This Content Is Only For Subscribers
At WRI India, Niyati Gupta’s (NG) focus is to advance sub-national climate action work at the city or district level and to ensure just transition of corporates in various sectors towards low carbon technologies.
IE: How can we tackle the demand for construction with a focus on sustainability?
NG: In India’s concretisation trajectory, the real estate sector will record a definite 9 per cent growth over the next decade. At the same time, the India Outlook report of 2021 points to increase in energy consumption by three times. Various measures are taken to address these demands both through macro and micro perspectives.
The macro perspective mostly pertains to India’s low carbon emission strategy which was recently submitted by the Ministry of Energy, Forest and Climate Change to UNFCCC. It enlists and also talks on enabling businesses to use low emission technologies. In the micro perspective, when it comes to buildings or the built environment, there is a huge demand for energy. The HVAC system in particular, is responsible for more than 50 per cent of energy consumption. It is one of the major reasons a cooling action plan, has been drawn to address the operational energy efficiency of the systems. Along with active mechanisms like HVAC, passive mechanisms like evaporative cooling, courtyard techniques, stack effect,… must be considered. A hybrid approach based on the environment will be the right way forward. Solar integration should also be made mandatory so that about 60 – 70 per cent of the energy needs are met through renewables. These would be the top three criteria, when considering climate responsive design techniques.
IE: What are your thoughts on district cooling systems?
NG: It is definitely one of the successful systems that has been established globally but its efficiency depends on the environment. India has six climatic zones and this poses bit of a challenge to standardise the approach. If there is a place which is prone to high dust or wind, then the maintenance cost of the system will automatically increase. But when it comes to smaller campuses including SEZs, township areas… this solution will be best suited.
IE: How is the general awareness related to sustainable construction practices?
NG: Every year, more than 10 lakh architects register with the council of architecture for starting their practice. In the year 2022, only two per cent showed inclination towards taking any kind of sustainable, energy efficient measures into their practices. Even among professionals the awareness and willingness is low. It has to become a sense of being, that from the smallest of project, to a large township, sustainability must be at the core.
IE: What are some policies that aid in implementing sustainable practices?
NG: A major initiative is the amendment of Energy Conservation Act which was amended for the second time in 2022. The entire focus is on carbon markets, which enables businesses, practitioners and professionals to adhere to conservation and efficient practices while making the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), a statutory body to take care of the standardisation processes.
Another effort is the Eco-Niwas Samhita which is a specific code for residential complexes. The earlier ECBC code of 2017 was largely focusing on commercial buildings. Though it has been recognised at the national level, states must execute it. Delhi, Kerala and Karnataka are one of the few pioneer states to set certain standards within their bylaws for the implementation.
IE: Can you share few successes in furthering decarbonisation in construction industry?
NG: Through WRI, we have positive influenced businesses towards decarbonisation. With the support of Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), we have been working on raising awareness and capacity building exercises for professionals and students, in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. These cities have maximum real estate development. Bengaluru houses a huge number of alternative material manufacturers and home to highest number of green buildings. We plan to scale up this effort in other cities too. Associating with agencies like CREDAI and RERA help to further the goals.
We also partner with huge corporates like Lodha, Mahindra Lifespaces on their journey towards net zero. Their designs itself revolve around the idea of reducing emissions. We educate and encourage companies to report on scope 1,2,3 emissions and work towards reducing them.
