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 COMPILED NOTES
Impact of Coal Mining on Climate
Change & Different Forest Types in
India
PREPARED BY-
Dr. Rajiv Kumar Garg, IFS
Advisor (Environment & Forests)
Coal India Limited

www.MINEPORTAL.in
 OUTLINE
Introduction
Role of coal in Indian economy
Climate change & its impact on forests
Fugitive methane emissions in coal mining
Impact of coal mining on land
Impact of coal mining on forests
Issues & challenges
Way forward
Conclusion

4
 INTRODUCTION
Coal a fossil fuel is far more plentiful
than oil or gas, with around 109 years
of coal remaining worldwide
Coal provides not only electricity, it is
also an essential fuel for steel and
cement production, and other
industrial activities
The largest coal producing countries
are not confined to one region - the
top five coal producers are China,
USA, India, Australia and South Africa
Much of global coal production is
used in the country in which it is
produced; only around 15% of coal
production is destined for the
international coal market 5
INTRODUCTION.

Coal alone
accounts for
more than 50%
of the total on-
grid additions of
electricity
(World Energy
Outlook)

In 2035 there will still be one billion people without

access to electricity and 2.7 billion without access to
clean cooking fuels
6
 ROLE OF COAL IN INDIAN ECONOMY
Around 69% of India's power
generation is coal based
Even under a least coal usage
scenario, coal will supply more
than 40% of the primary
commercial energy in 2031-32
It is the most abundantly
domestically available fossil
fuel, while about 80% of oil has
to be imported
A total of 293.50 billion tons
(BT) of geological resources of
coal has been estimated in the
country (8% of the global coal
reserve)
7
ROLE OF COAL IN INDIAN ECONOMY.

Coal is viewed as a key

element in increasing
energy access in India,
as over a quarter of the
country does not have
access to electricity
Coal will remain the
cheapest source of
electricity for at least
another two decades
CAGR for Indian coal
production has been
estimated at 5%-6% in
medium term
ROLE OF COAL IN INDIAN ECONOMY.
Demand supply gap is
200 MT, India imported
168 MT of coal (2012-13)
Demand supply gap for
coking coal is 34 MT
India is the 2nd largest
producer of cement in
the world, coal shortage
affects cement industry
Cost of imported coal is
twice as compared to
domestic coal
Coal import is 3rd largest
consumer of foreign
exchange (US$ 22 billion
in 2012-13, 20% increase
in 2013-14)
ROLE OF COAL IN INDIAN ECONOMY.

For the next 20 years, with CAGR of 5%, expected production

of coal in India
2013-14 615.00 MT
2016-17 711.94 MT (target 715 MT)
2021-22 908.64 MT (target 950 MT)
2032-33 1554.07 MT
1800.00
1600.00
1400.00
1200.00
1000.00
800.00
600.00
400.00
200.00
0.00

Expected Coal Production (MT)

 CLIMATE CHANGE & ITS IMPACT ON FORESTS

UNFCCC has estimated Contribution to GHG Emission

that GHG emission from 37% 38%

fossil fuels and other

sources 25%

Oil and gas 37%

Coal 25%
Rest 38%
Forests are highly sensitive
to climate change, this has Oil and gas Coal Rest

been shown by
observations from the
past, experimental studies
& simulation models
11
CLIMATE CHANGE & ITS IMPACT ON FORESTS.

Sustained increases of as little as 1C in mean annual air

temperature can be sufficient to cause changes
In the growth and regeneration capacity of many tree species
It can cause forest cover to disappear completely
Slow growing species, such as late successional species will
be replaced by faster-growing, highly adaptable or more
mobile species
Forced by a doubled carbon dioxide climate, large forested
areas will have to change from the current to new major
vegetation types
Forests will be adversely impacted because of pests &
pathogens, and increasing frequency & intensity of fires
Large amounts of carbon may be released into the
atmosphere as forests change in response to a changing
climate and before new forests replace the former
12
 THE CHALLENGE
Achieving energy security which is needed not only for higher GDP
growth but also for assuring inclusive growth to all her citizens and
ensuring environmental security. Coal meets not only commercial
energy needs but also ensures lesser dependency on nearby forest
areas for collection of firewood
Coal mining and coal consumption are environment unfriendly.
There are negative social impacts as well, such as displacement and
lost livelihoods
Coal usage in India also has impacts beyond India. In 2011, though
Indias annual per-capita CO2 emissions at 1.6 tons was considerably
lower than the global average of 4.9 tons, India was the worlds third
largest emitter of CO2 with 1,970 million tons. Of this, coal usage
contributed about 970 million tons, or about 49.24% of India CO2
emissions
India needs coal but coal mining and subsequent usages of coal has
adverse impact on climate which may risk various forest types

