4-wheelers on alternate days.
    • Under it cars with licence plates ending in an odd number will ply on odd dates and those ending with an even number can run on even dates.
    • This will be on a trial basis from 1 to 15 January, 2015.
    • During this implementation, public transport including buses and the Metro will be run at high frequency.
    • The government plans to run 6,000 more buses to accommodate those who can’t drive their cars.

    Then, Who is exempted?

    • The list of 20-plus exemptions from the restrictions include emergency vehicles, fire engines, ambulances, hospitals, hearses, prisons, VIPs, enforcement vehicles and defence ministry vehicles.
    • Among VIPs, leaders of the opposition in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, Chief Ministers of states, Judges of the Supreme Court and high court and Lokayukta are exempt. <CM of Delhi is not exempted>
    • CNG and electric vehicles are also exempt.
    • Two-wheelers and vehicles driven by or occupied by handicapped persons and female drivers are also exempt.

    So, Will it really help clean the Delhi air?

    • The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), has welcomed the “emergency action to reduce vehicle numbers on the road” but questioned the absurdity of exempting 2-wheelers, which account for more than 30% of air pollutants generated by the transport sector in Delhi, and women drivers.
    • According to the scientists of the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), 80 per cent of PM 2.5 air pollution is caused by vehicular traffic and reduction in its levels, even in outer areas of Delhi shows that reduction of four wheeled vehicles on roads.
    • The latest set of ambient air data collected at 18 locations across Delhi through mobile dust samplers shows a consistent trend of declining levels of PM 2.5 air pollution levels.
    • If we take 250-300 as an average, then there is a drop of 100 points in PM 2.5 levels. This means there is a drop in pollution by about 25 percent. [ Isn’t it great! ]

     

    But, Where did the odd-even idea come from?

    Car rationing has been tried in many countries around the world.

    • Rationalisation of the movement of private vehicles has been adopted in many countries, starting with Sweden (Stockholm) and extending to other European countries.
    • China (Beijing), Mexico and Colombia (Bogota) have also implemented such measures.

    Let’s glance over some international experiments?

    Beijing

    • The city initiated the alternate day car driving restrictions just ahead of the 2008 Olympic Games and saw pollution levels drop by almost 20%.
    • Currently, Beijing imposes this rule periodically, on days with high air pollution.
    • The city has also restricted its car sales since 2011 to 20,000 car plates every month.
    • However, they have made tremendous efforts to increase public transport such as bus connectivity and metro services. [ Lesson for Delhi ]

    Paris, France

    • The city has been imposing the odd-even number plate rule during periods of high air pollution. On such days, public transport is free.
    • The rule was last implemented in March 2015 when a smog alert was issued.

    Mexico

    • The “Hoy No Circula” was introduced in Mexico around 1989 to combat air pollution.
    • It called for citywide bans, one day per week, based on last digit of the number plates.
    • For example, plates ending in 5 and 6 were not allowed to drive on Mondays while 7 and 8 were not allowed to drive on Tuesdays and so on.
    • This measure was highly successful in bringing carbon monoxide (CO) levels down by almost 11%.
    • However, in the long run, people eventually started buying more cars, rendering the ban inefficient. Therefore, it actually ended in a rise in CO levels in the long run by almost 13%.

    Oh! Are these measures short-term?

    • Yes, these examples show that the system has better potential as a short-term measure.
    • It show that temporary restrictions on vehicles may not reduce air pollution in the long term.
    • Drivers inevitably buy more cheap and inefficient cars with different number plates to get around the rules.
    • Hence, such an initiative must be complemented by other measures to ensure that we have a stable system in the long run.

    So, Are there any long-term measures available?

    Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has suggested some long-term measures –

    • There is a need to impose restrictions on diesel vehicles to promote electric and alternative fuel vehicles.
    • The electric vehicles should be exempted from any such alternate number plate restriction.
    • The number plate measure needs to be combined with high parking charges and intensified public transport strategy. <This should be the strategy for the entire period of poor air quality as well as a long-term measure>

    International Example

    • Paris has set an example by deciding to phase out diesel cars completely by 2020.
    • London is also planning to ban diesel cars despite having a fuel quality as high as Euro 6.
    • China has already banned diesel cars on roads.India, on the other hand, is still juggling between BS-III and BS-IV norms. <With accepted ground reality, we can not directly implement BS-V/BS-VI in one go>

    What Delhi can do more?

