Commission reviews all the eight missions under the NAPCC...

 

A committee set up under the principal secretary to the prime minister is trying to streamline all the eight missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).

The eight missions under the NAPCC include the national solar mission, the national mission for enhanced energy efficiency, national mission on sustainable habitat, national water mission, national mission for sustaining the Himalayan ecosystem, national mission for a green India, national mission for sustainable agriculture, and national mission on strategic knowledge for climate change.

The committee headed by Pulok Chatterjee, principal secretary to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will meet in January, said a senior environment ministry official. The panel’s terms of reference include reviewing the missions and trying to work out a synergy between them.

Ministries dealing with the environment, water resources, urban development, agriculture, power, and new and renewable energy are the nodal agencies for the missions.

“We will be monitoring the progress of all the missions on a quarterly basis and bring out all the key action points for all of them,” said the official quoted above on condition of anonymity.
The NAPCC, prepared in 2008, was intended to serve as a road map on how India plans to combat climate change, uniting it with the country’s development concerns and the need to sustain economic growth.

Because multiple ministries and agencies are involved in the planning and implementation of these missions, it is important for them to have a common format on the basis of which the progress of the missions can be reported and reviewed, said the official cited above.

“The members of the committee include the secretaries of all these ministries in addition to representatives from the Planning Commission and the finance ministry,” the official said.

The official said that it was important for all the missions to have short-term goals on a quarterly basis. “They have to list their top priorities. We have told them to achieve the maximum of their goals in the next 2-3 years. There will be a final review in 2017 for all of them,” the official said.

The committee has advised all the ministries to synergize the missions with the existing schemes. “We have told green India mission to sync with Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA),” the official cited above said.

Under the sustainable habitat mission, the urban development ministry has plans to construct metro trains in some cities. “They are also improving solid waste management and have issued advisories on energy efficient buildings,” the official said.

Bureau of energy efficiency (BEE) under the power ministry is the nodal agency for implementing the national mission on energy efficiency. Ajay Mathur, director general, BEE, said that the key is to see what the impact of these missions is.

“Our quantitative reporting will start only September next year as that is when our schemes will start playing out. For this quarterly review, we will only be saying whether our schemes are on track or not,” said Mathur.

Prodipto Ghosh, a member of the Prime Minister’s council on climate change, said the review showed the government’s seriousness in implementing the NAPCC.

“The review will then be presented to the Prime Minister’s council on climate change which is headed by the Prime Minister and he can take stock of it,” said Ghosh.

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Center withdraws its previous green order on Western Ghats...

 

Giving way to politics by ignoring green concerns, the Union environment ministry on Friday withdrawn its "in principle" approval given to the Kasturirangan panel report that prohibited activities like mining, quarrying and setting up thermal power plants and other high polluting industries in 60,000 sq km area of the Western Ghats across six states.

"The earlier office memorandum of November 16 regarding 'in principle' acceptance of the high level working group report on Western Ghats stands withdrawn", said an order issued by the ministry of environment and forest.

Though the ministry had time and again clarified that the previous order did not prohibit farming and plantation in those areas, it has now withdrawn it altogether in order to give it a second shot after consulting state governments.

The move comes after a series of protests against the Centre's decision in the past one month. The Kerala government had been most vocal against the decision, saying it will affect the livelihood of local population.

The environment ministry, which came out with a list of villages in six states which were included in the Ecologically Sensitive Zone (ESZ) for making them a no-go area for certain activities, has now decided to fine tune the boundary of the Zone after taking inputs from state governments.

Though the protest over the Centre's move to earmark ESZ had started the moment it gave its nod to the Kasturirangan panel report last month, the environment ministry had initially resisted it. The pressure from Kerala government had, however, started building up more after the Congress poor show in recent assembly polls.

Although the ministry had clarified that the decision would not affect the farmers in the ESZ, the clarification did not pacify the agitators in Kerala. The reversal of its previous order is seen as the Centre's move not to touch any controversial issue which may cost it heavily in the coming general election.

The last month's order which earmarked 60,000 sq km area of the Western Ghats across six states as ESA had prohibited activities like mining, quarrying and setting up thermal power plants and other high polluting industries "with immediate effect".

Building and construction projects of 20,000 sq meters area and above and township and area development projects with an area of 50 hectare and above or with built up area of 1,50,000 sq meters and above were also supposed to be prohibited in these areas.

