| |DECEMBER 20208Consultants ReviewGREEN INFRASTRUCTURE: UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE By Saravanan Panneer Selvam, General Manager, INDO Region, Grundfos IndiaSaravanan has more than 20 years of experience in the pump industry. Currently, Saravanan is serving as the General Manager in INDO Region of Grounfos, a company present in 56 countries through 83 companies pump solutions, controls and sensors and water technology.n 2019, the World Economic Forum identified five top climate risks - failure of climate change mitigation and adaptation, extreme weather events, water crisis and natural disasters, as weapons of mass destruction. As per the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations (UN), more and more countries are likely to adopt the Paris Agreement laid out in 2015 with a vision to build a roadmap for climate actions that will reduce emissions and build climate resilience. While the world slowly progresses into the Unlock phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, worst is surely not behind us. There is a need for governments and policymakers to address the ever-changing climate emergency which are unprecedented and the fact that the crippled global environment needs serious retrospection now more than ever. Moving towards sustainable solutions in order to conserve precious resources will be the path that the current world has to embrace. Need for climate-resilient infrastructure Sustainable and resilient infrastructure has become a critical requirement to minimize the negative impact of climate change. The main issues such as rising temperatures, changing patterns in rainfall, extreme weather changes and rising sea levels play a crucial role in developing adequate infrastructure that can protect us. An ideal design for climate resilient infrastructure needs to make sure that it anticipates, prepares for and adapts to all sorts of possible changing climate conditions. These extreme climatic conditions that disrupt the weather patterns are leading to unpredictable water shortage. This eventually leads to rise in demand for green infrastructure that has the capacity to increase the quality and quantity of local water supplies and provide innumerable other environmental, economic, and health benefits--often in nature-deprived urban areas. Also, with growing power sector in India, there is a dire need for energy efficient thermal plants that are designed to consume lesser water as compared to the current situation. Given that water stress is a serious global concern, it is critical to keep in mind- the choice of cooling technology, location of thermal power plants and plant operation.Sustainability is a priorityThe next decade is a critical time to act and implement robust and futuristic reforms on sustainability towards addressing water crisis, energy resources, and constructing sustainable cities. While the world is moving towards environment friendly solutions and green ecosystem, we need to increase the pace of this adoption to help mitigate the growing impact of climate change. Hence, the need of the hour is to focus on sustainable solutions.· Sustainable solutions to manage water: Climate change will have a long-term effect on our resources and according to the UN data, clean water and sanitation and water management is the second biggest challenge at hand after zero hunger. By a proven increase in average temperatures and inadequate rainfall, optimising water resource management, introducing intelligent and smart technology solutions in water management and water reuse needs to be a big agenda for the government, policy makers and businesses.Saravanan Panneer Selvam,General ManagerIN MY OPINIONI
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