Carbon Sequestration — Prelims Strategy

Prelims Strategy

For Prelims, focus on factual accuracy and conceptual clarity. Key areas to master include:

1
Definitions and Types: — Clearly distinguish between biological, geological, and technological sequestration. Understand 'blue carbon' vs. 'green carbon'.
2
Key Initiatives and Policies: — Memorize India's NDC targets for carbon sinks (2.5-3 billion tonnes CO2e by 2030). Know the objectives of schemes like GIM, MISHTI, NMSA. Be aware of relevant acts like the Forest (Conservation) Act (and its 2023 amendment) and the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Act, 2022 (for carbon markets).
3
Quantitative Data: — Recall important figures like India's forest and tree cover (FSI 2021: 80.9 million hectares) and forest carbon stock (7,204 million tonnes, FSI 2021). Understand the relative sequestration rates of different ecosystems (e.g., mangroves often higher than terrestrial forests).
4
Examples: — Be familiar with concrete examples of projects or technologies (e.g., Tata Steel's CCS plant, Sundarbans mangroves).
5
International Context: — Know the role of IPCC, UNFCCC, Paris Agreement, and recent COP outcomes (e.g., COP28's stance on CCS and NBS).
6
Associated Concepts: — Understand related terms like carbon sink, carbon source, net-zero, biochar, agroforestry.

Practice MCQs that test your ability to differentiate between similar concepts, identify correct policy linkages, and recall specific data points. Pay attention to 'not correct' or 'incorrect' options, as these are common traps. Vyyuha's Quick Recall mnemonic 'FOREST' will be invaluable for rapid revision of key sequestration methods.

Also build Paper II skills

Climate data, pollution metrics, and treaty timelines are natural practice for CSAT data interpretation and careful reading. CSAT hub.

• Data interpretation
• Correlation vs causation
• Estimation techniques