Capacity sans sustainability

By Shankar Sharma
31 Aug 2010

In view of the social, economic and environmental impacts of fossil fuels, and their limited availability, India needs a paradigm shift in its approach towards the energy sector. A detailed critique of Integrated Energy Policy is put up here for objective analysis by concerned experts and stakeholders.

Energy is a crucial sector of our economy, so much so that per capita availability of energy is considered as an indicator of economic prosperity. However, the social, economic and environmental impacts of demand/supply of energy are so huge that only a holistic and objective consideration of all the related issues will enable a sustainable and effective national policy. In this context the recommendations of Integrated Energy Policy (IEP) have been analysed in this critique.

While there are many good recommendations in IEP, the review indicates that IEP has recommended large growth in the installed/production capacity of various energy sources by 2031-32 ignoring the huge deleterious impacts of such a growth on our society. Long term impacts of such growth on environment and bio-diversity have not even been discussed. In this context alone the IEP recommendations have failed in the expectations of a welfare society.

In view of the social, economic and environmental impacts of fossil fuels, and their limited availability, country is in urgent need of a paradigm shift in the way it views the energy sector. The escalating demand for energy must be objectively considered in the correct context of greater needs of the society such as clean air, water and healthy food, and the inescapable limits of the nature in supporting such a demand. In this regard it becomes obvious that the conservation and enhancement of our environment and bio-diversity must not be compromised in order to meet the unabated demand for energy.

Within the energy sector, there is a critical need to: clearly differentiate our needs from wants/luxuries; recognize the fact that fossil fuels are fast running out; focus on improving the energy efficiency to international best practices levels; effectively deploy all the alternatives available to meet the legitimate demand; and harness the renewable energy sources to the optimum extent. Suitable tariff policies, including a feed-in-tariff for renewable energy sources, should be implemented to heavily discourage wastage of a precious national resource such as electricity, and to encourage very high efficiency in its usage and local production.

We should acknowledge that the energy security will not be feasible as long as we fail to manage the effective demand, and as long as we rely heavily on external resources. Inequitable supply of limited energy amongst various sections of our society, which is prevailing at present, must be set right as a priority. In view of the Global Warming impacts on our densely populated society the usage of fossil fuels should be minimised in the short run and eliminated in the long run.

Subsidized electricity by a State Government to any category of consumers should be only by advance payment of one year’s subsidy amount. A comprehensive policy to encourage widespread usage of pubic transport systems should be implemented; usage of private vehicles should be discouraged keeping in view the huge cost of fuel imports and the pollution impacts; old and inefficient vehicles should be eliminated on a rigid time scale.

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How Green can be the Green India Mission?

By Shankar Sharma
26 Aug 2010

The proposed Green India Mission would fail to make significant difference if the policy of sacrificing the existing natural forests for the so-called developmental programmes continues unabated.

One of the 8 Missions under National action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) is Green India Mission (GIM). Its draft Mission document states the main objective as doubling the area for afforestation in next 10 years. This mission has a budgetary proposal of Rs. 40,000 crores. As a new initiative the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) has sought comments from the public on the Mission document.

While the main objective of the Mission looks very noble the ground realities prevailing in the country indicates that the Mission’s chance of bringing commensurate benefits to the society does not appear to be great. As has been happening since independence, large tracts of thick natural forests of very high ecological value all over the country are continuing to be diverted for non-forest purposes. There are enough indications that this trend will continue in the foreseeable future, thereby threatening the few remaining patches of natural forests in the country. Even if the GIM succeeds in doubling the area for afforestation in next 10 years, the practice of diverting the existing natural forests for non-forestry applications will definitely negate the meager benefits that may accrue from such additional afforestation. Unless the trend of diverting thick natural forests all over the country to non-forest purposes is discontinued, the proposed expenditure of Rs. 40,000 Crores on GIM may become a net loss to the society.

Whereas our society considered it essential to build large number of roads, railways, dams, airports, power plants, mining infrastructure, industries, resorts, townships etc at the expense of forest/green cover, the necessity to maintain a good forest cover is being ignored. Though the forest cover at the time of independence was estimated to be more than 40% of the land mass, and the National Forest Policy recommends that 33% of the land mass should be covered by forests and trees for a healthy environment, our practice of continuing to divert forest lands for various “developmental activities” will bring this percentage much below even the present low level of 24% in the country.

