Tamil Nadu minister launches ‘Carbon neutral Coimbatore project’, first in state

In her speech she also mentioned the dire need for officials to come out with action plans for the district.
TN Minister for Environment and Climate Change Siva V Meyyanathan launching the 'Carbon neutral Coimbatore' project in Coimbatore on Saturday
TN Minister for Environment and Climate Change Siva V Meyyanathan launching the 'Carbon neutral Coimbatore' project in Coimbatore on Saturday

COIMBATORE: In a first in the state, TN Minister for Environment and Climate Change Siva V Meyyanathan launched the 'Carbon neutral Coimbatore' project in the city on Saturday and said that Coimbatore will be carbon neutral by 2050.

Photo | Twitter
Photo | Twitter

A workshop was held in this regard in the presence of Coimbatore MP PR Natarajan, Supriya Sahu Additional Chief Secretary Environment, Climate Change and Forest Department and Coimbatore district Collector Kranthi Kumar Pati, who is the visionary director of this project.  

The minister released a climate change glossary and inaugurated a meendum manjapai (yellow cloth bag) ATM in the city.

"We will take steps to reduce carbon emissions and increase the green cover by planting more saplings in reserve sites and promoting the public to use electric vehicles instead of using fuel-based vehicles apart from protecting wetlands across the city," the minister said.

 "A total of 3,344 industries are functioning across Coimbatore district under which 584 industries come under the red category, 1964 are under orange category and remaining 794 are listed under green category. Each industry in the red category should plant a minimum of 100 saplings and at the same time we will be able to control 10% carbon emission if all the industries plant trees," he said.

"Over 2.85 crore tree saplings were planted across the state, in which 10 lakh saplings were planted in Coimbatore district alone and steps are being taken to increase the number. We are heading towards planting 10 crore tree saplings this year with the help of other departments. We are concentrating on planting of native trees such as Banyan, Peepal Tree, Pungan and Neem as they will emit more Oxygen in a year," he added.

Reacting to the allegation that quarries are using excessive explosive materials, the minister assured that he has instructed the officials to carry out an inspection and take action if they are violating norms.

Supriya Sahu said that a Greenhouse Gas (GHG) inventory will be developed for the district in the next four months. She also said that a climate committee will be formed in the district comprising of Government officials and changemakers from the district. In her speech, she also mentioned the dire need for officials to come out with action plans for the district.

"Coimbatore is best suited to take a leap towards carbon neutrality as it is a hub for biodiversity. It is also a leader in the knowledge sector thanks to the IT sector and several higher educational institutions," she further said.

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