Module 2

Renewable energy
• Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources, which are
naturally replenished on a human timescale, such
as sunlight, wind, rain, tides, waves, and geothermal heat.
• Renewable energy often provides energy in four important areas: electricity
generation, air and water heating/cooling, transportation, and rural (off-grid) energy
services.
• Based on REN21 (Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century) 2017
report, renewables contributed 19.3% to humans' global energy consumption and
24.5% to their generation of electricity in 2015 and 2016, respectively.
• This energy consumption is divided as 8.9% coming from traditional biomass,
4.2% as heat energy (modern biomass, geothermal and solar heat), 3.9% from
hydroelectricity and the remaining 2.2% is electricity from wind, solar, geothermal,
and other forms of biomass.
 Hydrogen
• Hydrogen is a clean fuel. It is an energy
carrier that can be used for a broad range
of applications. Also it could serve as a
possible substitute to liquid and fossil
fuels. Its physical properties could be
stated as following. At standard
temperature and pressure, hydrogen is a
nontoxic, nonmetallic, odorless, tasteless,
colorless, and highly combustible diatomic
gas with the molecular formula H2.
• Hydrogen is considered an alternative fuel.
It is due to its ability to power fuel cells in
zero-emission electric vehicles, its
potential for domestic production, and the
fuel cell's potential for high efficiency.
Applications of Hydrogen as an energy source in India

• Hydrogen is a by - product in Chlor - Alkali industries. Earlier, a part of

it was used for non - energy applications and rest was either flared or
vented out in the atmosphere. With the passage of time awareness about
its usage for energy applications increased and up to 2013 - 14 around
90% of by - product hydrogen was utilized for production of chemicals
and captive (mainly energy) applications.
• Hydrogen is produced for non - energy applications e.g. in fertilizer
industries and petroleum refineries.
 Solar
• Solar power is clean green electricity sourced from sunlight. Or in some cases, from
heat from the sun. Installing solar power systems in a residential setting generally
means setting up a solar photovoltaic or a solar thermal system on the roof.
• Definition of photovoltaic: Photo = “light” and photons = energy particles coming
from sunlight; voltaic = producing a voltage or volts. Abbreviation = PV
• Solar energy is a renewable free source of energy that is sustainable and totally
inexhaustible, unlike fossil fuels that are finite. It is also a non-polluting source of
energy and it does not emit any greenhouse gases when producing electricity.
• Solar electricity can supplement your entire or partial energy consumption. Using
solar power means reducing your energy bills and saving money. Low maintenance
and unobtrusive, installing solar panels adds value to your home.
• Renewables are also resilient to lower electricity demand because they are generally
dispatched before other electricity sources due to their low operating costs or
regulations that give them priority. The share of renewables in
global electricity generation jumped to nearly 28% in Q1 2020 from 26% in Q12019.

Germany leads the world with a renewable energy consumption of 12.74% of their
total energy use.

Solar energy is used to power radio and TV stations. It is also used to supply power to
lighthouse and warning light for aircraft. Solar energy can be used for power
generation in remotely situated places like schools, homes, clinics and buildings. Water
pumps run on solar energy in remote areas.
 Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC)
• Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) uses the ocean thermal gradient between
cooler deep and warmer shallow or surface seawaters to run a heat engine and produce
useful work, usually in the form of electricity. OTEC can operate with a very
high capacity factor and so can operate in base load mode.
• The denser cold water masses, formed by ocean surface water interaction with cold
atmosphere in quite specific areas of the North Atlantic and the Southern Ocean, sink into
the deep sea basins and spread in entire deep ocean by the thermohaline
circulation. Upwelling of cold water from the deep ocean is replenished by the down
welling of cold surface sea water.
• Among ocean energy sources, OTEC is one of the continuously available renewable
energy resources that could contribute to base-load power supply. The resource potential
for OTEC is considered to be much larger than for other ocean energy forms.
• Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) is a renewable energy technology which
generates electricity using sea water. 71% of the world's surface is covered by ocean.
This means that a large amount of solar energy is constantly warming the upper layers of
the oceans.
The maximum possible Carnot thermal efficiency of an Ocean Thermal Energy
Conversion (OTEC) power system is about 7% as it exploits the water temperature gradient
between the surface and the deep ocean, which is only slightly over 20 degree C in tropical
waters
Advantages of ocean thermal energy:
• OTEC systems produce fresh water and electricity as well, which is highly beneficial for
island regions where fresh water availability is limited.
• It makes use of renewable, clean, natural resources.
• Fossil fuels are replaced by warm surface seawater and cold water from deep sea to generate
electricity.
Disadvantages of ocean thermal energy:
• The cost of installation of the device and maintenance of the power plant is high.
• It causes disruptions in the aquatic ecosystem.
• A constant supply of warm and cold water is required. So, the plant can be built in only
suitable for tropical locations.
 Tidal energy
• Tidal power or tidal energy is harnessed by converting energy from tides into useful
forms of power, mainly electricity using various methods.