Despite three important Acts of our parliament namely Environmental Protection Act, the Forest Conservation Act and the Wild Life Protection Act aiming to provide adequate protection to our natural wealth, the unscientific and unrestricted growth in economic activities within the forested areas has resulted in grave threats to our forest wealth to such an extent that the government has now realised the need for increasing the forest cover.

While there are many illegal activities which are resulting in depletion of forest cover; some activities like permission for monoculture such as acacia and rubber plantations, forest resorts/jungle lodges, expansion of nearby human habitats into forest areas etc are hastening the depletion of forests. Without effectively controlling such activities of forest destruction, GIM cannot have a meaningful role in protecting our environment.

It is almost impossible to notice the diligent compliance of the letter and spirit of Indian Electricity Act 2003, and National Electricity Policy, though salient features such as efficiency, economy, responsible use of natural resources, consumer interest protection, reliable supply of electricity etc would have led to the protection of our natural forests.

A recent statement by MoEF has indicated that about 35% of the coal reserve belts in the country are in ‘No Go’ areas because they are below thick natural forests. But there are also reports of massive lobbying to permit coal mining in such areas too, in order to cater to a large number of additional coal power plants. Bending the relevant rules to permit coal mining in such areas will reduce the thick forest cover of highest ecological value, which can never be compensated by GIM.

World Charter for Nature was adopted by consensus by UN General Assembly in 1982. It has provided some guiding principles for protecting biodiversity. Some key principles so enunciated are: (i) Activities which are likely to cause irreversible damage to nature should be avoided; (ii) Activities which are likely to pose significant risk to nature shall be preceded by an exhaustive examination; their proponents shall demonstrate that the expected benefits far outweigh potential damage to nature, and where potential adverse effects are not fully understood, the activities should not proceed; (iii) Environmental Impact Assessment should be thorough, be given sufficient time, and be carried out in an open and transparent fashion.

The power sector leads the so called developmental activities having huge impact on our forest cover and the bio-diversity. Large size conventional power projects such as coal based, dam based, or nuclear energy based power plants need large tracts of forest area to set up coal/nuclear mines, power plants, reservoirs, transmission lines, staff colonies etc. Pollutants, emissions and wastes from the power plants also have huge deleterious impacts on quality and size of the total forest area in the country.

In this context it is deplorable that the Integrated Energy Policy (IEP) as developed by the Planning Commission has not even discussed the impact of such large increase in total installed power capacity on the forest cover and bio-diversity. IEP has projected an increase of about 500% in the total installed power capacity in the country by 2031-32 comprising increase of coal power capacity from 80,000 MW to 400,000 MW; hydel capacity from about 36,000 MW to 150,000 MW; and nuclear power capacity from about 4,500 MW to 65,000 MW. While the huge impact on our natural resources because of the increase in installed power capacity from a level of about 1,500 MW in 1948 to about 160,000 in 2010 is clearly visible, further increase by 5 times in next 20 years can devastate the entire nature.

A large number of dam based hydel power projects, which are being planned in many parts of the country including almost all the Himalayan and sub-Himalayan states, will also lead to massive destruction of forests, unacceptable levels of interference in the natural flow of rivers, and will also threaten critical bio-diversity
While the huge impact on our natural resources because of the increase in installed power capacity from a level of about 1,500 MW in 1948 to about 160,000 in 2010 is clearly visible, further increase by 5 times in next 20 years can devastate the entire nature.

It is pertinent to note here that the perceived need to increase the power generating capacity in the country has arisen because of the huge inefficiency in making use of the existing power infrastructure. As long as our society fails to undertake necessary steps to make the power sector highly efficient and accountable, the missions such as GIM to increase the green cover and to contain the GHG emission can have only very meager success. This misconception of the need for large additional power capacity has to be corrected urgently by measures such as objectively identifying the legitimate demand for electricity, highest possible levels of energy usage, demand side management, and widespread use of new & renewable energy sources.
The thinking process of many agencies of the government and many regulatory institutions, which consider the forests as expendable to achieve economic development, have to undertake a serious introspection of the scenario in which environmental clearance for hydel projects such as Gundia hydel project in Karnataka and Athirapally hydel project in Kerala within thick forests of Western Ghats are being considered.

In order to protect our forests, green cover and general environment a different paradigm of ‘development’ is needed, and the civil society has to take active participation in decision making processes. If the estimated budgetary provision of Rs. 40,000 Crores on GIM is to be well spent, the ministry of environment and forests will have to take effective steps in conjunction with other concerned ministries and state governments to minimise the destruction of the existing natural forests.

