Pollution in Mumbai: G-20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant Identifies Oil Refineries, Garbage Burning as Key Factors
Mumbai, December 12: Amid poor air quality ahead of G-20’s maiden working group meeting in the financial capital, a top government official on Monday said long-term measures are needed to help mitigate pollution in the megapolis.
Speaking on the eve of the meet, India’s G-20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant said the two refineries run by state-run entities have committed to reducing liquid sulphur and other sulphur content emissions over the next 2-3 months.
Kant said civic body commissioner IC Chahal raised the issue of emissions from state-owned oil refineries with him, following which he took up the matter with the Petroleum Secretary. The two refineries are modern ones which do not emit smoke, but give out sulphur dioxide, Kant said, citing information provided to him. Mumbai Air Pollution: City’s Air Quality in Very Poor Category Than Smog-Filled Delhi.
“In the case of Mumbai refineries, SOx emissions are well within the prescribed norms of 10.43 ppm,” Kant said, adding that the refineries have committed to reducing emissions in the short term.
Stating that long-term measures like switching to electric mobility are required to mitigate the problem, Kant also listed out other issues.
The challenges in Mumbai are different from the ones in New Delhi, which is also plagued with difficulties, he said.
“One of the challenges is that the Deonar dumping ground (is) also near the refinery. Burning there should be stopped. “Tata Electric has two stacks (located) south of Chembur and back side of BARC, which should switch over to cleaner forms,” Kant added.
It can be noted that the Deonar dumping ground has been a widely discussed issue, while he seemed to be referring to the 930 MW coal-fired thermal power plant of Tata Power at Trombay as well.
Kant said at the four-day meeting starting Tuesday, efforts will be made to arrive at a consensus on the green development pact and added that the country is championing changes in lifestyles for the environment.
The development working group, which will begin its meeting on Tuesday in Mumbai, is the custodian of the G-20’s developmental agenda, and India will showcase its human-centric sustainable development goals story undertaken through interventions like direct benefit transfer, he said. Maharashtra Govt Silent on Mumbai Pollution, Source of Pollution Must Be Traced.
Kant said so far, the developed world has set the agenda for others and the main purpose of India’s G-20 presidency, which will last till September 2023 will be to represent the voice of the global south at the world stage and seek changes.
Bodies like the UN cannot drive change because it’s very difficult to arrive at a consensus, where G-20 helps, he added. Kant also said that there is a need for a better multilateral finance institution, stating that bodies like World Bank and IMF were formed post-World War 2 and the world has changed now.
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