Awareness Program on Environment Clearance Certificate and its significance in Construction sector held

Hyderabad, April 1 2023: The Federation of Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry organized an Awareness Program on Environment Clearance Certificate and its significance in the Construction sector held on Saturday at FTCCI in Red Hills.

Construction projects above 20,000 sqm of the built-up area need Environmental Clearance, said Prof Krishna Reddy, Chairman, TS-SEAC (State Expert Appraisal Committee), TSPCB (Telangana Pollution Control Board).  

Explaining why the Construction Sector is made accountable, Prof Krishna Reddy mentioned that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) construction and building sector is responsible for approximately 39% of global energy-related carbon dioxide emissions.  In India, the construction sector is estimated to contribute to about 8% of the country’s total greenhouse gas emissions.

The construction sector, which is a consumer of cement, is responsible for around 8% of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions.

Y. Maheshwara Reddy, Managing Director of Pioneer Enviro Consultants Pvt. Ltd spoke about Environmental Clearance and its significance in the construction sector. Environmental Clearance is approval that needs to be obtained for any developmental projects listed in the Schedule of EIA Notification, 2006. The main purpose of getting an Environmental Clearance is to assess the impacts of the proposed development project on the environment and people and take appropriate measures to mitigate the impacts.  

The construction industry in India is expected to reach $ 1.4 Trillion (Rs 115 lakh crores approximately) by 2025.  Real estate demand is set to increase by 15-18 million sq. ft by 2025 across major cities.  

According to new research by the construction blog Bimhow, the construction sector accounts for 23% of air pollution, 50% of climate change, 40% of drinking water pollution and 50% of landfill waste.

The construction industry accounts for 40% of worldwide energy usage.
  

Dr Vijaya Lakshmi Thatiparthi, Associate Professor & Head of the Department, Centre for Environment, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Hyderabad delivered a special address.  She gave the list of areas where Geo-Spatial Technology can be used in areas such as City LandScape, Integrated Land Use, Green Built Environment, Rain Water Harvesting etc and others.  She also explained the benefits of UAVs in Construction.  

Some of the benefits of GIS are that it can transform extensive data into detailed 3D maps of different locations, Dr Vijaya Lakshmi said. This allows data from sources like satellites to be mapped, helping civil engineers much better understand the location they will work on she added

Anil Agarwal, President of FTCCI said, if KBR Park is not protected it would have become a concrete jungle.  Be mindful of your activities, he said.