Biomass energy harnessing needs further exploration in India: Scientist

Kolkata, Sep 6 (PTI) Harnessing biomass energy needs to be further explored in India as an environmentally efficient alternative to conventional fuels, a senior scientist said on Saturday.

Biomass energy is derived from organic matter from recently living or living organisms such as plants, animals and waste materials, which can be converted into heat, electricity or biofuels.

Apart from solar, tidal and hydro energy sources, biomass energy can be explored, as it is not adequately evaluated in the country, scientist Aniruddha Mukherjee said.

"There is a lot of scope for harnessing this form of energy," said Mukherjee, scientist and a professor at the Calcutta University, with specialisation in Environmental Biotechnology, Bioremediation and Toxicology.

He was speaking here at a symposium titled 'The Green Summit 2025'.

In his address, Prabir Purakayastha, the founder member of the Delhi Science Forum, spoke about carbon dioxide, which unlike particulate matter, is itself not a pollutant.

Without the presence of carbon dioxide, almost all life on earth cannot survive, Purakayastha said.

He said the presence of excess carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is one of the causes of global warming, but "unlike particulate matter, it is not a pollutant".

Noting that the projected population of India in 2050 is between 168-170 crore, Mukherjee added that while the percentage of those above 60 years at present is 8.4 per cent, it will go up to 25 per cent in 2050.

He said that environment conservationists and scientists need to work with the industry to mitigate the issues affecting nature. PTI AMR RBT