Tanneries seek to reduce their environmental footprint; switching to solar power in the Himalayas, what could happen if crude oil one day runs out, and why millet is making a comeback.
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00:00Clean up. Sure, but what? Everything, from our food consumption, to our power sources,
00:20to our transport, all of this causes waste and pollution. So we could definitely do with
00:27some better cleaning up. Hello and welcome. I'm Sadhika Tiwari, and you're watching
00:32Eco India. Our environment is becoming increasingly unlivable and polluted. So we need to fix
00:39that, sure. But we also need to take steps to prevent these problems from happening in
00:45the first place. So let's dive into today's episode and take a look at some of the ways
00:50this can be done. From the shoes we wear, to the bags that we carry our belongings in,
00:56we have become heavily reliant on leather to do all of this. However, the processes
01:01used to make these goods take a toll on both the environment and the health of the workers
01:07and the locals. So what can be done? Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur is known as the city of leather
01:13and some businesses here are looking for ways to clean up. Sunita needs clean water, but
01:20she knows that all too often the local water supply is contaminated. Sometimes the water
01:26seems clean, but more often it comes out dirty, even green at times, and sometimes it smells
01:32strongly of sewage. People here are always falling sick with coughs, fevers and illnesses
01:37that never seem to go away. People always have to take medicines. Rakhi Mandi is a district
01:43in the city of Kanpur in central Uttar Pradesh, the heart of India's leather industry. Toxic
01:49chromium sludge is dumped in landfills where it contaminates the groundwater, posing a
01:54health risk to the local population. Leather production is a dirty business. Animal hides
01:59are treated with chromium salts to make them durable. Chromium salt is a salt of hydrochloric
02:05acid which is corrosive. The production process uses high quantities of this heavy metal.
02:17A fifth of India's leather production comes from this region. There are hundreds of tanneries
02:23in this area alone and they don't just pollute the groundwater. Some tanneries dump their
02:28toxic waste directly in the river Ganges, deliberately. This is thought to be the best
02:33solution. Unfortunately, the growth of this industry around the world has been in and
02:45around the river bodies because this was considered to be one of the largest water consuming industries
02:50of all times. So over a period of time, the concept was that dilution is the best means
02:56of taking care of your pollution and discharge it into the river and it will get diluted.
03:02But with the population increase, what has happened is that the river contamination has
03:08ended up contaminating our drinking water systems.
03:12Every day the workers here put their health at risk. They often work without any protection.
03:17Contact with chromium 3 chloride, the scientific name for chromium salt, can result in skin
03:23rashes, itching and respiratory problems. 31-year-old Vasudali has been working with
03:28the toxic tanning agents for half his life.
03:41The salt makes the skin on our hands blister. Look at these burns. We have to work without
03:46safety gear and even small injuries can lead to serious infections. A friend of mine died
03:51recently. He worked with lime. Over time it damaged his lungs. Doctors said he developed
03:58a liver problem too.
04:05The city of Annau is an hour's drive away. The tannery on the banks of the Ganges has
04:10been operating for 30 years. Managing director Taj Alam is trying to make production more
04:15environmentally friendly. Meat scraps from the leather are sold to pharmaceutical and
04:20cosmetic companies to use in gelatin production. Here particles from the animal skins are used
04:26to make manure. The machine that separates all the substances is highly efficient.
04:34This machine known as lime water recycling machine that recycles and reuses water, lime
04:41water for relining purposes. So we save about 600 Kg of water per annum by doing this.
04:53He has also dispensed with toxic chrome salt and other metals in the tanning process and
04:58only produces vegetable tanned leather.
05:03So we use tanning extracts from trees like cobracho and mimosa, chestnut, cambier. There
05:09are different extracts that come directly from the tree. They are treated by chemical
05:13companies. Most of them come from South America. So overall the quality of leather is enhanced.
05:21The disadvantage is that natural tanning agents are much more expensive than chromium. Tanneries
05:26in Kanpur are now also obliged to recycle waste water. Taj Alam joined forces with other
05:32local tanneries to set up a waste water treatment plant with the aim of making 80% reusable.
05:39This is our upgraded form of effluent treatment plant. It is a primary plant and after the
05:49primary treatment we do the electro oxidation and electro coagulation that further reduces
05:58the organic load of the pollutants in the effluent and then it is discharged to common
06:05effluent treatment plant which is about 2 km away from here through the underground
06:10conveyance system.
06:13The government wants tanneries to become more environmentally friendly but this means these
06:17businesses have to produce much less than they could otherwise they risk fines.
06:24Back to the many small tanneries on the outskirt of Kanpur. A state sponsored sewage treatment
06:29plant for tanneries has just begun operating here. Now the waste water goes through a purification
06:34process before it reaches the Ganges.
