PROMOTING LOW CARBON TRANSPORT IN INDIA Impact Assessment and Management Framework for Infrastructure Assets: A Case Study of Konkan Railways Authors Amit Garg Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad Prakriti Naswa Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad P.R. Shukla Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad August 2013 UNEP Risø Centre on Energy, Climate and Sustainable Development Technical University of Denmark This publication is part of the ‘Promoting Low Carbon Transport in India’ project ISBN: 978-87-92706-25-6 Design and production: Magnum Custom Publishing New Delhi, India
[email protected] Photo acknowledgement: Front cover: Vinayaraj, 2012; Wikimedia commons Back cover: Prakriti Naswa Disclaimer: The findings, suggestions and conclusions presented in the case study are entirely those of the authors and should not be attributed in any manner to UNEP Risø Centre or the United Nations Environment Programme, nor to the institutions of individual authors. Preface Huge investments are being committed in new infrastructure projects in developing countries. Infrastructuresare long-life assets and are designed to withstand normal variability in climate regime. The Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRCL), a railway line operating for the past decade on the western coast of India, has met with two major accidents since its inception due to bad weather conditions. This case study presents the uncertainties and risks that such infrastructure assets face due to the changing climate, and suggests possible adaptation strategies. A framework for assessing the likely climate change impacts on long-life assets, using a methodology of reverse matrix for climate change impact analysis, is also suggested. The framework links climate change variables – temperature, rainfall, sea level rise, extreme events, and other secondary variables – and sustainable development variables – technology, institutions, economic, and other policies.