Power production sans efficiency

By Shankar Sharma
06 May 2010
Without taking actions to drastically reduce power sector inefficiency, our policy makers continue to push conventional power projects detrimental to environment.

Despite knowing well that the gross inefficiency in power sector in India has serious economic and legal implications, affecting overall growth and welfare of the society, there is no serious action plan to take corrective actions. The inefficiency in the energy sector is considered to be one of the biggest stumbling blocks in societal development. Studies by International Energy Agency show that energy efficiency has the potential to be the biggest single source of GHG emission savings in the energy sector by 2050.

Since independence, installed electricity generating capacity in the country has grown phenomenally from about 1,400 MW in 1948 to about 157,000 MW in Feb 2010; an increase of 110 times. Annual electricity generation from all sources has increased from about 61,000 MU in 1970-71 to 724,000 MU in 2008-09, i.e. an increase of 12 times in 30 years.

Despite such phenomenal increases in capacity, various forms of electricity crises are continuing even after six decades of democratic rule. While the state capitals and larger cities in each state are getting electricity supply for 23-24 hours every day on an average, the connected villages are getting less than 12 hours in a day, not to mention about 40% of the house holds, which are still without access to electricity.

The inefficiency prevailing in transmission & distribution, and in the end use of energy is so much that the Integrated Energy Policy has estimated that the energy intensity of our economy can be reduced by 25% by 2031-32. The usage of electricity for night time sports, air conditioned shopping malls/housing complexes even in cooler places, heavy usage of illumination for advertisements, unscientific use of illumination for street lights, avoidable & inefficient use of a large number of electrical and entertainment appliances, whether in houses, shops, offices, public places or factories are all escalating, but are also largely resulting in unproductive and non-essential applications.

Studies by International Energy Agency show that energy efficiency has the potential to be the biggest single source of GHG emission savings in the energy sector by 2050.
The unreliable electricity supply has led to serious problems on the social, economic and environmental front whereas the relevant Acts of parliament are not being complied with. Severe consequences are observed in the areas of drinking water supply, agricultural activities, education, health etc not only in villages but also in many urban areas. People's displacement is the most serious social implication of large conventional power projects.

As per the report of the 13th finance commission, the combined losses of electricity companies due to inefficiency of operations may increase from Rs. 68,643 crores in 2010-11 to Rs. 1,16,089 cores by 2014-15. Such huge losses year after year have led to deprivation of adequate funding to other crucial sectors of our developmental process such as drinking water supply, poverty alleviation, health, education, rural infrastructure etc. The ever increasing number of conventional power projects based on dams and coal, and nuclear power projects require large amounts of natural resources such as land, water, coal etc and add huge amounts of pollutants to our environment.

The coal power plants need large tracts of land and huge quantities of fresh water. They burn enormous quantity of coal and generate mountains of ash, and require opening up of a large number of additional coal mines, which are all below thick forests. The technical efficiency of converting coal energy to electrical energy in Indian power stations is about 30% only. With Transmission and Distribution loss level of about 30%, and end use loss of about 15% prevailing in the country, the overall efficiency in coal energy to electrical energy put into productive / economic use can only be of the order of about 10%.

Large dam based hydro power plants drown large tracts of agricultural and forest lands, produce Methane which is a much more potent GHG than CO2, reduce forest and tree cover, and lead to loss of bio-diversity.

Nuclear power plants have their own share of concerns. The inadequate reserves of Uranium within the country, the massive damage to our environment from nuclear mining, the radiation safety issues, and the huge cost to the society of safeguarding the spent nuclear fuel for generations have all become major concerns to the society.

The country has been known to be exhibiting one of the lowest levels of efficiency in the overall management of a vital resource like electricity. The average Plant Load Factor (PLF) of the coal power stations in the country is reported to be about 63% as compared to about 90% in case of some of the best run power plants such as NTPC plants.

The inability to optimize the installed capacity is not much different in nuclear power plants and hydel power plants.

As per the sections 48 (a) and 51 (a) (g) of our Constitution, it is the duty of the State and every citizen to make honest efforts to protect and improve our environment by protecting and improving rivers, lakes, forests and living beings. The conventional power plants are destroying thick forest cover, interfering in the natural flow of rivers, and destroying the bio-diversity by hastening the extinction of many species.

