Opinion
Tackling climate change is irresistible
02 Jul 2008 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| Deccan Herald
All sources of energy need to be tapped
29 Jun 2008 |
Dr Leena Srivastava
| DNA
For the last several weeks oil price and the Indo-US nuclear deal have dominated the media space in this country. We need to take a closer look at the potential that alternate energy holds to bail us out of the likely energy vulnerabilities that we may face in the coming years. It would be a mistake, however, to address our energy security challenge by viewing the problem as oil vs nuclear vs renewable energy.
Atoms for peace
19 Jun 2008 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Indian Express
Democracy in India has taken firm roots, and earlier misgivings about coalition governments at the Centre have proved largely unjustified, as recent experience has shown. However, in one respect, Indian democracy, with and without coalition politics, has not served the interests of Indian society adequately. In mature democracies, even when there are deep divisions on crucial issues of national interest, opposing parties drop their differences to coalesce around what is perceived as common national interest. One wonders when Indian politics would reach such a stage of maturity.
Solar energy Lighting up a billion lives
19 Jun 2008 |
Dr Akanksha Chaurey
| The Hindu Survey of the Environment 2008
The recently released Global Status Report on Renewables 2007 says that grid-connected solar photovoltaics (PV) has been the fastest growing energy technology in the world with 50 per cent annual growth in cumulative installed capacity in 2006 as well as in 2007. The majority of the above capacity comes from about 1.5 million homes across Germany, Japan, Spain, and the US which have installed small PV systems (a few kilowatts to tens of kilowatts) on their rooftops, feeding the electricity into the grid through two way meters and enjoying the benefits of net metered electricity bills at the end of the month. Technologies such as Building Integrated PV (BIPV), where PV panels double up as electricity generators as well as building facades, tiles and. walls by replacing the building material with aesthetically designed PV panels, have begun to get noticed by the architects and builders. This market is virtually non-existent in India which otherwise has had a good track record of utilising solar PV technology for off-grid applications ranging from power for off-shore oil and gas platforms to lighting up remote rural homes with solar home systems. Of the total reported 25 lakh homes worldwide that use solar home systems today, about 3.6 lakhs are in India, second only to China which has 4 lakh solar home system users. In fact, India's early commitment to promote solar PV arose from its concerns about energy access and energy security for all these cardinal principles form the backbone of Integrated Energy Policy almost three decades later.
Salute the sun
15 Jun 2008 |
| The Week
It was the first oil shock of the early 1970s that drew public interest to renewable energy technologies. Suddenly solar cookers, solar water heating systems, solar photovoltaic cells, wind electricity generators, wind pumps, biomass gasifiers and biogas plants became topics of interest.
However, when oil prices came down to manageable levels, the attention waned. They again came back when climate change mitigation policies and booming oil prices took centrestage. At present, renewable energy technologies are being utilised on a much larger scale. The annual growth rate of wind power is 24 per cent, solar water heaters 20 per cent and grid-connected solar photovoltaics around 55 per cent.
Eco design sustainable buildings for a new India
15 Jun 2008 |
Ms Mili Majumdar
| Electrical India
Most of today's architectural expressions demonstrate human dominance over nature. That 'The design process should leave a minimum footprint of man-made constructions on the environment' is the philosophy that TERI abides by. This article focuses on some basic measures advocating sustainability for new built structures.
Shelter is a basic human need. Buildings and habitats are designed and constructed to fulfil this. Since the industrial revolution, the world has witnessed incalculable technological achievements, economic and population growth, and ever increasing use of natural resources. Increased urbanisation, seen today, is a result of this overall growth. The green cover, and ground water resources have been forced to give way to these rapidly developing urban structures.
Why decarbonise? And how?
07 Jun 2008 |
| Business Standard
India needs to ask if it is necessary to undertake serious domestic action for decarbonisation, irrespective of pressures from rich countries.
India and other major developing countries have been at the receiving end of pressure by rich industrialised countries for several years, urging them to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. They argue that if these developing countries don't do so, irrespective of any emissions reductions by the rich countries, the world will be plunged into climate catastrophe (untrue); that without them on board, the US will not participate in emissions reductions (self-serving); and that global emissions reductions on the scale proposed by them will involve GDP loss of not more than 1-2 per cent (almost certainly much higher!). The arguments have to be seen in the context of India's per-capita emissions being just 1/20th of that of the US, and from 1/8th to 1/15th of other rich countries, with most developing countries also placed similarly. Over the next year-and-a-half of the climate change negotiations that are to be concluded in December 2009, one may expect the pressure to be greatly intensified, no matter which party assumes power in the US.
Substantial increase in prices is inevitable — it is high time we honestly reflected on this reality
03 Jun 2008 |
Dr Leena Srivastava
,Ms Ruchika Chawla
| The Economic Times
The past few weeks have seen a lot of dithering on the part of the government about the way the prices of petroleum products should be increased to reflect the consistently increasing international crude oil prices. This discussion reflects poorly on the economic reform programmes of successive governments of India.
The R (Restructuring) Group headed by Dr Vijay Kelkar had submitted its report way back in 1996 suggesting a move towards import parity pricing. Any positive fall out of these recommendations was soon partially rolled back — LPG, kerosene, diesel and petrol were brought back into the realm of control as these were considered to be more socio-economically “sensitiveâ€.
Saving Planet Earth
02 Jun 2008 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| The Times of India, Education Times
Climate change and the threat that it poses to human existence is a major concern today. Even the youth have an important role to play to save planet earth
There are many lessons in human history which provide adequate warning about the chaos and destruction that could take place if we remain guilty of myopic indifference to the progressive erosion and decline of nature's resources. Much has been written, for instance, about the Maya civilization, which flourished during 250-950 AD, but collapsed largely as a result of serious and prolonged drought. Even earlier, some 4,000 years ago a number of well-known Bronze Age cultures also crumbled extending from the Mediterranean to the Indus Valley, including the civilizations, which had blossomed in Mesopotamia. More recent examples of societies that collapsed or faced chaos on account of depletion or degradation of natural resources include the Khmer Empire in South East Asia, Eastern Island, and several others. Changes in climate have historically determined periods of peace as well as conflict.
UMPPs need some Oomph
22 Mar 2008 |
Dr R K Pachauri
| OutlookBusiness
In recent years, the government has aimed to promote ultra mega power projects (UMPPs) across the country. Each of these large-sized projects has a capacity of 4,000 MW and requires an investment of Rs 16,000 crore. Upon completion, the UMPPs will meet the needs of a number of states or state distribution companies on a build-own-operate (BOT) basis. The projects would use supercritical technologies focused on higher fuel efficiency and lower emission of various pollutants, including greenhouse gases.