Development of Bhutan’s National Clean Air Action Plan

About the event

The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), in partnership with Bhutan’s Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC), are convening two consecutive consultation meetings as part of the ongoing development of Bhutan’s National Clean Air Action Plan (BNCAAP).

The first day is a multi-sectoral consultation focused on reviewing ongoing emissions inventory (EI)-related work, discussing sector-specific data availability and constraints, and identifying practical ways to strengthen data sharing and technical coordination.

The second day is dedicated to the industry sector, bringing together policymakers, scientists, academia, industry representatives, and technical experts to discuss challenges, cleaner technologies, enabling policies, financing opportunities, and support the development of industrial emission inventories and source apportionment studies.

Both events are supported by ICIMOD’s Himalayan Resilience Enabling Action Programme (HI-REAP), funded by United Kingdom International Development through its flagship Climate Action for a Resilient Asia (CARA) initiative.

Objectives

The specific objectives of this event are to:

• Review the ongoing progress of emissions inventory development under the BNCAAP process.
• Identify key sector-wise data gaps and institutional challenges affecting emissions inventory preparation.
• Strengthen coordination among relevant government institutions to support data sharing, validation, and sectoral alignment.
• Advance BNCAAP through targeted consultations and institutional strengthening, focusing on the industrial sector.

Background

Air pollution has emerged as a growing concern for Bhutan’s sustainable and inclusive development. Despite the country’s exemplary environmental stewardship and carbon-negative status, localised air quality deterioration, particularly in urban and industrial clusters, poses increasing risks to public health, ecosystems, and economic productivity. Rising energy demand, industrial expansion, and transport-related emissions are among the key contributors to this emerging environmental challenge.

To address these evolving challenges, the Royal Government of Bhutan, with support from the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), is developing Bhutan’s National Clean Air Action Plan (BNCAAP). BNCAAP aims to provide a coordinated, multisectoral roadmap to reduce emissions, strengthen data-driven decision-making, and promote sustainable technologies and practices aligned with Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness (GNH) principles and regional clean air goals.

The inception workshop for the National Clean Air Action Plan, held on 15 September 2025, brought together stakeholders from key sectors, including environment, energy, transport, industry, waste, health, and local government. The workshop established a common understanding of the BNCAAP objectives, implementation approach, sectoral priorities, and existing gaps. Building on this foundation, a series of sectoral consultations is being organised to deepen technical discussions, support emission inventory development, and co-develop sector-specific strategies.

As the work progresses, the need for coordinated engagement with relevant government institutions has become increasingly important for reviewing available sectoral data, identifying critical information gaps, and strengthening institutional alignment.