Sustainability Outlook Headlines

Making a difference to the environment

As we commemorate the fortieth anniversary of Earth Day, the efforts of institutions like Maharashtra Pollution Control Board assume even greater relevance.

In recent years, Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) has launched several initiatives taken to increase awareness about preserving the environment and they have made a difference in terms of checking pollution levels.

MPCB monitors air quality levels throughout the year via its 76 Ambient Air Quality Monitoring stations in Maharashtra and the festive season witnesses a greater focus and with good reason. It has... Read more..

India launches Climate Change Mission

India has launched climate change mission to improve the energy efficiency to prevent Green House
 Gas emission, said Minister of State for Environment and Forests (independent charge) Jairam Ramesh in a written reply in Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

He said National Action Plan on Climate Change includes a National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency. The National Mission is being institutionalized by the Ministry of Power through the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE).

Prime Minister's Council on Climate Change has approved the Mission comprising of 4 initiatives, namely... Read more..

Carbon offsets: Green project offends Indian farmers who lose land to windmills

Like his father before him, Yashwant Malche has worked the same piece of land on this parched plateau a day's drive and decades away from Mumbai. As an adivasi, or tribesman, he and his ancestors have been relegated to desolate land like this, mostly left out of India's modernization.

But in 2007, strangers came offering $4,000 and marking off his land. They said they'd build windmills, part of a power project built and sold – in part – to create profits from carbon offsets.

"That's the livelihood of my family, so I couldn't possibly sell...." Mr. Malche says he told them. "... Read more..

World Bank says East Asia can stabilize CO2 by 2025

China, the world's top greenhouse gas emitter, and five other East Asian nations, need a net additional investment of $80 billion per year to get on to a sustainable energy path, the World Bank said on Monday.

Such investment was crucial to curb an otherwise inevitable surge in planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions as regional economies grow to lift millions out of poverty and to meet the energy needs of rapid urbanization, the Bank said in a report.

The report, "Winds of change: East Asia's sustainable energy future," said it was possible for China, Indonesia, Malaysia,... Read more..

Solar Mission to award projects based on tariff discounts

Solar project developers offering the best discount on a tariff to be notified by the electricity regulator will figure higher in the pecking order during the allocation of identified projects under the Solar Mission programme.

The tariff rates under consideration by the CERC for 2010-11 are Rs 17.90 a unit for photovoltaic (PV) and Rs 15.40/unit for solar-thermal. The tariffs are notified annually by the CERC.

NVVN (NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam), the trading arm of NTPC, will procure power from the solar producers offering the most competitive tariffs on the ceiling rates to be... Read more..

Nalco to set up Rs 300 crore wind energy project

Aluminium PSU Nalco on Sunday said it will set up a Rs 300-crore wind mill in the country as part of its green initiative.

The state-owned navratna company is in the process of inviting bids for setting up a 50 MW wind energy project, possibly in Gujarat, Rajasthan or Tamil Nadu, a top company official said.

"We will soon be floating a tender for building our first ever wind mill project," Nalco director finance BL Bagra said.

Nalco would enter into separate contracts with the successful bidder for sale of land, engineering, procurement and Construction, and operation... Read more..

Go green, Gujarat tells industries

Gujarat is making sincere efforts to strike the right balance between industrial growth and environment concerns. The state is initiating various measures to make industries more eco friendly. Gearing up for the Vibrant Gujarat 2011, the state is making a clear statement that investment will be welcomed in the state, but not at the cost of pollution.

Saurabh Patel, minister of state for industries, govt of Gujarat said, "Industries are welcome in the state but not at the cost of the environment. Pollution is the biggest challenge and we have to keep growing keeping in mind the need... Read more..

Reduce greenhouse gases to benefit climate

An act of kindness to nature means an act of health to humans, as well. By properly maintaining our vehicles and properly operating it, we not only help reduce greenhouse gas and toxic fumes emissions, we help keep our lungs healthy, as well. And if the latest paint technologies help in reducing even further the emissions from motor vehicles, so much the better for man, woman and Nature.

This was what former Environment Secretary and now Earth Day Network Chair Elisea “Bebet” Gozun explained to Inquirer Health during a recent anti-air pollution drive in Makati City called “... Read more..

U.N. climate chief terms recent errors as 'one mistake

International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) chief Rajendra Pachauri faced renewed questions about the agencies work and calls for his resignation. At a conference in India, Pachauri was swarmed by reporters and termed the recent errors found in the group’s reports as ‘one mistake.’

Following a discussion at the International Conference on Environment Audit Concerns About Water Pollution in his native India, Pachauri found himself surrounded by reporters. The press queried the climate chief about the errors and about mounting calls for his resignation from the climate body.

... Read more..

India’s First 1MW Rooftop Solar Plant Powered by Suniva

Suniva, Inc., a U.S. manufacturer of high-efficiency monocrystalline silicon solar cells and modules, today announced that its high-performance solar cells are powering India’s first 1MW rooftop solar plant. Implemented and commissioned by Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) Solar Group, the 1MW solar plant was built on the rooftop of Thyagaraj Stadium in New Delhi.

“With the solar plant being located on the rooftop of Thyagaraj Stadium, we needed to minimize the overall footprint of the plant, while ensuring that it would generate enough energy to fulfill the stadium’s requirements,”... Read more..

National goals for combating global warming

UN climate talks in Bonn from April 9-11 will review efforts to tackle global warming after the Copenhagen summit in December fell short of a
legally binding text sought by many nations.

Following are national plans for curbing greenhouse gas emissions submitted this year to the UN Climate Change Secretariat. Many of the pledges hinge on actions by others:

INDUSTRIALISED NATIONS -- EMISSIONS CUTS BY 2020, FROM 1990 LEVELS UNLESS STATED (A scenario by the U.N. panel of climate scientists indicate industrialised nations would have to cut by 25 to 40 percent below 1990... Read more..

India Inc sees new biz in Japan's carbon trade scheme

Japan's cap-and-trade programme to reduce emissions could open a new market for Indian carbon trade participants. Traditionally, Indian companies have sold their carbon credits to European countries.

Some Indian companies such as Delhi Metro Rail Corporation have entered into carbon trading deals with Japanese players - but such moves have been largely voluntary and sporadic.

However, a recent Japanese Government move that makes it binding on companies to limit their emissions is likely to benefit Indian sellers. The Japanese Cabinet recently endorsed a draft climate bill... Read more..