It is almost impossible to notice the compliance of the letter and spirit of Indian Electricity Act 2003, and National Electricity Policy as far as salient features such as efficiency, economy, responsible use of natural resources, consumer interest protection, reliable supply of electricity, protection of environment are concerned.
While the National Forest Policy recommends that 33% of the land mass should be covered by forests and trees for a healthy environment, our practice of continuing to divert forest lands for large power projects will bring this percentage even lower than the present level of 24% in the country.

The prevailing inefficiency will not allow the fulfilment of the stated objectives of National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) unless a commensurate action plan is implemented earnestly.

Though it will be impossible to satiate the ever escalating demand for electricity in our urban areas in the business as usual scenario, efficiency improvement of the existing electricity infrastructure to the international best practice levels can provide us with a virtual additional capacity roughly equivalent to 30-40% of the present available capacity.

In the background of all these glaring issues, it would tantamount to letting down the public if the State continues to spend thousands of crores of rupees of the state's revenue and precious natural resources in establishing additional conventional power plants without harnessing all the techno-economically benign alternatives first.

Sharavathy: A river damned

By Shankar Sharma
05 Mar 2010

In the mad rush to imitate western model of development, we have killed many mighty rivers of India, badly affecting the people and environment. River Sharavathy of Western Ghats is now being squeezed to death.

Will other rivers too meet the fate of River Sharavathy?
This story is about the journey of River Sharavathy in Karnataka, a river that once was the lifeline to many but has now just turned largely into a mass of stagnant water.

The Sharavathy, which flows through the dense forests of Sahyadri range, was once the lifeline of thousands of families, forests and farms. All this changed with rapid development in the area. Three dams were constructed on the river, taking a huge toll on the flora and fauna besides displacing the numerous families. In fact, this led to the extinction of several unique species found in the region.

Rainfall, which was more than 300 inches per year in some spots of this region before the first dam in 1947, is now less than 200 inches. The rainy season that stretched to more than five months annually too has reduced to less than 3 months now. The small rivulets and streams, which once brimmed with water throughout the year, now come to life only during the monsoon. The major dam at 'Linganamakki' is understood to have been filled up less than 5 times in the last 40 years. People fear that silt is piling up in the dam.

The activities linked to the construction of a major hydel power station in this once thick forest has made it vulnerable to all kinds of exploitations. The trees of the pre-dam era are being replaced by mono-culture species like Acacia Auriculiforms, Acasia Melanoxylon, Casuarina Indica, Tectona Grandis etc. The common complaints from the locals about these species (which were originally alien to India) are: they are not of much use to birds, insects, monkeys or squirrels, since they bear no useful flowers, seeds and fruits. Instead, they grow rapidly and suck a large quantity of water from the soil. The leaves of these tall trees are like plastic sheets which envelope the ground, preventing rain water to percolate. Because of shallow roots these plants cannot stop soil erosion either, unlike the native species with deep roots. They also do not allow other vegetation to come up in their shadow. There is also clear evidence of local lakes going dry because of Acacia trees.

Understandably, the locals are furious. They are now taking on the government agencies that propagate these alien plants in the area with the sole purpose of providing raw pulp to a few factories. People have courted arrest, and some of them have been fighting cases for decades. Many incidents of locals destroying nurseries of these species planted by forest department have been reported.

Because of the dams and power projects, a large number of outsiders, who have no understanding of the local environment have settled in these areas and are reportedly linked to illegal deforestation, cultivation of exotic species, elimination of wild animals and grass lands and even starting forest fires etc.

The natives used to live in perfect harmony with the nature, protecting, preserving and worshipping the forests and animals. There were many forts, temples, Jain bastis and educational institutions, which have since been either completely submerged in dam waters or are in a state of neglect due to the slow death of remote villages. The dam waters have resulted in small islands isolating the communities, making it difficult to continue the education for the children. Medical facilities too have become inaccessible to many villages. In fact, due to reduced water pressure at the river delta, the salt water of the Arabian Sea is penetrating inland.

It's ironic that the region which plays such a key role in providing electricity to the entire state of Karnataka, has many villages that are still to get electricity even 60 years after the first power generating unit was commissioned.

Having submerged huge tracts of forests, the state government is now contemplating reserving forest land in the region, threatening the very lives of the locals, who now face evacuation yet again. The locals also face the threat of mining in these rich forests.

As if these atrocities on the nature are not enough, more projects in the name of development have reportedly started. These include pumping water from the down stream of the famous Jog falls to make it attractive again, permitting another hydro electric project between two existing projects, diverting more streams into the dam; building concrete structures in place of lush green vegetation to encourage tourism and building walking tracks to promote ecotourism.

