Climate clock ticks much faster for state coastline

Hyderabad, Dec. 18: Even as the crucial UN summit on climate change comes to an end at Copenhagen, initiatives to cut carbon emissions in the state, and other adaptation measures have not gone beyond surveys, plans, studies and a lot of rhetoric.

This, when environmentalists and scientists warn that Andhra Pradesh with its long coastline and hundreds of drought-prone mandals is very vulnerable to the devastating effects of global climate change. They urge speeding up of green projects which are moving at a snail’s pace.

The Environment Protection Training and Research Institute (EPTRI), the environmental cell of the AP forest department, and the Confederation of Indian Industries-AP chapter have taken up minor initiatives to decrease carbon emissions but are looking to the state government to provide a coherent policy.

The state government, for its part, is looking to the Central government to formulate nationwide policies and implement the eight missions laid out in its climate change policy.

The principal chief conservator of forests (environment), Ms C.S. Ramalakshmi, is aware of the problems confronting the state. “Of the 1,100 mandals in the state, 500 are drought prone. At the same time, nearly 54 lakh people, who that live in 2,482 coastal villages, would be affected by floods and cyclones. The increase in flooding is to be attributed to climate change,” she said.

Food shortages too are expected to occur as a result of climate change. Officials say that food production had dropped by 20 lakh tonnes in the state in the drought of 2004 and is estimated to drop by 40 lakh tonnes this year.

The EPTRI at Gachibowli was assigned as a nodal centre for climate change and clean development mechanism in 2001. Since then all EPTRI has done is conduct a series of workshops for stakeholders on clean development mechanism and low carbon economy programmes in the industrial belts of Hyderabad, Medak and Visakhapatnam.

Proposals that it sent to the Central government for focused capacity building for political executives at village level and also for pilot studies in clusters of panchayats are pending.

The EPTRI director-general, Mr Indrajit Paul, said, “We have submitted some proposals for consideration of the government. We have already taken up community orientation programmes on environment and clean development projects.”

An EPTRI study ‘Food mile’ calculates the fuel used in transport of edibles, fruits and vegetables and suggests ways to reduce transport emissions.

Though local forest officials are boasting that the green cover in the state has increased, a recent Central report says that the forest area is dwindling. The ‘India State of Forests Report 2009’ by the Forest Survey of India says that the forest cover in AP has come down by 0.5 per cent whereas neighbouring Tamil Nadu has gained. The huge plantation programme of the forest department costing hundreds of crores of rupees has proved to be a big failure going by the latest revelations of the report.

At least half of the 47 biomass plants in the state are now closed as they incurred huge losses for investors. A 6.6 MW power plant located at Mahbubnagar, however, is still working and uses garbage to generate fuel. Mr Sanjay Gadhalay, the CEO of the Centre for Climate Change and Environment Advisory, points to two major state-run projects. “One is the GIS mapping of river bed areas to study pollution which has been taken up by the AP Pollution Control Board. The other one is the environmental impact analysis of the Polavaram project by the irrigation department. There are several other initiatives like management of water bodies, urban solid waste and even managing electric crematoriums,” he says.

CCCEA is the first of its kind in the country. As EPTRI has been handed over to the centre, the recently formed CCCEA is expected to fill the gap and aid the state government in producing clean green technologies and carbon assessment. Experts say that huge energy savings can be made in municipal bodies, from replacing old engines to pump water to more efficient lighting systems. Energy audits must be conducted for government agencies too.

Biomethanation projects using urban waste and meat remnants to produce biogas, CNG and electricity, which are successfully implemented at Al Kabeer plants in Rudraram near Patancheru and at Vijayawada, should be taken as role models, say experts. Use of solar lanterns can reduce the burden of the kerosene subsidy on the government.

Experts also suggest that the government should use the National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme to improve the green cover and to clean up the lakes.

The head of the environmental cell, Ms C.S. Ramalakshmi wants a ban on plastic bags. “The government should ban plastic bags of up to 20 microns; now the ban is only for up to 50 microns. Lakes have to be resorted. Vehicular pollution is another major concern. Green cabs have to be promoted. Public transport must run on CNG,” she said.

Promoting the use of renewable energy in industries and in homes, and better biofuels are other environment — friendly initiatives the government can take.