Blogs

The science has spoken!

The current energy market is becoming more and more entangled in energy transition with rising concern about climate change due to fossil fuel (coal, oil and gas) utilisation. The Energy Vision 2013 report by World Economic Forum.

The debate between ecology and development is never-ending and has spanned for centuries. For the development of any country, a slight compromise on the ecological front is an unwarranted side-effect. However, due consideration has to be given to determine the extent to which the ecological depletion of resources can be justified.

Climate injustice is a topic that has started gaining momentum in the recent past,  thanks to climate activists. But what exactly is climate injustice? In order to get a basic idea about what it actually means, we need to start analysing retrospectively. For instance, what is climate change, who causes it, who gets hurt by it and so on and so forth.

The world is moving at a progressive pace. In the past decade, India, in particular, has advanced leaps and bounds in the areas of science, industry and technology. It is considered as one of the world's fastest growing major economies.

Coal based power plants, which produce three-quarters of India's electricity, are among the most inefficient, water intensive and polluting in the world.

On World Earth Day, the 21st of April 2021, forty world leaders convened for a virtual climate summit.

A recent project helped me gain a brief insight on the climate crisis that communities around us are facing. Until then, like most others, I was partly oblivious and in denial about this serious issue engulfing our earth. The more research I did, the more perturbed I got. I am unable to shake off this gory image of the ‘metaphorical Mother Earth’ in a hot spot. (Pun intended).

Have you ever observed what is left when you burn any stuff? Mostly ash, right? Similarly, when coal is used for electricity generation in a thermal power plant, it produces Coal Combustion Residuals (CCRs) or coal ash. The coal mined out in India has higher ash content (25 to 45 per cent) in comparison with imported coal (10 to 20 per cent).

Ancient India had few environmental regulations that can be read in Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’ and on the fifth pillar edict of Emperor Ashoka. In the era before Indian independence in 1947, though there were no laws, there were cultural boundaries and respect for nature in the hearts of people of all ages and gender.