The good, bad and ugly

According to Bridge to India’s latest quarterly market analysis, The India Solar Compass, 2GW of solar power could be installed in conjunction with telecom towers in India by 2016. Bridge to India believes there is now traction in the market, leading to the emergence of a new model of operations, the Renewable Energy Service Company (RESCO) model. Up to telecom companies to make use of the opportunity. Meanwhile, we hear from Treehugger that Asia is heading for a huge jump in asbestos-related diseases in the coming decades, according to numerous scientific studies and two of the world’s most prominent experts on public health and asbestos exposure. Not surprisingly, the consequences are expected to be felt most severely in India and China, two emerging economies and most populous countries in the world. “What we can expect is very predictable – an absolute catastrophe of death and disease,” Dr. Arthur Frank, chairman of environmental and occupational health at Drexel University, said in a recent interview with this reporter. He added that the coming catastrophe is “all preventable.” In 2010, almost half of asbestos production was in Russia (49 percent). Other big producers were China (20 percent), Brazil (13 percent), Kazakhstan (10 percent), and Canada (5 percent). Most of it was used in China (29 percent), India (17 percent), Russia (14 percent), Kazakhstan (7 percent), Brazil (7 percent), Indonesia (5 percent), Uzbekistan (5 percent), Thailand (4 percent), Vietnam (4 percent), Ukraine (3 percent), Sri Lanka (2 percent), and Iran (1 percent). India is a country where health and environment norms are still lacking largely. Whether it be about lead content or colouring agents in food, there are no standards being enforced. Is that due to a low price on life? Or a lack of awareness?

A price on ecosystem?

Ecosystems are life systems. You cannot put monetary value of life systems. How can you put a money value on something like air? But increasingly there is talk of placing a value on the eco-system. IS it because we have reached a point where unless a monetary value is placed on somehting, we do not value it. Take for instance trees. Our cities are shedding trees at a rapid pace as they give way to buildings and roads. And yet, we recognise the value of a tree when caught on a hot day on the roadside. People park cars under the shade of a tree, but do not spare a thought for a tree facing the axe. Guess what trees do for us beyond the irreplaceable belching out of oxygen. They keep the concrete and asphalt of cities and suburbs 10 or more degrees cooler and protect our skin from the sun’s harsh UV rays. Loss of trees means that many millions invested in air-conditioning. Trees, also sequester carbon, a greenhouse gas that makes the planet warmer. A study by the Carnegie Institution for Science also found that water vapor from forests lowers ambient temperatures. “Working trees” could absorb some of the excess phosphorus and nitrogen that run off farm fields and help heal the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico. In Africa, millions of acres of parched land have been reclaimed through strategic tree growth. Trees also release vast clouds of beneficial chemicals. On a large scale, some of these aerosols appear to help regulate the climate; others are anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-viral. We need to learn much more about the role these chemicals play in nature. A walk in the woods, they say, reduces the level of stress chemicals in the body and increases natural killer cells in the immune system, which fight tumors and viruses. Studies in inner cities show that anxiety, depression and even crime are lower in a landscaped environment. A 2008 study by researchers at Columbia University found that more trees in urban neighborhoods correlate with a lower incidence of asthma. The list goes on. Yet, we need monetary schemes to spur afforestation. What's your take?

Cement sans carbon emission!

In a study published in a recent issue of Chemical Communications, a team of researchers from Virginia’s George Washington University explain a revolutionary way to make lime cement that releases zero CO2 emissions – and costs less too. Given that cement manufacture comes next after fossil plants in emissions, this is very significant. The world consumes about 3 trillion kg of cement annually. Every 10 units of cement will release 9 units of CO2. So it is a huge problem for the increasingly unstable climate we are creating for ourselves. Of the two ways that making cement releases carbon dioxide, separating the lime from the limestone (decarbonation, or removing the carbon atom and two oxygen atoms in limestone (CaCO3) to obtain lime (CaO) with CO2) accounts for 70% of the emissions. The other 30% is because it takes a lot of heat to heat the kiln reactors, burning fossil fuels. Solar thermal power when used not just to heat the limestone – but also to help in electrolysis produces a different chemical reaction without a carbon dioxide byproduct. When electrolyzed below 800°C, the molten limestone forms lime, C, and O2. When electrolyzed above 800°C, the product is lime, CO, and ½O2. These products are useful industrial chemicals. Their carbon monoxide byproduct (in the higher temperature reaction) can be used to make fuels, purify nickel, and form plastics and other hydrocarbons. No carbon emissions. Cheap. And even better, it has wide applications. The next step would be is simply scaling up the fairly straightforward process for commercialization. Surely a welcome find,especially with the massive amount of building infrastructure poised to spring up.

