At a recent speech, the United Nations Climate Change Executive Secretary Simon Stiell said the “next two years are essential in saving our planet.” Record-breaking heat, shortage of water, and other environmental issues are regular headlines in the context of the need to achieve development, increase employment, and reduce poverty and inequality, among others. Yet, the linkages between the pathways of development, sustainability, and climate change mitigation are far from well-understood. Our current models of development drive greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, are unsustainable, and inequitable. Although India aims to achieve Net Zero GHG emissions by 2070, mainly led by a massive transition to large-scale renewable energy, the implications of such a transition on developmental or sustainability outcomes are unclear at the local and national levels.
Examining solar parks
Let us take the example of large-scale solar parks — a key pillar of India’s mitigation strategy. We have 214 sq. km of land under solar parks, but some studies estimate that we may need 50,000-75,000 sq. km, which is about half the size of Tamil Nadu, to achieve our Net Zero targets.
