Post on 12-Jul-2020
transcript
Green Technology Choices: The Benefits, Risks and Trade-Offs of
Energy Efficient Technologies
Sangwon Suh
UN Environment/International Resource Panel;
Professor, Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, University of California, Santa Barbara
New Report by the International Resource Panel (IRP) of UN Environment:
Green Technology Choice: The Environmental and Resource Implications of Low-Carbon Technologies
Significance:First regionally-differentiated global-scale assessment of over 60 supply-side and demand-side low-carbon technologies and their combinations on life-cycle environmental and resource impacts.
Two key messages:
• Both supply-side and demand-side low-carbon technologies are needed for a substantial reduction in global GHG emissions.
• Low-carbon technologies create environmental and human health co-benefits and also alleviate the pressure on land and water, while they may exacerbate the pressure on metallic resources.
Demand-side low-carbon technologies covered
+ Over 20 supply-side technologies including PV, wind, solar thermal, and CCS.
Method and data
Main Results (selected)
Technology-specific results
2010 case
2010 case
Overall results
Potential rebound effect
Overall conclusions
Overall conclusions (1/3):
• Demand-side technologies exhibit substantial environmental co-benefits in most impact categories.
• Some demand-side technologies may aggravate the pressure on metallic resources and other natural resources by more than 50% compared to conventional technologies.
Overall conclusions (2/3):
• Improvements to buildings, industry and vehicle fuel efficiency offer near-term environmental benefits of 20-70% compared to conventional technologies that provide the same service.
• Decarbonisation of electricity should go hand-in-hand with vehicle electrification to ensure GHG reductions and other environmental benefits.
Overall conclusions (3/3):
• Both demand-side approaches and low-carbon electricity are needed.
• Timely policy actions tailored to the specifics of the region are needed.
Co-authors: Joseph D. Bergesen1, Thomas Gibon2, Edgar Hertwich3, Michael Taptich4
1 University of California, Santa Barbara, 2 Norwegian University of Science & Technology,3 Yale University, 4 University of California, Berkeley
Contributors: Severin Beucker (Borderstep Institute; Yasunori Kikuchi (University of Tokyo); Łukasz Lelek(Polish Academy of Sciences); Eric Masanet(Northwestern University); Nydia Suppen (Center for life cycle assessment and Sustainable Design, CADIS); LeenaTähkämö (Aalto University)
UN Environment/International Resource PanelCo-chairs: Janez Potočnik and Alicia BárcenaPeer-review coordinator: Seiji HashimotoExecutive summary review: Paul EkinsUN Environment secretariat: Zura Nukusheva and PederJansen