The methane issue

A new study says that methane leaks from natural gas drilling, particularly hydraulic fracturing, are likely higher than previously estimated and concludes that converting vehicles from gasoline to compressed natural gas will actually produce more greenhouse gas emissions unless methane leaks are significantly reduced. The study, authored by scientists from the Environmental Defense Fund and several universities, says that replacing coal-fired power plants with natural gas-fired power plants does lead to a net reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, though not as steep a drop as gas industry advocates contend. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, examines the “technology warming potentials” of different fossil fuels and concludes that better research needs to be undertaken to determine exactly how much methane — a far more potent but shorter-lived greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide — leaks during the cycle of natural gas drilling and transport. The U.S. government has estimated the leakage rate at 2.4 percent, but some studies suggest it is higher. Will this mean the US will go back on its new found gas reserves? Your guess!

Wanted: a new law

The world population is expected to soar to more than 9 billion people by 2050. Roughly 70% of the global population will live in cities, which today consumes 70% of global energy supplies. An interesting symposium in the US threw up some interesting options for Energy Collective. Can planners identify potential relationships between systems and/or networks and design solutions that leverage these synergies? These approaches encourage creative use and reuse of resources for multiple purposes instead of single-use applications. Decision-making and time will have to be viewed differently. Data analytics give us the opportunity to time-shift decisions. In the Smart Grid world, we recognize that energy storage allows us to “time-shift” generation. We can also time-shift electricity consumption through demand response and dynamic pricing programs that encourage or reward use at off-peak times. A smart city working with data to predict traffic patterns could enable automated and realtime traffic congestion management. And the most insightful information derived from analytics is worthless if humans fail to take action on that information. How about a new law that helps us frame expectations around data? Data can be created by machines or by humans. Data will travel across networks to destinations, and may be transformed (anonymized), analyzed (correlated with other data), or stored in multiple locations. The author notes how Moore’s Law deals with processing power (approximately doubles every 24 months) and Metcalfe’s Law that the value of a network grows as the square of the number of users grows. And goes on to ask if a similar law that frames our expectations about data volumes and the privacy and security of that data, can help. Any thoughts?

Misle(a)d path?

There is lead in the air! Literally and physically. News coverage has been noting the dangerous levels of contamination from lead in our environment. Among other things leaden, batteries pose a big threat. As more and more households are resorting to batteries (inverters) to tide over increasing power cuts in the city, the question arises: how are spent batteries disposed? DO we have any norm? At present there are no such norms. Unlike many countries, India does not insist that manufacturers buy back the used products to ensure environment safety. The batteries are usually taken back by small agents who use crude methods to retrieve lead which is then recycled. When batteries are broken for recycling, lead is released as dust, which affects the respiratory system. Even kidney failure, brain disorders, etc have been cited among the health hazards. Lead from the batteries can even contaminate ground water. A car battery, which weighs around 14.5kg has 8.7kg of lead, while the batteries used for invertors have nearly 16kg. There is going to be an increase in production of batteries as renewable energy picks up pace. There is need to address the disposal issue. It also brings us to the biggest challenge of how to make solar PV viable on a large scale. While the general opinion has been that communities should opt for local units supplying power for their needs, the battery issue will become a huge problem. As some say, solar PV will be feasible only in megawatts and when tied to the grid, thus making away with the need for batteries. This is pursued in Germany and one can see almost 5% roofs with solar panels, these days. With battery storage interface domestic solar power is not viable financially or environmentally. However, others aver that the cost involved in production and transmission of electricity to the end user is much higher than the cost involved in availing the solar energy via storage batteries. We must look at decentralised generation and address the battery issue with strong regulation. What do you think?

It's so simple, yet...

Gardeners in the UK can no more splash gardens lavishly with a hosepipe. With several water companies in the south and south-east of England imposing restrictions from this week, hobby gardeners may face a fine of up to £1,000 if they are caught using a hosepipe. May sound tough action but in times of water scarcity, every drop counts. As we have said, in a city like Bangalore, the groundwater is being drawn thrice as faster than it is being recharged causing the table to sink and dry up in a few years. River water is being supplied from 100 kms away using power to pump it up 500 metres, and this same water is stolen and lost to leakages up to 40 percent! Finally, when it reaches the city, unscrupulous citizens have resorted to guzzling more than their quota by using pumps!! How long can this kind of unsustainable situation continue?? New studies are showing that Chinese cities are slowly sinking as a result of rapid development and excess groundwater use. According to reports, as many as 50 cities across the country are affected by soil subsidence, including the country’s largest -Shanghai. Rather than looking to 'greener' sources, which are as unsustainable at times, perhaps it is time we adopted smaller and simpler solutions that use recycled material largely. Rather than blame fossil fuels, we need to look at the whole picture. Can we live in smaller homes, simpler food, use public transport (or our legs where possible)? Adopt community living that fosters a sense of sharing? Tough, but necessary if we choose to plan for a tomorrow.