    Immediately link and scale up metro, bus, autos, taxis-walk and cycle –

    • This is needed immediately to connect doorsteps of people with their destinations for effortless movement without the car.
    • Connect each and every neighbourhood with efficient and reliable public transport service.

    Provide safe and barrier free walking and cycling infrastructure –

    • Redesign roads and road network to give safe and priority infrastructure to walkers, cyclists and public transport users.

    Adopt parking policy and taxation measures to restrain car usage –

    • Currently, parking charges in Delhi are one of the lowest in the world.
    • Limit legal parking areas across the city and demarcate them on the ground. Impose high penalty for illegal parking on public space.
    • Impose higher taxes on cars for their congestion and pollution impacts. Use the revenue to build public transport.<Congestion tax can be a good case in this regard>

    How will it affect automobile industry sector?

    • Delhi’s odd-even decision will upset powerful automobile lobbies.
    • The stakes for the car industry are too high in the capital, which is India’s biggest car market.
    • The city has the largest population of registered motorised vehicles in the country, about 89 lakh as on March 31, 2015.
    • Of them, 26 lakh are cars, 28 lakh motorcycles and 27 lakh scooters.
    • In comparison, the number of commercial vehicles like taxis, buses and three-wheelers is about 3.5 lakh.
    • The national capital region (NCR) accounts for 12% of car sales in India and is the biggest car market in the country.
    • The temporary ban, according to reported estimates, will prevent 12,000 new diesel cars from coming on the Delhi roads.

    So, the Odd-Even vehicle formula restriction is a good initiative, it is only a start. To control congestion, reduce pollution and improve liveability, there must be a comprehensive strategy in Delhi.

    At national level, how odd-even policy will affect Make in India programme? Critically analyse.

     

  • Outcome of Paris Climate Summit

    Paris Agreement was recently adopted by 195 countries of UNFCCC, which agreed to take measures to control climate change.

    We had written 4 explainers for a comprehensive coverage and they can be read here – 

    As we move ahead, let’s take a look at this agreement with respect to various dimensions and debates, which are going on in the international sphere.

    When this agreement will enter into force?

    The agreement in Paris will come into effect only after 2020 when the Kyoto Protocol, an existing international mechanism to deal with climate change, comes to an end.

    What is the temperature goal?

    The agreement says that its objective is to keep the global temperature rise below 2 degree Celsius, but pursue efforts to keep it below 1.5 degree Celsius from pre-industrial times.

    It also says that IPCC will come with a special report in 2018 on the impacts of global warming of 1.5 degree Celsius and above pre-industrial levels. <IPCC reports form the scientific basis on which the world is taking climate action>

    Let’s analyse the implications

    • Least Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island Developing Countries (SIDCs) were demanding that the rising temperature be kept under 1.5 degree Celsius from pre-industrial times.
    • LDCs fear that cost of adaptation will be high, if the temperature is allowed to risee upto 2 degree Celsius.

    What about Finance and Technology Transfer ?

    Finance

    Developed nations have been asked to provide financial resources, but $ 100 bn mark does not figure in the agreement. $ 100 bn has been shifted to the decision text, which is a list of all decisions taken at the conference.

    Developing countries are also asked to raise financial resources, even as voluntary effort.< This was one of the demands of the developed countries to widen the base of countries who will provide financial resources>

    There has to be a balance between the mitigation and adaptation needs of the developing countries, while allocating financial resources.

    Technology

    The developed countries to abide by their promises to provide technology development and transfer, and capacity building to developing countries.

    Why is it a matter of concern?

    • Paris Agreement is a permanent document, while the decisions of the conference can be modified.
    • This gives a message that developed nations will provide $ 100 bn every year from 2020, but they will not increase it annually, as demanded by developing countries.

    Carbon Neutral, by when?

    The agreement says that, world should peak emissions as soon as possible and achieve a balance between sources and sinks of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the second half of this century.

    This means that to limit the amount of GHG emitted by human activity to the same levels which can be absorbed naturally such as trees, soil, ocean, etc beginning 2050.

    What happens to INDCs?