The order had, however, clarified that it would not affect the hydro power and wind energy projects in those areas. These activities will be allowed subject to "applicable regulations".

The ministry in its notification, issued in November, had annexed a complete list of state-wise, district-wise and taluka-wise villages in the entire ESA and put the details on its website while asking the six states - Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu - to implement the order strictly.

"In case of any violation, appropriate legal action under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 will be taken", said the November order.

The ESA - roughly 37% (59,940 sq km) of the Western Ghats - has been earmarked on the basis of the recommendation of a high-level working committee, under the chairmanship of K Kasturirangan (Planning Commission member), which had submitted its report to the government on April 15.

Though any new or expansion project was supposed to be completely banned in those notified villages across the six states with immediate effect, the applications for getting various environmental clearances which were submitted before April 17 were, however, be processed as per earlier rules.

April 17 was fixed as a cut-off date because the committee had made its report, earmarking those areas as ESZ, public on that date.

The panel had identified the more or less contiguous area (roughly 37% of the Western Ghats) as natural landscape having high biological richness, low forest fragmentation and low population density. It also found that this area also has World Heritage Sites and Tiger and Elephant corridors, making it to be a fit case for earmarked as ecologically sensitive area.

Referring to the recommendation, the ministry's through its order had asked the states to follow the "non-tolerance" policy towards prohibiting "highly interventionist and environmentally damaging activities" as Western Ghats has been under unprecedented threats due to mining and urbanization.

It specifically flagged the Red category (high polluting) of industries like thermal power, oil refinery, petrochemical, cement, sugar, pesticide, zinc smelting, leather and integrated steel plants among others -- which are part of the list of polluting industries prepared by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and pollution control boards of most of the states - for imposing the complete ban.

Besides being a global biodiversity hotspot and treasure trove of varieties of flora and fauna, the Western Ghats - which extends over a distance of approximately 1,500 km and traverses through six states - is the origin of Godavari, Krishna, Cauvery and a number of other rivers.

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MPCB issues show cause notice to Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Station for violation of pollution control standards...

 

The regional office of Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) served a show notice to Chandrapur Super Thermal Power Station (CSTPS) for violation of pollution control standards after receiving complaint about sharp rise in emissions from the power plant on Tuesday.

Following complaint by environmentalist Yogeshwar Dudhpachare, MPCB dispatched its field officer to CSTPS. After inspection, officials concluded that there was heavy emission from the operational generation units. Emission was recorded from the open sampling stack of unit no. 4.

The field officer also found that economizer at coal crushing area of unit no. 2 was choked, leading to higher emission. The authorities of IIT Mumbai carrying out comprehensive study of pollution in Chandrapur, measured the concentration of PM10 (particulate matter up to 10 micrometre size) at CSTPS by using 'dust-rak equipment' at 3.30pm and 4.30pm, also on Tuesday. They were shocked to find values of PM10 as high as 550 g/m3 and 850 g/m3 respectively.

Regional officer DB Patil in the notice has stated that these lapses on part of CSTPS are in violation of consent condition issued by MPCB and are causing grave harm to the environment. He has sought explanation why should the board (MPCB) not initiate legal action against the CSTPS under the provisions of Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act-1981. Patil has asked CSTPS to submit reply in three days or face action.

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Climate Responsive Technology Design to be implemented by MNRE...

 

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is implementing a programme on ‘Energy Efficient Solar/Green Buildings’ which promotes the energy efficient solar/ green building designs with renewable energy applications including Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment (GRIHA) system.

Under the programme, the Ministry promotes the energy efficient solar/green buildings by providing incentives to promotional activities, awards to urban local bodies & green buildings having maximum RE installations, incentives to Architects/Design consultants and other related activities.

This information was given by the Minister of New and Renewable Energy Dr. Farooq Abdullah in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

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Hydel power plants near Kukke may hit environment: IISc Senior Scientific Officer

 

Though the government is promoting micro hydel power plants near Kukke Subrahmanya with subsidies for those that are above 25 mega watts and waiving the requirement of environmental clearance, they are against environmental protection laws, said T. V. Ramachandra, Senior Scientific Officer, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore.

He was speaking to The Hindu, after delivering the keynote address as chief guest at the two-day national seminar on “Trends in biotechnology and its applications”, organised by the Departments of Biotechnology and Botany in St. Aloysius College on Tuesday.

