Durgapur steel plant

In January this year, India had declared that it would voluntarily reduce emissions intensity of the GDP by 20-25 per cent by 2020 in comparison to the 2005 level. Will it be able to do so and what is the technology-emission reduction road map for India? A report by Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), which was released here today, finds while industry can meet the 2020 target under even business as usual scenario, its options beyond this are few, difficult and very expensive.

The study, using extensive data on each sector collected from the industries, concludes that most Indian industry is already efficient in terms of its use of energy and emissions. But in all these sectors, technology options for emission reduction stagnate after 2020. There is no way to reduce emissions without impacting growth once we cross the current emissions-efficiency technology threshold, says the study.

Says Sunita Narain, director, CSE: “This study must be understood in terms of its implications for global climate negotiations. India must continue to demand an equitous agreement, as the cost of transition to low carbon economies is high. The industrialized world must recognize its historical responsibility so that it can pay us to mitigate. Furthermore, it must recognize that in the current economic growth model, the options for drastic reductions are few. This is why the industrialized world has not been able to cut emissions meaningfully. India needs the ecological space to grow. Simultaneously, the world also needs to reinvent its growth model to be low-carbon. But all this must be understood in terms of cost to the economy.”

The report, titled Challenge of the New Balance, is the first study in India to look at options to reduce emissions, their feasibility and the costs involved, and understand the low-carbon roadmap and technology pathways for the future.

Also Read

• India to spend US $2.3 trillion on clean technologies
• BEE begins final round of consultation with industry on PAT schem
• Energy efficiency target for eight industries by April : Mathur
• Must ramp up energy consumption for 9 per cent growth: PM
• Japan pushing for climate pro-growth policy

Pages: 1 2 3