Roadmap to be prepared for reducing pollution from rolling mills in Bihar

Patna: Bihar State Pollution Control Board has decided to chalk out a roadmap to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases from rolling mills in the state, a top official said on Tuesday.

Of the 42 rolling mills in the state, 28 are operational, and the emissions from the industry "continue to rise", despite efforts being made to decrease the level of pollution, BSPCB chairman Devendra Kumar Shukla said.

"The board is conducting a study to determine the origins of pollutants, especially greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide.

"The board initiated a plan for brick kilns to adopt cleaner technology, which is less carbon-emitting. Now, we are finalising a roadmap for rolling mills in the state. They will also be asked to adopt cleaner technology that is less carbon-emitting," Shukla, told PTI.

The BSPCB has already collaborated with IIT-Kanpur to install low-cost sensors in all 534 blocks in the state to identify the source of pollutants, he said.

"As many as 13 of the 28 functional mills are integrated but the greenhouse gas emissions from the industry continue to rise despite efforts being made to decrease this as the steel industry is one of the major emitters of carbon dioxide.

"The industry’s emissions are predicted to increase naturally due to infrastructure growth. The emissions from rolling mills are quite high," he said, adding that some of them have updated technologies but a few are still running by burning coal on site.

Apart from being a construction sector industry, this generates employment for locals, he said.

"The central government recently notified the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme 2023, which has paved the way for the formation of the country's first domestic carbon market. This scheme can prove to be a game changer for industries in contributing to the target of achieving carbon neutrality in the country by 2070," he added.