Guwahati, Feb 1: Experts and scientists from prestigious institutions across the country took part in a brainstorming session at IIT-Guwahati on Wednesday and deliberated on low-cost workable solutions to control and reduce methane emissions in the environment.
The session, titled “Agriculture and Livestock of Climate Goals – Technological Roadmap to Net Zero,” was organised by the International Centre for Climate and Sustainability Action Foundation (ICCSA).
Speaking on the gravity of the issue, J.S Sharma, head ICCSA said, “India is the third largest emitter of methane, behind China and the United States. According to the Global Methane Assessment report by the United Nations, our methane emissions in 2020 were approximately 36 million metric tonnes of CO2 equivalent. This means India’s contribution to global methane emissions is about 6 percent. The emissions from the agriculture sector accounts for about 60 percent.”
Sharma further said that while the country was investing in creating clean energy generation infrastructure, it should deploy a regulatory framework to check methane emissions while exploring low-cost workable solutions to control methane emissions.
“There is a need to bring in mainstream mitigation policies to achieve the goal of the Paris Agreement that is vital for a limit of 1.5 degrees Celsius,” he said.
Speaking on the issue, chief guest of the session, AICTE chairman T.G Sitharam said, “India has the highest livestock population in the world and most of the livestock managed in and around village, we must seriously consider village planning where villagers can be educated on waste management, sustainable water development and livestock feed and upkeep.”
Rakesh Kumar, officer on special duty at CSIR headquarters, said, “We believe local sources that are rich in minerals, and vitamins if mixed in cattle feed will not only control methane emissions but also improve milk productivity and thereby increase the income of dairy farmers.”
“Ration balancing/nutrient optimisation is one of the promising strategies for reducing enteric methane emissions and improving sustainability of dairying in smallholder systems,” Kumar said.
The event was attended by senior scientists from the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, IIT Guwahati, All India Council for Technical Education, Banaras Hindu University, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment, National Dairy Development Board, besides others.
The experts also discussed ways and means to reduce methane emissions and also eliminate methane from the environment through collaboration.