Skip to main content

India "beats" China in carbon dioxide emission growth: British Petroleum

 
A site claiming to be India’s first data journalism initiative, has said, on the basis of an analysis of latest study released by top MNC British Petroleum (BP), that India has becoming the world’s “fastest-growing major polluter”. Prepared on the basis of analysis of a plethora of data in the study, analyst Sajai Jose said, in 2014 India’s “carbon dioxide emissions growth accounting for the largest share of global emissions growth”.
Jose’s report says, “India’s CO2 emissions from energy use had increased by 8.1% during the year, making it the world’s fastest-growing major polluter”, adding, this was the “single-most significant trend” revealed in the latest edition of BP’s comprehensive Statistical Review of World Energy.
“India’s contribution amounted to 28 per cent, or almost a third of global emissions growth in 2014”, the report says, adding, “Number alone does not convey the magnitude of the larger shift it reflects.”
To prove its point, the report says, the countries whose CO2 emissions increased in 2014 together added an extra 572 million tonnes (MT) of CO2 to the atmosphere, and of this “India’s share was by far the largest at 157 MT of CO2, substantially ahead of China (85 MT) and US (53 MT), the world’s leading polluter for decades.”
It further says, “India’s share of emissions growth (157 MT of CO2) was not only the largest volumetric contribution in its own history, but for the first time made it the world’s biggest contributor to emissions growth”, adding, “While every other major polluter saw emissions growth decline considerably, some even managed to cut emissions significantly over 2013 levels. The European Union (EU), for instance, cut more emissions (211 MT of CO2) in 2014 than India added.”
According to the report, “The additional CO2 India added to the atmosphere in 2014 (157 MT) was greater than that added by the US (155 MT) in 2013.” This happened despite the fact that “the US’ economy is ten times as big as India’s and consumes nearly four times as much energy.”
Ironically, the report says, “India’s GDP growth, which has driven up energy consumption to a historic high point, is also driving growth in its emissions”, adding, “On the other hand, economic growth has slowed globally, leading to a steady decline in global energy consumption in recent years, reaching its nadir in 2014 at just 0.9% (the slowest rate of growth since the late 1990s).”
The reasons why there was setback for India, says the report, is, “globally-significant emission cuts by the EU, a major Chinese push in renewables, and the virtual collapse of highly-polluting industries like coal, steel and cement in China as its infrastructure boom plateaus.”
Pointing out that “it is in coal consumption that India most diverges from the rest of the world”, the report says, “When most major countries have minimal or declining coal consumption, India’s coal consumption has grown by 11%, the world’s largest volumetric increase for the year.”
It report comments, “India’s greater reliance on coal is also what accounts for the Indian exception when it comes to the relationship between emissions growth and energy consumption. While emissions growth in every major country trailed consumption growth, Indian emissions growth (8.1%) alone outpaced consumption growth (7.1%), pointing to the greater carbon content in its fuel mix.”
Referring to the Modi government’s “push” to renewable-energy programmes, the report says, “However, coal remains at the heart of Indian energy policy, with 455 of 1,199 new coal-based thermal power plants proposed worldwide set to come up in India.”

Comments

TRENDING

Dalit rights and political tensions: Why is Mevani at odds with Congress leadership?

While I have known Jignesh Mevani, one of the dozen-odd Congress MLAs from Gujarat, ever since my Gandhinagar days—when he was a young activist aligned with well-known human rights lawyer Mukul Sinha’s organisation, Jan Sangharsh Manch—he became famous following the July 2016 Una Dalit atrocity, in which seven members of a family were brutally assaulted by self-proclaimed cow vigilantes while skinning a dead cow, a traditional occupation among Dalits.  

Powering pollution, heating homes: Why are Delhi residents opposing incineration-based waste management

While going through the 50-odd-page report Burning Waste, Warming Cities? Waste-to-Energy (WTE) Incineration and Urban Heat in Delhi , authored by Chythenyen Devika Kulasekaran of the well-known advocacy group Centre for Financial Accountability, I came across a reference to Sukhdev Vihar — a place where I lived for almost a decade before moving to Moscow in 1986 as the foreign correspondent of the daily Patriot and weekly Link .

Boeing 787 under scrutiny again after Ahmedabad crash: Whistleblower warnings resurface

A heart-wrenching tragedy has taken place in Ahmedabad. As widely reported, a Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane crashed shortly after taking off from the city’s airport, currently operated by India’s top tycoon, Gautam Adani. The aircraft was carrying 230 passengers and 12 crew members.  As expected, the crash has led to an outpouring of grief across the country. At the same time, there have been demands for the resignation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and the Civil Aviation Minister.

Ahmedabad's civic chaos: Drainage woes, waterlogging, and the illusion of Olympic dreams

In response to my blog on overflowing gutter lines at several spots in Ahmedabad's Vejalpur, a heavily populated area, a close acquaintance informed me that it's not just the middle-class housing societies that are affected by the nuisance. Preeti Das, who lives in a posh locality in what is fashionably called the SoBo area, tells me, "Things are worse in our society, Applewood."

Global NGO slams India for media clampdown during conflict, downplays Pakistan

A global civil rights group, Civicus has taken strong exception to how critical commentaries during the “recent conflict” with Pakistan were censored in India, with journalists getting “targeted”. I have no quarrel with the Civicus view, as the facts mentioned in it are all true.

Remembering Vijay Rupani: A quiet BJP leader who listened beyond party lines

Late evening on June 12, a senior sociologist of Indian origin, who lives in Vienna, asked me a pointed question: Of the 241 persons who died as a result of the devastating plane crash in Ahmedabad the other day, did I know anyone? I had no hesitation in telling her: former Gujarat chief minister Vijay Rupani, whom I described to her as "one of the more sensible persons in the BJP leadership."

Whither SCOPE? Twelve years on, Gujarat’s official English remains frozen in time

While writing my previous blog on how and why Narendra Modi went out of his way to promote English when he was Gujarat chief minister — despite opposition from people in the Sangh Parivar — I came across an interesting write-up by Aakar Patel, a well-known name among journalists and civil society circles.

A conman, a demolition man: How 'prominent' scribes are defending Pritish Nandy

How to defend Pritish Nandy? That’s the big question some of his so-called fans seem to ponder, especially amidst sharp criticism of his alleged insensitivity during his journalistic career. One such incident involved the theft and publication of the birth certificate of Masaba Gupta, daughter of actor Neena Gupta, in the Illustrated Weekly of India, which Nandy was editing at the time. He reportedly did this to uncover the identity of Masaba’s father.

Why India’s renewable energy sector struggles under 2,735 compliance hurdles

Recently, during a conversation with an industry representative, I was told how easy it is to set up a startup in Singapore compared to India. This gentleman, who had recently visited Singapore, explained that one of the key reasons Indians living in the Southeast Asian nation prefer establishing startups there is because the government is “extremely supportive” when it comes to obtaining clearances. “They don’t want to shift operations to India due to the large number of bureaucratic hurdles,” he remarked.