Climate Change and Sustainaible Development

  • India has moved forward in this regard by selecting the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change as India’s Nationally Designated Authority (NDA) for the GCF, which will recommend to the Board of the GCF funding proposals in the context of national climate strategies.
  • The next step is to select competent NIEs which will be accredited by the GCF Board and will oversee the implementation of the project by the Executing Entities.
  • India’s participation in the carbon market is a story of success. India has been proactive in its approach to the carbon market and represents a significant component of the global market of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) established under the Kyoto Protocol. As on 1 December 2014, 1541 of the total 7589 projects registered by the CDM Executive Board are from India. This so far is the second highest in the world with China leading with 3763 registered projects.
  • The total certified emission reductions (CER) issued so far are 52 billion units, and CERs issued to Indian projects are 191 million units (13.27%). Also, as on 31 December 2014, the National CDM Authority in India has accorded approval to 2941 projects facilitating an investment of more than `5,79,306 crore in the country.
  • In the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol (2013-2020), the number of CDM projects has come down drastically. In 2012, there were 3227 projects registered with the UNFCCC and in 2013 only 307 projects were registered under the CDM. Interestingly, in 2013 India has registered 115 projects, which is the highest number by any country. In 2014, India registered 56 projects with the UNFCCC.
  • As per a World Bank Group report, the current demand is estimated to be around 1120-1230 megatons of CO2 equivalent (MtCO2 e), as against a supply of 3500-5400 MtCO2 for 2014-2020, around three to five times the expected demand.
  • Data shows that the world is living in a situation of ecological overshoot. In 2010, the global ecological footprint was 18.1 billion global hectares (gha), or 2.6 gha per capita, and the earth’s total bio capacity was 12 billion gha, or 1.7 gha per capita, as per the Living Planet Report 2014.
  • Bio capacity is not spread evenly around the world. Unfortunately the low-income countries have the smallest footprint but suffer the greatest ecosystem losses. Moderate UN scenarios suggest that if current population and consumption trends continue, by the 2030s we will need the equivalent of two earths to support us.
  • As per a McKinsey report, India is at the threshold of an urban flare-up. The population of Indian cities will increase from 340 million in 2008 to 590 million by 2030. In the 2030s India’s largest cities will be bigger than many major countries. As population increases, demand for every key service will increase five to sevenfold.
  • There has been a growing political drive towards the post 2015 development agenda due for agreement in September 2015. In this direction, the thirty-member Open Working Group mandated by the Outcome Document—“The Future We Want”—of the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) held in June 2012 at Rio came out with a set of 17 SDGs in July 2014.
  • Recent key initiatives include: the Swachh Bharat Mission, Clean Ganga Plan, scaling up of the National Solar Mission fivefold from 20,000 MW to 1,00,000 MW with an additional investment requirement of US$ 100 billion, development of 100 smart cities with integrated policies for sustainable development, and preparations for developing a National Air Quality Index and a National Air Quality Scheme.