Giuseppe Sandro Mela.
2021-10-25.
«COP26: Instead of lectures to India, West needs to pay up»
COP26: invece di fare la morale all’India, l’Occidente deve pagare.
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«India is the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases, right below the United States and China, but before painting it as the climate bogeyman let’s not forget that it is far poorer – in income and energy consumption – than the US and China»
«Its GDP per capita (measured in constant international dollars) is $6,118- about one-tenth that of the US and a third that of China. Its consumption of electricity is also far lower – consuming just 972 kwh per person per year, which is only 8% of US consumption and 18% that of China»
«Raising the standard of living for millions of people requires investment in energy-intensive infrastructure such as roads, schools, and hospitals»
«People need cheap and reliable electricity to power their homes and businesses»
«→→ If the international community is serious about helping India to decarbonise and manage the impacts of climate change, they must be prepared to pay ←←»
«→→ They should provide at least $1 trillion in financing, preferably in grants, over the next decade ←←»
«→→ The cost of decarbonisation ranges from $1.3 trillion to several trillion dollars, depending on the net-zero year and other factors ←←»
«India will not only require funds to reduce its dependence on coal but also to transition workers to other jobs»
«rich countries are reluctant to provide compensation for losses and damage»
«India should not be party to a deeply inequitable framework for global climate mitigation and adaptation»
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A fine ottobre si riunirà la Cop26.
I liberal occidentali erano convinti di poter raggiungere la unanimità nel bando dell’estrazione ed uso del carbone per poter realizzare il loro programma, la loro ideologia, sul ‘clima’.
Anche Joe Biden dovrebbe partecipare, solo che si sarebbe aspettato un trionfo, non una débâcle.
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Il titolo del Times of India è inequivocabile.
COP26: Instead of lectures to India, West needs to pay up.
As world leaders gather in Glasgow, Scotland, next month for the COP26 summit to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement (https://t imesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Paris-Agreement) and the UN Framework Convent ion on Climate Change, there will be renewed pressure on India to curb carbon emissions.
India is the third largest emitter of greenhouse gases, right below the United States and China, but before painting it as the climate bogeyman let’s not forget that it is far poorer – in income and energy consumption – than the US and China. Its GDP per capita (measured in constant international dollars) is $6,118- about one-tenth that of the US and a third that of China. Its consumption of electricity is also far lower – consuming just 972 kwh per person per year, which is only 8% of US consumption and 18% that of China.
India is undertaking an energy transition even as it works to alleviate poverty – no simple feat. Raising the standard of living for millions of people requires investment in energy-intensive infrastructure such as roads, schools, and hospitals. People need cheap and reliable electricity to power their homes and businesses. To advance its agricultural and industrial ambit ions, it will need to raise its consumption of electricity per capita – likely by a factor of four or five over the next decades – as it undergoes a transition from coal to cleaner sources of power. Beyond the energy transition, there are losses and damage arising from climate events and investments in resilient infrastructure.
If the international community is serious about helping India to decarbonise and manage the impacts of climate change, they must be prepared to pay. They should provide at least $1 trillion in financing, preferably in grants, over the next decade. (The actual amount required will be higher, but India has the capacity to raise capital as well.)
Analysis by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (https:/itimesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/Council-on-Energv.Environment- and-Water) reveals the substantial resources needed for India to undergo a deep decarbonisation. To decarbonise, India would need to scale up solar power to 5600 GW by 2070 (from the current level of 100 GW), reduce the share of fossil fuels drastically, and sell only electric trucks. The cost of decarbonisation ranges from $1.3 t ri llion to several trillion dollars, depending on the net-zero year and other factors.
Decarbonisation is not the only expense as the Indian economy is closely intertwined with the coal industry. India will not only require funds to reduce its dependence on coal but also to transition workers to other jobs. A just transit ion fund that will disburse at least $10 billion dollars a year t o support workers and communities is central to any attempt at a just transition. For example, India’s leading coal producer, Coal India alone pays nearly $8 billion per year in the form of taxes and dividends to national, state, and local governments, while pension obligations to over half a million retired workers cost up to $3 billion per year. If India shifts away from coal, these resources will need to be replaced with other forms of direct transfers or income support.
Then there is the cost of adapting to slow-onset climate events such as droughts as well as emergency events such as floods and storms. Analysis by leading research institutes in India shows that the country will need over $1 trillion in this decade alone, to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change by building climate-resilient, energy-intensive infrastructure in both rural and urban areas. India will need to invest in energy-intensive const ruction of schools and homes that can withstand climate-related events. Indians with better education, health care, and well-built homes will cope better with heat waves and typhoons. Air conditioning- currently unavailable to most Indians-is a life-saver as temperatures rise. Roads, hospitals, power grids, early warning systems. and refrigerated food supplies protect against the worst outcomes of natural disasters.
Even as India takes steps to adapt to climate change, rich countries are reluctant to provide compensation for losses and damage. Ongoing floods in Kerala have already taken the lives of at least 25 people and destroyed livelihoods and infrastructure. Yet Carbon Copy cites a new UN report in which rich countries were reportedly successful in removing substantial mentions of loss and damage, thereby refusing to acknowledge that developing countries like India – most vulnerable to climate change – are largely not responsible for causing it. If rich countries want India to decarbonise and be more resilient, they should put their money where their mouth is. India should not be party to a deeply inequitable framework for global climate mitigation and adaptation.