The 24 MW hydel power projects in the area will lead to submerging of 1,700 hectares of land and the plants are against the Forest Conservation Act and in violation of the Biodiversity Act 2002.

He said, “Why displace people when they get no benefits and make them dependent on the plants?”

The area should be called a “heritage” place as it has several endemic species such as Syzgigum travancorecum and Madhuca insignis. A report on the impact of the hydel projects has been given to the local people, he said.

Algae as energy

Earlier, he said algae growing in lakes and waterbodies can provide an alternative energy source. He was delivering the keynote address as chief guest at the two-day national seminar on “Trends in biotechnology and its applications”, organised by the Departments of Biotechnology and Botany of Colelge.

Speaking on “Third generation biofuel from algae”, he said at a time when fossil fuels are reducing with increasing demand for energy, a biofuel based on micro algae could be a source of energy.

At the same time, they also clean up water as they absorb nutrients that aid in the treatment of wastewater. They can grow densely in domestic waste water. They remove nitrogen and phosphorus which are not eliminated even by membrane purifying systems. The extraction of lipid from micro algae grown in wastewater would serve the dual purpose of cost effective waste treatment and as fuel for energy.

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Renewable energy projects are eco friendly..., are they really?

 

Solar and wind energy are considered environment-friendly, with zero carbon emissions. These sources of energy are going to be the main elements of India’s proposed march towards a low-carbon-economy. But doubts have begun to be expressed over long-term ecological and social fallout of rolling out wind and solar energy on a large scale.

Going by the warning issued in a recent government-sponsored study of select green power projects in the country, large solar and wind power projects may lead to a conflict situation in years to come if corrective steps are not taken to minimise their ecological and social impact.

While wind and solar generation does not result in direct greenhouse gas emissions unlike coal-fired power stations it has other serious implications.

USE OF LAND, WATER

Land and water are key issues in conventional power projects. Now the same issues may plague renewable energy projects as well.

These projects require large tracts of land which is a scarce resource. “There is a possibility that resource demand by solar and wind projects may rake up several socio-economic conflicts in near future. Such projects will have to compete with other sectors for land. This will either impede the growth of renewable energy development or create direct conflict between projects and communities residing in vicinity of such projects,” the report from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has said.

Another cause of possible conflict would be water requirements of green power projects, particularly solar energy farms.

Solar panels need to be cleaned with water every day, since dust gathered on them could reduce their efficiency. Typically, a large solar photovoltaic plant could have several hundred panels.

Water requirement of large solar projects for maintenance purposes may be a cause of concern for the communities residing close to such projects and sharing same resource, according to the report.

This is a serious issue because solar farms are usually set up in arid and semi-arid areas, which are already water-stressed as they lie in low rainfall regions.

The sites visited during the course of the study included wind farms in Tirunelveli and Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu, Satara and Pune districts in Maharashtra as well as a solar farm in Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh.

India is currently the fifth largest wind power producer in the world. The potential for solar energy production is also very high as about 58 per cent of the total land area receives sufficient solar radiation for sustainable harnessing of solar power.

The total installed capacity of grid-connected renewable energy in the country is over 28,000 MW while off-grid power capacity is about 880 MW. About 70 per cent of total renewable energy comes from wind and about 4.5 per cent from solar photovoltaic.

Besides land and water issues, renewable energy production also damages the environment. An earlier assessment by the Centre for Science and Environment had pointed out that erection of turbines on hilltops and in forest areas is harmful to local ecology.

This requires building access roads which involves tree felling and blasting of rocks. Soil erosion results in silting of streams and water bodies. Construction of roads also results in linear fragmentation of habitat and scares away animals. In addition, wind farms could cause health impact due to shadow flicker and noise pollution.

Care needs to be taken to ensure the wind mills are not located in the path of migratory birds.

The Madhav Gadgil committee report on Western Ghats had pointed out that wind mills being set up in large numbers in this ecologically fragile area is leading to substantial negative impact on ecology and water resources.

ECO IMPACT ASSESSMENT

At present, it is not mandatory to conduct an Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) for wind or solar power projects under the Environment Protection Act.

Approval from the Ministry of Environment and Forests is required only if location of a wind power project is in a forest area or wildlife sanctuary.

An assessment by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) had found that about 45 per cent of total wind power generated in India comes from turbines located in forest areas. Small hydro projects below 25 MW capacity also do not need an EIA though it has been observed in Uttarakhand and Western Ghats that such projects are not benign to the environment.

