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How is sustainability implemented in Indian Culture?

What about the forestry industry?

Sustainability has always been a part of Indian cultural values. When he addressed the UN General Assembly, Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi said, "India has always believed in Sustainability. For us, the Law of Nature holds great value". Indian culture worships elements of Nature as gods, and their mythology usually associates gods and goddesses with trees, animals, or birds.

The Indian government made poverty eradication its priority during the 2030 Development Agenda Conference, and said that it is currently trying to seek a balance between ideal ecology and ideal economy.

A study compiled by National Geographic and Globescan found that Indian consumers are very conscious about their environmental footprint and making sustainable choices. India was ranked first among the 18 countries that participated in this study, which measures housing, transport, food, and goods.

Forests are very important to India, as it is estimated that 275 million rural poor depend on them for part of their livelihoods. However, over recent decades, almost half of these forests have been degraded and their average productivity is about a third of its total potential. A recent World Bank report states that if reforms are introduced at both the national and state level and the forest productivity level increases, rural poverty can be reduced, and government income can be increased. Many other governments have increased the rights of forest communities to manage their own resources, and if India follows their lead, it will raise local incomes and improve forest cover.

Kahoot!

link: https://play.kahoot.it/#/?quizId=b9f15979-5afd-436a-9239-13f486335ad0

Why is there so much water and air pollution and what can we do to minimize or prevent it?

Air Pollution

Delhi, India's capital, is ranked the most polluted city in the world by the World Health Organization. You may think that Indians living in cities would be more at risk to breathing in polluted air; however, rural Indians account for 75% of India's air pollution related deaths according to a research study done by the Health Effects Institute in 2015. This study also found that the exposure to the most harmful pollution particles were mostly even between rural and urban areas; however, around two thirds of the population lives in rural areas.

Water Pollution

One of the biggest problems facing India's freshwater industry is water pollution, which is caused primarily by untreated sewage, leaked oil from cars and machines, runoff from the agricultural industry, and unregulated units from smaller industries. Almost 80% of the waterbodies in India are highly polluted, with the risk increasing if there is a settlement or city nearby.

All these causes can be linked to the urbanization rate, which has skyrocketed in the last decade and has led to several long term environmental effects to India's aquatic resources. Water pollution can have irreversible effects on humans using or consuming it, as polluted water is one of the major reasons why health levels are so low, especially in rural areas. Drinking polluted water can lead to diseases such as cholera and tuberculosis.

Water pollution can be prevented/minimized by cleaning up waterways and beaches, not using non-biodegradable materials, disposing toxic waste properly, and conserving soil to prevent erosion.

What renewable resources are found in India?

Fish

Fisheries are an important part of India's food production, as they contribute to agricultural exports and actively engage over 14 million people. Over 400 species of fish are found in India, and they contribute to about 6.3% of global fish production. This sector also contributes to about 1.1% of the total GDP and 5.15% of the agricultural GDP.

The total fish production has been estimated at 10.07 million metric tons. An estimated 9 lakh tonnes of marine fish products are exported per year, which accounts for around 10% of their total exports. Over 50 different species of fish are exported to 75 different countries yearly.

So, what are India's plans for renewable energy?

Forestry

-21% of India's land area is covered by forests

-Two main industries: the paper and pulp industry and the wood industry.

India is self-sufficient in producing paper, paperboards, and newspapers. Since the country is experiencing a population boom and becoming more literate, there is a higher demand for paper and its products, including tissue paper, filter paper, and tea bags. The demand for exports in the paper industry is growing, especially to nearby countries. In recent years, the Indian government has created many new policies with the goal of making these resources more accessible. The duties on imports of pulp and paper have been lowered, and incentives have been given to companies looking to invest in this industry.

There is a big demand for wood in the areas of furniture, laminates, railways, defense, and construction. They also contain natural glue, which is used in paint, chewing gum, and detergents, and their cellulose is used to create cosmetics and medicines. Because of the skyrocketing demand for wood products and the variety of industries that depend on it, the government must approve of any new investor or supplier in this industry.

Freshwater

India has a water surface area of 360 400 square kilometres. There is a shortage of healthy drinking water due to pollution and overpopulation, as they are home to 16% of the world's population but only 4% of the world's freshwater resources. Most of India's rainfall occurs during the monsoon, which causes temporary flooding. Additionally, there have also been widespread droughts in recent years, which makes the retrieval of freshwater difficult. The Indo-Gangetic plain is one of the biggest groundwater reservoirs in the world, yet it is being used inefficiently. Agriculture accounts for 80% of the freshwater usage, and lack of efficient infrastructure makes the withdrawal of freshwater unsustainable.

