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What is the News?
The World Economic Forum (WEF) in collaboration with Kearney and Observer Research Foundation has released a report titled “Mission 2070: A Green New Deal for a Net-Zero India”.
What is the key finding of the report?
India is the 3rd largest Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emitter in the world, behind the United States and China. Five sectors – energy, agriculture, industry, transportation and infrastructure/buildings – contribute to more than 96% of India’s GHG emissions today.
What are the recommendations of the report?
As per the report, Decarbonization of India’s economy will require actions in five sectors that contribute to almost all its GHG emissions.The actions required are:
Energy: The energy sector accounts for ~40% of India’s GHG emissions. Decarbonizing the energy sector will require a three-pronged approach: replace fossil fuels with renewables; reduce fossil CO2 emissions from legacy infrastructure through enhanced efficiencies and remove unavoidable carbon emissions through carbon sequestration.
Mobility: A green transformation of mobility will need a shift in modal mix from road to rail, as well as a broad-based fuel diversification approach to encourage sustainable fuels (biofuels, CNG, LNG) in the immediate term, electrification in the medium term and hydrogen-based heavy mobility in the long term.
Industry: The decarbonization of this sector will need demand-management measures such as circular economy acceleration; continued energy- efficiency improvements;carbon capture, low- carbon fuels such as biomass and hydrogen among others.
Green Buildings, Infrastructure and Cities: India’s top 25 cities contribute more than 15% of its estimated GHG emissions. India’s transition to greener cities will need a rethink of its approach to urban planning with a focus on transit-oriented urban development and an emphasis on low- carbon buildings and infrastructure construction.
Agriculture: The agriculture sector is the largest contributor to nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane emissions. To reduce agriculture emissions, India will need a national campaign to empower, educate and enable farmers in adopting precision agriculture, sustainable animal husbandry and green energy.
Source: This post is based on the article “Mission 2070: A Green New Deal for a Net Zero India” published by WEF on 10th November 2021.