Yet they are entitled to all fiscal benefits given to renewable projects. The Government should address these concerns as well.

Seeking to strike a balance between the need to encourage growth of green energy and environmental concerns, the report has suggested that new projects may be set up in areas which are “conflict free and readily available”.

At the same time, the use of natural resources such as land and water by these projects should be regulated. Instead of free flowing water, sprinklers may be used to clean solar panels.

Water harvesting and reuse of water may also be encouraged to promote water conservation. For the benefit of project developers, the Government can identify ‘go green’ (where projects can be set up without any objection), ‘go slow’ and ‘no-go’ regions in the country, it has been suggested.

Some States have already started experimenting with innovative ways to reduce land requirement for large renewable energy projects.

One way could be installing solar panels over large building or over irrigation canals as is being done in Gujarat. In wind farms, about 80 per cent of the land remains under-utilised or unutilised by projects.

The neighbouring community may be allowed access to such land for productive use. Ownership of windmills by villagers or their cooperatives — as is being tried in Germany — could also ensure greater community participation.

A framework for environmental oversight for green power is certainly required, but it should be done in a way that does not stifle growth of renewable energy.

India needs to move ahead in all forms of renewable energy, but in a responsible manner way that causes minimum or no damage to the environment.

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Power Ministry abandons plan of 4000 MW sarguja UMPP due to Environment Concerns...

 

It seems that the Power Ministry has abandoned the plan of setting up a 20,000 Crores Ultra Mega Power Project at Sarguja in Chhattisgarh due to the likely environmental issues for the coal blocks.

The Coal blocks of Hasdeo-Arand have been allocated for the proposed 4,000 MW project.

However as these coal blocks are falling under the dense forests,  the Ministry of Environment and Forests had classified them as "No Go" which means mining activities cannot be conducted at these mines considering the possible damage to the environment.

Due to this the MoEF has not granted approval for these mines.

Further, as per the guidelines of power sector regulator Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, the exploration work at the coal blocks allotted for the UMPPs should start within 730 days of the Coal Ministry's approval. This deadline expired in March 2012.

Due to this, it seems that Power Ministry has abandoned the plan to develop the proposed project.

The process for the invitation of initial bids for the Sarguja UMPP has been delayed many times in the past due to lack of environment clearance for the allotted coal mines.

 

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More literature on this...

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/energy/power/government-drops-rs-20000-crore-power-project-plan-in-chhattisgarh/articleshow/21703239.cms

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NTPC introduced hightech steps for the pollution control at its Kaniha Power Plant in Orissa…

To establish strict norms on pollution control, NTPC has introduced several environment friendly steps to control both water and air pollution strictly as per the norms of Orissa pollution control board for its 3,000 MW Kaniha Power Stations which consumes around 55,000 tonnes of coal per day.

 

Some of the major steps are elaborated below.

 

The plant is equipped with electro static precipitator having efficiency of more than 99% for controlling air pollution. The details of emission and environment related data of the plant are scrutinized by government authorities from time to time.

 

In the ash dyke, ample steps like earth cover and water sprinkling have been provided on dry portion of ash dyke to control fugitive dust emission and rotational discharge principle is followed to keep the dyke wet. Following the advice of Orissa State Pollution Control Board, the company has procured the most modern cast basalt pipes for replacement of existing MS pipes for the first time in Orissa.

 

A pilot project for use of ash in agriculture was taken up in Kamarei and Tumugula villages where it was demonstrated that use of ash increases yield and improves water absorption capacity. Some amount of imported coal is also consumed to reduce specific coal consumption.

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Broader guidelines for Environment Clearances to the Power Sector…

There may be some more good news to the Power Sector as Jayanthi Natarajan (the Hon’able Environment Minister, GoI) has announced today that Indian is planning for broader guidelines for environment clearances to the power sector; also the timelines of issuance of environment clearance will be prescribed.

"Within my mandate to protect the environment, our policy will be to have consistent, transparent guidelines," Jayanthi Natarajan said.

This move will substantially help the coal miners as:

1. India holds about 10% of the world's coal reserves, but has struggled to provide enough fuel to its under-performing power sector, because of policy challenges.
2. Coal India, State-run coal Minor, is keep on missiong the production targets because of delays in environmental clearances at some of its mines, even as demand rise from power plants and industries.

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