Green Ahmedabad among 90 cities in the Global Low Carbon City Index

Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation's (AMC) composite efforts to go green' in its fight against global warming might get rewarded soon. Ahmedabad has been shortlisted among 90 cities in the world to be rated on the Global Low Carbon City Index (GLCCI) later this year.

"GLCCI rating is being undertaken by International Council for Environmental Issues

(ICEI) under the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)," says municipal commissioner IP Gautam.
"A large part of dwellings in the city are in the traditional pols which are well-ventilated and control heat well," says a senior AMC officer.

With more than 60,000 autorickshaws and 600 buses running on CNG, carbon emissions

in the city are down by 20 lakh metric tonnes per annum. The ambitious BRTS will also help reduce carbon footprint by 25 per cent.

For reducing urban heat islands, AMC s policy changes have led to almost 25 per cent of newly constructed buildings having white roofs made of Chinese mosaic that reflect heat. Besides, development control regulations have made it mandatory for three to four times of the built-up area to be reserved for greening.

In terms of streetlights, about 18,000 high voltage lights have been replaced by 11 watt compact fluorescent lamps (CFL), thereby conserving energy. About 20 per cent traffic lights run on solar power, while 70 per cent of the traffic lights have 15 watt Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamps.

In terms of waste management, measures are being taken to convert 1,500 tonnes of garbage to power source, while about 500 tonnes of organic waste is being converted to compost.

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