Sir M Vishweshwaraya is credited with the idea of harnessing the waters of this river for the state's industrial development. Also known as a great humanist, Sir MV was known to have consulted the local leaders of the river valley on how to go about the project with minimum impact on the local environment and people. It was this concern for nature and the locals which made the initial project report to stipulate that only a portion of the annual discharge of the river be used for the electricity generation, and the rest to be allowed in the natural course of the river. Decision makers at the state and central level have exhibited no hesitation in quoting the example of Sir MV in conceptualizing high-impact projects, but have not demonstrated the same level of concern for nature and fellow living beings.

Before contemplating any new projects of such large scale impacts, the society should deliberate on finding the alternatives; make objective assessment of the earlier projects, and take all sections of the society into confidence. The only way to out of the mess we are in now is to make the effective public consultation mandatory on every major project. There is an urgent need for the paradigm shift as far as developmental priorities are concerned, keeping in view the interests of the environment. We can not afford to have similar fate for the rivers Bedthi, Aghanashini, Gundiya, Barpole and many others, which run through Karnataka.

Protect Western Ghats from power plants

By Shankar Sharma
17 Feb 2010

If we can improve our efficiency in power generation, delivery and conservation, it could save enough power required to be generated through new power plants and thereby, we can protect the priceless Western Ghats from the destruction caused by such projects.

The Western Ghats, designated to the list of 18 biodiversity hotspots in the world, and covering an area of more than 1500 kms in states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala, provide ecological services of immense economic value to our society. Western Ghats are the source of several major and minor rivers of peninsular India, and provide livelihood for millions of families.

Therefore, it is crucial not only for the adjoining states but also for the entire peninsular India that these Ghats are well protected and maintained. While many kinds of human activities have been damaging for the Western Ghats for many decades, the impacts since independence are massive and irreversible because of the power projects.

A dispassionate analysis of the impact of power projects on Western Ghats and suitable remedies is urgently needed in order to arrest their accelerated decay.

Impact of Electrical Power Projects

The power projects of relevance to Western Ghats can be broadly classified into the following categories:

Dam based hydel projects including small size hydel projects
Thermal projects based on fossil fuels like coal, diesel and gas
Nuclear power projects
Large size windmills
Transmission lines

A common impact of all these categories of power projects is the diversion of sizeable chunks of forest lands for transmission lines. Transmission lines are needed to evacuate power from large size power plants to be transmitted /distributed over large areas. As compared to small size power plants, which will cater to the local electricity needs only, large size power plants have huge transmission network destroying the forest cover, fragmenting the forests, and opening up the thick forest cover leading to accelerated deterioration.

In addition to the forest lands needed for the 'Right of Way', such transmission lines lead to deterioration of forest ecology due to dust and noise pollution during the construction activities such as forest clearing, excavation, debris dumping, temporary shelters for workers, chopping trees for firewood etc. Frequent movements of vehicles add to the problems.

Dam based hydro power stations

Amongst the four categories of power projects, the dam based power projects have the maximum impact on Western Ghats in the form of dams, reservoirs, power stations, staff quarters and other civil / hydrological structures. Combined together these will divert large chunks of forest and fertile river valley agricultural lands. Some of the major impacts of the dam based power projects are:

