CO2 emission. Rapid urbanisation pose serious threat to Chennai’s environment

Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) researchers predict Chennai could cumulatively emit over 231.9 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) by 2040 from the construction and building operations alone, owing to rapid urbanisation.

The researchers suggest switching to renewable sources of energy for buildings’ operational requirements, a key driver to reduce emissions.

The study was conducted by a team of researchers from the Centre for Technologies for Low Carbon and Lean Construction, IIT Madras, and the Indo-German Centre for Sustainability (IGCS), comprising Ashwin Mahalingam, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Madras, and Pokhraj Nayak, a former student of the institute.

Rapid urbanisation is likely to lead to an increase in built stock across the country. In India, the building industry accounts for a quarter of total CO₂ emissions. This is primarily due to the emissions from raw material production such as cement and seel, their transportation, and the energy used during building operations, says a release.

For the first phase of the study, the researchers used geo-spatial land models developed by The Nature Conservancy - a global environmental non-profit organisation and used simulation techniques to develop a futuristic map of Chennai in 2040 taking into account the past trends and future constraints.

The model showed an increase in urban built-up areas is accompanied by decrease in water tables and wetlands.

The researchers found that the single-largest contributor to reduce emissions is to change the energy source. The clean energy usage in 50 per cent of a building’s operational needs is likely to result in a corresponding reduction in cumulative CO₂ emissions of up to 115 million tonnes between 2019 and 2040. Replacing traditional cement with low carbon cement had a lower impact in reducing emissions, the release added.

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