COP26
COP26
The Conference of Parties (COP) is the decision-making body responsible for monitoring and reviewing UNFCCC recommendations on global warming and climate change.reviewing UNFCCC recommendations on global warming and climate change.
International Efforts:
Last 25 COPs since 1995, have failed to limit the Global Warming.
The Global Leadership is yet to provide a clear direction for mitigating Climate Change impacts.
COP-26 starting from 31 Oct 2021 could be the last chance for Humanity to avoid catastrophic decline.
The Main themes of COP 26:
- Limiting warming to 1.5 degrees
- Global emissions must halve by 2030
- Globally reach ‘net-zero’ by 2050
- Mobilize Climate Finance
COP 21 at Paris in 2015 saw over 195 countries pledging NDCs to reduce CO2 emissions, But post- pandemic Economic recovery is seeing large rebound to Coal & Oil use with 2nd largest annual increase in CO2 emissions in the History
Will COP 26 be hijacked by finance issues, without committing emission reductions?
Taken from: CCP New Bulletin October 2021 https://www.climatecollectivepune.org/
Small Hydro Power Projects Are Seen As Green. In The Western Ghats, Local Communities Disagree https://www.article-14.com/post/small-hydro-power-projects-are-seen-as-green-in-the-western-ghats-local-communities-disagree-6181f91fb3efc DISHA SHETTY 03 Nov 2021 11 min read Share
As India pushes for more renewables in its energy mix to meet its global climate-change pledges, one of these options, small hydropower projects, was once heralded as benign and beneficial, despite a dearth of studies on their impacts on local communities and ecology. The story of one such project facing opposition from locals in the lush Western Ghats.
Small hydropower projects, typically between 0.5 and 24.5 mega watts (MW), enough to light up a village on the lower end and a city on the higher, have increased human-elephant conflict, led to the loss of thousands of trees, disrupted riverine life and the lives of local communities....
“There is no governance mechanism surrounding small hydel projects in India, that is the main problem,” said Parineeta Dandekar, associate coordinator of the SANDRP. “They are exempt from the EIA (environment impact assessment) notification of 2006 and entire environment clearance procedures.”
Being exempt from the EIA notification implies there is no need for a public hearing before a project moves forward, which means local communities affected by it have no way to voice their concerns.
“SHP (small hydropower projects) are often defined based on their installed hydropower capacity, and most countries adopt 10 MW as the cut-off,” said Jumani. “In India, we define SHP projects as those that produce less than 25 MW.”..
That the threshold takes into account the power capacity of a project can be misleading.
“A 5 MW dam can cause more submergence or adverse environmental impact than a 25 MW dam based on dam location and characteristics,” said Jumani. “Instead, dam size definitions based on dam height and reservoir area are likely to be better indicators of impact.”
Ideal Small Hydropower Project
Small hydropower projects initially had the support of movements that were against large dams, said Manju Menon, a senior fellow at the Centre for Policy Research, a public policy think tank.
But these projects were supposed to be designed around the needs of the local communities, in a way that doesn’t disrupt livelihoods.
Menon said these projects were regarded not just as technologies but as “decentralised institutional interventions”. “But governments have taken these projects from local discourses and put them into the hands of contractors and dam builders,” she added.
In Nagaland, for instance, localised hydro projects reach electricity to remote areas. Experts said instead of a small-versus-big debate, each project deserved to be assessed on environmental parameters, such as location, how it would change the flow of a river, what the benefits and impact would be.
As India scales up renewables, said experts, there is also a need to have conversations that involve local communities and assess the social costs.
The climate crisis explained in 10 charts https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/nov/01/the-climate-crisis-explained-in-10-charts From the seemingly inexorable increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to the rapid growth in green energy Damian Carrington and Paul Torpey
1 Nov 2021
TIME! - Peter Schmitt & Friends Aug 7, 2019
TIME! to stand and speak up for climate&justice and a “just transition” to a sustainable future
Phasing Out Unabated Coal : Current status and three case studies https://iea.blob.core.windows.net/assets/861dc94d-a684-4875-80fb-a1faaf914125/PhasingOutUnabatedCoal-CurrentStatusandThreeCaseStudies.pdf INTERNATIONAL ENERGY
AGENCY
The Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario (NZE) envisages that by 2030 advanced economies would end all power generation by unabated coal-fired plant.
Of the 21 countries that have pledged to phase out coal, in 14 countries less than 10% of the electricity supply came from coal. In countries where coal contributes little to the power supply and there is no domestic coal industry, phasing out coal is likely to be feasible without detriment to the economy, electricity prices or security of electricity supply.
In three of the 21 countries, by contrast, coal represents more than 20% of the electricity supply. Seven countries also have a domestic mining industry that supplies coal for power generation. In such countries, phasing out coal will be longer and more complex
Based on the phase-out experiences of the Canadian province of Ontario, the United Kingdom and Germany. , we present six recommendations:
1. Allow sufficient time for consultation and implementation
2.Provide support for affected workers and communities
3. Ensure that security of electricity supply is a cornerstone of phase-out policies
4. Implement carbon pricing:
5. Improve the climate for investment in clean electricity and the necessary infrastructure.
6. Consider conversion of coal generation assets.
Global Climate Action: Where Do Indian Banks Stand? https://www.indiaspend.com/explainers/global-climate-action-where-do-indian-banks-stand-779673 By Flavia Lopes, Gokulananda Nandan|8 Oct, 2021
Indian banks need to move away from financing fossil fuels projects and prioritise lending to renewable energy and other environmentally sustainable projects
Indian banks and financial institutions, including the State Bank of India (SBI), ICICI, Axis Bank, the Trust Group and HDFC, are among the largest global financial institutions funding fossil fuel projects. Banks play an important role in financing sustainable sectors such as renewable energy and in stopping financing of fossil fuels. But in India, banks have yet to implement policies to reduce their own emissions, or ask it of the companies that they finance
The United Nations Environment Programme issued Principles for Responsible Banking in 2019 to guide banks to consider the environmental and social impacts of the projects they lend to. These are also meant to help banks align their visions with the Sustainable Development Goals of 2015 and the Paris Climate Agreement.
Creating the future of banking: https://www.unepfi.org/banking/bankingprinciples/more-about-the-principles/
https://www.unepfi.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/PrinciplesOverview_Infographic.pdf