By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Tue, 2010-02-16 14:58
The IEP roadmap to 2050
In December 2009, the International Electricity Partnership (IEP) published its 'Roadmap for a Low-Carbon Power Sector by 2050'. The IEP was created in October 2008 at an international summit of electricity chief executives held in Atlanta, USA. Its roadmap focuses on Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, and the United States.
The IEP industry leaders see a crucial role for the electrical power sector. Historically, electrical power has been the largest source of CO2 emissions, the main contributor to climate change. But in the upcoming decades electricity can become a key lever in evolving towards a low carbon economy, states the IEP. The key technological evolutions necessary to make this happen are the electrification of heating and transport, and carbon-free power generation.
Aggressive application of technology
The report sets a target of 60% to 80% reduction in carbon emission by 2050. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) this is the level of reductions required to stabilise greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere at 450 to 550 ppm CO2eq. This is estimated to correspond with an average global temperature rise of 2-3 °C. The IEP argues that reaching this target is only possible through an aggressive application of technology. It advocates policies that provide incentives for high investments in renewable energy, Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), nuclear power, smart grids, electric vehicles, heat pumps, and energy efficiency.
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By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Tue, 2009-10-13 05:30
No effective, affordable, low risk solutions available
If we are able to influence the earth’s CO2 density and climate in a negative way, it seems logical to assume that we are also able to influence it in a positive way. That is the basic idea behind geo-engineering solutions to climate change. Those solutions generally include such ideas as afforestation, CO2 air capture, ocean fertilisation, cloud albedo (using sea water spray to whiten clouds and increase cloud reflectivity), surface albedo (using specifically coloured roofing and paving materials), creating stratospheric sulphur aerosols, and space solar reflectors.
Is CCS geo-engineering?
A recent article on the subject in the Financial Times also includes CO2 capture at the stack ('Carbon Capture and Storage', CCS) among other geo-engineering solutions. This is noteworthy primarily since this solution is generally seen as more realistic. CCS already receives significant amounts of R&D funding, in contrast with the other geo-engineering solutions.
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By Roman Targosz / Published on Fri, 2009-06-05 15:35
Climate Change talks in Bonn but also informal negotiations in other places signal that the all major parties of the Convention are seriously committed to reaching a strong international legally binding agreement.
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By Sergio Ferreira / Published on Fri, 2009-04-24 04:26
Climate Policy in the US is beggining to gain momentum. Any effective climate policy will need to achieve large reductions in both the amount of energy used and the carbon intensity of energy in each of the following sectors: transportation, electricity production and heat for homes, businesses and industries!
The Department of Engineering and Public Policy of the Carnegie Mellon University has a long track record on Sustainability issues and has issued a Briefing Note aimed at improving US Climate Policy... or glare some light over it!
Your comments are also welcome!
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By Hans De Keulenaer / Published on Thu, 2009-03-12 16:04
Sarah Darby, Lower Carbon Futures, Environmental Change Institute, Oxford University Centre for the Environment
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By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Thu, 2009-01-22 06:30
A crystal-clear and quantitative view of the road towards a low-carbon economy
The book Sustainable Energy – Without the Hot Air by David J.C. MacKay is a unique case among all of the current publications on this topic. If every author and decision maker involved with climate change and energy issues would take this book as a starting point before making any claims or proposals, the world would be saved a huge amount of discussion-energy, energy-to-disentangle-confusion, and energy-spent-on-fruitless-efforts.
'What exactly do you mean by "a huge amount"?' David MacKay would ask me at this point. Indeed, one of the remarkable facts about his book is that it is free of meaningless claims. In his introduction, he cites that most publications on sustainable energy do not give numbers or examples that are easily compared or put into perspective. What they do give are data used simply to impress.
MacKay’s book, on the other hand, constructs several numeric examples on how to create a low carbon economy in the UK. He reduces all figures to the unit of kWh per person per day, making the problem suddenly very transparent.
