Renewable energies: Towards a clean and green future

Dwina Barbaruah

(dwinakashyap@gmail.com)

The announcement made by Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma to generate 3,000-4,000 MW of power from solar and hydel sources in the next three-and-a-half years is a welcome move.

With so much pollution emitting from fossil fuels endangering the lives of the people, the need of the hour is for clean and green renewable energies.

Assam, with its abundant water resources with the mighty Brahmaputra and Barak rivers along with its numerous tributaries crisscrossing the entire length and breadth of the State, has the huge potential to generate hydropower that will not only make the State self-sufficient on the power front but also enable it to supply power to other parts of the country.

However, considering the fact that we are in a highly seismic zone - Zone V - with earthquakes big and small rocking the region with impunity, there is a need to go for small or micro hydropower projects instead of big ones to produce electricity.

Small or micro-hydro projects generating electricity of 50-100 MW besides having fewer risk factors downstream, also will prevent scores of people from being displaced. Small or micro-projects augur well as they are cost-effective and what is more important building them will not lead to any widespread protests as we generally witness with mega hydropower projects.

If implemented correctly, small or micro hydropower plants can give communities affordable access to renewable energy, with minimal environmental impact.

Micro-hydro power is typically versatile, durable, and low-cost to build and maintain, allowing successful implementation by small, remote communities in developing countries.

Under the right circumstances, micro-hydro power can make a sustainable and valuable contribution to Assam and the Northeast region as a whole insofar as power requirements are concerned. It can provide energy reliably and efficiently with reasonable consistency. Small-scale operation is viable, with flow rates as low as two gallons a minute, or a drop of just two feet, being sufficient for useful operation. It can supply energy continuously, peaking in winter, when demand is at its highest. Micro-hydro power operates as a 'run of the river system, meaning the river water passes directly through the generator, without the need for a reservoir and associated environmental impact.

We are aware of the fact that there is fast depletion of fossil fuels and the oil reserves will not last forever. Assam is no exception. So, there is the imperative need to fall on alternative energy sources and what better way it can be than harnessing clean and green energy from hydro, solar and wind sources.

Solar energy as we all know can be tapped and harnessed to its optimum level. Each kilowatt-hour (kWh) of solar that is generated will substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions like CO2, as well as other dangerous pollutants such as sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides and particulate matter. Solar energy also reduces water consumption and withdrawal.

Solar energy is sustainable, renewable, and plentiful. As the cost of using solar to produce electricity goes down each year, many people across the globe are increasingly switching to solar. In America alone, there are over a million solar installations across the country.

Switching to solar electricity has additional benefits. Financial returns and lower monthly utility bills are major incentives for going solar. The exact savings you will see with solar depends on electricity consumption; solar energy system size: direct hours of daily sunlight, size and angle of the roof and local electricity rates.

A solar electric system provides an opportunity for anyone who is looking to reduce monthly utility bills and make a long-term, low-risk investment.

The good thing about it is that solar panels can be installed virtually anywhere - in a field or on rooftops and there is virtually no maintenance involved, as solar panels last over 30 years.

The sources of electricity production such as coal, oil, and natural gas have contributed to one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions. It is essential to raise the standard of living by providing cleaner and more reliable electricity. India has an increasing energy demand to fulfil the economic development plans that are being implemented. The provision of increasing quanta of energy is a vital pre-requisite for the economic growth of a country. The National Electricity Plan (NEP) framed by the Ministry of Power (MoP) has developed a 10-year detailed action plan with the objective to provide electricity across every household of the country and has prepared a further plan to ensure that power is supplied to the citizens efficiently and at a reasonable cost. According to the World Resource Institute Report 2017, India is responsible for nearly 6.65% of total global carbon emissions, ranked fourth next to China (26.83%), the USA (14.36%), and the EU (9.66%). Climate change might also tilt the ecological balance in the world. Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) have been submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement. The latter hopes to achieve the goal of limiting the rise in global temperature to well below 2 °C. According to a World Energy Council prediction, global electricity demand will peak in 2030. India is one of the largest coal consumers in the world and imports costly fossil fuels. Close to 74% of the energy demand is supplied by coal and oil. Therefore, there is an urgent need to find alternative sources for generating electricity.

Renewable energy sources play a vital role in securing sustainable energy with lower emissions. It is already accepted that renewable energy technologies might significantly cover the electricity demand and reduce emissions. In recent years, the country has developed a sustainable path for its energy supply. Awareness of saving energy has been promoted among citizens and to increasingly make use of solar, wind, biomass, waste, and hydropower energies. India is aiming to attain 175 GW of renewable energy comprising 100 GW from solar energy, 10 GW from bio-power, 60 GW from wind power, and 5 GW from small hydropower plants by the fag end of this year.

Recent estimates show that in 2047, the solar potential will be more than 750 GW and wind potential will be around 410 GW.

It is against this backdrop, that a mixture of push policies and pull mechanisms, accompanied by specific strategies should help promote the development of renewable energy technologies. Advancement in technology, proper regulatory policies, tax deduction, and attempts at efficiency enhancement due to research and development (R&D) are some of the pathways to the conservation of energy and the environment that should guarantee that renewable resource bases are used in a cost-effective and quick manner. Hence, strategies must be in place to promote investment opportunities in the renewable energy sector along with the creation of jobs for unskilled workers, technicians, and contractors.

Given the enormous potential of renewables in the country, pragmatic policy measures and an investor-friendly administration might be the key drivers for India to become a global leader in clean and green energy with a resourceful rich State like Assam, India's growth engine, playing a key role.