    In the run-up to the Paris conference, 186 countries submitted their INDCs, giving information about the climate actions they planned to take until 2025 or 2030. INDCs would henceforth be called only Nationally Determined Contributions.

    Every country needs to communicate NDCs every 5 years. Each NDC has to be progressively more ambitious than the previous one.

    However, NDCs are not legally binding, i.e. the targets set by nations will not be binding under the Paris Climate Agreement. <India, China and South Africa were unwilling to sign up for this condition because they felt that it could hamper economic growth and development>

    What is Global Stocktake?

    • It refers to a proposed a 5-yearly review of the impact of countries climate change actions.
    • It will assess whether the net result of the climate actions being taken was consistent with the goal of keeping the increase in global average temperature from pre-industrial times to within 2 degree Celsius.
    • It is mandatory for every country to participate in the global stocktake, the exercise will not assess whether actions of any individual country are adequate or not.

    The best part of global stocktake is that it will also assess whether developed countries are adequate help to developing countries by providing money and technology.

    Is Differentiation principle at Stake?

    Experts are divided on whether developed countries succeeded in their effort to do away with concept of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities.

    The Paris agreement firmly anchors ‘differentiation’ for developing countries. At many places, differentiation is achieved by having different kind of commitments for developed and developing countries.

    Developed countries are expected to take the lead on mitigation and support, while developing countries are expected to take actions within the context of their sustainable development and poverty eradication imperatives.

    Let’s see what is the other point of view.

    • All parties have to report NDCs every 5 years.
    • There is no differentiation in reporting, inventory of GHGs and progress made in implementation of NDCs.< Inventory is basically a list of all units which release GHGs>
    • The stocktake is universal for aggregate actions and it will happen in 2023 and every 5 years henceforth.
    • Developed countries are asked to take absolute economy-wide emission reduction targets, while developing countries will enhance mitigation efforts, but are encouraged to move towards economy-wide reduction in the light of national circumstances.
    Published with inputs from Pushpendra

  • Bharat Emission Standards

    Bharat Emission Standards – Everything that you want to know

     

    Recently, govt. has decided to implement Bharat Standards VI norms on April 1, 2020. This comes in the wake of pressure from the Supreme Court to implement clean vehicular fuel norms soon amid concerns about rising air pollution, especially in Delhi.

    This policy is in line with our commitments at the Paris Climate Change Conference as well as public sentiments against rising air pollution in the cities, especially metros.

    These are norms instituted by the Govt of India to regulate the output of air pollutants from internal combustion engine equipment, including motor vehicles.

    • The standards and the timeline for implementation are set by the Central Pollution Control Board under the Ministry of Environment & Forests and Climate Change.
    • The standards are based on European regulations and were first introduced in 2000.

    What is the current status of emission norms?

    Currently, BS IV norms are applicable in 33 cities in which the required grade of fuel is available.

    In rest of India, we are still following BS III standards.

     

     

    Let’s see a little background of its implementation

    1991– India introduced the emission norms for the first time.

    1996– The norms saw some tightening as govt. asked most vehicle manufacturers to incorporate catalytic converters to cut exhaust emissions.
    Govt. also notified fuel specifications based on environmental considerations, which were to be implemented by 2000.

    2000– Govt. notified BS-I and BS-II standards, which were equivalent to Euro I and Euro II respectively. <BS-II was for the NCR and BS-I for the rest of India>

    2005– BS-III and BS-II fuel quality norms came to be implemented. <BS-III for 13 major cities and BS-II for the rest of India>

    2010– BS-IV and BS-III fuel quality norms were introduced. <BS-IV for 13 major cities and BS-III for the rest of India>

    It works on a two-pronged strategy to control the air pollutant output.

    1. Reducing the Sulphur content in the fuel.
    2. At engine level, it augments some equipment which reduces emissions.

    What does Auto Fuel Policy have to say?

    Auto Fuel Policy 2003

    • It aims at addressing issues of vehicular emissions and vehicular technologies by applying fuel quality standards.
    • It encouraged the use of CNG/LPG fuel in cities affected by higher pollution levels.
    • It gives the timeline for adopting the Bharat Standards across the country:
      BS IV- 2017
      BS V- 2020
      BS VI- 2024

    Recently, govt had constituted an Expert Committee under the Chairmanship of Shri Soumitra Choudhuri, to draft Auto Fuel Vision and Policy 2025.

