Cement’s calcination footprint complicates India’s net-zero pathway
Quick dive
- Cement contributes about 7–11% of global emissions because limestone calcination releases carbon dioxide in addition to energy-related emissions.
- Construction contributes roughly 35–40% of global greenhouse-gas emissions through materials such as cement and steel, while India’s cement output is projected to rise from 334 million tonnes in 2019-20 to 1,546 million tonnes in 2070.
- The Energy and Resources Institute report recommends reducing India’s emissions intensity to 0.56 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of cement by 2030 and 0.51 by 2047.
- Options include renewable electricity, kiln electrification, refuse-derived fuel, alternative binders, material efficiency and attention to hidden emissions from limestone extraction, transport and lost carbon sequestration.
- exam_relevance: provides exact 7–11%, 35–40%, 334-to-1,546-million-tonne and 0.56/0.51-intensity figures, testing calcination versus combustion and hard-to-abate-sector policy; it echoes UPSC climate-mitigation questions while adding India’s construction-demand contradiction.
Full explanation
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