• Although not yet widely used, tidal energy has the potential for future electricity
generation. Tides are more predictable than the wind and the sun.
• Among sources of renewable energy, tidal energy has traditionally suffered from
relatively high cost and limited availability of sites with sufficiently high tidal ranges
or flow velocities, thus constricting its total availability.
• However, many recent technological developments and improvements, both in design
(e.g. dynamic tidal power, tidal lagoons) and turbine technology (e.g. new axial
turbines, cross flow turbines), indicate that the total availability of tidal power may be
much higher than previously assumed and that economic and environmental costs
may be brought down to competitive levels.
Tidal Electricity is cheap, long-lived and non-polluting in nature. It has benefits over solar
and wind power in the sense that it is predictable in nature and also has a higher load factor.
The other usage of Tidal Energy is pretty low compared to Geothermal Energy which is
primarily used for Heating Purposes

Advantages of using tidal energy

• Tides are easily predictable.
• Inexpensive to maintain.
• Reliable and renewable source of energy.
• High energy density than other renewable energy forms.
• It produces no greenhouse gases or other waste.
Disadvantages of tidal energy
• High tidal power plant construction costs.
• Negative influence on marine life forms.
• Location limits.
• The variable intensity of sea waves
 Wind energy
• Wind power involves converting wind energy into electricity by using wind
turbines. The wind comes from atmospheric changes. These include changes in
temperature and pressure which make the air move around the surface of the
earth. A wind turbine captures the wind to produce energy.
• Wind power is a clean energy source that can be relied on for the long-term
future. A wind turbine creates reliable, cost-effective, pollution free energy. It is
affordable, clean and sustainable. One wind turbine can be sufficient to generate
enough electrical energy for a household, assuming the location is suitable.
• Because it is a renewable resource which is non-polluting and renewable, wind
turbines create power without using fossil fuels, without producing greenhouse
gases or radioactive or toxic waste. Wind power is one of the best ways to combat
global warming.
Application of Wind Energy:
• 1. The wind energy is used to propel the sailboats in river and seas to transport men and
materials from one place to another.
• 2. Wind energy is used to run pumps to draw water from the grounds through wind mills.
• 3. Wind energy has also been used to run flourmills to grind the grains like wheat and
corn into flour.
• 4. Now-a-days wind energy is being used to generate electricity.
Advantages of wind energy
• Wind is a reliable and infinite renewable energy resource
• Wind energy is cost effective, and prices are dropping still
• Wind energy reduces carbon emissions when used instead of fossil fuels
• Few running costs when the turbines are up and running.
• Offshore wind farms can take advantage of offshore wind flow, without
affecting the landscape view.

