Week 1 Flashcards
Give me an overview of the current climate change issues and facts about it in the world.
- Greenhouse gas emissions: highest in human history (2010s)
- Not on track to limit warming to 1.5 C
- Needs immediate action
- Must reach net zero CO2 emissions to stabilize temperature
Give me an overview of the current climate change issues and facts about it in Hong Kong.
- Subtropical climate –> gets affected y cool northeast monsoons (trad rain) and warm maritime airstreams (tropical storm)
- Will be impacted by tropical storms
- Heavier rainfall is a big deal
- Global temps –> more tropical storms –> more rain
- Historical hong kong data –> increase in TEMP, RAIN (amount and frequency), SEA LEVEL, EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS (heat and rain)
- Heavy impact from Urban Heat Island Effect (UHI) –> heat stress, health related problems, energy use in cooling
- Stats———————————————-
- Annual temp rise of 0.13 C per decade from 1880s BUT 0.31°C per decade during 1992-2021
- Rainfall rise of 2.3 mm per year from 1880s to now
- 31 mm per decade seal level rise
- Extreme rainfall events: 1880s (88.4 mm) vs 2023 (158.1 mm)
What is the world currently doing to address climate change?
- Paris Agreement (UNFCCC)
- Changes to energy, transport, urban planning, and buildings
Give me an overview of the Paris Agreement.
- Created by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
- 196 parties have joined
- Goal: keep the increase of global average temprature below 2 C (ideally 1.5)
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC): research climate change and advance knowledge
What are some factors that need to change to improve climate change?
- Energy transitions (from carbon emitters to non carbon)
- Transport (low carbon)
- Cities and urban areas (more sustainable design and adaptations)
- Buildings
What are some changes we can make to energy?
- Low or no-carbon energy systems
- Reduce fossil fuel use
- Electrification
- Improved energy efficiency
- Alternative fuels
What are some changes we can make to transport?
- Reducing demand
- Low carbon tech & decarbonizing power
- Electrical vehicles
- Alternative fuels - hydrogen and biofuels
What are some changes we can make to cities and urban planning?
- Better urban planning
- Sustainable production and conumption
- Electrification
- More carbon uptake (green spaces & bodies of water)
- Dif for existing and new cities
What are some changes we can make to buildings?
- Possible to reach net zero by 2050 (most promising field)
- Action THIS decade
- Retrofit old buildings
- Effect mitigation in new buildings
- New policies NEEDED
- Zero energy and zero carbon exist in both new and old buildings
- ADDRESS MULTIPLE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Why is sustainable building development so important in Hong Kong especially?
- UHI (urb heat isl) is a BIG deal –> many buildings, very dense (7.5mil in just over 1km^2)
- Also very old population –> suffer from more heat-health related issues
- Also heavy use of aircon –> use more energy
- Good buildings help improve urban microclimate
- Reduce energy use and improve natural ventilation
What is Hong Kong’s climate action plan?
- Zero-carbon emissions (reduce total carbon emissions by 50% before 2035)
- Liveable city
- Sustainable development
What are some strategies Hong Kong is using to achieve their climate change goals?
- Steering Committee on Climate Change & Carbon Neutrality –> formulating stategy
- Green finance –> develop HK into green financial hub & develop green industries
- Budget - 240 billion HKD for CC for 15 - 20 years
- Office of Climate Change and Carbon Neutrality - establish to coordinate and promote
- Techn & Innovation – promote re-industrialization
- Advisory Committee - establishment
- Education
- Public engagement
- Carbon neutral communities
What strategies is Hong Kong implementing to address energy? (all by 2035)
- No coal use
- Renewable energy (7.5 - 10% increasse)
- Zero-carbon energy increase by 60 - 70%
- Investment and development in innovation projects
- Electricity saving - 30 - 40% saving increase
- Strengthen regulations
- Smart management
Brief overview of what HK is doing to improve green transport.
- Increase electric vehicles
- Increase use of better fuels (hydrogen fuels) for buses and heavy vehicles
- New energy ferries
Brief overview of what HK is doing to improve waste reduction.
- Waste Blueprint
- Municipal solid waste charging
- Reduce plastic tableware
- Waste –> to —> energy facilities