Submergence of lands, agricultural fields, forests, grazing lands and homes on a large scale leading to the displacement of a large number of people;
Disruption to downstream flows impacting agriculture and fisheries threatening the livelihoods of people;
Construction of dams are preceded by clearing of trees, excavation, fragmentation of the forests, dumping of debris/ construction materials, noise and air pollution due to construction activities etc. These would lead to the degradation of natural surroundings, and to degraded water sources;
Impounding of water in the dams is known to cut off access roads thus isolating villages/ communities;
Impact of one dam may not appear to be as huge as compared to the cumulative impact of a number of dams in one region or as a cascade of dams on one river. Example of 4 hydel projects in Sharavathy valley;
Impoundment of large quantity of water in dams are suspected to trigger earthquake;
The hydel dams are not renewable in a true sense, because the dam and other hydro structures have a finite life of say 50-75 years after which they will need decommissioning. Even though storing of water may be done away with after decommissioning, the forest wealth, which might have been destroyed at the time of dam building, would be lost for ever.
The official project reports [detailed project report (DPR)] are known to ignore the true costs (direct and indirect) of impact on Western Ghats. These costs when taken into objective account can have a major impact on the cost vs. benefit ratio of the project itself.
A major issue with dams is that the quantity, quality and pattern of water flow in the rivers get impacted with the result that biodiversity dependent on river flow is severely affected. One or more dams on a river will severely affect this characteristic of a river, and hence will deprive us of all the associated benefits.
Whereas the National Forest Policy has recommended a target of forest /tree cover of 33% of the land area, the national average is known to be less than 25% as per the MoEF report "The State of Environment 2009". If we continue to build more dams, not only this target will never be reached, but the region and the country as a whole will be affected ecologically.
It is very disturbing to note that there are no legally mandatory norms in our country which stipulates the minimum fresh water flow in a river with or without hydro electric dams. Authorities seem to consider the water flowing to sea as a waste, without appreciating the need for such a flow to conserve the ecosystem. Such 'Environment Flows' are required to maintain the ecological integrity of a river and its associated ecosystems, and of the goods and services provided by them.
Dams prevent the silt from flowing down the river and seriously affect the availability of nutrients to the bio-diversity down stream.
The Western Ghats are not only recognized as bio-diversity hotspots but also as fragile ecosystems with many species of flora and fauna amongst the endemic types. Dam building activities like digging, blasting, excavation, dumping of debris etc are highly likely to severely damage their ecology.


Coal based power stations, although never located within Western Ghats, can have massive direct and indirect impacts on Western Ghats, even if located on the west coast of our country.

Pollution due to dust from the handling of large quantity of coal; coal dust from the activities such as unloading from ship /rail, storage, crushing at sea port or project site can travel the distance to Western Ghats and lead to fast deterioration of the flora and fauna;
Pollution due to flue gases from the plant chimneys; fly ash is known to be able to travel long distances of up to 100 km radius and have huge impact on nearby flora, fauna and human beings including the agricultural crops;
Sulphur gas emitted from the combustion of coal is highly likely to react with humid air of the coast and cause extensive acid-rain damage on Western Ghats;
Increase in atmospheric temperature due to flue gases from the chimneys can affect certain species of flora and fauna;
The unknown deleterious impact of the combination of salty air and coal/ ash pollution cannot be ignored;
Potential for adverse impact on micro-ecology of the locality including insects, worms, marine creatures etc. can be considerable;
The Global Warming, for which the fossil fuel power stations are major contributors through Green House Gases (GHG) emission, will have long term impact on the sensitive ecology of Western Ghats.
Nuclear power stations

In addition to the requirement of large chunk of agricultural and forest lands, if situated in west coast areas as in the case of Kaiga power plant, the nuclear power plants also have the credible risk of nuclear radiation affecting the bio-diversity of Western Ghats.

Large size wind mills

The large size wind mills, though deemed to be environmentally friendly, require forest lands for locating the wind mill, access roads and electricity network required to evacuate the power. Additionally, they are also known to be affecting the free movement of birds and land animals in the area because of the height of the windmill blades and the noise they create.

The growing conflict: electricity needs vs. environmental protection of Western Ghats

A rational analysis of the power situation in the country provides a different story. In view of the fact that a considerable portion of Indian population (about 40% of total) is yet to have access to electricity, and that our population is growing continuously, we have to take a rational look at the real/legitimate demand for electricity. The legitimate demand for electricity, which is required to meet our essential needs and which is required to run our economy, could be vastly less than what is being projected by the authorities. This will be evident if we care to classify the electricity requirements of our society into three categories; the real needs, preferable wants, and vulgar luxuries. Most of the electricity demand for the economically productive activities such as general lighting, industries, transportation and agricultural purposes can be termed as real needs; the electricity demand for certain domestic and commercial appliances such as fans, TVs, radios, refrigerators etc. can be termed as preferable wants; but our society has to take a tough call to categorize certain electricity demand such as night time sports, heated swimming pools, air conditioned homes/shopping malls etc as vulgar luxuries.

Sustainable and eco-friendly ways to meet electricity demand

An objective review of the Indian power sector reveals that there has been gross inefficiency in the way we have utilized the existing electricity infrastructure, which if taken to international best practices level, can not only satisfactorily meet all the legitimate demand for electricity for next few years, but can also go a long way in protecting the Western Ghats.

