Prelim Bits 13-02-2024 | UPSC Daily Current Affairs

Working of Rooftop Solar System

Recently, the Parliamentary Standing Committee asked the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to ensure wider adoption of grid-connected rooftop solar photovoltaic projects (RSPV).

India aims install 175 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy from solar, wind, biomass and hydro resources by 2022 with a target of 40GW from solar alone. Now, the revised deadline is March 2026.

• RSPV – Rooftop solar photovoltaic system is the one where solar photovoltaic panels are placed on top of the buildings, which can convert the sunlight into solar power.
• Along with rooftops of houses and commercial and industrial (C&I) buildings, vacant spaces on the ground can also be used.
• It can be either grid-connected or a standalone unit known as an off-grid solar system.
• Off-grid solar system – It is self-sustaining by using storage devices like battery and is not connected to any wider electric supply system.
• Grid-connected solar system – It feeds solar energy into the utility grid.
• Components – It includes solar PV modules, an inverter, a module mounting structure, monitoring and safety equipment and meters.
• Working – An inverter converts the DC power generated from solar panels to AC power, which is then fed to the grid, while meters keep track of the electricity injected and drawn from the utility grid.
• If the plant produces more solar energy than the installer uses, the surplus is exported to the grid.
• On cloudy days when solar energy is unavailable, power is drawn from the grid.

• Net-metering – A bi-directional or net meter installed on the premises of a consumer records the energy flow in both directions.
• A consumer has to pay for the net energy units used, which is the difference between total imported units and exported solar units.
• Advantages – It reduces the electricity demand from corporate or state power suppliers, saves on electricity costs and also enable RSPV owner to get paid for power supplied to grid.

Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana (PMSY), launched in 2024 to tap into the vast potential of rooftop projects in residential areas. As per Interim Budget of 2024, it would help 1 crore families get up to 300 units of free electricity per month with savings of up to Rs 18,000 annually.

Reference

The Hindu| Rooftop Solar Photovoltaic System in India

Convention of Migratory Species (CMS)

The 14^th Conference of Parties (COP14) to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) of Wild Animals held recently in Samarkand, Uzbekistan in 2024.

• CMS – Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, also called as Bonn Convention.
• Conception – It began at the 1972 Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment.
• Launched in – 1979 in Bonn, Germany while it entered into force in 1983.
• Secretariat – Provided by UNEP, based in Bonn in Germany.
• Depository – Germany
• Aim – To provide a global platform for the conservation and sustainable use of migratory animals and their habitats.
• To lay the legal foundation for internationally coordinated conservation measures throughout a migratory range.

Convention to Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) is the only global convention specializing in the conservation of migratory species, their habitats and migration routes.

• Parties– 133 as of 2022, Jamaica has signed but not ratified to become a party yet.
• Organisation – Conference of Parties (COP) is the decision making body.
• CMS Trust Fund – Each Party shall contribute to this budget according to a scale to be agreed upon by the COP.
• Listed Species – It has about 1,200 species listed in 2 Appendix.
  • Appendix I – Endangered migratory species.
  • Appendix II – Migratory species conserved through Agreements.
  • Birds occupies the 1^st place followed by terrestrial mammals.

References

1. Down To Earth| Inauguration of CMS COP-14
2. CMS.INT| Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species

State of the World’s Migratory Species

The 1^st ever report on the ‘State of the World’s Migratory Species’ was launched at CMS COP14 that held in 2024 at Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

• Prepared by – UNEP-WCMC.

UN Environment Programme World Conservation Monitoring Centre (UNEP-WCMC) is a global Centre of excellence on biodiversity. It operates as a collaboration between the UN Environment Programme and the UK-registered charity WCMC.

• Need – To develop the preliminary review of conservation status submitted to COP13 of CMS.
• Aim - To improve conservation outcomes for migratory species, by providing support for evidence-based decision-making.
  • Summarizes current status and trends
  • Identifies the key pressures they face
  • Highlights illustrative examples of the efforts underway to conserve and promote their recovery.
• Focus – On those species listed in the CMS Appendices, yet it also provides information on the wider group of all migratory species.
• Data source – IUCN Red List assessment and Living Planet Index among others.

Living Planet Index is managed by the Zoological Society of London, in collaboration with World Wildlife Fund for Nature.

• Findings – 4,508 Migratory species have had a global IUCN Red List assessment, where 74% are not currently listed in the CMS.
• Of these non-CMS species, 8% are ‘Globally Threatened’ and 4% are ‘Near Threatened’.

Migratory species are species that traverse 1000’s of miles throughout the world for feeding, breeding and resting. They are found all over the world on land, in the water and in the skies and play an essential role in the maintenance of healthy and functional ecosystems.

References

1. Down To Earth| Launch of Migratory Species Report
2. CMS.INT| State of the World’s Migratory Species Report

Nazool Land

Recently, violence erupted in Uttarakhand’s Haldwani district after the administration conducted a demolition drive at the site of a mosque and madrasa, allegedly on Nazool land.

• Nazool land – A land owned by the government but most often not directly administered as state property.

• Administration – Several states passed government orders for the purpose of framing rules but the Nazool Lands (Transfer) Rules, 1956 is the law mostly used for Nazool land adjudication.
• Usage – For public purposes like building schools, hospitals, Gram Panchayat buildings, etc. and also leasing it to any entity.
• Property lease – It is for a fixed period, generally between 15 and 99 years.
• Renewal – It is done by submitting a written application to the Revenue Department of the local development authority.
• The government is free to either renew the lease or cancel it taking back the land.

Reference

The Indian Express| Dispute in Nazool Land

Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC)

A recent research paper reports that, Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) could collapse between 2025 and 2095 due to the impact of anthropogenic emissions.

• AMOC – The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation is a major ocean current system.
• Working – It transports warm salty surface waters from the tropics to the northern regions.
• The waters then cool down, increase in density and sink in the North Atlantic Ocean due to down welling or overturning.
• Cold, fresh water from the melting ice of the Arctic is added to the cooler ocean that moves towards the equator.
• Eventually, it gets pulled back to surface and warms again as it reach near the tropics and thus, the circulation is complete and it keeps on continuing as AMOC.
• As a Heat conveyor belt – It warms the northern latitudes and cools the southern latitudes.
• Slowing down AMOC – For the past few decades, more fresh cold water is added to the North Atlantic Ocean which is reducing salinity and density of the water.
• Thus, the colder layer of the ocean is expanding and the warmer layer is contracting which might lead to collapse.
• Impact of collapse – It may be the 1^st of the 16 climate tipping elements to be breached.

Tipping elements are large-scale systems that influence the planet’s climate and ecology, which are undergoing changes due to global warming. If these elements cross certain thresholds changes in them will become irreversible.

• It would cause widespread cooling across the northern hemisphere and less precipitation in places such as Europe, North America, China and some parts of Russia in Asia and even India.

Reference

Down To Earth| Collapse of AMOC