GS 3 : 12 greening projects approved under the Green Credit Program (GCP)

What is the reason for being in the news?

What is Green Credit Programme (GCP)?

its Implementation

Greening projects approved under GCP

What is the reason for being in the news

The Central government has granted approval for 12 environmental projects as part of the Green Credit Program (GCP). Additionally, they are now reviewing 24 proposals filed by various state forest agencies.

This program, which was implemented in the previous year, is a mechanism that operates based on market principles. The objective is to promote voluntary environmental initiatives across multiple industries.

What is Green Credit Programme (GCP)?

The Green Credit Initiative was inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India during the COP 28 conference, which took place in 2023 at Expo City, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. 
It is a program that is part of the government’s Lifestyle for Environment (LiFE) effort. 
The Indian Prime Minister presented the concept of LiFE during COP26 in Glasgow in 2021. LiFE aims to promote a global movement focused on conscious and purposeful utilization of resources to safeguard and conserve the environment.

About

Regarding
The GCP implements a market-oriented strategy to encourage 8 specific environmental actions.

 
The primary goal was to create a system in which participants could receive rewards in the form of ‘Green Credits’.

It promotes voluntary environmental initiatives by individuals, organizations, and companies.

Aim

The primary objective of the GCP is to advocate for the adoption of sustainable lifestyles and the preservation of the environment.

The objective is to prioritize sustainability, minimize waste, and enhance the natural environment.

Goal

To augment the forest and tree coverage in India.
The objective is to establish an inventory of deteriorated land that is now under the jurisdiction and supervision of Forest Departments, which is suitable for reforestation purposes.

The aim is to incentivize individuals and organizations to engage in environmentally-friendly acts by offering rewards in the form of Green Credits.

Executing organization

The administration of the GCP is under the responsibility of the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE).

Targeted industries 

The planned GCP will be carried out in stages, with the first stage specifically targeting water management and afforestation.

The following stages will encompass endeavors such as

promoting sustainable agriculture,
managing waste,

 
reducing air pollution,

conserving and restoring mangroves,

 
developing eco mark labels, and

constructing sustainable buildings and infrastructure.  

Compensatory Afforestation and GCP

The GCP enables the conversion of credits to fulfill compensatory afforestation (CA) obligations.
According to California regulations, industries and government entities are required by law to plant trees on non-forest land that is equivalent in size to the forests they have cut down.

How the GCP will be used:

People and businesses can ask the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education (ICFRE), which is a separate group from the MoEFCC, to pay to restore these forests.

The planting of trees will be done by State Forest offices. 
Each tree planted could be worth one “green credit” two years after it was put in and after the ICFRE looked at it.

The organization that provided the money can claim these credits and use them in two ways: first, it can use them to meet existing forest laws that require groups that use forest land for non-forestry reasons to make up for it by giving an equal amount of land to another group; or second, it can use them to avoid breaking those laws. 
Or it can be used to meet the requirements for business social responsibility or to report in line with environmental, social, and governance leadership standards.

Greening projects that are accepted by GCP

12 projects have been approved, and 24 others are being thought about.

 
Under the GCP, the Center has given the go-ahead to 12 greening projects.
About 24 plans sent in by different state forest offices are being looked at.

PSUs are being urged to take the lead

Public sector companies (PSUs) have been pushed by the government to sign up for the program first, especially in states with a lot of mining.

Tips for verifying by a third party

The government is making rules for how projects under the plan can be checked by a third party.

What has been done so far

Thirteen states’ forest offices have so far offered 387 pieces of damaged forest land, which is equal to about 10,983 hectares. 
People who want to start plantations must first sign up on a government website. Then, the state offices will find plots for them. 
For the final request to go through, a plantation plan and cost estimate are sent to ICFRE.
The first focus is on states like Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha, where big areas of forest have been cut down for mining.