If all the potential in efficiency improvement, energy conservation and Demand Side Management (DSM) are effectively implemented, it may be feasible to achieve savings of about 50,000 to 60,000 MW in actual demand for electricity, and also achieve a virtual capacity addition of about 20,000 MW. Even if we achieve 50% of this potential, it is credible to argue that the Western Ghats can be spared from the ravages of power sector on a sustainable basis.

In addition to this huge potential in getting virtual capacity addition, India being a tropical country also has a huge potential in new and renewable energy sources (N&RE). N&RE potential is even more if they are considered as stand alone, decentralized energy sources either at roof-top or at community centers.

The scope for efficiency improvement in the existing electricity infrastructure and the potential in M&RE sources together can make it possible to meet the legitimate demand for electricity of the country on a sustainable basis without having to build large number of conventional power stations, which in turn can significantly reduce the devastation on Western Ghats.

Credible ways to protect Western Ghats from the ravages of power plants

Consider Western Ghats as a source for ecological services only on a sustainable basis;
Keep it out of the purview of the conventional thinking of developmental process;
Declare entire Western Ghats as reserved bio-sphere, and conserve it;
Improve the efficiency in the existing electricity infrastructure and explore the potential in N&RE sources to the maximum extent possible;
Since the economic value of various ecological and product service rendered by Western Ghats is immense, the real costs vs. benefits of building any power project in the vicinity of Western Ghats should be objectively calculated through costs and benefits analysis (CBA) process.
Bio-diversity has many kinds of values and potential benefits for the humans and the world as a whole. UN Convention on Biological Diversity has advocated a wise policy to apply 'Precautionary Principle' and take necessary action to conserve Bio-diversity before components of it are permanently lost.
A detailed study to estimate the immense economic value of the biodiversity of the entire Western Ghats and different sections of the same should be carried out to prove to the government that it is more valuable than any conceivable man-made projects.

Act green, get bonus!

By Shankar Sharma
03 Feb 2010


Environmentalists call Tehri dam in Uttrakhand as a major ecological disaster

Our forests, rivers, coastal areas and the overall biodiversity are immensely valuable and crucial for the health of the nation. Therefore, any initiative to reward their protection should be welcomed.

Union Minister for Environment & Forests Jairam Ramesh has indicated that the government is considering 'Green Bonus' for protecting forest cover. This is a novel idea to encourage the states to adequately protect forest cover. This proposal could help Himalayan states which rely on commercial exploitation of the forest wealth for revenue generation since they do not have many other avenues.

Uttarakhand is a good example in this regard. The officials think that since the state has large hydro electric potential, it should fully exploit it. Since electricity demand within the state is not huge, it plans to set up more than 100 hydel projects and sell power to other states. Obviously, setting up so many hydel projects will accelerate depletion of forest cover and degrade the rich bio-diversity of the state.

The other Himalayan states like Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim are also keen on exploiting their hydel potential on an accelerated basis. Even though some of the hydel projects in Sikkim are facing many hurdles because of environmental and social concerns, a majority of such proposals in Himalayas should be of major concern from bio diversity aspect alone.

Arunachal Pradesh is another state where huge hydel potential (totaling about 40,000 MW) has been identified. Many large-size hydel projects on river Subansiri, Lohit, Dibang etc are being proposed. The deleterious impacts of such big hydel projects on rich bio-diversity and poor tribals of nearby areas, though well known for decades, are sadly ignored by the policy makers.

Since revenue needs of these mountainous states are crucial, they should be helped to explore many other alternatives available. These states should realize the dangers of exploiting the forest wealth on an unsustainable basis by damming the rivers. Providing adequate financial incentives to conserve and develop the forest wealth on a sustainable basis can be a good idea. Such an initiative must be designed to also encourage non-Himalayan states like Karnataka, Kerala, Maharastra and Goa to arrest the destruction of forest cover there. A large number of power projects being planned in the vicinity of Western Ghats in these states without due diligence is a matter of serious concern.

Recently, Mr Ramesh commented that, "the health of the Himalayan glaciers is poor and we need to take immediate remedial measures." But, will the large number of proposed hydel projects in Himalayas not negate 'immediate remedial measures'? The same argument holds true in case of hydel /coal /nuclear power projects in the vicinity of Western Ghats.

