Climate Change Challenges – an Opportunity

Which is a bigger threat ? CoronaVirus or Climate Change.

A common question is being asked now-a -days. I say Climate Change is a bigger threat. My simple logic would be Coronavirus ( considering to have a respite soon) only affects humans whereas both human & natural systems are getting affected or will be affected by climate change phenomena, nothing is spared. And, it could lead to significant impacts on resource availability, economic activity and human well being . We have no option but to respond positively to climate change adaptation or mitigation strategies.

India is the world’s third largest emitter of GreenHouse Gases(GHGs) after China and the US. The country has pledged a 33-35% reduction in the emission intensity of its economy by 2030. The enterprises comprising all the sectors have a crucial role to play in this regard. For some it is mandatory , for some it is just a compliance requirement of the buyer’s  to meet and for some it is voluntary. But, for all it is an opportunity for better business results.

The enterprises can very well  take up this responsibility as an opportunity for better bottomline of the companies and scaleup.This article will briefly touch on the possible options.

 The most prominent possibility is through reduction of energy and water consumption measures by the enterprises. Any positive measure will always lead to follow a low carbon pathway and thereby GHG emission reduction as well as removal possibilities. This has the direct potential to reduce the production cost and thereby making the product  or service more price competitive. This is already happening in case of the big industry houses for which energy audit and water audit are mandatory to undertake and report to the government departments. And some are also involved into the carbon and water footprint reportings.

Another possibility is making the product or service better acceptable nationally and internationally through meeting the buyer’s compliance towards undertaking sustainability initiatives . This is  like conveying to the world about the climate friendly / green commitments of the enterprise. This initiative is very much helpful for the units which target the export market or have an intermediate product to supply in the product cycle . Ultimately , it helps to prove better accountability towards environmental issues, to earn the confidence of the stakeholders and ultimately for  business scale up. A number of export oriented units are already undertaking these services and reporting through the right platforms like CDP ( formerly Carbon Disclosure Project) reporting.

But for all enterprises, taking part into these environmental challenges is like getting enrolled into the process of continuous improvement into the business processes and the growth either  for the company as a whole or for any of its product life cycle from stages like raw material acquisition , processing, transportation,etc.,to the end-of-life stage actions like recycling or safe disposal. In these cases, it will be  like setting a norm or benchmark to follow or respond towards sustainability.

In order to make it happen for the enterprises irrespective of the requirement as meeting the compliance or voluntarily, a thorough study, execution and thereby documentation/ reporting is necessary.The certification of the carbon footprint which belongs to the environmental series ISO 14000, enables an enterprise to demonstrate its environmental responsibilities. 
Currently, there are two ( 02) types of approach & methodology for carbon footprint calculation- ISO 14064 GHG validation and Verification based on the enterprise as a whole and ISO 14067 Carbon Footprint of Products (CFP).

So, disclosing the carbon and water footprint is just not a requirement but a necessity to remain cost competitive, environmentally responsible and taking part into the nation’s commitment on GHG emission and removal. For more information the author can be contacted at solarpost@solarpost.in