Less is More - Technology Flashcards
Potential pathways for mitigating CC:
Renewable transition, BECCS, geo-engineering.
Persisting issues with fixing ‘climate change’:
Continued material growth, thus ecological breakdown - idea of ‘green’ growth ie more efficient resource-use
Analogise the optimism of green growth:
Jumping off a cliff and hoping someone at the bottom during the fall will build a device that can catch you.
How does the Paris Agreement work:
NDC’s to limit 1.5C - if implemented, we’d hit 3.3C.
Why do Paris Agreements fall short?
Early 2000’s realised emissions reductions too steep to be palatable, - a tradeoff between economic growth make impossible to get key nations on board - so BECCS introduced.
When did BECCS come about?
2001, Michael Obersteiner - tree plantations, turn into peletts, generate energy - chimneys capture carbon emissions to be stored underground - just proposed, not guranteed to work.
Why were BECCS palatable?
Keep capitalism intact - emit now, clean up later, overshoot 2C, then pull carbon back down.
The IPCC and BECCS:
2014 appeared in IPCC AR5 as dominant assumption in 101 of the 116 scenarios for staying under 2C
Why is AR5 important?
The dominant guide for politicans - blueprint for net zero.
The big problem with BECCS:
It’s centre stage of reductions, but nobody knows it exists: our planet hinders on something most people dont know about.
Problems with BECCS:
Not scalable - require sucking 15GtCO2, can only do 0.028(only a fraction is verified), 15k facilities qould be required, as each does 1million, enormous development, largest infrastructural feats ever.
Scientists on BECCS:
2014, Nature letter, said it was a dangerous distraction from emissions reductions - an unjust, high-stakes gamble.
BECCS and land use:
An area 2-3x size of India in Biofuel plantations - have to feed 10 billion by 2050 - this land more likely concentrated in developing nations (developed wont give up their own)
BECCS and Ecological Damage:
10% additional lost of global forest cover, 7% loss in biodiversity.
Solidifying conensus against BECCS:
Early 2018 European Academics Science Advisory Council released paper condeminng its use
IPCC report without BECCS:
We’d half to half emissions by 2030, net zero before 2050 - we built a global fossil fuel system in 250 years, now we have to change it in 25 (justice demands rich nations change more quickly.
Underpins the Green New Deal:
Pump money into building renewable energy infrastructure at unprecedented rate.
What is the base argument against green growth?
Whilst 100% renewables impossible, growing global economy requires more energy, making it harder.
Example of Green Growth energy changes:
8 billion more MW in renewables, we use 48 nbillion more MW/hr - all energy rollout cocers only small demands - growth outruns best efforts to decarbonise
Material input for 14 TW of electricity by 2050(power global economy)
40 million lead, 50 million tonnes zinc, 162 Al, 4.8 Fe, double silver extraction, 920% increase of Indium, 27x more Lithium
Material extraction of Electric Car switch:
UK CCC, replacing worlds 2 billion vehicles require almost doubling neodymium and dysprosium extraction and copper, 4x more cobalt.
Exemplify extraction required:
Biggest silver mine in worl is Mexico’s Penasquito mine, covers 40sq miles, dam full of toxic sludge held by 7 miles wall as high as 50-storey skyscraper - need 130 more of these just for silver
Problems of Li extraction for electric cars:
One ton of Li requires 500,000 gallons of water - chemical leakage destroys freshwater ecosystrems.
Colonisation and Renewables:
Raw materials located in global majority: following 16th/17th/18th centuries with hunt for gold and silver from South America.
Major Problem with Nuclear:
Too long to get new power up and running - cant scale beyong 1 terrawat - also very vulnerable to weather events (radiation bombs)
Prospects of Fusion:
Projections net power wont occur for another ten years, then another decade to get it to the grid, then more decades to scale up.
