The world is
progressively transitioning from its current unsustainable energy paradigm to a
future powered by entirely renewable and clean energy supply. Only by making such a transition
will we be able to avoid the very worst impacts of climate change.
The impetuses
for a revolutionary change in mankind’s use of energy are many, of which the following
are perhaps the most pertinent:
Supplies
of cheap, conventional oil and gas are declining while our energy demands
continue to increase. It is clear that our reliance on fossil fuels cannot
continue indefinitely. With the world’s population projected to increase to
over 9 billion over the next 40 years, “business-as-usual” is not an option.
Global warming and climate change
Even if fossil fuel supplies were infinite, we would have another
compelling reason for an urgent switch to renewable energy: climate change.
Hundreds of millions of people worldwide are already affected by water shortages,
crop failures, tropical diseases, flooding and extreme weather events –
conditions that are likely to be made worse by increasing concentrations of
greenhouse gasses in the Earth’s atmosphere. The WHO estimates that climate
change is already causing more than 150,000 deaths a year.
Global warming threatens the fragile balance of our planet’s ecosystems,
and could consign a quarter of all species to extinction. The loss of
ecological services from forests, coral reefs and other ecosystems will also
have huge economic implications.
Environmental
concerns
Energy
companies are increasingly looking to fill the gap with unconventional sources of
oil and gas, such as shale gas, oil from deep water platforms like BP’s
Deepwater Horizon, or the Canadian tar sands. But these come at an
unprecedented cost – and not just in economic terms. Many reserves are located in
some of the world’s most pristine places – such as tropical rainforests and the
Arctic – that are vital for biodiversity and the ecosystem services that we all
depend on, from freshwater to a healthy atmosphere. Extracting them is
difficult and dangerous, and costly to businesses, communities and economies when
things go wrong.
Processing and using unconventional fossil sources produces large
quantities of greenhouse gasses and chemical pollution, and puts unsustainable demands
on our freshwater resources, with severe impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem
services.
The impetus for developing countries
A fifth
of the world’s population today still has no access to reliable electricity –
drastically inhibiting their chances of getting an education and earning a
living, not to mention escape from the vicious cycle of poverty. As energy
prices increase, the world’s poor will continue to be excluded.
At the
same time, more than 2.7 billion people are dependent on traditional bioenergy
(mainly from wood, crop residues and animal dung) as their main source for
cooking and heating fuel. This is often harvested unsustainably, causing soil
erosion and increasing the risk of flooding, not to mention threatening the biodiversity
and adding to greenhouse gas emissions. Traditional stoves also present a
significant health problem – according to World Health Organisation (WHO)
estimates, 2.5 million women and young children die prematurely each year from
inhaling their fumes. With many developing societies becoming increasingly
urban, air quality in cities will decline further.
Finite
and increasingly expensive fossil fuels are not the answer for developing countries.
Instead, renewable energy sources offer the potential to transform the quality
of life and improve the economic prospects of billions.
Reading Notes (interesting observations and
Key Take-Aways)
Reading
2 addressed the
issues in achieving sustainable transportation. Sustainable transportation is
defined as representing the goal of ensuring that that environment, social and
economic considerations are factored into decisions affecting transportation
activity.
The
impacts of transportation on sustainability was shown in a table:
It was
noted that Sustainable planning does not necessary require tradeoffs between
economic, social and environmental objectives, but rather is a matter of
finding strategies that help achieve all of these objectives over the long term
by increasing transportation efficiency.
Whereas
conventional planning proceeds on a concept of linear transport progress, which
envisions newer, faster modes of transport modes displacing older, slower
modes, with the assumption that older modes are unimportant, sustainable
planning envisages a parallel model. That is, a model which assumes that each
mode can be useful and the goal is to create a balanced transport system that
uses each mode for what it does best – this involves improvement (in all
aspects – comfort, speed, safety, cost savings, etc.) to all useful modes.
Several
implications of sustainable transportation were identified:
Decision making:
• Requires a paradigm
shift in the way people think and solve problems – this involves a more
comprehensive analysis of impacts, consideration of a broader range of
solutions and more effective pubic involvement in the planning process
• Whereas conventional
planning reflects reductionist decision making in which problems are assigned
to a specialised organisation with narrowly defined responsibilities (often
what results is the solutions of one agency exacerbates the problems of
another), sustainability suggests that public involvement is increasingly
important.
• Some of the value of
public involvement: decisions may more accurately reflect community values by
giving people more opportunities to affect decisions; contribution to more
equitable transportation decisions through giving disadvantaged groups more
involvement in decisions that affect them; creation of increased public support
for policies which require behaviour changes or sacrifices in a community.
• However, the debate
over how best to improve public involvement and what amount of such involvement
is adequate for sustainability is still ongoing.
• There is the risk of
domination by either professional elite or activist groups representing special
interest in such public involvement
Automobile
dependency:
• Most sustainability
transport planning supports reduced automobile dependency in order to minimise
the economic, social and environmental costs imposed.
• The issues involved
in the debate over automobiles is likely wider than just economic v
environmental – various market distortions have been identified and recognised
as contributing to excessive automobile dependency and vehicle designs that are
more polluting and dangerous than optimal
• The author posits
that reducing automobile dependency will ultimately help to achieve a more
sustainable transport system and reducing market distortions can help to
achieve this objective.