13
 FUGITIVE METHANE EMISSION IN COAL MINING

Fugitive emissions are unintended emissions, including

both carbon dioxide and methane that arise during the
production, processing, transportation, storage and
distribution of coal
Previously trapped methane and carbon dioxide gases
are released into the atmosphere as coal seams are
mined. The level of fugitive emissions from coal mines
varies from mine to mine
Estimation of fugitive methane from Indian coal mines
Open cut coal mining and coal handling 1.33 m3 / ton
Underground coal mining and coal handling 15.30 m3 /
ton
14
FUGITIVE METHANE EMISSION IN COAL MINING.

It is estimated that emission of fugitive methane will rise

1376.75 million m3 in 2013-14 to
2625.71 million m3 in 2032-33
Due to low concentration of methane gas, mitigation is
currently a costly option for the coal mining industry

3000.00

2500.00

2000.00
Fugitive Methane Emission from Open
Cut Mines (million m3)
1500.00
Fugitive Methane Emission from Under
1000.00 Ground Mines (million m3)
Total Fugitive Methane Emission from
500.00 Coal Mining (million m3)

0.00
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
2018-19
2019-20
2020-21
2021-22
2022-23
2023-24
2024-25
2025-26
2026-27
2027-28
2028-29
2029-30
2030-31
2031-32
2032-33

15
 IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON LAND
Coal bearing areas span
over both forest as well
as non-forest lands
Forest lands 27.10 %
Non-forest lands 72.90% Forest lands
Non-forest lands

455.58 ha of land is
needed for producing
1 MT of coal
Forest lands 123.47 ha
Non-forest lands 332.11 ha

16
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON LAND.

2013-14, land under coal production

Forest lands 75,934 ha
Non-forest lands 204,248 ha
2032-33, land under coal production
Forest lands 191,881 ha
Non-forest lands 516,122 ha
800000
700000
600000
500000
400000
Non-forest Land (ha)
300000
Forest Land (ha)
200000
100000
0

17
 IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS
Coal is mined in 14
States of India
More than 98.50% coal
comes from 8 States
Chhattisgarh (21.05%)
Jharkhand (20.22%)
Odisha (19.60%)
Madhya Pradesh (13.48%)
Andhra Pradesh (9.60%)
Maharashtra (7.45%)
West Bengal (4.30%)
Uttar Pradesh (2.85%)

18
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.

Coal is present below all the 16

Forest Type Groups
10 Forest Type Groups are present
in 8 major coal producing States
Group 2 Tropical Semi-Evergreen
Forests
Group 3 Tropical Moist Deciduous
Forests
Group 4 Littoral & Swamp Forests
Group 5 Tropical Dry Deciduous
Forests
Group 6 Tropical Thorn Forests
Group 7 Tropical Dry Evergreen
Forests
Group 8 Subtropical Broadleaved Hill
Forests
Group 11 Montane Wet Temperate
Forests
Group 12 Himalayan Moist
Temperate Forests
Group 14 Sub-Alpine Scrub
19
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.

Major Forest Type Groups affected by coal production and

their percentage

Group 2 Tropical Semi-Evergreen Forests 0.85

Group 3 Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests 23.64
Group 4 Littoral & Swamp Forests 0.97
Group 5 Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests 69.50
Group 6 Tropical Thorn Forests 0.69
Group 7 Tropical Dry Evergreen Forests 0.09
Group 8 Subtropical Broadleaved Hill Forests 0.24
Group 11 Montane Wet Temperate Forests 0.07
Group 12 Himalayan Moist Temperate Forests 0.10
ToF / Plantations 3.85
Total 100.00
20
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.

Major Forest Type Groups affected by coal production and

their percentage
ToF / Plantations

Himalayan Moist Temperate Forests

Montane Wet Temperate Forests

Subtropical Broadleaved Hill Forests

Tropical Dry Evergreen Forests

Tropical Thorn Forests %

Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests

Littoral & Swamp Forests

Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests

Tropical Semi-Evergreen Forests

0.00 10.00 20.00 30.00 40.00 50.00 60.00 70.00 80.00

21
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.

Most vulnerable 140000

Forest Type Group-5 (Tropical
Dry Deciduous Forests) 120000

Second most vulnerable 100000

Forest Type Group-3 (Tropical 80000

Tropical Dry
Deciduous
Moist Deciduous Forests) Forests

60000 Tropical Moist

From 2013-14 to 2032-33 Deciduous
Forests

Coal mining in Tropical Dry 40000

Deciduous Forests will increase 20000

from 52,011 ha to 131,428 ha
Coal mining in Tropical Moist
0
2013-14 2032-33

Deciduous Forests will increase

from 17,689 ha to 44,700 ha

22
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.