    Recommendations of Soumitra Choudhuri committee:

    It presents the road map for auto fuel quality till 2025 for the country,taking into account the achievement under the last Auto Fuel Policy, emission reduction of in use vehicles, growth of vehicles and the supply and availability of fuels.

    • It recommended nationwide fuel standards to be BS-IV. It has proposed to move to BS V from 2020 and BS VI from 2024.
    • To upgrade refineries to produce BS-V petrol and diesel will need Rs.80,000 crore.
    • It recommended Special Fuel Upgradation Cess of 75 paise/litre on fuel to meet the cost.

    Let’s analyse Bharat Standards vis-a-vis Euro Standards

    BS-VI is equivalent to Euro VI. However, many western countries have already graduated to Euro VI.

    But, India is following European emission norms with a time lag of  5 years.

    What are the challenges in implementing BS VI norms?

    Engine

    Engine development firms have cited a technological challenge in implementing the changes.

    They have cited that jumping directly to BS-VI norms would give them little time to design changes in their vehicles.

    Why is it challenging for auto firms to implement it?

    There are two critical components which needs a fitment in the engine. They would have to be adapted to India’s peculiar conditions, where running speeds are much lower than EU or US. Industry estimates of required investment to upgrade from BS-IV to BS-V are to the tune of Rs. 50000 crore.

    1. Diesel Particulate Filter– Its function is to remove particulate matter from diesel exhaust.
      Challenge: Problem is small cars with limited bonnet space would need major redesign to accommodate DPF. Temperature of 600 degrees Celsius is required to burn the soot in DPF, which is difficult to achieve in India due to low driving speeds.
    2. Selective Catalytic Reduction Module– It reduces oxides of Nitrogen.
      Challenge: It needs injection of Aqueous solution into the system, for which separate infrastructure is needed for countrywide supply.

    Fuel

    There are questions about the ability of the oil marketing companies to quickly upgrade fuel quality from BS-III and BS-IV standards to BS-VI.

    The objective of upgradation to higher emission norms is defeated, if the uniform fuel is not available across the country.<This has been seen in reduced efficacy of engines of BS-IV vehicles, while taking inter-state travel>

     

    Published with inputs from Pushpendra

  • Urban Floods

  • Climate Change Impact on India and World – International Reports, Key Observations, etc.

  • UNFCCC Updates : Lima-Paris Action Agenda

    As we know, 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Paris making a progress on crucial climate change issue. Let’s take a glance on Lima-Paris Action Agenda

     

    What’s the prime motive of LPAA?

    1. The Lima-Paris Action Agenda (LPAA) is a joint undertaking of the Peruvian and French COP presidencies, the Office of the Secretary-General of United Nations and the UNFCCC Secretariat.
    2. It aims to strengthen climate action throughout 2015, in Paris in December and well beyond through mobilizing robust global action towards low carbon and resilient societies.

    What are the LPAA initiatives – addressing Water and Ocean Resilience?

    • Paris Pact on Water and Adaptation
    • MegaCities Coalition on water
    • Business Alliance for Water and Climate Change
    • Adaptation of the West African coastal areas
    • Maritime Regions in Action against Climate Change.

    What’s the Paris Pact on Water and Climate Change Adaptation?

    • A broad coalition of nations, river basin organizations, business and civil society announced the creation of the international Paris Pact on Water and Climate Change Adaptation.
    • This is to make water systems, the very foundation of sustainable human development, more resilient to climate impacts.
    • Water Resilience Focus event highlighted key partnerships and coalitions to make river basins, lakes, aquifers and deltas more resilient to climate change and reduce human interference with oceans.
    • Almost 290 water basin organisations are engaged under pact.

     

    What’s the scope of Paris pact on Water?

    These major collaborative projects combined represent over US$20 million in technical assistance and potentially over US$ 1 billion in financing.

    They include –

    • A financial commitment by India to build climate resilience through improved groundwater management.
    • In the Niger Basin (9 African countries involved), the launch of a 10-year investment plan to strengthen resilience to climate change.
    • In Jordan, Lebanon, Monaco, Morocco, Spain and Tunisia, a 7-year commitment under Mediterranean Water Platform to assess the state and trends of water resources, supported by the European commission.
    • In China, a 3-year commitment to improve management of the Hai river basin, supported by France.