06:44The unique aspect of this project is that the chrome which used to mix with the effluent
06:49is now separated within the tannery itself. It is then sent to a separate plant via tankers
06:57and this plant houses India's largest chromium recovery unit with a capacity of 900 KLD.
07:07The Indian government is investing millions in making the leather industry more sustainable
07:12but many small tanneries have given up, unable to raise the necessary financial investment
07:18and because they can't afford to work below capacity.
07:24Yet another major source of pollution is the energy that we consume and half of this need
07:30in India at least is met through coal which when burned contributes hugely to greenhouse
07:35gas emissions that cause climate change. However, India is also one of the largest producers
07:41of a rapidly growing clean energy source тАУ solar. Let's head to the northern region
07:47of Ladakh which is known for its white desert and mountains to see how even remote areas
07:53are benefiting from solar rooftops.
07:58Business is booming for renewable energy entrepreneur Navang Tenlas. His many employees have their
08:04hands full. Solar power is in growing demand in the Union Territory of Ladakh. For the
08:09last two years, the government in Delhi has been subsidising solar power systems for home
08:14owners across the country. Now, they state support from the Ladakh government as well.
08:24I started installing the units around 20 days ago. Since then I have installed 13 rooftop
08:29units. I am getting a lot of enquiries from customers.
08:38Owners such as home owner Abdul Ghafoor. He bought his rooftop solar power system with
08:43the help of a subsidy of 55,000 rupees, the equivalent of almost 600 euros, around a tenth
08:50of the total costs. Switching to green energy was important to him but in the long run the
08:57system is going to save him money as well.
09:06For example, if we get 6 hours of sunlight during the day, the rooftop solar power unit
09:11generates electricity. All our appliances run on solar power. In the evening we use
09:18electricity from the grid. Any surplus electricity generated by the solar rooftop unit is fed
09:24into the grid. We will have no electricity bills because the grid power and solar power
09:29offset each other.
09:40Ladakh is also known as the roof of the world. Even the valleys here are more than 3000 metres
09:45above sea level. Villages are few and far between. The region, including the capital
09:51Leh, is home to a population of just 300,000. The village of Somdo, almost 200 km from Leh,
10:02is located on the shores of Lake Muriri. In the past people here relied on diesel generators
10:09and wood burning stoves. Now their energy needs are met by this solar plant. It was
10:15paid for by the government but locals take care of maintenance themselves. Today its
10:20Dolma Chering's turn. The 38-year-old mother, who runs a restaurant, spent a week learning
10:26how to repair cables and maintain batteries. She says the system has benefited the village
10:31hugely.
10:38Solar power has been a huge help, especially at night. It's clean, it doesn't cause pollution
10:44and it's good for the environment. There are 13 houses here and around 70 people living
10:49in the village and solar power benefits all of them.
10:58In just two years' time, the Indian government plans to have increased the country's solar
11:03capacity to a total of 40 gigawatts. Only around a quarter of this has been installed
11:08so far. But here in Ladakh, many schools, hospitals and waste incineration plants are
11:14already running on solar energy. And farmers throughout the region have long been helping
11:20secure their livelihoods by using solar power in their irrigation systems.
11:29Entrepreneur Konchok Norgay has made his home completely energy efficient. He's been using
11:34a solar panel system for the last 15 years, which he installed with the help of a state
11:39subsidy. But that was not the only reason he opted for solar energy.
12:08The polluting effect is even worse up here in the mountains where the air is so thin.
12:13What with the new subsidies, it's never been easier to switch to solar energy. The government
12:18wants to subsidise solar power units in up to 10 million private homes over the next
12:23few years. Ladakh gets some 300 days of sunshine a year. Entrepreneur Navang Tinlaz believes
12:31the support is a huge opportunity.
12:52According to the Indian Public Policy Think Tank, the Council on Energy, Environment and
12:56Water, over 250 million households across the country have solar energy capacity on
13:03rooftops.
13:04Let's now move to a more traditional source of energy, oil. While the world once worried
13:11that we might run out of this black gold, countries now all over the world have pledged
13:18to move away from fossil fuels. However, the demand for oil continues to rise. So till
13:25how long will this be the case and when will things actually change?
13:31In 1956, a geoscientist for Shell and professor at Stanford projected that global oil production
13:36would peak around the year 2000. This came as a huge shock at a time when oil was driving
13:41more and more of the economy. Some people thought it would mean a global financial crisis
13:46and others a full on apocalypse. There was talk of high prices for food and fuel supposed
13:51to impact agriculture and electricity. But none of this ever happened. The supply problems
13:57that everyone freaked out about never came. So what did happen? And should we be worried
14:02about running out of oil?
14:04First, looking at this question now is completely different from decades ago, because there
14:09have been huge changes in our lives. In the early 2000s, we weren't really thinking about
14:14life without fossil fuels. Electric vehicles were nearly unheard of. So an end of our oil
14:19supply seemed like an existential crisis for the planet. With growing awareness of climate
14:24change, renewables have taken off and the amount of them in the mix has grown hugely.