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By Angelo Baggini / Published on Tue, 2009-01-13 10:00
Year: 2008
Policy Status: In force
The South African government's vision, strategic direction and framework for climate policy was announced on 28 July 2008.
The strategy follows two and a half years of work involving stakeholders from government, business, civil society and labour. It is based on findings and policy recommendations stemming from the South African government's long-term mitigation scenario (LTMS) process on climate change, launched in 2006. The LTMS presented three strategic options to deviate from business-as-usual greenhouse gas emissions trajectories, which the current vision, strategic direction and framework aim to implement.
The government's vision is to limit global temperature increase to 2 degrees centigrade above pre-industrial levels, through a policy response comprising six themes.
Theme 1: Greenhouse gas emission reductions and limits.
South Africa's emissions trajectory is to follow a growth, plateau and decline trajectory. Emissions are to stop growing at the latest by 2020-25, to stabilise for up to ten years, and then to decline in absolute terms. Climate change mitigation measures are to be informed by, measured and monitored against this trajectory.
Theme 2: Build on, strengthen and/or scale up current initiatives.
- -Current energy efficiency and electricity demand-side management initiatives and interventions are to be scaled-up and reinforced through available regulatory instruments and other appropriate mechanisms, including being made mandatory.
- The government's energy efficiency policies and strategies are to be continuously reviewed and amended to reflect more ambitious national targets aligned with the LTMS.
- The Treasury is to study the introduction of a carbon tax, starting at low levels and escalating to higher levels by 2018-20, while being sensitive to higher and lower tax levels.
Theme 3: Implementing the "Business Unusual" Call for Action.
Key sectors are identified as "business unusual" sectors, with specific actions and measures to be taken.
- The renewable energy sector has been identified as a key "business unusual" growth sector and policies and measures are to be put in place to meet a more ambitious national target for renewable energy.
- The transport sector has also been identified as another key "business unusual" growth sector and policies and measures are to be put in place to meet ambitious and mandatory national targets for the reduction of GHG emissions from this sector.
- The government is to promote the transition to a low-carbon economy and society, with all policy and other decisions that may have an impact on South Africa's greenhouse gas emissions taking this commitment into account.
Theme 4: Preparing for the future.
- Increasing support for new and ambitious research and development targets being set, especially in the field of carbon-friendly technologies - with the focus on the renewable energy and transport sectors.
- Using both formal and informal forms of education and outreach to encourage the behavioural changes required to support efficient and effective implementation of the climate change response policy.
Theme 5: Vulnerability and Adaptation
- Continue to identify and describe South Africa's vulnerability to climate change, to prioritise adaptation interventions, while identifying who is to drive them and how they are to be monitored. Affected government departments are to ensure that adaptation to climate change in their sectors are included as departmental key performance areas.
- The government is to pro-actively build on the knowledge base and capacity to adapt to climate change, including by enhancing early warning and disaster reduction systems, and in the provision of various services.
Theme 6: Alignment, Coordination and Cooperation
- The roles and responsibilities of all stakeholders, particularly the organs of state in all three spheres of government, will be clearly defined and articulated.
- The structures required to ensure alignment, coordination and cooperation, will be clearly defined and articulated.
- Climate change response policies and measures are to be mainstreamed within existing alignment, coordination and cooperation structures.
The process of developing and implementing the National Climate Change Response Policy is to be complete by 2012. The first milestone will be the adoption of a framework at a national summit in February 2009, after which sectoral policy development and international negotiating positions are to be developed. The policy is to be amended in 2010 following the conclusion of international commitments, and the final policy adopted at the end of 2010 following a Green Paper consultation process. The policy is to be translated into a legislative, regulatory and fiscal package from now up to 2012.
