Prodipto Ghosh, one of the most well-known Indian thought leaders on environment, is a member of the Prime Ministers Council on Climate Change. A former environment and forests secretary and a multidisciplinary professional, he has always sought to bring about a convergence between science, economics and public policy in the area of sustainable development. Ghosh is a PhD in economics and policy analysis from the Carnegie-Mellon University. He is also a BTech in chemical engineering from IIT-Delhi. Excerpts from a telephonic and email interview with FE’s Rajiv Tikoo:
The recent Bangkok round of climate change negotiations was over without any major achievements. How hopeful are you about a meaningful outcome at the UN climate change conference in Durban later this year?
After Cancun, a lot of detailing needs to be done, including on the issues like design of green climate fund, sources of funding, international consultations and analysis for unsupported mitigation actions of developing countries, carbon capture and storage projects under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), and technology transfer. A lot of work has to be done between now and Durban.
While this work will take its own time, the strategic question is about the future of the global climate change regime. The US presidential election campaign is already underway and it is unlikely that there would be any movement on their part to confirm their Copenhagen pledge through executive action or legislation in the foreseeable future. If the Republicans gain more ground, then chances of the US coming on board decrease further. In that case, other countries may not show much enthusiasm in fulfilling their own pledges. So, there is a big question about the long-term future of the global climate change regime.
India has been domestically proactive in its fight against climate change. How will the lack of progress in global negotiations impact India’s approach?
We have announced voluntary targets for reduction in emission intensity of the economy, and reported them to the UNFCCC as provided in the Copenhagen Accord. The National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) is now fully operational, and the formulation of the countrys low-carbon growth strategy is now in its final stages. But there is considerable doubt about the feasibility of implementing activities that require external support, including technology. We don’t know what kind of external support would be forthcoming and to what extent.
What do you think of the role being played by the Indian industry in fighting climate change?
Indian industry has played a highly proactive role in the carbon market. For the first three years, India was well ahead of China in the CDM market. There is a great deal of awareness even in the government sector about the potential of CDM. The response to the bids for the first 1,000 MW capacity under the national solar mission surpassed expectations. We expect similar response from Indian industry to the schemes for energy efficiency improvement (perform, achieve, trade or PAT) and the renewable energy certificates (REC) schemes, both of which provide incentives by way of trading certificates for achievements beyond targets.
Since the continuance of the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol post-2012 is uncertain, how should Indian industry, which is active in the carbon space, prepare for it?
The future of the Kyoto Protocol is not in question, but the question is about its second commitment period. Either there may be no consensus on targets, or some developed countries may not ratify them in individual cases. In case of the latter, targets may apply under the Long-term Cooperative Action (LCA), which is about measures directly under the climate change convention, but whether these would be legally binding in the same sense as the targets under the Kyoto Protocol is unresolved at this time. However, the Kyoto Protocol will not expire, and the carbon market instruments created under it, including the CDM, will remain legally valid, and may be employed even under the LCA through a simple decision by the Parties. In any event virtually all Parties, developed as well as developing, are agreed that there would be a scaled-up, long-term carbon market in the future. So, the question is not about whether the market would be there or not, but about its scale, its time-duration, and how strong a legal foundation it would have.
Prodipto Ghosh is a jury member of the FE-EVI Green Business Leadership Awards 2010-11.
Source: The Financial Express
Published on 15 April 2011