The economic, environmental, and social impacts including many cultural and heritage impacts of building large dam based power projects cannot be ignored any longer. World Charter for Nature was adopted by consensus by UN General Assembly in 1982. It has provided some guiding principles for protecting biodiversity. Two key principles are: (a) activities which are likely to cause irreversible damage to nature should be avoided; (b) activities which are likely to pose significant risk to nature shall be preceded by an exhaustive examination; their proponents shall demonstrate that the expected benefits clearly outweigh potential damage to nature, and where potential adverse effects are not fully understood, the activities should not proceed. Since forests are the predominant source of bio-diversity, the protection of forest wealth can not be more emphasized.

A recent report by Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) - "Achieving 2010 Biodiversity Target: India's contributions" - has copiously described the rich bio diversity in the country, the threats to it and the tall claims about the remedial measures taken. But without holistically reviewing the present practice of issuing environmental clearance to almost all projects presented before MoEF, policymakers can not take any credit for contributing to the conservation of global biodiversity.

As per State of Environment Report 2009 by MoEF, India is a mega diversity country and despite having only 2.4% surface area of the globe, it has 7-8% of the recorded species of the world. It is also home for 11.8% of the plant species documented so far. The National Forest Policy 1988 envisages one third of the geographical area of the country to be covered by forests and trees, and considers it as essential for economic and ecological security of the country. But as per the MoEF report 'Achieving 2010 Biodiversity Target: India's contributions', at present this figure is only 23%, of which forest cover alone accounts for 21%. Hence it is critical that we do not loose the pristine forest cover anymore, but increase it, as early as possible, to the target figure of 33%.

The United Nations programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD) in developing countries is a collaboration between FAO, UNDP and UNEP. REDD is accepted as a critical step in addressing the threat of Global Warming. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) estimates that deforestation is now contributing close to 20 per cent of the overall greenhouse gases entering the atmosphere. Forest degradation is no less responsible for emissions from forest ecosystems. Therefore, IPCC says, there is an immediate need to make significant progress in reducing deforestation, forest degradation, and associated emission of greenhouse gases.

As per a study report "Bio-diversity Impact of Large Dams" prepared for IUCN / UNEP / WCD, the value of ecological functions as well as resources of the environment (both terrestrial and aquatic) has been estimated to be about $33 trillion per year, which is almost twice the global GDP. Bio-diversity is of immense value for the humans and the world as a whole. As per the Convention on Biological Diversity it will be a wise policy to apply Precautionary Principle and take necessary action to conserve Bio-diversity before components of it are permanently lost. Since forests are the major source of bio-diversity, we need to take into account the potential value of ecological services associated with forests in the country.


As per the report 'Economics of Climate Change' by Nicholas Stern, emissions from deforestation are estimated to represent more than 18% of global emissions. Hence, curbing deforestation is a cost-effective way of reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

While it may appear that exploiting the natural resources can accelerate economic development of our communities, there are also credible risks of upsetting the delicate equation of ecological sub-systems. Hence an objective study of all the issues concerning a sustainable development model will be critical for the long term welfare of not only the people in the mountain states, but also of lower riparian states. The potential of revenue generation for the state through hydel generation should be carefully viewed in this context.

Amongst various 'developmental activities' in India, large size power projects lead to massive destruction of forest wealth, as has been noticed since independence. Whether it is due to the drowning of forests in dam waters, or due to forest clearance to set up buildings, hydraulic structures & transmission lines, or due to the need to open up more coal mines etc, large tracts of rich evergreen forests have been irrevocably lost all over the country.

As per the Integrated Energy Policy of the Planning Commission - "by 2031-32 the power generation capacity must increase to nearly 800,000 MW from the current capacity of about 160,000 MW inclusive of all captive power plants." 90% of this additional 640,000 MW capacity is projected to come from coal based and dam based power projects. Such a large number of coal based and dam based power projects will have massive impact on the extent and quality of forests & bio diversity in the country. Scaling up of conventional power capacity in a short period will also have far reaching consequences on social, environmental and economic aspects of our society.

There are many benign alternatives to building hydel projects as a means of revenue. Similarly, various better substitutes to dam based or coal based power projects can be explored to meet our electricity demand. Hence the need is to initiate policy measures to ensure that every state considers biodiversity as of immense value to our country, and reviews projects from a holistic perspective to ensure a sustainable development model.

Keeping in mind the multi faceted importance of adequate size and quality of forests, it is in the long term interest of our society to objectively review various developmental processes being followed now wherein the forests are not being given their due credit. Bio-diversity, including forests, rivers, coastal areas are crucial for the health of the nation, and hence will need appropriate valuation. In the light of these facts, the Green Bonus idea is a good initiative.