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By Hans De Keulenaer / Published on Tue, 2009-01-06 01:00
This paper presents an exploratory study of the possible physical impacts of climate change on the electric power system, and how these impacts could be incorporated into resource planning in the Western United States. While many aspects of climate change and energy have been discussed in the literature, there has not yet been a systematic review of the relationship between specific physical effects and the quantitative analyses that are commonly used in planning studies. The core of the problem is to understand how the electric system is vulnerable to physical weather risk, and how to make use of information from climate models to characterize the way these risks may evolve over time, including a treatment of uncertainty. In this paper, to provide the necessary technical background in climate science, we present an overview of the basic physics of climate and explain some of the methodologies used in climate modeling studies, particularly the importance of emissions scenarios. We also provide a brief survey of recent climate-related studies relevant to electric system planning in the Western US. To define the institutional context, we discuss the core elements of the resource and reliability planning processes used currently by utilities and by the Western Electricity Coordinating Council. To illustrate more precisely how climate-related risk could be incorporated into modeling exercises, we discuss three idealized examples. Overall, we argue that existing methods of analysis can and should be extended to encompass the uncertainties related to future climate. While the focus here is on risk related to physical impacts, the same principles apply to a consideration of how future climate change policy decisions might impact the design and functioning of the electric grid. We conclude with some suggestions and recommendations on how to begin developing this approach within the existing electric system planning framework for the West.
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By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Tue, 2008-12-30 06:30
In the second half of 2008, the global financial crisis has dominated the news media. What will be the effect of this crisis on the sustainable energy market? Will it bring this young market to a standstill, or will it bring about new opportunities? The following is an attempt to group the pessimistic and the optimistic arguments.
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By Angelo Baggini / Published on Wed, 2008-12-24 10:00
Year: 2007
Policy Status: In force
The New Zealand Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy is the government's action plan to promote energy efficiency, energy conservation and the use of renewable sources of energy.
It seeks to promote sustainability as part of New Zealand's national identity, improve the quality of life for New Zealand families and drive economic transformation in business.
It demonstrates the government commitment to addressing climate change concerns and progressing broader sustainability objectives. It complements a number of other government strategies including the Sustainability Package announced by the Prime Minister in February 2006 and the New Zealand Transport Strategy.
The strategy includes measures to reduce electricity demand, address energy use in transport, buildings and industry, and promote greater consideration of sustainable energy in the development of land, settlements and energy production.
It is an action plan for many of the programmes in the New Zealand Energy Strategy and its programmes are complementary to the Emissions Trading Scheme in achieving emissions reductions.
The strategy targets actions in five areas:
- energywise homes
- energywise business
- energywise transport
- New Zealand's efficient and renewable electricity system
- government leading the way.
Programmes contained in the strategy are expected to deliver the following savings:
- Stationary energy (electricity plus industrial processes and heat): 30 PJ of energy, 9.5 PJ of extra renewable energy for industrial and heating purposes per year plus 5-6 million tonnes of emissions savings per year by 2025.
- Transport: Cumulative savings of 4.8 billion litres of fuel, 175 PJ of energy and 11.8 million tonnes of emissions by 2025.
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By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Tue, 2008-12-23 06:30
The EU sticks to its 2020 targets
Will the promises to reduce greenhouse gasses be kept now that the global financial and economic crisis is eating away huge parts of the budget in most EU countries? A positive signal came earlier this month at the European summit. EU leaders confirmed that targets for 2020 will be maintained. That is a clear and encouraging message, although maintaining the targets does not ensure that they will be achieved.
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By Roman Targosz / Published on Thu, 2008-12-18 21:03
CoP 14 - Where we are on the road to Copenhagen?
In this webinar, Roman Targosz from Leonardo ENERGY will provide a summary from the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP14) held in Poznan last week. He will address some of the questions of the event:
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By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Thu, 2008-12-04 06:30
The top three challenges in this list are related to energy
What are the grand challenges that await engineering solutions in the century ahead? How can engineers put knowledge into practice to ensure sustainability, health, safety and quality of life for the generations to come?
The U.S. National Academy of Engineering (NAE) assembled a diverse panel of experts from around the world to answer these questions. The members are some of the most accomplished engineers and scientists of their generation. They proposed fourteen 'challenges for engineering' that they consider both achievable and sustainable.
