Abstract
The paper discusses the role of Thar-coalfield, a 175 Billion tones reserve in enhancing the energy and combating global environmental change from the local and regional aspects. Pakistan’s energy requirements are potentially huge. Being the sixth largest country in the world, with its growing population exceeded 190m by 2015. Rising population, improved living standards, increased per capita energy use, and industrialization has led to a high energy demand growth. According to latest reports the gap between the demand and supply of electricity is around 6,000MW. To meet the projected demand exploiting indigenous resources, such as Thar coalfield, a 100,000MW generation capacity reserve, could be the possible answer. Due to sustainable techniques in energy sector, 1) Coal mining is moving towards sustainable development; 2) circular economy has proven useful concept for promoting sustainable development; 3) coal industry can minimize its environmental impact from local to global level.Besides energy goals, environmental degradation associated with the mining activity poses a serious threat to the region. Therefore, some challenges need to be addressed, e.g., discharge management issues, concerns regarding pollution control, lack of technology needed to replenish solid waste; and, increased socioeconomic and environmental pressure on the coal industry. The study discusses how sustainable development measures in Thar coalfield can run the engines of economic growth without hurting the natural environment promoting prosperity in Pakistan.
Highlights
The mining industry has remained a hot arena worldwide for academic and public policy research in terms of sustainable development [1, 2]
According to World Bank, Pakistan's per capita energy supplied level, the per-capita total primary energy supply (TPES) in the country was as low as half a ton of oil equivalent in 2014, which is about over a quarter of the global average, and about one-fifth that of China makes it clear that the country has to increase its energy resources against the improved living standards of its citizens
Hagler Bailly Pakistan (ESIA) [17] has reported the sustainable development measures taken by Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company (SECMC) in terms of water management out no risk to groundwater resource, the water will not be contaminated or pumped into the sea as wrongly believed, rather an effluent disposal storage pond is being constructed by the Sindh government with a treatment facility for recycling water
Summary
The mining industry has remained a hot arena worldwide for academic and public policy research in terms of sustainable development [1, 2]. According to World Bank, Pakistan's per capita energy supplied level, the per-capita total primary energy supply (TPES) in the country was as low as half a ton of oil equivalent (toe) in 2014, which is about over a quarter of the global average, and about one-fifth that of China makes it clear that the country has to increase its energy resources against the improved living standards of its citizens. The per capita availability of electric power in Pakistan was almost 472 kWh in 2014, which is almost half of world's average and just over one-seventh of China [5].
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