Indian experts here to help implement LCDS
TWO top functionaries from the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) of India are here on an eight-week visit to identify ways in which their institution can provide technical assistance to Guyana in a number of critical areas linked to  implementation of the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS). They are Dr. Syed Arif Wali, Fellow of the Forestry and Biodiversity, Earth Science and Climate Change Division and Dr. G. Rudhra Narsimha Rao, Senior Fellow and Area Convenor, Industrial Energy.
TERI is a research and policy entity which is headed by Dr. Rajendra Pachauri, who was Chairman of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) when it was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007.
TERI was formally established in 1974 and has developed worldwide recognition for its research, training and demonstration projects for the development of solutions to global problems, in the fields of energy, environment and current patterns of development, which are largely unsustainable.
Wali and Rao are guests of the government, more specifically the Office of Climate Change in the Office of the President.
Adviser to the President on Climate Change, Mr. Shyam Nokta disclosed, yesterday, that the visitors have come as a follow-up to a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed, last year, by the Government of Guyana(GoG) and the Institute in India, in relation to the latter sharing  its expertise in climate change, energy management and conservation, forestry and sustainable development within the framework of  the LCDS programme.
Within the broad-based MOU, the two TERI experts will conduct technical studies on a number of natural resources that can  benefit from the application of  sustainable development practices.
Nokta said: “From their assessment, we will determine what  we need to do to improve performance and then we can look at how they can help us to do that through training, bringing in technical experts  to work with the respective institutions to help us refine some of the plans and the projects that we have in place to ensure sustainability of operations.”

RENEWABLE ENERGY
He said, in this regard, the two TERI experts will assess Guyana’s energy policy and strategy, including its potential for  renewable energy,  such as  solar power, wind power and   micro hydro-electric plants.
They will also look at technology for biogas as well as power generation from agricultural waste in sectors such as rice and sugar,  an area in which he said TERI has a significant amount of expertise.

TERI will also assist Guyana with the establishment of a Centre for Biodiversity Studies for the LCDS (including its planning and management) and help with measures to maximise value from its forests, in terms of potential revenue sources such as  from bio-medicines.
The two visitors will look at the reforestation and  rehabilitation of mined-out areas, since mining is seen as a source of deforestation.
“They will look at how we are dealing with reducing the environmental footprints of mining with a view to having TERI provide technical assistance on these and other issues so that we can improve on our ability to earn performance-based payments, particularly through the Guyana/Norway agreement,” Nokta said.
He added that their work in the mining sector will help to provide ways and means by which mining can be maximised while minimising environmental damage.
Wali, speaking to the Guyana Chronicle, said that he and his colleague will, in addition to previous studies, also review the current practice for  the production,  collection,   processing and marketing of  non-timber forest produce (NTFP)  with a view to  designing a framework for its sustainable use and management.
The two, since their arrival two weeks ago, have been meeting with local managers, among them the heads of Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), Guyana Power & Light (GPL) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Wali said he and his colleague intend to visit some hinterland  communities with a view to formulating proposals for identification of high-value medicinal plants and their conservation.
Rao said their main objective is to understand exactly what there is in Guyana and how they can aid sustainable management of these resources.
He disclosed that after the completion of these technical studies, TERI will identify a team of experts of various specialisations from the institute from Guyana that will work together on policies and procedures for making the use and management of these natural resources sustainable.
Nokta disclosed that the GOG and  TERI MOU followed a long and mutually beneficial relationship between them.

INVITED GUYANA
He said that Pachauri had invited Guyana to participate in an annual Delhi Sustainable Development Summit at which issues of sustainable management of natural resources were the main items on the agenda.
Nokta attended on behalf of the GOG and took the opportunity to showcase the country’s LCDS programme and initiative.
He said his presentation was well received and that led to the signing of the MOU on sustainable development issues in 2011.
Pachauri visited Guyana in 2011, too.
Nokta said he and former President Bharrat Jagdeo attended the 2012  DSDS and they both demonstrated the progress being made and that set the stage for greater collaboration with TERI and this initial visit by the two experts to explore opportunities for technical assistance and cooperation in the area of natural resources and renewable energy among others of mutual interest.
The MOU covers two years but will continue beyond, Nokta said.
“It is not a one-off relationship. This is a long-term collaboration,” he assured.
Nokta said this first visit by the two will pave the way for a deepening of the collaboration and specific interventions.