The Sustainability Samaritan: Akshay Chawla Supported by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), SASA Green works to curb air pollution caused by the burning of over 1 crore tonnes of agricultural waste during the months between October and March each year in Western Maharashtra, the so-called Sugar Belt of India

As the crusade against climate change continues to unfold worldwide, young entrepreneurs across India and beyond are stepping up their efforts to offer creative solutions to local problems on their way to unleashing a global renewable energy transition. Akshay Chawla, the CEO and founder Mumbai-based cleantech company SASA Green, is one such contributor. Through the use of a novel technique such as binderless biomass briquetting, his company is tackling the issue of rising pollution in Maharashtra on account of stubble burning head on.

My interest in clean technologies was first sparked when I discovered the root cause of a health issue that I had experienced as a younger person: chronic bronchitis. As an athlete and footballer, this illness had been particularly devastating for me, and I found that the primary cause of the problem was the rapidly deteriorating air pollution situation in my home country. This led me to narrow my research and delve deeper into topics such as monitoring AQI and the impact of stubble burning on air quality," explained Chawla. While such health struggles were the initial catalyst, his interest in clean technologies was further catapulted due to being part of a family business, a 17 year old company, which operates in the power plant development and renewable energy spaces. Having successfully led itfor over eight years now, Chawla feels confident in running his own venture, SASA Green, which was launched in 2020. "My experience in power plant development with my previous company allowed me to recognize the need for an alternative to the traditional practice of burning agro waste in open fields. SASA offers farmers a solution by buying their crop waste and converting it into biomass briquettes, providing an additional income for farmers while curbing air pollution caused by stubble burning. The company aims to contribute towards building a cleaner and greener future for Maharashtra by looking at the issue from a larger point of view which no one has currently," he said.

THE WHAT AND WHY OF STUBBLE BURNING

A significant environmental issue, stubble burning is the burning of crop residue after the harvest season, which produces smog and air pollution that can have severe health consequences for residents in the region. In India, it is primarily prevalent in the Northern states of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, where farmers practice rice-wheat crop rotation.

Since stubble, or the straw residue left after harvesting paddy, wheat and other grain crops, isn't a good food source for humans or animals and takes a long time to decompose, it is a nuisance for farmers and the only inexpensive viable option for its disposal is burning. According to a report by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), about 35 million tonnes of crop residue is produced annually in the country, out of which 25 million tonnes is burned, mostly in the northern states. However, the amount of stubble burned each year may vary due to factors such as weather conditions, crop yields and government initiatives to promote alternatives to burning.

As a result of stubble burning, several harmful effects on the environment and public health are noted: such as air pollution (the release of large amount of smoke, particulate matter and toxic gases into the air causes severe respiratory problems and exacerbates existing health conditions such as asthma and bronchitis), climate change (the emitting of significant amounts of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide contribute to global warming), soil fertility loss (the loss of vital nutrients from the soil reduces its fertility and potential for productivity), loss of biodiversity (the destruction of insects, microbes and other organisms upsets the ecological balance of the region), and economic loss (the loss of soil nutrients reduces crop yields and increases the cost of fertilizers, affecting the income of farmers).

BIOMASS BRIQUETTING: A SOLUTION IN SIGHT

One way to combat the issue of stubble burning is to develop alternative ways of stubble disposal such as biomass briquetting. The latter is a process that compresses agricultural and municipal waste into briquettes, which are then fired as a biofuel along with coal in thermal power plants for electricity generation.

The use of biomass briquettes in coal firing has significantly increased in the last decade due to their lower carbon emissions and renewability. In May 2021, the Indian power ministry set up a 'national mission' on the use of biomass in coal-based power plants. Also known as SAMARTH (Sustainable Agrarian Mission on use of Agro Residue in Thermal Power Plants), the mission's main objectives are to reduce stubble burning and the carbon footprint of thermal power plants using agrobased residue, mostly in the form of biomass briquettes.

The mission mandates that all thermal power plants in the country use between five and ten percent of biomass alongside coal to produce power.

Given that India is expected to experience a coal supply shortage in the coming future, further endangering its energy security, the country must capitalise on its untapped potential for using agricultural waste to produce biofuels and replace conventional sources of power generation such as coal and petroleum. According to estimates, if the current installed capacity for biomass-based power plants is fully utilized, it could bring down the demand for coal by close to 230 million tons.

SASA GREEN: CHAMPIONING 'GREEN COAL' PRODUCTION

Supported by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), SASA Green works to curb air pollution caused by the burning of over 1 crore tonnes of agricultural waste during the months between October and March each year in Western Maharashtra, the so-called Sugar Belt of India. To this end, the renewable energy company buys crop waste from farmers (thereby giving them an additional income source) to convert it into 'green coal' in the form of biomass briquettes and pellets. The latter are sold to state-owned power generation companies and other enterprises where coal-fired furnaces are used to produce energy. According to the company, when ignited in a boiler or furnace, green coal produces one-fourth of the ash produced by regular mined coal in India.