    What about Cities? Are they committing to strengthen the resilient water systems?

    • Indeed, the Mega Cities Coalition, involving 10 megacities with 85 million people, is establishing a knowledge exchange platform.
    • The World Bank Group’s financial commitment of USD 200 million to enhance Water Security and Climate Resilience in Kenya’s Coastal Region.
    • A financing program, including 50 million euros from AFD and 15 million euros from Senegal, to protect 300 000 people from flooding Pikine, a suburb of Dakar.

    How many countries planning to join a coalition to enhance resilience of deltas?

    • The Delta Coalition includes 12 countries (Colombia, Egypt, Indonesia, Japan, South-Korea, Mozambique, Myanmar, Netherlands, Philippines, Vietnam, France and Bangladesh).
    • To bring deltas to the forefront of global policy discussions, build partnerships and focus on action, aiming to increase resilience for almost 250 million people in deltas in these 12 countries.

    How does it enhance the action on conservation and resilience of oceans to climate change?

    • Commercial shipping: The maritime transport sector is taking action to reduce greenhouse gases emissions 20 % by 2020 in tonnes-km, and 50 % by 2050.
    • Adaptation and marine ecosystem conservation: More marine protected areas, World Heritage recognition, children’s education, innovative funding support such as debt-for-nature swaps.
    • Coastal risk management and adaptation: Solutions to rising sea levels, coastal erosion, flooding and extreme climate.

    Do you really think that, Lima-Paris Action Agenda would pave the way for sustainable development and climate change? Why or why not?

     

    Published with inputs from Arun

  • Roadmap For Paris Climate Talks: Part III

     

    This is the 3rd explainer in the series of articles on Paris Climate Talks and the underlying issues.

    Previous articles, here: Part 1 & Part 2

    In this article, we will explore the newly emerged concept of INDCs, which will shape the Paris climate change negotiations.

    What is an INDC?

    INDCs, known as Intended Nationally Determined Contributions.

    INDCs are bottom-up commitments from nations defining the extent of their emissions reduction contribution towards this global goal.

    INDCs showcase a paradigm shift from top-down approach to bottom-up system, in deciding the commitments towards climate change.

    Countries have agreed to publicly outline what post-2020 climate actions they intend to take under a new international agreement, known as their INDCs.

    Why are INDCs important for climate change?

    These INDCs will form the basis for the most awaited Paris Climate Change agreement by the end of this year, which will put in place a new protocol from 2020.

    It will largely determine whether the world achieves an ambitious 2015 agreement and is put on a path toward a low-carbon, climate-resilient future.

    Ambitious, equitable and transparent INDCs can provide the world a fighting chance to tackle climate change.

    How does the process work?

    The process for INDCs pairs national policy-setting in which countries determine their contributions in the context of their national priorities, circumstances and capabilities.

    It will be accompanied with a global framework where each country drives the collective action towards a low-carbon, climate-resilient future.

    INDCs are the primary means for govts to communicate internationally the steps they will take to address climate change in their own countries.

     

    What do India’s INDC look like?

    Indian INDCs are inspired by Mahatma Gandhi’s famous quote, “Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed.”

    • India has promised to reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33-35% by 2030 from 2005 levels. < The GHG emission intensity means the ratio between a country’s gross emissions to its gross domestic product at a particular point. >
    • To increase the share of non-fossil fuel sources in it’s energy portfolio to about 40% by 2030.
    • To create an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.

    These emission intensity-reduction targets and adaptation to climate change will require about $2.5 trillion

    How will India mobilise funds to fulfill its INDC commitment?

    INDC data estimates spending of atleast $2.5 trillion between 2015-30 to meets its ambitious INDC target.

    India is banking on fiscal measures including fuel subsidy cuts and increased taxes on fossil fuels including diesel and petrol.

    The coal cess forms the corpus for the National Clean Environment Fund, which is used for financing clean energy, technologies, and projects related to it.

     

    Published with inputs from Pushpendra

  • Roadmap For Paris Climate Talks: Part II

     

    This is 2nd explainer in the series of articles on Paris Climate Talks and the underlying issues.

    In this article, we will explore the principles that figure during climate change discussions, which could have serious implications during Paris climate change negotiations.