It is significant that the first three challenges mentioned in the report are all related to energy. This focus is immediately apparent in the report’s Introduction: 'The Earth is a planet of finite resources, and its growing population currently consumes them at a rate that cannot be sustained. Widely reported warnings have emphasised the need to develop new sources of energy, at the same time as preventing or reversing the degradation of the environment.' The expert panel saw three main engineering challenges that could satisfy this need:
- making solar energy with energy storage economical;
- providing energy from nuclear fusion;
- developing carbon sequestration methods.
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By Angelo Baggini / Published on Mon, 2008-11-17 10:00
Year: 2008
Policy Status: In force
On 30 June, India released its first
National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) outlining existing and future policies and programmes directed at climate change mitigation and adaptation. The plan outlines
eight "national missions" running up to 2017, and ministries are directed to submit detailed implementation plans to the Prime Minister's Council on Climate Change by December 2008. The missions are wide ranging, targeting
energy efficiency and
renewable energy, as well as improved research capacity on climate change issues. Other missions target
water efficiency,
agriculture,
forestation, and
ecosystem conservation. Missions addressing energy efficiency are outlined below.
National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency
The plan estimates that current initiatives, based on the Energy Conservation Act of 2001, will yield 10 000 MW of savings by 2012. Building on this, the plan recommends mandating specific energy consumption decreases in large energy-using industries, including a system for companies to trade energy-savings certificates. It also highlights the use of incentives, including reduced taxes on energy-efficient appliances. Finally, it recommends financing for public-private partnerships for demand-side management (DSM) programmes that reduce energy consumption in the municipal, buildings and agricultural sectors.
National Mission on Sustainable Habitat
The plan seeks to promote energy efficiency as an essential component of urban planning. It calls for extending the Energy Conservation Building Code, and emphasises urban waste management and recycling, including power production from waste. In the transport sector it calls for stronger enforcement of automotive fuel economy standards, using pricing measures to encourage the purchase of efficient vehicles, and providing incentives for the use of public transportation.
The various missions each have a lead ministry, responsible for developing objectives, implementing strategies, timelines, and monitoring and evaluation criteria to be submitted to the Prime Minister's Council for Climate Change. The Council will be responsible for undertaking periodic reviews and reporting on the missions' progress. Relevant indicators, allowing assessment of both avoided emissions and adaptation benefits, are also to be developed.
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By Hans De Keulenaer / Published on Wed, 2008-11-05 12:34
Will energy efficiency always fail to win its case through the consultation process?
Jacky Pett, Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research
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By Angelo Baggini / Published on Tue, 2008-10-28 10:00
Year: 2007
Policy Status: In force
The Government's CAD 1.5 billion
trust fund for clean air and climate change supports provincial and territorial initiatives aimed at reducing GHGs and air pollution. Each province and territory has identified specific technology, energy efficiency, and other projects that will deliver concrete
emissions reductions to which their share of funding will be applied.
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By Angelo Baggini / Published on Mon, 2008-10-27 10:00
Year: 2007
Policy Status: In force
The government of the People's Republic of China released the
National Climate Change Programme in July 2007.
This policy paper outlines the impacts that China faces from climate change. It also sets out a
strategy to address climate change and sustainable development, including by way of mitigation actions that China envisages and has already adopted.
These include economic restructuring, energy efficiency improvement, vehicle emission standards, participation in international R&D programmes, development and utilisation of hydropower and other renewable energy, ecological restoration and protection, and well family planning, among others. Many of these policies are from the eleventh five year plan, which runs from 2006 to 2011.
The National Climate Change Programme also indicates challenges in lowering the country
CO2 intensity, given its existing resources (abundant coal), the resulting lock-in of coal-based energy infrastructure, limited access to more efficient technologies and limited finance.
