In the last two articles we saw that given the differing impacts of climate change on different countries, the depressing reality might be that insufficient action against that change is the most likely outcome. Given this, how should India act?
We can think of action on climate change along two broad categories: Mitigation and Adaptation. The thinking behind mitigation is that let us lower the factors that contribute to climate change. A little bit of science and an example may help clarify this.
“Global warming” or the greenhouse effect is caused primarily by certain gases in our air which act like a semi transparent blanket (hence the name greenhouse gases): they allow the sun’s light and heat to reach the Earth and heat it but they make it harder for the Earth to release its own heat into space. The chief amongst these gases in heat-trapping potential is carbon dioxide (CO2). This is for two reasons: compared with other “greenhouse” gases, CO2 is the most abundant (I’m leaving aside water vapour for now), and secondly, CO2 tends to hang around for a really long time. Most of the released CO2 is removed within a year by plants by photosynthesis or by ocean absorption, but a fraction stays for over a 1000 years. Much of the CO2 level increase is driven by the burning of fossil fuels - coal, petrol, diesel, wood. So, to “mitigate” climate change, we should consume less fossil fuels - burn less coal, improve the fuel average in our car, take the bus, conserve forests etc.
This is pretty straightforward. Why don’t we do it then? Mainly because a strong economy pushes us in the opposite direction. Think of an economy doing well: most persons who want a job, have a job; many have options; people are going to the movies, eating out, buying stuff; travelling. There’s joy in the air: festivals are celebrated exuberantly. Those who might have bought a i10, go for an i20; those who would have taken the bus, aspire for a car. Now look at what drives that: factories churning out more stuff, cars being driven more, more flights - all of this uses more power. Where does that power come from? From petrol or diesel for vehicles and from the grid, a grid that is supplied 60% by coal. Burning a kg of coal releases 2.86 kgs of CO2. So, a booming economy, most of the time, means more CO2. And India wants this. Because a booming economy is the best way to lift our poor out of poverty. Much like China did. Another reason why India is averse to mitigation is because India is reliant on coal, the most “emittive” of the fossil fuels. Generating power from solar could be three times more expensive than from coal; India cannot afford that. Think of another way to mitigate: build capital-intensive city transportation - like the Delhi metro. Convenient, clean and fast. On a per passenger km basis, the light rail option is a clear winner over cars or buses in terms of CO2 emissions and convenience. So why is this not happening faster in India? Building a km of metro takes about Rs. 300 crore. Building a metro system costs between Rs.30,000 to 90,000 crores to be useful. Investments such as these clamor with pay commission recommendations and subsidies for Finance Minister’s attention, often getting much less than needed. So mitigating on a macro scale is a tough ask.
What of adaptation? The philosophy behind this is that the world is changing, and is likely to keep changing. India, by virtue of being hot and dry, is likely to be subject to the worst effects of a warming climate and by being poor, has less “give” to deal with it. So given that inaction or insufficient action is the norm in climate change politics, let us start adapting to a warmer and drier climate. An example of this might be investing in genetically modifying our rice crop to withstand higher heat and/or lower water availability. Another example is to eat less meat, as meat tends to take more water per gram protein than plant-based protein like soya.
Let us consider the context: action can be macro, decided by countries. Action can be micro - decided by company and citizens like you and me. Let me pass on the action plan for the country. This is perhaps not the forum for it. Let me instead focus on the action plan for us. On a personal level. What can we do? Plenty. Let’s start with what we eat.
(To be continued)
Climaction is a fortnightly column that is published in MetroPlus Weekend on alternate Fridays. The next article in this series will appear on April 17. Feedback and questions may be e-mailed to climaction2015@gmail.com
