INDIA WANTS GROWTH, NOT EMISSIONS-CUTTING

Gurgaon is a suburb of New Delhi, India’s capital. The article describes it as “the center of new Indian ambition…A beacon of India’s red-hot economy…a symbol of India’s fast-growing hunger for energy…an island of air-conditioned malls and roaring, round-the-clock office towers…

With 17% of the world’s population, India is responsible for only 4.6% of world greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions. These numbers are India’s justification for refusing to participate in GhG reduction programs like the Kyoto Protocols. India’s per capita energy consumption and per capita GhG emissions remain a fraction of those of industrial nations.

2003 per capita energy consumption:
India: 512.4 kilograms of oil equivalent (KgOE)
World: 1674.4 KgOE
Europe: 3698.9 KgOE
U.S.: 7794.8 KgOE

2003 per capita CO2 emissions:
India: 1.0 metric tonnes
World: 4.1 metric tonnes
Europe: 8.5 metric tonnes
U.S.: 19.5 metric tonnes

But Gurgaon symbolizes the change coming. Like Gurgaon, India is growing fast. It will soon face a responsibility to the rest of the world. By then, it is possible the U.S. will have faced up to the responsibility it has so far eschewed.

This Mumbai street scene exemplifies a nation in transition. (click to enlarge)

Why India resists pressure to reduce its carbon footprint; Millions In Poverty Use Little Energy
Somini Sengupta, March 2, 2008 (NY Times via San Jose Mercury News)

WHO
Indian leaders (Montek Singh Ahluwalia, deputy chairman, India's Planning Commission); residents of Gurgaon, a New Delhi suburb complete with modern, power-consuming conveniences

India is nowhere near the Top 10 in per capita energy consumption. (click to enlarge)

WHAT
India continues to refuse to participate in greenhouse gas emissions cutting programs.

WHEN
India’s energy consumption is expected to quadruple over the next quarter-century.

But if consumption patterns don't change, India is going to be burning a lot of coal before the end of this quarter-century. (click to enlarge)

WHERE
- Unlike the European Union (EU) and like China, India places economic expansion ahead of energy consumption reductions or greenhouse gas emissions reductions.
- Under the Bush administration, the U.S. has done the same as China and India while President Bush has insisted it cannot sacrifice economic competitiveness to other concerns. All three of the remaining presidential candidates have indicated they will lead the U.S. in the direction of the EU.

WHY
- India’s population: 1.1 billion. But the average American generates 16 times the GhGs over the average Indian.
- 700,000 Indians use animal waste and firewood as cooking fuels.
- Almost half of India has no grid access. More have unpredictable, inconsistent grid power supply.

The transition could be in a more hopeful direction. (click to enlarge)

QUOTES
- Sengupta, describing Gurgaon: “…behind this brightly lighted boomtown lies a vast nation of darkness and cow dung-fueled stoves.”
- Montek Singh Ahluwalia, deputy chairman, India's Planning Commission: "It's not logical to talk of emissions cuts without reference to per-capita emission levels…It's logical to talk about burden-sharing in terms of per-capita emissions entitlements, or some other principle. The main point is that we must first agree on a principle that is felt to be fair."