14:29It's now cheaper to generate electricity from solar and wind than from fossil fuels.
14:34There's also way more attention on electric vehicles. 14% of new vehicles sold globally
14:39in 2022 were electric, compared to just 5% in 2020. Even the United States and China,
14:46two huge polluters, are making hefty investments into green technology. And something pretty
14:50special happened in 2023.
14:53When we're looking at renewables investment, which clearly has been growing rapidly, and
14:56in 2022 met that from fossil fuel and 2023 far exceeded it.
15:01Mike Coffin used to work for BP and now researches how markets align with climate policy.
15:05Clearly that gap is only set to widen.
15:08While not much would move without fossil fuels, and oil in particular, the future of renewables
15:12is looking brighter and brighter. And that has made the end of oil take on a whole new
15:16meaning.
15:17If you go back to say about 15 to 20 years back, there was a concern that oil supply
15:22is going to peak, we're going to run out of oil.
15:25Atul Arya is an engineer and Standard & Poor's chief energy strategist.
15:29Now the concern is somewhat different, which is that we're going to hit a peak or a plateau
15:33in demand.
15:35This is a really huge shift. In October 2023, the International Energy Agency published
15:40a report predicting the end of oil and other fossil fuels.
15:43Only this time, the end is a peak in demand, not supply.
15:46And it's predicted to come in 2030.
15:49High demand and low supply means a high price.
15:53Low demand and high supply means a low price.
15:56Oil executives around the world were up in arms over the report.
16:00Because less demand with the same amount of supply would mean falling prices for fossil
16:04fuels and less profit for the industry.
16:07This is a big deal, since demand for oil has been growing every year except 2020 when
16:11COVID hit.
16:12This wouldn't mean that we wouldn't use fossil fuels anymore, rather that it would
16:16become much harder to justify new fossil fuel projects.
16:20Because our supply of fossil fuels is doing great.
16:22We're not running out of oil, and probably not going to run out of oil.
16:26Based on the current reserves, we have about 40 years of oil.
16:31And that doesn't even count all the new planned projects.
16:33This is mostly thanks to a newish technology called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
16:38Fracking is a process that involves injecting a slushy of water and chemicals into rock,
16:42creating tons of tiny cracks.
16:44This allows oil and gas to escape and be collected at the surface.
16:47The wastewater is then often injected deep underground, which can contaminate the local
16:52environment and cause earthquakes.
16:54Fracking took off in the United States in the early 2000s, and the country now produces
16:57more oil per year than any other nation in the world.
17:00So much that it's affecting other countries.
17:02Like Saudi Arabia, or UAE, or Kuwait.
17:07And actually right now, because of so much oversupply in the market, they are producing
17:12a lot less than what they can produce.
17:15So on the one hand we might have an oversupply of oil, and on the other, plateauing demand.
17:20Also investors turning away from fossil fuels.
17:22But oil companies are used to expanding.
17:24And major oil producers like Shell, Exxon, and Total Energies are all still betting on
17:29rising demand.
17:30Data suggested that all companies, I think except maybe BP, were increasing their oil
17:35production.
17:36Faye Holder is the lead researcher on a report that investigated oil companies' communication
17:40and claims.
17:41Total Energies stated it was forecast to spend 25% of its capex for 2022 in renewables and
17:51electricity.
17:52But when you look at what that includes, it also includes some kind of gas-fired power.
17:56They may seem like they're shifting towards renewables, but they are actually still banking
18:00on a fossil fuel future.
18:03The business operations aren't changing particularly or at the pace needed.
18:06They're also lobbying against policies that would force that change or bring it about
18:11quicker.
18:12But at the same time promoting this very public narrative that they are doing all they can.
18:16State-owned oil companies like Russian Rosneft and Saudi Aramco are also betting on future
18:20money from fossil fuels, even though projects approved now may never be profitable.
18:25New sites take years to build up infrastructure and to get ready for drilling.
18:29In financial terms, they might become stranded assets, something that was invested in but
18:33became obsolete.
18:34For some countries, 30 to 40% of entire fiscal budget could be at risk as the transition
18:39unfolds or when oil prices fall.
18:41That's going to have a massive impact on the economies of these countries and crucially
18:44on living standards for those in these countries.
18:47And that impact could also hit individual citizens directly.
18:50Many pension funds around the world are invested in oil and gas.
18:53If these companies fail spectacularly, millions of people could be plunged into financial
18:58insecurity in their old age.
19:01So faced with the end of oil, it seems like investing in renewables is the smart financial
19:05decision.
19:06They're cheaper, and there's less risk of new projects becoming stranded and unprofitable
19:10in the future.