Disadvantages of wind energy

• Wind energy can be unpredictable as the amount of electricity generated is
dependent on the speed and direction of the wind
• Wind farms can affect the visual appearance of the landscape
• Wind turbines can damage the habitats of birds and marine life.
• Wind farms can be expensive to construct
 Natural Resource Management
• Natural Resource Management (NRM) is the management of natural resources such as
land, water, soil, plants and animals, with a particular focus on how management affects
the quality of life for both present and future generation.
• Natural resource management deals with managing the way in which people and natural
landscapes interact. It brings together land use planning, water management, bio-diversity
conservation, and the future sustainability of industries like agriculture, mining, tourism,
fisheries and forestry.
• It recognizes that people and their livelihoods rely on the health and productivity of our
landscapes, and their actions as stewards of the land play a critical role in maintaining this
health and productivity.
• Natural resource management specifically focuses on a scientific and technical
understanding of resources and ecology and the life-supporting capacity of those
resources.
• Environmental management is similar to natural resource management. In academic
contexts, the sociology of natural resources is closely related to, but distinct from, natural
resource management.
• Natural resources provide fundamental life support, in the form of both
consumptive and public-good services. Ecological processes maintain soil
productivity, nutrient recycling, the cleansing of air and water, and climatic
cycles.
• The four natural resources are renewable, living, non renewable, and fossil
fuels. They are very important to our life and existence.
• Resources are important for the development of any country. For example, to
generate energy, one need fossil fuels; and for industrial development, we
require mineral resources. Natural resources are getting scarce with the
increasing population, so it is essential to conserve them.
• Natural resources include oil, coal, natural gas, metals, stone, and sand.
Air, sunlight, soil, and water are other natural resources.
• Natural resource management specifically focuses on a scientific and technical
understanding of resources and ecology and the life-supporting capacity of
those resources. Environmental management is also similar to natural resource
management. In academic contexts, the sociology of natural resources is
closely related to, but distinct from, natural resource management.
• The emphasis on sustainability can be traced back to early attempts to
understand the ecological nature of North American rangelands in the late 19th
century, and the resource conservation movement of the same time.
• This type of analysis coalesced in the 20th century with recognition that
preservationist conservation strategies had not been effective in halting the
decline of natural resources.
• A more integrated approach was implemented recognizing the intertwined
social, cultural, economic and political aspects of resource management. A
more holistic, national and even global form evolved, from the Brundtland
Commission and the advocacy of sustainable development.
• In 2005 the government of New South Wales, established a Standard for
Quality Natural Resource Management, to improve the consistency of
practice, based on an adaptive management approach.
• In the United States, the most active areas of natural resource management
are wildlife management often associated with ecotourism and rangeland
(pastures) management. In Australia, water sharing, such as the Murray
Darling Basin Plan and catchment management are also significant.
Following are the reasons why the management of natural resources is
important:
• To maintain a balance in the ecosystem.
• To avoid further destruction of the environment.
• To avoid over-consumption of the natural resources.
1. Reduce
• Reduce refers to smart purchasing of the products. The best way to reduce waste is by not
producing waste. Following are the ways to reduce:
• Avoid using disposal products like paper cups and plates, straws instead switch to reusable
products.
• Check for the durability of the products.
• Stop asking for carry bags at shops, instead carry cloth bags.
2. Reuse
• Reuse refers to using products that are economical and also environmental friendly.
Following are the ways to reuse:
• Donate or sell old clothes, electrical appliances, furniture, etc.
• Reuse the paper and plastic bags.
3. Recycle
• Recycle refers to reusing of the products to get creative and by-products. Following are the
ways to recycle:
• Recycling used papers to make paper bags.
 Need to Manage Natural Resources

