Cement Energy and Environment

ENERGY EFFICIENCY & CONSERVATION Energy Security & Management CENTRE PLANS TO FINE– TUNE COASTLINE CORE PROJECTS In the aftermath of the tsunami in Japan, the Centre is considering fine-tuning its plans of locating key infrastructure projects, such as power plants, along the coast. Environment minister Jairam Ramesh , who described the tsunami as a wake-up call, stressed the need to determine the carrying capacity of India's coastline. Ramesh has maintained that a large number of projects, especially power plants which use large quantities of water, will have to be located along the country's 7,000 odd kilometre coastline. "I have been saying how water shortages mean that the country has to get used to the idea of power plants along the coast. But the tsunami in Japan is a wake up call. While we should avoid a knee-jerk reaction , we need to determine the limit of projects that can be set up along the coast," Ramesh said. He said there was no rethink on the idea of setting up projects along the coast, but events of the past week show the need for better planning. This would mean making proper assessment of exactly how many projects and of what size could be built in coastal areas without causing imbalances. In January, while unveiling the Coastal Regulatory Zone notification, 2011, Ramesh had said: "India must get used to power plants in the coastal areas. This is not just on account of imported fuel but also because of water shortages in the country. The need for large quantities of water for these plants is the main reason for locating them along the coast." The environment minister argues that the issue of water shortage and the need for power to fuel the economic engine has not changed the need to look at coastal locations. But, clearly, the devastation in Japan has forced the government to factor in carrying capacity of the coasts before going all out to promote it as a location for projects like power plants. In order to ensure balance, Ramesh suggested the need to take a realistic view of the country's energy requirements . Courtesy: The Economic Times, New Delhi, 1Th March 2011, P2 NEEDS FOR REASSESSING A PARADIGM SHIFT IN ENERGY SECURITY AND FINDING SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS Floods in Australia in January, an earthquake in New Zealand in February and now, one of the world's worst natural disasters in Japan - nature has been wreaking havoc with increasing intensity and frequency of late. The earthquake that struck Japan on March 11 and the giant tsunami that followed have left the country's nuclear reactors damaged and on the brink of a meltdown, threatening hundreds of thousands of people with exposure to nuclear radiation. In light of the recent developments, people the world over are beginning to question the "renaissance" of nuclear power. Hopefully, some Hard questions will be asked in India as well. It is also time for the country to reassess its focus on coal and imported oil, to redirect fuel subsidies to people who actually .need it, and to concentrate on technologies that are sustainable in the long run . In the past couple of years, the Indian government, to its credit, has introduced several policy and regulatory measures to increase the contribution of power from renewable sources. The biggest beneficiary of these measures has been the solar power segment, which is witnessing the most rapid growth. However, the scale of growth needed to achieve 1,000 MW of grid-connected solar power by March 2013 from the current base of 18 MW is immense. It is not only competition from cheap coal-fired power and lack of instruments to cover risks adequately that holds the sector back. The biggest barrier is the maze of regulatory hurdles and bureaucratic approvals that slow down progress on the ground. It is time we broke out of this status quo and empowered the state nodal agencies to facilitate renewable energy development on the ground. Some states are beginning to do this, but others still need to see the light. Courtesy: Renewable Watch, March 2011, P1. DANISH ENERGY STRATEGY 2050 In a move to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and reduce green-house gas emissions, the Danish government has introduced 9