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| [PHOTO: Mohri UN-CECAR / CC BY 2.0] |
"The livelihoods
of more than 200 million people in these five countries are threatened by the
rapid loss of snow cover in the Himalayas and rising sea levels,” said Mahfuz
Ahmed, Principal Climate Change Specialist with ADB’s South Asia Department.
“It is possible to slash greenhouse gas emissions through big and small changes
that would have little or no long-term cost to the end users.”
Annual energy-related
greenhouse gas emissions in the five countries are together set to rise from 58
million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2005 to 245 million in 2030,
according to The Economics of Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions in South Asia.
It shows primary energy use in the five South Asian nations
by 2030 is likely to be almost 3,600 petajoules, 2.4 times higher than in 2005,
largely due to rising consumption from industry and transport.
Clean, low-cost
technologies include replacing fossil fuel generation with renewable or cleaner
energy such as solid waste or gas; upgrading to more fuel-efficient technology;
or using greener products, such as solar cookstoves, electric or more efficient
diesel vehicles, or biodiesel fishing vessels. The introduction of these large
and small-scale green technologies costing up to $10 per ton of greenhouse
house gas emissions could cut 27.9 million tons – or 20% – off of 2020’s
projected energy-related annual
emissions of 125.5 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent.
To do that, however,
countries must overcome a number of challenges, including making sure
information, financing, and incentives are available to encourage users to
shift to cleaner technologies. Direct and indirect fuel subsidies should be
phased out or made more targeted, the study says. Meanwhile, ministries and
countries should work more closely together to better plan and develop
cross-border energy markets and promote green development.
In addition,
introducing a carbon tax that rises along with the global carbon price could slash
greenhouse gas emissions by a fifth in 2030 in the five countries.
India, the biggest
energy consumer and largest generator of greenhouse gases in the region, though
not covered by the study, will increase its energy consumption to about 63,000
petajoules in 2030, an increase of more than five times from 2005, the study
says.