19:11So all of that is going to help us move away from oil, but it's not going to be overnight.
19:19Because according to all predictions, we're going to continue to need fossil fuels for
19:22a while.
19:23They're used as a backup power when wind and solar aren't running.
19:27And widespread nuclear isn't likely to come online in time.
19:30Transport and energy storage also need to improve for us to be able to equip them entirely.
19:35But the more investment goes in, the more renewables improve.
19:38And we desperately need that to keep existing on this planet.
19:43But we are on the way.
19:44It's no longer a question of if, but when.
19:47Instead of being concerned about an end to our oil supply, we should be worried about
19:50pumping too much of it.
19:52With falling demand and a world shifting to renewables, it's not a smart decision, either
19:56financially or for our life on this planet.
20:00Think of grains and it'll probably be wheat or rice that spring to mind.
20:05But these weren't always the crops that farmers relied on.
20:09The market share of millets shrank over the years as more commercially viable crops kind
20:14of took over.
20:15But now this grain is making a comeback.
20:19The good news is they're good to eat and good to grow.
20:22Now what is motivating farmers to reconsider millets?
20:26Is it just the market or something else?
20:29Ice cream, a tasty combination of dairy and sugar.
20:35But not this one.
20:37This one is made from millets.
20:40Millets are the grandfathers of modern day crops like wheat and corn.
20:44They are very diverse.
20:46This is barnyard millet, red grade sorghum millet, foxtail millet, and this is kodo
20:56millet, which is mostly farmed in this region.
21:02In the last 40 years, millets have really reduced.
21:07And in this region, cotton and maize crops have completely taken over and made the farmers
21:13rely heavily on the market.
21:21Farmer Saravanan Karunanidhi wants to change this and bring millets back.
21:26Not only can they be more reliable crops over the long term, but millets are also better
21:31for the soil, use less water, and are more nutritious overall.
21:36He started a cooperative called Namalwar Organic Millet Farmers Producer Organization to support
21:42those that believe in the message and want to make the transition.
21:46Our motto is that all the farmers should switch to millet farming and nutritious food should
21:51reach people.
21:52So initially we asked seven farmers to implement millet farming in five and a half acres.
21:57Today we are doing it in 100 acres.
22:00At first, we used to organize meetings at various villages to create awareness, but
22:05today the farmers are volunteering themselves.
22:10We visited a farm in the process of transition with Saravanan.
22:14This farm, like many others, had great yields of cash crops when the rain was good, but
22:19suffered when it wasn't.
22:21As rains get more erratic, the farmer Banumathi wanted to change to something more stable,
22:27even if that meant no bounties in good years.
22:32This is irungu corn.
22:33We have farmed it in this entire field.
22:36We can use this as our daily food as it is very nutritious.
22:41Also, we are feeding the cow which yields more milk.
22:44When we harvest, we also grind the corn.
22:47We can prepare rice, upma, pongal and all varieties of food.
22:54Everyone can eat it, young and old, and it's healthy for everyone.
22:58This time, we ground out millets and made Diwali sweets and snacks like murukku and
23:03laddu all by ourselves.
23:07Banumathi and other women farmers work together and sell their products directly to the co-operative,
23:13who then package it and sell it to final consumers in various cities.
23:17They are seeing success as millets are becoming more popular in urban areas.
23:26Since we work, it is quite hard for us to process and prepare millets.
23:33But these kinds of millet flowers make breakfast much easier and give us the satisfaction of
23:39feeding healthy foods to our children.
23:45Many customers said they are willing to pay a premium for this grain.
23:49The UN declared 2023 the year of the millet.
23:52But there is a long way to go before they can prove to be economically stable for farmers.
23:57They still do not compare to bounty cash crops, which can earn a farmer four times more in a year.
24:02But it's the other benefits that has some farmers hooked.
24:10Millets are considered to be climate resilient crops, and they hold an important place in
24:16long-term food security, according to UNO and other organizations.
24:21So, millets are capable of fulfilling the food demand and supply issues long-term.
24:26And since it is a food enriched with nutrients, it can help to eradicate nutritional deficiencies in people.
24:36Farmers are ready to do millet farming if they get good support from the government.
24:43Farmers in the region are going back to traditional ways to deal with the future.
24:48If this works out, millets will make a comeback.
24:51Farmers will likely have more reliable crops, and consumers will have a better chance at eating and staying healthy.
25:00How we power our homes and what do we add to our plates, all of this needs to evolve.
25:07How we power our homes and what do we add to our plates, all of this needs to evolve.
25:12To keep up with the changing needs of these changing times.
25:16Let me know what you think and what would you like to see more of on our show.
25:20You can email us or reach out to me directly on my social media handles.
25:25I will see you next week. Until then, take care. Goodbye. Namaskar.
25:36For more information visit www.fema.gov