Civic body to earn Rs 27 cr from trading of carbon credits
The closure of the 25-year-old dumping ground measuring 19.6 hectares at the Gorai creek in Borivli has earned the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Rs 27 crore by trading of an estimated 31,033 tonnes of carbon credits a year. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to purchase the carbon credits from the civic body at a cost of 12 Euros per carbon credit till 2014. It has also made the payment for 50 per cent of the carbon credits.
The standing committee on Monday gave its approval to enter into an agreement with the ADB to trade the Certified Emission Reductions — a term used for the units of carbon project after it was validated by one of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC)-approved mechanisms. Though the ADB has made payment for 50 per cent of the CERs, the rest will be paid as per the existing market rate whenever the trading takes place.
One CER is equivalent to one tonne of carbon dioxide reduced. Under the Kyoto Protocol, governments and companies in the European Union can use these credits to offset their carbon emissions and meet part of their reduction targets. Carbon credits are generated mainly in the developing countries because of the lower project cost. India has cornered nearly 43 per cent of the carbon credits (CERS) issued so far by the CDM executive board.
Officials said they had received offers for the exchange of 9.35 Euros/CER and ADB got an upper hand because they offered the highest rate at 12 Euros. Following the Supreme Court directive, the civic administration in 2007 began shutting the Gorai dumping ground as it had attained its maximum capacity (1,200 tonne/day). The scientific closure will be done by using the ‘capping technology’ wherein layers of ground gravel and solid material will be used for sealing the dump.
The closure of the dumping ground results in the release of methane gas that is 21 times more potent than carbon. The BMC will be capturing the methane gas and will use it to generate electricity. The capture and combustion of methane (transforming it to carbon dioxide and water) results in a substantial net reduction of green house emissions.