    Since more than 80% GHG emissions present in the atmosphere today have been emitted by the developed countries which underwent Industrial Revolution in last 150 years.

    Therefore, UN Framework Convention, 1994 placed the burden of mitigating climate change primarily on these countries.

     

    What is the principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC)

    This principle demands a bigger response from countries that were historically responsible for the problem, and which were also more capable of responding effectively.

    Most of the rich and technologically advanced countries of the west fitted both criteria.

    The Convention divided the world in two clear groups:

    Annexure I countries: It was a group of 37 countries, who were required to take mandatory emission cuts.

    Non-Annex countries: It comprises the rest of the world, who could take other measures to deal with climate change, like adaptation, but were not required to mandatorily reduce their emissions.

    Where does the problem lie?

    CBDR is at the heart of the Kyoto Protocol, the existing global arrangement for fighting climate change that came into being at CoP-3 in Kyoto, and gave quantified emission cut targets to every Annex-I country.

    However, owing to persistent efforts of the rich and developed world, CBDR has been steadily diluted, and the clear-cut bifurcation of the world between Annex-I and non-Annex countries has slowly eroded.

    What is the principle of Loss and Damage ?

    It essentially tries to capture the inability of communities/countries to cope with the effects of global warming.

    At the Conference of Parties (COP19) of the UNFCCC, held in Warsaw in 2013, all parties agreed to set up a new mechanism on L&D.

    Loss: It generally refers to the complete forfeiture of items like land, ecosystems, or of human lives. The term includes both economic and non-economic losses.

    Damage: It refers to the harm to infrastructure and property that could be repaired.

    What makes Loss and Damage important and different from other mechanism?

    It is important because even after GHG emissions are reduced and communities adapt to climate change, there would still be loss and damage to people, livelihoods and infrastructure as a result of their inability to cope with climate change.

    This is distinct from mitigation, or reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and adaptation, or finding ways to live in a warmer world.

    How L&D will figure in Paris Climate Conference?

    The implementation of L&D principle would mean that Annex 1 countries would pay liability and compensation, as they are responsible for bulk of emissions.

    Recently, the Like Minded Developing Countries held a meeting in Delhi for the issues to be discussed in Paris COP and they have included Loss & Damage in their agenda.

    Published with inputs from Pushpendra

  • Roadmap For Paris Climate Talks: Part I

     

    We are going to publish a series of articles on Paris Climate Talks and the underlying issues.

    In this article, we will explore what is the ‘conference of parties’, and why we will hear more about it as the year-end approaches. We will also understand the how planet’s future could hinge on a deal in Paris.

    What is the CoP-21 and its origin?

    • The annual meeting is called CoP, or Conference of Parties, ‘parties’ being a reference to the 196 signatories to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), that came into force in 1994.
    • The Paris meeting is the 21st meeting of the CoP, and hence it is being called CoP-21.

    Lets understand the objective of COP-21 

    • To deliver an agreement that will facilitate the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the only way to mitigate climate change.

    What are the options to achieve this objective

    • Move to processes that do not release carbon dioxide, or minimises their emission. In terms of energy, sources like solar, wind or nuclear.
    • Make use of better technology to make industrial processes more efficient, and lower carbon emissions.

       

    What is the quantum of emissions to be cut?

    • The purpose is to restrict the global surface temperature within 2-degree Celsius as compared to pre-industrial times.
    • The 2-degree target is a certain maximum amount of carbon dioxide that can be left accumulated in the atmosphere, often referred to as carbon budget.
    • Scientists argue that at the current rate of greenhouse gas emissions, the budget would be exhausted in the next 25 years.

    Why is it difficult to cut this quantum of emissions?

    • Almost every human/industrial activity involves the use of energy which is produced primarily by burning fossil fuels, such as coal, oil, etc; all of which have high carbon content.
    • Cutting emissions will mean slowing these activities and, thus, economic development.

    There is more serious impact on developed countries

    The emission cuts for richer and developed countries would mean

    • Altering their lifestyles
    • Giving up big private vehicles to embrace public transport
    • Reducing consumption <This would have impact on countries whose economy is based on consumption>
    Published with inputs from Pushpendra

  • Disasters and Disaster Management – Sendai Framework, Floods, Cyclones, etc.