• Everything that we use today – food, clothes, house, vehicles, fuel,

notebooks, furniture, cooking gas, utensils, toys, roads, etc. are obtained
from resources on the earth.
• A significant portion of the energy which we use today is obtained from the
non-renewable sources. This implies that once they are used up, they cannot
be replenished. The most important source of non-renewable energy used
extensively is the fossil fuels which have taken millions of years to be
formed.
• Managing the resources would not only ensure its rational use but also put a
limit to the degradation it is causing to the environment. For example, the
usage of resources in different forms generates a lot of waste which is being
disposed off into the water bodies. This, in turn, is polluting the rivers and
lakes. Limiting usage will also reduce waste generation and pollution.
 Disaster management
• Disaster management in India refers to the conservation of lives and
property during natural or man-made disasters.
• Disaster management plans are multi-layered and are planned to address
issues such as floods, hurricanes, fires, mass failure of utilities, rapid spread
of disease and droughts.
• India is especially vulnerable to natural disasters because of its unique geo-
climatic condition, having recurrent floods, droughts, cyclones, earthquakes,
and landslides.
• As India is a very large country, different regions are vulnerable to different
natural disasters.
• For example, during rainy season the peninsular regions of South India is
mostly affected by cyclones and states of West India experience severe
drought during summer.
• National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is an agency of the
Ministry of Home Affairs whose primary purpose is to coordinate response
to natural or man-made disasters and for capacity-building in disaster
resiliency and crisis response. NDMA was established through the Disaster
Management Act enacted by the Government of India in December 2005.
The Prime Minister is the ex-officio chairperson of NDMA. The agency is
responsible for framing policies, laying down guidelines and best-practices
and coordinating with the State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs)
management.
 Case study 1
• In the midnight of August 6, 2010, Leh in Ladakh region of North India received a heavy
downpour. The cloud burst occurred all of a sudden that caught everyone unawares.
Within a short span of about 2 h, it recorded a rainfall of 14 inches.
• There were flash floods, and the Indus River and its tributaries and waterways were
overflowing. As many as 234 people were killed, 800 were injured, and many went
missing, perhaps washed away with the gorging rivers and waterways. There was vast
destruction all around. Over 1000 houses collapsed.
• Men, women, and children were buried under the debris. The local communication
networks and transport services were severely affected. The main telephone exchange
and mobile network system (BSNL), which was the lifeline in the far-flung parts of the
region, was completely destroyed.
• Leh airport was flooded and the runway was covered with debris, making it non-
functional. Road transport was badly disrupted as roads were washed away and blocked
with debris at many places. The civil medical and health facilities were also severely
affected, as the lone district civil hospital was flooded and filled with debris.
 Case study 2
• At the peak of the monsoon season the northern state of Uttarakhand was face to face with
floods caused due to the cloud burst that hit three of the four famous Char Dham pilgrim sites,
“2013 North India floods” leaving tens and thousands of inhabitants as well as pilgrims stranded
or swept away due to the floods, and not to mention the damage cause to life, property and
business. The famous Char Dham pilgrimage is now discontinued for three years for repair and
restoration.
• The National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM), in one of its first reports on the
Uttarakhand floods, has blamed “climatic conditions combined with haphazard human
intervention” in the hills for the disaster.
• Besides the natural disaster various other factors have contributed to the downfall of this famous
religious/ tourist site. Uttarakhand’s huge potential in tourism lead to the state in tapping its
potential towards becoming a major tourist and pilgrim destination, also has a hand in this
disaster.
• The uncontrolled rise of tourism inflow into the sate of Uttarakhand, took a toll on the ecology
of the state. With Uttarakhand’s proximity to the national capital, the weekend revelers soon
found Uttarakhand to be the destination to beat the heat. Plus, the religious tourists found it
much easier to travel to-not-so accessible Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and other shrines, all
this lead to an unsustainable rise in the number of people traveling to Uttarakhand.
 Sustainable mining
• Sustainability for the mining companies is a critical requirement for their ongoing operations.
Regulations and licenses generally depend on the companies’ sustainability practices, forcing
them to focus on environmental impact and social welfare.
• While the mining industry has historically been associated with poor working conditions and
their unsustainable practices, closer review of the industry suggests that the last few decades
have seen improved performance and heightened focus on doing the right thing for the
environment and the society.
• The mining industry has always faced an ethics and sustainability challenge; on one hand, their
products and services are vital for the growth of humankind and the global economy; on the
other hand, this industry has been known for high fatalities, human right violations, exploitation
of miners and other unsustainable practices.
• As the stakeholders of the mining businesses are becoming more aware of these challenges, they
are demanding for these companies to focus on sustainable ways to extract and deliver their
products. Additionally, the last few decades have experienced increased scrutiny and regulations,
resulting in a reduction in fatalities of miners.
• Therefore, in the 21st century, mining companies have had to include sustainable practices as
part of their core business in order to obtain licenses and certifications to operate.
 Cloud seeding
• Cloud seeding is a type of weather modification that aims to change
the amount or type of precipitation that falls from clouds by dispersing
substances into the air that serve as cloud condensation or ice nuclei,
which alter the microphysical processes within the cloud.
• The usual intent is to increase precipitation (rain or snow), but hail and
fog suppression are also widely practiced in airports where harsh
weather conditions are experienced.
• Cloud seeding also occurs due to ice nucleators in nature, most of
which are bacterial in origin.
 Methodology

