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Ecology & Environment
Mahesh

27/03/24 08:11 AM IST

The need to curb black carbon emissions

In News
  • At the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow in November 2021, India pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070.
Black Carbon
  • Black carbon is the dark, sooty material emitted alongside other pollutants when biomass and fossil fuels are not fully combusted.
  • It contributes to global warming and poses severe risks.
  • Studies have found a direct link between exposure to black carbon and a higher risk of heart disease, birth complications, and premature death.
  • Most black carbon emissions in India arise from burning biomass, such as cow dung or straw, in traditional cookstoves.
  • According to a 2016 study, the residential sector contributes 47% of India’s total black carbon emissions.
  • Industries contribute a further 22%, diesel vehicles 17%, open burning 12%, and other sources 2%.
  • Decarbonisation efforts in the industry and transport sectors in the past decade have yielded reductions in black carbon emissions, but the residential sector remains a challenge.
PMUY
  • In May 2016, the Government of India said the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) would provide free liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) connections to households below the poverty line.
  • The primary objective was to make clean cooking fuel available to rural and poor households and reduce their dependence on traditional cooking fuels.
  • The PMUY has established infrastructure to go with LPG connections, including free gas stoves, deposits for LPG cylinders, and a distribution network.
  • The programme has thus, been able to play a vital role in reducing black carbon emissions, as it offers a cleaner alternative to traditional fuel consumption.
  • The programme has provided connections to over 10 crore households as of January 2024. 
  • In 2022-2023, 25% of all PMUY beneficiaries — 2.69 crore people — availed either zero LPG refill or only one LPG refill.
  • In August 2023 that the average PMUY beneficiary household consumes only 3.5-4 LPG cylinders per year instead of the six or seven a regular non-PMUY household uses.
  • This means up to half of all the energy needs of a PMUY beneficiary household are still met by traditional fuels, which have high black carbon emissions.
  • A shortage of LPG and higher usage of traditional fuels also affect women and children disproportionately.
  • They are more prone to higher levels of indoor air pollution, causing many health issues and leading to premature deaths. 
Challenges & Solutions
  • Lack of last-mile connectivity in the LPG distribution network, resulting in remote rural areas depending mostly on biomass.
  • One potential solution to this issue is the local production of coal-bed methane (CBM) gas by composting biomass.
  • CBM is a much cleaner fuel with lower black-carbon emissions and investment.
  • Panchayats can take the initiative to produce CBM gas locally at the village level, ensuring every rural household can access clean cooking fuel.
Way forward
  • As India navigates its responsibilities on the global stage towards long-term decarbonisation, there is an urgent need to act.
  • Prioritising black carbon reduction through initiatives such as the PMUY scheme can help India become a global leader in addressing regional health concerns and help meet its Sustainability Development Goal of providing affordable clean energy to everyone and contributing to global climate mitigation.
  • Recent estimates have indicated that mitigating residential emissions will avoid more than 6.1 lakh deaths per year from indoor exposure to air pollution.
Source- The Hindu

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