A key to the country's contribution to lower greenhouse gases is its official energy efficiency objective of reducing energy
consumption per unit of GDP by 20% by 2010 and of quadrupling GDP between 2000 and 2020 while only doubling energy use. In addition to this general goal, the government is to take measures to close small, less efficient industrial facilities in sectors including iron and steel, cement, aluminium, copper, glass or ceramics.
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By Hans De Keulenaer / Published on Wed, 2008-10-01 15:39
IEEP
and its partner, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) have
published a report on “Climate Change and Sustainable Energy Policies
in Europe and the United States”. This report includes the main
conclusions of our joint project - Transatlantic Platform for Action on
the Global Environment (T-PAGE). T-PAGE has provided a platform for
debate to stimulate dialogue and exchange of experiences between
environmental NGOs, academia and other interested civil society
organisations in the U.S. and EU. The project has been co-funded by the
European Commission within the framework of its programme to promote
transatlantic dialogues at the non-governmental level.
This report includes the series of research papers produced during
the course of the project. The papers include summaries of European and
U.S policies on climate change and energy; an analysis of the EU
Emission Trading Scheme (ETS); a summary of the current state of U.S.
policy on cap and trade; a summary of policy approaches to promoting
biofuels on both sides of the Atlantic; and an analysis of EU and U.S.
public perceptions of the environment and climate change.
The project culminated in a final conference held in Washington DC
in April 2008. At this conference, participants agreed that greenhouse
gas emissions from the transport sector should be addressed as a
priority in overall climate policy through a broad mix of policy tools;
while on the issue of biofuels, participants recommended a common
strategy based on a combination of perspectives and called for a
critical evaluation of the impact of biofuel production methods and
outputs on the environment.
The report is available from: http://www.ieep.eu/publications/pdfs/tpageccfinalreport.pdf
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By Angelo Baggini / Published on Sat, 2008-08-30 09:00
Year: 2007
Policy Status: In force
The government's
white paper on climate policy contains proposals for concrete new measures to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions. The Government proposes substantial
cuts in emissions both in Norway and abroad. The country is to be
carbon neutral by 2050, which means that all remaining emissions will be set off against emissions in other countries. The Government will improve on Norway's commitment under the Kyoto Protocol by 10%, and plan to cut global emissions of greenhouse gases by the equivalent of
30% of its 1990 emissions by 2020. These targets will be achieved both by substantially reducing Norway's emissions and by paying for cuts in other countries. The whole of the extra 10% will be accounted for by reductions outside Norway
The white paper sets out a number of proposed measures for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Norway, including:
- Prohibiting landfilling of biodegradable waste from 2009.
- Prohibiting the installation of oil-fired boilers in new buildings as from 2009.
- Introducing a new scheme for supporting the conversion of oil-fired boilers to boilers using renewable energy.
- Increasing the capital of the fund for the promotion of energy efficiency measures and the use of renewable energy by up to NOK 10 billion by 2012.
- Taking targeted and coordinated measures to expand the production of bioenergy by up to 14 TWh.
- Continuing the efforts to improve public transport, including the efforts to improve rail transport.
The tax system will also be utilised to encourage environmentally friendly behaviour within a revenue-neutral framework.
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By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Thu, 2008-08-28 05:30
An ethical as well as an economic question
If we continue business-as-usual, climate change — according to both the worst prognoses and the more optimistic ones — will confront humanity with serious consequences and a high price tag. However, the cost to society of mitigating climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions is also high. So inevitably, the question arises: what we should do? Pay today for mitigating climate change or pay later to deal with its consequences?
This question is most often presented as a mere economic problem. Not so, says John Broom in the Scientific American article 'The ethics of climate change'. The answer, he maintains, also entails ethical decisions.
John Broom refers to the 'Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change' by Nicolas Stern and the UK Treasury, and to the studies of William Nordhaus at Yale University. While Stern concludes that urgent action to control Greenhouse Gas emissions is required, Nordhaus’s position is that the need to act is not acute. Broom identifies and explains the premises at the basis of this contradictory outcome.
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