One of the three key goals identified by the government during the budget 2022 is Promoting digital economy & fintech, technology-enabled development, energy transition, and climate action. To protect the interests of future generations and prepare the major polluting industries for green operational levels, achieving these tech and sustainability goals is vital.
Producing top soil, balanced and clean air, well-recharged aquifers etc are gifts of nature that are not easy to produce using man-made technologies, surely not in the short span of time they are needed for a sustainable future. The solution is mindfulness of damages, reducing externalities and capturing & restoring at the source. Top soil storage and refilling open cast mines to sewage treatment are already in vogue. Efforts towards air pollution is collectively termed Circular Carbon Economy(CCE). Latest in CCE is Carbon-capturing, whereby the plants capture carbon at the point of emission itself and using oxidation process traps the carbon dioxide. This way the pollutant becomes reusable in the production of fuels, plastic, soda ash etc. Wherever near by mines, oil wells or other appropriate geological structures are available, this captured carbon is stored deep inside earth’s surface.
To accelerate Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technologies, India’s DST has established a national programme on CO2 storage research and, in August 2020, made a call for proposals to support CCS research, development, pilot and demonstration projects. CCS technology is meant to play an essential role in meeting net-zero targets, including as one of few solutions to tackle emissions from heavy industry.
Globally, power and industry account for about 50% of all greenhouse gas emissions. With the debate rounding on Net Zero Emissions and targets being set, it is vital to identify and adopt the right balance of portfolio of emission curtailment technologies. The words in the spotlight are – Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage – induced with the aim to reduce carbon emission either by storing it or reusing it. Aligning with this, two National Centres of Excellence in Carbon Capture and Utilization are being established in India. With the support of the Department of Science & Technology (DST), these two centres namely, NCoE-CCU (National Centre of Excellence in Carbon Capture and Utilization) is established at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-Bombay) and NCCCU ( National Centre in Carbon Capture and Utilization ) at Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) Bengaluru.
CCU is among such key pathways to reduce emissions while continuing to develop sustainably at an unprecedented pace. CCU aligns with 5 of the 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs), namely, climate action; clean energy, industry, innovation, and infrastructure; responsible consumption and production; and partnerships to achieve the goals.
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