Transportation
equity:
• Lack of guidelines to
assess and evaluate transportation equity
• Equity considerations
can come in two forms – horizontal and vertical equity
• Horizontal equity
suggests that externalities of transportation should be reduced where they are
specifically justified and also that the use of transportation should be appropriately
priced – users ‘should get what they pay for and pay for what they get’
• Vertical equity
implies that access options should improve for people who are economically,
socially and physically disadvantaged
Community
liveability
• Community liveability
is a worthwhile sustainability goal in itself; it also can support other
sustainable objectives such as reducing the need to travel and increasing the
use of public transit
• It addresses local
environmental quality, quality of community interactions and community cohesion
and the ability of the community to satisfy the basic needs of residents
• Given that a high
quality public realm forges community liveability, there is a need to improve
the streetscape through creating opportunities for greater interaction and
introduction of polities to encourage non-motorise transport
Land use
• Policies which
determine the use of land may influence the development of transportation
patterns
• Experts have
concluded that sustainable transportation requires higher-density land use
patterns that accommodate alternative modes; however non-believers argue that
high density development itself imposes costs
The paper concludes by postulate various viable visions to achieving
sustainable transportation:
Technical – reliance on technological innovations to solve specific
sustainability problems, create wealth and increase mobility.
Demand management – involves changing travel behaviour by increasing
traveller choice and through encouraging more economically efficient travel
patterns.
Economic reform – creation of a more optimal transportation market by
reforming transport prices and investment practices.
Alternative modes – provision of alternative modes of transport; mainly
involves improvement to public transit, non-motorised transport, telecommunicating.
Land use/community design changes – changing land use patterns to reduce
travel distances and increase mode choice.
Reading 3 was a 2010 World Energy Council assessment of country-specific energy
and climate policies and their implications for sustainability. It identified
that there were 3 fundamental issues that required to be addressed today:
Security of supply
There is a need to invest in new sources and infrastructure to meet
demand. The recent financial crisis has negatively affected some investment
plans and the recent surge in oil and commodity prices may curb growth.
Environmental
protection and climate change
The energy sector is responsible for 60% of global greenhouse gas
emissions and much of regional and urban air pollution, hence it is clearly on
the front to address climate change. Also, in a time where more people are
moving from rural to urban cities, air quality is a major concern.
Equity
Energy goes in concert with development – there is a need to prevent the
creation or exacerbation of inequalities within and across countries. There is
a need to work towards a sustainable solution which reconciles economic growth,
protection of the environment and greater energy equity among peoples.
Existing concerns include:
Although energy resources are not a major constraint, the issue is with
their uneven distribution across nations and the fact that ensuring energy
supply security will lead to an increase in energy prices.
The energy industry will need to venture further afield, in untapped
areas, and employ ever more sophisticated technologies to tap the remaining
available resources. Concurrently, there is the need to adhere to the highest
standards of safety.
The real shortage today relates to governance. There is a dearth of
effective rule and smart policy frameworks to update our existing energy
policies and ensure the right resources and technologies are available in the
right place, at the right time and at the right price.
Innovation in terms of policies, institutions and governance is just as
important as technological innovation going ahead.
The need for new energy governance has been recognized by Copenhagen, as
evidenced by the shift from top-down approach of Kyoto to bottom-up approach
based on national commitments – in the form of the Copenhagen Accord. The
energy sustainability policy has been put at the centre of the sustainability
debate. The challenge now is to design sound and effective public policies to
deliver the national objectives that have been adopted by more than 80
countries.
Reading 6 was a report from the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and discussed
the concept of achieving 100% renewable energy by 2050.
The report cited 10 recommendations for a 100% renewable energy future:
1. Clean energy: promote
only the most efficient products; develop existing and new renewable energy
sources to provide enough clean energy for all by 2050
2. Grids: share and exchange
clean energy through grids and trade, making the best use of sustainable energy
resources in different areas
3. Access: end energy
poverty – provide clean electricity and promote sustainable practices, such as
efficient cook stoves, to everyone in developing countries
4. Money: invest in
renewable, clean energy and energy-efficient products and buildings
5. Food: stop food
waste; choose food that is sourced in an efficient and sustainable way to free
up land for nature, sustainable forestry and biofuel production; everyone has
an equal right to healthy levels of protein in their diet – for this to happen,
wealthier people need to eat less meat.
6. Materials: reduce,
reuse, recycle – to minimize waste and save energy; develop durable materials
and avoid things we don’t need
7. Transport: provide
incentives to encourage greater use of public transport and reduce the
distances people and goods travel; promote electrification whenever possible
and support research into hydrogen and other alternative fuels for shipping and
aviation.
8. Technology: develop
national, bilateral and multilateral action plans to promote R&D in energy
efficiency and renewable energy
9. Sustainability:
develop and enforce strict sustainability criteria that ensure renewable energy
is compatible with environmental and development goals
10. Agreements: support
ambitious climate and energy agreements to provide global guidance and promote
global cooperation on renewable energy and efficiency efforts
Personal ratings
I would rate this session a 9/10.
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