The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Creating sustainable transport solutions

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Tuesday, Feb 05, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Creating sustainable transport solutions

Special Correspondent

Seminar brings together Indian and Swedish experts

Participants include the Volvo Group
KSPCB, FKCCI and Swedish Trade Council are the organisers

Bangalore: A seminar on sustainable mobility brought together Indian and Swedish experts who addressed the environmental challenges facing the transportation industry in the country.

The seminar was presented by the Swedish Trade Council and supported by the Swedish Embassy, the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) and the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry. Among the prominent participants from Sweden was a delegation from the Volvo Group and Volvo Cars.

Paul de Voijs, Managing Director, Volvo Cars India, said, “We acknowledge that we are part of the problem, but we are also determined to be part of the solution.” He said that a dialogue between various stakeholders — researchers, companies, customers, politicians, and other groups and organisations — is a pre-condition for creating sustainable transport solutions.

Sharatchandra, Chairman, KSPCB, said that although imposing “green taxes” such as congestion charges were a possible option in large cities such as Bangalore, road users needed to be provided other alternatives before such levies are imposed. Non-polluting vehicles such as electric vehicles need to be promoted through incentives. He pointed out that in parts of Europe, owners of electric cars need not pay parking fee and that such cars are allowed access to roads where vehicles running on hydrocarbon-based fuels are not allowed.

Gary Kendall, Senior Energy Business and Policy Analyst at the World Wildlife Fund’s Climate Change Programme, said the global transportation sector was “95 per cent dependent on liquid hydrocarbon fuels derived from crude oil.” He said the gross dependence on a single fuel source is “a unique threat to the world’s environment.”

Among the speakers were B.K. Chandrashekar, Chairman of the Karnataka Legislative Council, and Aravind Ramachandra Jannu, Secretary, Department of Ecology and Environment. Director General of the Swedish Environment Protection Agency Lars-Erik Liljefund gave an overview of what needs to be done to break the link between economic development and climate change.

Lars Nilsson, Environmental Director, Swedish Road Administration, provided an account of the strategy adopted by his organisation to address issues arising from climate change.

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