Their 2027 forecast states that they aim to generate 275 gigawatts of total renewable energy, in addition to 75 gigawatts of hydro energy and 15 gigawatts of nuclear energy. Many large corporations have committed to investing in renewable energy projects in India, such as Japan's Softbank, which is contributing $20bn USD to the Indian solar energy sector, and France's EDF, which is investing $2bn in wind and solar energy projects. Additionally, India's energy minister has been appealing to developed countries to provide capital to invest in these projects to help them reach the goals agreed to at the 2015 Paris climate summit.

Currently, India is one of the only countries on track to meet the ambitious goals set in Paris. Since the treaty was signed, there have been many supportive government policies and goals which has led to tremendous progress in renewable power sources. Much of this growth has come from large projects such as solar parks; however, looking ahead, it is crucial that they develop the financial infrastructure needed to fund smaller projects and newer technologies in order to reach rural areas, which account for over half of their population.

Many rural areas receive electricity for a few hours a day if at all. This forces people to rely on wood, coal or gas, which creates carbon emissions and unhealthy smoke pollution. 300 million Indians aren't connected or are underserved by their current power grid. Rooftop solar panels would allow for a clean and reliable power source.

By 2022, the government of India hopes to install 40 gigawatts of rooftop solar panels and electrify 18 000 villages. Their goal is to cut carbon pollution while providing energy to as many people as possible.

A plan for a clean energy future is on many countries agendas, and India's government is being very ambitious with their goals. BNEF estimates that India would require $100bn US in financing to reach their goal, and they would also need to address the rising energy demands and unsteady supply. As solar and wind energy are not as stable as conventional methods, India will need a resilient power grid. Currently, it is estimated that 15-20% of renewable energy generated is wasted purely due to the low capacity of power grids.

This boom in clean renewable energy has led to a slow in coal plant development and use. Many Indian states have cancelled coal mining projects and the construction of new coal plants. A study done by BNEF concluded that by 2040, coal will no longer be a major player in India's energy sector.

A draft 10-year energy blueprint published in late 2016 predicted that by 2027, 57% of India's total electricity capacity will come from non-fossil fuel sources. This is 11% higher than the Paris climate accord target, which puts India's renewable energy plan well ahead of other nations'.

What forms of renewable energy are currently being used?

Solar Energy

Technological advancements made in recent years have led to the price of solar energy falling by 80% from 2011 to 2016. Although it is the world's third largest carbon emitter, in the past two years India has added 9 gigawatts to their solar power capacity, which has increased 370% in the past three years. An analysis done by the Bloomberg New Energy Finance found that another 37 gigawatts will be added by 2020. They are already off to a good start in 2018, as the Solar Energy Corporation of India has announced over 1 200 megawatts of projects after a fall in activity in October and November due to rising costs and power demands.

Wind Energy

India's wind energy sector is the largest and most successful renewable energy sector. As of March 31st 2017, they have a total installed capacity of 32 810 megawatts, and the goal is for that to increase to 60 000 megawatts by 2022. This means that they will have the 5th largest capacity in the world, which makes them a major player in the global wind energy market. Wind power is generated in the south, west, and north regions, as the east regions have no grid connected wind power plant. However, there is still lots of room for improvement, as the Indian Wind Energy Association has estimated that the "on-shore" potiential is around 102 megawatts. Currently, there is no offshore wind power farms; however, the government has recently approved a policy which is likely to carry out the first offshore wind tenders by 2019. This underutilized resource has the potential to sustain the development of wind energy projects and provide a cheap, clean, replacement to fossil-fuels. Wind energy facilities are located in eight major states across India. They are home to some of the largest windmill facilities in the world, including Tamil Nadu windfarm, which has a total capacity of 1500 megawatts.

Background Information

India is the second biggest country and has a population of 1.324 billion, which accounts for 17% of the world population. They are approaching China's population while being crammed into 1/3 of the area, which means it has a very high population density, resulting in resource scarcity.

India is the 3rd biggest contributor to carbon emissions and has the largest amount of people living below the poverty line. Because of its large size and rapid growth rate, India faces a unique sustainability problem.

Sustainability in India

What are the social, environmental, and economic impacts on India's natural resources?

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