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UPDATED 1 Sept: The EI library in London is temporarily closed to the public, as a precautionary measure in light of the ongoing COVID-19 situation. The Knowledge Service will still be answering email queries via email , or via live chats during working hours (09:15-17:00 GMT). Our e-library is always open for members here: eLibrary , for full-text access to over 200 e-books and millions of articles. Thank you for your patience.
UK could ‘cut energy use and reach net zero using current technologies’
The UK could reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions using only proven technologies and without relying on the promise of unproved new technologies, says a new and typically radical report from the Centre for Alternative Technology (CAT): Zero Carbon Britain: Rising to the Climate Emergency.
The report models the changes to energy, buildings, transport, industry, diets and land use that could reduce energy demand by 60%, provide 100% renewable energy and cut emissions from agriculture and industry – at the same time creating natural carbon capture through reforestation and peatland restoration.
This combination of powering down energy use through increased efficiency and behaviour change, powering up renewable energy supplies and transforming land use could achieve the net zero target without relying on unproven technologies such as carbon capture and storage or direct air capture, says CAT.
Key features of the Zero Carbon Britain model include:
- Buildings – having high Passivhaus standards for new buildings, retrofitting all existing buildings and improving internal temperature control could reduce energy demand for heating by around 50%.
- Transport – reducing how much we travel, and changing how we travel, with more use of public transport, walking, cycling, switching to efficient electric vehicles and two-thirds less flying , could reduce energy demand for transport by 78%. The report also shows how it is possible to supply 100% of the UK’s powered-down energy demand with renewable and carbon neutral energy sources, without fossil fuels or nuclear:
- Many different renewable energy sources suited to the UK – solar, geothermal, hydro, tidal and others – are used to produce electricity and heat, with wind energy providing around half of the energy supply.
- Most of the energy in the scenario (around 66%) is provided as electricity.
- Carbon neutral synthetic fuels play an important role where it is not possible to use electricity – for example, in some areas of industry and transport, and as back up for the energy system.
- To ensure that energy is available at all times, CAT researchers looked at ten years of real weather data to examine how much energy could be captured by renewable energy systems. By matching this to ten years of energy demand patterns, adjusted to take account of the modelled energy savings, researchers were able to plan for possible shortfalls.
The hourly modelling shows a surplus of energy production 74% of the time, with energy provided at other times by shifting demand using smart appliances and by storing energy. Batteries, pumped storage and heat storage could be used for short-term energy storage over hours or days, whilst hydrogen and carbon neutral synthetic gas (which can be dispatched quickly into the electricity grid when needed) could be used for longterm energy storage over weeks or months, says the report.
Project Coordinator Paul Allen said: ‘Relying on speculative future technology to get to net zero risks overshooting the remaining carbon budget, resulting in the very real possibility of global temperature rises of 2°C or more. By modelling a zero carbon scenario using only technology that is ready to be rolled out at scale, CAT’s research shows that there is no good reason to take this risk. We have the technology to combat climate change, and we can start today.’
News Item details
Journal title: Energy World
Countries: UK -
Organisation: Centre for Alternative Technology
Subjects: Net zero
