Need to regulate housing footprint to limit the severity of climate crisis

Many urban middle-class folks hope to own two homes. One to live, one as investment. As a result, the wealthy are expanding the housing footprint. This has severe consequences for climate change.

When the Conference of Parties, COP 26, opened yesterday (Sunday) in Glasgow, coinciding with World Cities Day, I thought it would be a good occasion to think about Indian urbanisation.

Indian cities are a game changer, especially for the poor and for women. (AP file photo)

Many urban middle-class folks hope to own two homes. One to live, one as investment. As a result, the wealthy are expanding the housing footprint. This has severe consequences for climate change. It increases concretisation and gnaws away at biodiversity. The heat island effect pushes us to use more electricity for cooling. When biodiversity and wetlands are locked down in favour of buildings and infrastructure, we greatly weaken our capacity to fight climate change, as Germany’s floods showed this year. Building materials continue to weaken our defences. From sand from riverbeds, granite from mines, transportation of materials and energy, we disrupt complex ecosystems.

As this happens, we may lose water, clean air and general liveability. But this is not unique to India in any way, as global trends show.

What is unique is the great urbanisation we are witnessing. Indian cities are a game changer, especially for the poor and for women. They are an oasis of opportunity. By 2030, over 50% of all Indians will live in cities, up from about 35% today. That’s why adapting and mitigating climate change in our urban context is a big challenge.

Regulating housing by encouraging climate resilient design and making a second house inordinately expensive are two ways ahead. But till that happens, ditch the second home voluntarily. Own one and bat for the planet.

The writer is founder and director Chintan Environmental Research and Action Group