A study conducted by ICLEI for Panaji shows that buildings, both commercial and residential, generate
more carbon-dioxide that cars and buses. The study shows that buildings in the city collectively generate 80,609 tonnes of CO2 as compared to the 55,406 tonnes emitted by vehicles in and entering the city. The
general belief is that vehicles and industry generate all the CO2, so the concept of buildings generating greenhouse gases is new to Goa.
The question is how do buildings generate CO2? Until this study, we believed that Goa is clean and green, which is true. The truth that Panaji, and Goa as a whole, would prefer to ignore is that it is green because some other state is collecting the CO2. The state would have been less green if it had to generate the entire load of around 600 MW that is needed to keep it going. The fact that the power is generated by coal-based stations located elsewhere does not make Goa green. The electric car is an appropriate analogy. It appears to be a green solution, but is not, because the power used to charge its batteries comes from coal based power generation plants located elsewhere.
The bulk of the CO2 generated by
buildings every year is on account
of use of electricity. This is true of
buildings in Panaji, Goa, the rest of
India and the world. For instance,
buildings in the US collectively generate 39 per cent of greenhouse
gases, which is a few percent points more than vehicles.
Buildings in the US consume half the energy generated followed
by transport with 28 per cent and industry which utilizes
around 24.4 per cent. Unfortunately, when it comes to GHG,
Goa cannot ignore the emissions, even though it does not take
place in the state, because eventually, CO2 concentration in
the atmosphere affects everybody by driving climate change.
The unfortunate part is that the Goa government does not
seem to be particularly interested in CO2 emissions. It prefers
to bury its head like an ostrich. The government does not seem
to have a plan to generate solar energy. It doesn’t seem to have
a clue on how to go about creating alternate sources of energy.
It woke up to the idea of a solar city and smart city only after
the Centre initiated the plans. On its own it has done nothing.
Instead, it prefers to distribute freebies in the form of computers,
laptops and tablets to people who can afford them.
Goa tends to forget that someone else is collecting the CO2
for us and that we ought to be obligated to people living
around coal-based power generating units who breath impure
air so that we can breathe pure air. Goa must start thinking
global, at least on the issue of GHG emissions and make a concerted
effort to reduce power consumption by adopting green
practices. Put the money here because it will teach the next
generation a much more valuable lesson than surfing the net
on free computers.
Before Goa embarks on any plan to reduce GHG emissions it
must first extend the ICLEI study to the entire state. The emission
from each sector must be calibrated. This exercise will
give the government a clearer picture. This must be followed
by measures to reduce GHG emissions. Goa’s weightage in the
CO2 basket might be tiny, but it can become a model green
state if its leaders can muster the political will to do so.