Group Forest Type % Sq Km

Group 3 Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests 19.73% 136537
Group 5 Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests 41.87% 289752
Tropical Dry Deciduous Forests
Presently 0.18 % is under coal
mining which will increase to 0.45%
over a period of next 2 decades

Tropical Moist Deciduous Forests

Presently 0.13 % is under coal
mining which will increase to 0.33%
over a period of next 2 decades
23
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.

Provision for diversion of forest land for

CPSUs provide funds to SFD for carrying out plantation over double
the degraded forest land
Non-CPSUs make available equivalent non-forest land & funds to SFD
for carrying out plantation
Coal production mix
CPSUs 85%
Non-CPSUs 15%
Apart from above mentioned provision, coal companies also
carry out plantations on their own
On an average over 27.56% of mine lease area is planted by
coal companies on their own

24
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.

Impacts due to coal mining over forests & non-forest

lands

Losses
Forest lands are lost to coal mining

Gains
Non-forest lands along with funds are made available
to SFDs for carrying out afforestation
Density improvement over degraded forest lands is
done
Coal companies create plantations over mined out
areas
25
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.

From 2013-14 to 2032-33

Loss of forest land will increase from a present level of
75,934 ha to 191,881 ha
Availability of non-forest land for developing and declaring
forest lands will increase from the present level of 11,390
ha to 28,782 ha
Opportunities for improving density over degraded forest
lands will increase from the present level of 129,088 ha to
326,198 ha
Plantations carried out by coal companies should also
increase from the present level of 77,218 ha to 195,126 ha
Coal companies have the potential to create plantations
over land areas more than the diverted forest lands
26
IMPACT OF COAL MINING ON FORESTS.
400000

300000

200000

Forest Land Converted to Coal Mines (ha)

100000 Afforestation over Non-forest Lands (ha)

Density Improvement Over Degraded Forest

0 Lands (ha)
Afforestation by Coal Companies (ha)

-100000

-200000

-300000

27
 ISSUES & CHALLENGES
Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980
Forest Rights Act, 2006
The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land
Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013
Poor utilization of funds & poor survival of plantations
SFDs
Coal companies
Plantation vis--vis eco-restoration (replacement of same
Forest Type Group)
Involvement of local communities in creating and managing
plantations

28
 WAY FORWARD
Ground realities
Indias dependency on coal is going to increase in years to come
Increased pressure for diversion of more & more forest land for coal
mining purpose
Electricity generation (coal production) has direct social, economic
& political implications
Forestry & climate change social, economic & political implications
are either very little or non-existent
Business entities have a louder voice as compared to forestry sector
PSUs can muster higher political support as compared to State Forest
Departments / MoEF

29
WAY FORWARD.

A plot of the HDI versus electricity use per capita for different countries in 2010
India had a HDI of 0.56 and an average electricity use of 700 kWh/capitayr
Globally, average electricity use is 2100 kWh/capitayr and HDI is 0.7
India accounts for about one-sixth of the worlds population, but only 5% of the
primary energy use

30
WAY FORWARD.

Table depicts comparison of key energy statistics for selected countries

In most parts of India utilities are forced to exercise load shedding for a few hours
during a day
During the 13th plan period (20132017) the projected additional installed
electricity capacity is 118,000 MW, this includes an additional capacity of 69,000
MW of coal-fired power plants

31
WAY FORWARD.

What can be the way forward?

32
WAY FORWARD.

Strategic level
Establish robust communication with your stakeholders
Forest policy vis--vis policy for other sector (especially large land
based projects)
Forest laws vis--vis laws in other sectors
Building business / economic / finance aspect in forestry sector
Direct contribution to economy vis--vis burden on economy due to
loss of eco-system services
Identification of violate / in-violate forest areas
Operational level
Establish robust communication with your stakeholders
Create, establish & involve business houses in protecting, increasing
forest wealth / cover
Win-win partnership with communities
33
 CONCLUSION
This presentation / interaction is an attempt in experience
sharing with reference to impacts of coal mining on climate
change and risk to various Forest Type Groups
The world is changing and so is the need for the forestry
sector to change
Present time is opportune to create and implement a win-win
scenario for infrastructure development and forestry sector
It is easy to achieve, only requires intention & willingness
Choice is ours
We make choices and by doing so we shape our future

34
THANK YOU

35