• The most common chemicals used for cloud seeding include silver iodide, potassium iodide and dry ice (solid carbon
dioxide). Liquid propane, which expands into a gas, has also been used. This can produce ice crystals at higher
temperatures than silver iodide. After promising research, the use of hygroscopic materials, such as table salt, is becoming
more popular.
• When cloud seeding, increased snowfall takes place when temperatures within the clouds are between −4 and 19 °F (−20
and −7 °C). Introduction of a substance such as silver iodide, which has a crystalline structure similar to that of ice, will
induce freezing nucleation.
• In mid-altitude clouds, the usual seeding strategy has been based on the fact that the equilibrium vapor pressure is lower
over ice than over water. The formation of ice particles in supercooled clouds allows those particles to grow at the expense
of liquid droplets. If sufficient growth takes place, the particles become heavy enough to fall as precipitation from clouds
that otherwise would produce no precipitation. This process is known as "static" seeding.
• Seeding of warm-season or tropical cumulonimbus (convective) clouds seeks to exploit the latent heat released by freezing.
This strategy of "dynamic" seeding assumes that the additional latent heat adds buoyancy, strengthens updrafts, ensures
more low-level convergence, and ultimately causes rapid growth of properly selected clouds.
• Cloud seeding chemicals may be dispersed by aircraft or by dispersion devices located on the ground (generators or
canisters fired from anti-aircraft guns or rockets). For release by aircraft, silver iodide flares are ignited and dispersed as an
aircraft flies through the inflow of a cloud. When released by devices on the ground, the fine particles are carried
downwind and upward by air currents after release.
• An electronic mechanism was tested in 2010, when infrared laser pulses were directed to the air above Berlin by
researchers from the University of Geneva. The experimenters posited that the pulses would encourage atmospheric sulfur
dioxide and nitrogen dioxide to form particles that would then act as seeds.
• The largest cloud seeding system is in the People's Republic of China. They believe
that it increases the amount of rain over several increasingly arid regions, including
its capital city, Beijing, by firing silver iodide rockets into the sky where rain is
desired. There is even political strife caused by neighboring regions that accuse each
other of "stealing rain" using cloud seeding. China used cloud seeding in Beijing just
before the 2008 Olympic Games in order to have a dry Olympic season. In February
2009, China also blasted iodide sticks over Beijing to artificially induce snowfall
after four months of drought, and blasted iodide sticks over other areas of northern
China to increase snowfall. The snowfall in Beijing lasted for approximately three
days and led to the closure of 12 main roads around Beijing. At the end of October
2009 Beijing claimed it had its earliest snowfall since 1987 due to cloud seeding.
• In India, cloud seeding operations were conducted during the years 1983, 1984–
87,1993-94 by Tamil Nadu Govt due to severe drought. In the years 2003 and 2004
Karnataka government initiated cloud seeding. Cloud seeding operations were also
conducted in the same year through US-based Weather Modification Inc. in the state
of Maharashtra. In 2008, there were plans for 12 districts of state of Andhra Pradesh.
Advantages of Cloud Seeding
• Creates rain
• It does not just make rain, it also regulates water vapor that in turn prevent damages
bought by destructive hails and storms
• It saves dry place from drought

Disadvantages of Cloud Seeding

• It uses chemicals which can harm the environment especially plants and animals.
Though silver iodine is not currently known to be harmful to our health today, but it
might change in the future as more research is done on that.
• The technique is mostly used on clouds that already show early signs of rainfall, so it is
not known if it actually causes rain.
• Since it modifies the weather it might change climatic pattern.
• It is very expensive.
 Carbon trading

• Carbon emissions trading is a form of emissions trading that specifically targets carbon
dioxide (calculated in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent or tCO2) and it currently
constitutes the bulk of emissions trading.
• This form of permit trading is a common method countries utilize in order to meet their
obligations specified by the Kyoto Protocol namely the reduction of carbon emissions
in an attempt to reduce (mitigate) future climate change.
• Under Carbon trading, a country or a polluter having more emissions of carbon is able
to purchase the right to emit more and the country or entity having fewer emissions
sells the right to emit carbon to other countries or entities.
• The countries or polluting entities emitting more carbon thereby satisfy their carbon
emission requirements, and the trading market results in the most cost-effective carbon
reduction methods being exploited first.
Advantage of emission trading
• Emissions trading achieves the environmental objective reduced emissions at the lowest cost.
• Emissions trading incentivizes innovation and identifies lowest-cost solutions to make
businesses more sustainable.
• Cap and trade has proven to be an effective policy choice.

Disadvantage of emission trading

• It can become complicated deciding how many permits to allow.
• The difficulty of measuring how much a firm is actually polluting.
• Transaction costs involved in buying and selling permits.
• The problem of excess carbon emissions is a global problem. Therefore, there needs to be a
global solution. If carbon trading is introduced in one country but not others, it may cause
production to shift to countries without the scheme. Often countries don’t start carbon trading
precisely for the fear other countries will be free-riding on their efforts.
• Carbon Tax may be more simple, transparent and easy to administer.
• Carbon Trading may have a greater impact on those with low incomes and poor areas who have
less flexibility to change their lifestyles.