"It is important to understand that the rural areas where agro wastes are burned are not near the coast like Mumbai is. This means that despite the fact that Mumbai may not be partaking in activities like stubble burning, the city is still vulnerable to the harmful emissions being passed above it from where they are being burned due to land and sea breeze. Thus, Mumbai's pollution levels can technically only be alleviated by first reducing the stubble burning activities in the cities and districts around it. At SASA Waste to Energy, we give farmers an alternative to stubble burning," said Chawla.

For this purpose, the company operates balers to collect several million metric tonnes of cane trash from agricultural fields during the 180-day-long sugarcane harvesting season. The same is then transported by trailers to SASA's green coal plants, with the resultant green coal being burnt as a fuel alongside regular coal in stateowned coal power plants in a sustainable manner, hence emitting a negligible quantum of air pollution and a very low amount of ash that is rich in phosphate for use as a fertilizer. "Not only is this ash used to make compost and is distributed to farmers free of any charge, but pollution levels are drastically lower than what they would be in Maharashtra if the stubble was burnt in open fields," added Chawla. As per a technical report by ITALABS, the green coal supplied by SASA contains 3268 cal/gm calorific value, 63.37 per cent violatile matter and 14.46 per cent ash content.

Notably, in March this year, the company was one of the only seven exhibitors to be given an official stall at a workshop conducted by MAHAGENCO, the second largest power producing company in India, on the effective use of biomass pellets in thermal power plants under the SAMARTH Mission, which hosted over 300 attendees in Pune. The event was part of a collaboration between the Indian Ministry of Power and the Maharashtra government's energy department. SASA's stall received attention from senior figures in the industry, including thedirector of MAHAGENCO, the mission director of SAMARTH, the director general ofMahaUrja and thechairman and MD of MAHAGENCO. The company was also presented with a certificate of appreciation by MAHAGENCO.

SASA: USP AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES

Other than being one of the only companies in India with governmental support, SASA Green has made strides in using binderless briquettes, unlike most coal briquetting plants which use binders to hold briquettes together. In the absence of binders, the briquetting process relies on the natural binding properties of raw materials such as sawdust, agricultural waste and other biomass materials while applying high pressure to them to form the briquettes.

Binderless briquetting produces briquettes that are more environmentally-friendly and cost-effective compared to briquettes produced using binders. The process of binderless briquetting also uses less energy and produces less greenhouse gas emissions. However, binderless briquetting can be challenging for certain types of raw materials that do not have sufficient binding properties. The resulting briquettes may be less dense and more prone to disintegration, reducing their overall quality and durability. To overcome this challenge, pre-treatments such as torrefaction or carbonization can be applied to improve the binding properties of the raw materials. SASA Green is working to enhance such production processes to make biomass pellets a viable biofuel. "While we have thought of applying for patents for multiple areas of our business, we haven't allowed that to dictate our ongoing operations as we are all on the same team here when it comes to environmental protection," said Chawla.

The biomass briquetting market in India has been growing steadily in recent years, driven by factors such as increasing demand for renewable energy, rising concerns about climate change, and government initiatives to promote the use of biomass-based fuels. According to a report by ResearchAndMarkets, the Indian biomass briquettes market was valued at INR 14,119 crore (approximately USD 1.9 billion) in 2020 and is expected to reach INR 25,563 crore (approximately USD 3.4 billion) by 2025, growing at a CAGR of 12.6 per cent during the forecast period.

"While it's difficult to predict exactly when the use of biomass briquetting will become widespread, it's clear that the trend is moving in that direction. With the increasing awareness of the harmful effects of air pollution caused by stubble burning and other forms of biomass burning, more and more people are recognizing the benefits of using biomass briquettes as a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative," opined Chawla.

According to him, to accelerate the awareness and adoption of biomass briquetting plants, it's essential to increase education and outreach efforts to target consumers, manufacturers, and policymakers. Raising awareness through media campaigns, education programs, and public demonstrations can help people understand the benefits of biomass briquettes and encourage them to switch to this cleaner fuel source. In addition, providing incentives such as tax credits, subsidies, and other financial benefits can further encourage the adoption of biomass briquetting plants.

"Overall, my interest in clean technologies is driven by a personal desire to address the serious environmental and health issues caused by air pollution, as well as a desire to promote renewable energy and sustainable development. With my years of experience in the industry, I am well-equipped to tackle the challenges we face and continue to contribute towards building a cleaner and greener future," stated Chawla.

Although young, he already has many feathers in his cap: For his work in renewable energy this far, in 2020, Chawla was accepted in the Forbes Business Council, an invitation-only community of leading CEOs and entrepreneurs, as one of the youngest members globally after being vetted and selected by a review committee based on the depth and diversity of his experience. The young trailblazer is also part of a travel startup called Blinctrip and has been contributing to the "Market Intelligence Team" there for the past 2 years. Additionally, he runs a production house called Akshay Enterprises and has produced multiple films, including Joyce 2018, which went on to win over 12 international awards and 3 nominations at multiple film festivals. "For my charitable contributions to the FD Foundation I was invited to go and personally meet Lionel Messi himself and watch a game at Paris St Germain Football club," he beamed with pride.