Ricardo to help improve emissions standards in India

Ricardo UK has provided recommendations to strengthen India’s industrial emissions standards, reduce the country’s emissions and improve ambient air quality.

Ricardo’s findings aim to support the government of India to develop a robust approach to emissions standard setting

The recommendations are part of new research produced by Ricardo, in collaboration with the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) and the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), and supported by the Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation.

A series of interviews were undertaken with key stakeholders at all levels of government, industry and NGOs and a stakeholder workshop was held to disseminate and discuss the findings of the work.

The report identified four critical challenges to establishing consistent and effective emissions standard setting in India — limited resources in relevant government Agencies, a lack of clarity of the process for setting standards, limited stakeholder engagement and, in some instances, gaps in the underlying evidence base — and provides practical recommendations to overcome them.

The findings aim to support the government of India to develop a robust approach to emissions standard setting as part of its goal to mitigate industrial emissions, improve compliance with national ambient air quality standards and ultimately safeguard the health of the population.

Growing economy

Ben Grebot, Ricardo Energy & Environment technical business manager, said: “India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Robust, evidence based emissions standards are essential to underpin this growth while meeting the country’s long term commitments to sustainable national development.

“I am confident that the findings of the study and resulting recommendations can add real value, helping to lay out a roadmap to strengthen the process by increasing institutional capacity, creating a more transparent process, building on a strong evidence base and enabling productive engagement with key stakeholders”.

Ricardo has over 130 air quality experts active globally. The company works with public sector bodies, NGOs, regional utility companies and international donors in India and worldwide.

Related links

A Review of the Process for Setting Industry-Specific Emission Standards in India — Ricardo