Gujarat: Morbi coal-to-gas switch turns into a case study

Posted by Ankit khatkar on January 23rd, 2020

Ahmedabad: At a time when India leads in pollution-linked deaths, the country’s ceramic hub at Morbi in Gujarat has emerged as a striking example of how switching to natural gas from polluting fuels in the industry can help eliminate air and environmental pollution.

The latest report by International Gas Union (IGU), headquartered in Barcelona, titled ‘Case studies in improving urban air quality - 2019’, highlights the success story of Morbi in creating a gas-based economy. This is the fourth edition of the Clean Air Report series by the IGU. Apart from Morbi, there are six other case studies, including London in UK and Bogota, Colombia.

“The city of Morbi in the Gujarat region of India achieved a dramatic reduction of air pollution and environmental contamination, thanks to switching from coal to natural gas in its ceramic industry,” the report stated.

Gujarat: Morbi coal-to-gas switch turns into a case study Morbi is a mid-sized city of Gujarat known for its contribution to the global ceramic sector, with a total of 900 ceramic manufacturing units, which contribute significantly to the region’s economy. The use of coal gasifiers in the manufacture of ceramic tiles was making ambient air quality of the area very poor causing problems to the citizens of the area and regulators of the state.

The National Green Tribunal in its order in March 2019 banned the use of gasification technology in the ceramic units of the Morbi-Wankaner area and ordered Gujarat Pollution Control Board to shut down all the coal gasifiers of this area. As a result, all-ceramic units of the area switched over to piped natural gas immediately with the supply and network already available to them.

“The switch to natural gas brought immediate results and translated into significantly improved air quality readings, with a 75 percent reduction in PM 2.5 levels, 72 percent reduction in PM 10, and an 85 percent reduction in SO2 (sulfur dioxide),” the report states. In addition to the air quality improvement, there were significant other environmental benefits, including reduced water consumption and avoidance of emissions due to reduced coal truckloads, according to the report by IUG that has over 150 members worldwide, representing approximately 95 percent of the world gas market.

The NGT decision came as a result of a recommendation made by an expert committee that found that “coal gasification is a dangerous process” that generated highly carcinogenic waste on a scale of 8,000 kg per day.

“A month after NGT’s order, gas consumption in Morbi nearly doubled, from 2 million cubic meters (MCM) a day to almost 4 MCM, and it is expected to reach 8 MCM in the near future. At the same time, coal consumption dropped by 900 MT/Day, with the associated decrease in heavy vehicle movement, and the savings of 2,250 thousand liters of fresh water per day,” the report states.

A report by the Global Alliance on Health and Pollution (GAHP) last month said that India suffered most pollution-linked deaths in the world, with 2.3 million followed by China with 1.8 million.

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