Greenpeace urges energy revolution in India against climate change
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March 28th 2007, Dadri / New Delhi: Greenpeace activists beamed huge slides on to the cooling tower of the National Thermal Power Corporation's (NTPC) power plant, that supplies electricity to Indian capital New Delhi, to brand the culprits of climate change. The message Stop Climate Change – Energy (r)evolution now! is for the Indian government to rethink its energy strategy before climate change starts affecting economic development of the country.*
This activity was preceded by similar activities at the Ennore Thermal Power Station, Chennai and the State owned Raichur Thermal Power Plant in Karnataka, last week to raise awareness about the impacts of climate change. . “The burning of fossil fuels is the major cause of climate change, yet we continue to burn coal which is the dirtiest fossil fuel to satisfy our growing energy needs. This is simply suicidal!” said Srinivas Krishnaswamy, Climate and Energy Expert of Greenpeace. “There is a solution to combat climate change while continuing to supply a growing economy with electricity. Energy efficiency measures coupled with an increased uptake of renewable energy sources is the way forward”, he asserted. The latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released in February this year states that continuing business-as-usual practices is likely to increase global average temperatures between 1.1°C and 6.4° C above 1980-1999 levels by 2095 which will have grave impacts for countries developing countries including India. In fact, India could face a loss in GDP to the tune of 9-13% by the year 2100 if we did not do anything to stop climate change, according to a report commissioned by the UK Government on the “Economics of Climate Change” written by a former World Bank Economist Sir Nicholas Stern in 2006. The impacts of global warming in the form of severe droughts, floods and heatwaves, unusual rainfall patterns, sea level rise and increase in vector borne diseases have already been witnessed in India. In July 2005, the strongest ever rainfall recorded in India shut down the financial hub of Mumbai. While Barmer in Rajasthan experienced floods, the northeast region of the country experienced a mere 20-30 per cent of rainfall. In the Sunderbans, two islands have already disappeared and others are vulnerable; wildlife experts say rising sea levels and coastal erosion caused by global warming are steadily shrinking the mangroves in the region. Dengue fever surfaced in New Delhi in March this year, well before the onset of Monsoon. Srinivas further said that “We should not waste any more time on further impact assessments or endless negotiations about which set of nations should reduce their fossil fuel consumption first. It is time that all countries act immediately; otherwise our children will suffer the consequences”. Greenpeace calls on the Government to increase the share of renewable energy from the current level of 4% to 60% by 2050. This can be achieved if a renewable energy law is adopted not later than 2010. At the same time the Government needs to check the unsustainable growth of energy consumption in the country by making energy efficiency mandatory and phasing out all inefficient products, starting with the incandescent bulb and gasoline guzzling cars. For further Information please contact: In Delhi: Ruchira Talukdar Greenpeace India Communications +91-9900264127 ruchira.talukdar@in.greenpeace.org In Bangalore: K Srinivas Climate and Energy Campaigner Greenpeace India +91-9845112130 ksrinivas@dialb.greenpeace.org * Coal is one of the highest emitters of CO2 and as a result a strong catalyst of climate change. Greenpeace Energy (r)evolution In April 2007 Greenpeace will release a blueprint for energy development in India, which will provide the projected energy needs while reducing the carbon emissions by have and phasing out all nuclear energy. |
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