Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs)

India announced its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution earlier this month, keeping in view, it’s developmental agenda of  eradicating poverty besides taking the low carbon path to economic growth and progress. Following are key takeaways:

• To reduce the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 percent by 2030 from 2005 level.
• To achieve about 40 percent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel based energy resources by 2030 with the help of transfer of technology and low cost international finance including from Green Climate Fund (GCF).
• To create an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.

To achieve the above, India will continue with its on-going interventions, enhance the existing policies and launch new initiatives     in  the following priority areas:

• Introducing new, more efficient and cleaner technologies in thermal power generation.
• Promoting renewable energy generation and increasing the share of alternative fuels in overall fuel mix.
• Reducing emissions from transportation sector.
• Promoting energy efficiency in the economy, notably in industry, transportation, buildings and appliances.
• Reducing emissions from waste.
• Developing climate resilient infrastructure.
• Full implementation of Green India Mission and other programmes of afforestation.
• Planning and implementation of actions to enhance climate resilience and reduce vulnerability to climate change.

The National Missions under the NAPCC have also been restructured, in the light of new scientific information and technological  advances and identified new missions on wind energy, health, waste to energy, and coastal areas. India is also redesigning the  National Water Mission and National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture.

Based on its national circumstances, development stage, sustainable development strategy and international responsibility, China  has nationally determined its actions by 2030 as follows:

• To achieve the peaking of carbon dioxide emissions around 2030 and making best efforts to peak early
• To lower carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP by 60% to 65% from the 2005 level
• To increase the share of non-fossil fuels in primary energy consumption to around 20%
• To increase the forest stock volume by around 4.5 billion cubic meters on the 2005 level

Moreover, China will continue to proactively adapt to climate change by enhancing mechanisms and capacities to effectively  defend against climate change risks in key areas such as agriculture, forestry and water resources, as well as in cities, coastal  and ecologically vulnerable areas and to progressively strengthen early warning and emergency response systems and disaster  prevention and reduction mechanisms.

Mexico’s INDC is consistent with its pathway to reduce 50% of emissions by the year 2050, with respect to the year 2000, as  mandated by the Mexico´s General Climate Change Law. Unconditional Reduction:

• Mexico is committed to reduce unconditionally 25% of its Greenhouse Gases and Short Lived Climate Pollutants emissions (below BAU scenario of emission projections based on economic growth in the absence of climate change policies, starting from 2013) for the year 2030. This commitment implies a reduction of 22% of GHG and a reduction of 51% of Black Carbon.
• This commitment implies a net emissions peak starting from 2026, decoupling GHG emissions from economic growth: emissions intensity per unit of GDP will reduce by around 40% from 2013 to 2030.

Conditional Reduction:

• The 25% reduction commitment expressed above could increase up to a 40% in a conditional manner, subject to a global agreement addressing important topics including international carbon price, carbon border adjustments, technical cooperation, access to low-cost financial resources and technology transfer, all at a scale commensurate to the challenge of global climate change.
• Within the same conditions, GHG reductions could increase up to 36%, and Black Carbon reductions to 70% in 2030.

Mexico includes an Adaptation component with commitments by 2030. The priority of these actions are: the protection of  communities from adverse impacts of climate change, such as extreme hydro meteorological events related to global changes in  temperature; as well as the increment in the resilience of strategic infrastructure and of the ecosystems that host national  biodiversity. In order to reach those priorities Mexico will, inter alia, strengthen the adaptive capacity of at least by 50% the  number of municipalities in the category of “most vulnerable”, establish early warning systems and risk management at every  level of government and reach a rate of 0% deforestation by the year 2030. Some of the adaptation actions presented foster  positive synergies with mitigation actions.