Research Theme I: The low carbon emissions economy
US and China agree on working group for addressing climate change
April 13, 2012. A joint statement
was issued last week in Beijing, signaling the United States (US) and China will establish a joint working group on climate change. The parties noted that they have a shared view on the "increasing dangers" of global warming. The announcement came on the heels of talks between US Secretary of State, John Kerry, and top Chinese leaders. The world’s two largest emitters, "recognize that the increasing dangers presented by climate change measured against the inadequacy of the global response requires a more focused and urgent initiative". China’s top foreign policy official said the two countries would strengthen practical cooperation in areas including the economy, energy and measures to protect the environment. The two sides have agreed to raise the issue of climate change and energy policy to a ministerial level, to encourage more meaningful action on both sides. In the
joint statement both nations publically acknowledged the overwhelming scientific consensus concerning climate change and its worsening impacts, including rising global temperatures, the accelerated melting of Arctic sea ice, and the increased incidence of extreme weather events occurring all over the world.
Strengthening practical cooperation on climate change means the increased transfer of knowledge and solutions between the two countries, including the trade of clean and renewable technologies. Canada’s trade relationship with China is characterized more by exchanges relating to fossil fuel energy
resources. China is BC’s second-largest trading partner, and accounts for 18.1 percent of the province’s commodity exports - a total value of more than $5.7 billion. This figure is growing fast, with exports increasing by an average of 24 percent per year since 2002. British Columbia (BC) needs to develop a more intentional and open dialogue with China on climate policy. The US is the province’s largest trading partner and in some areas such as transportation fuel policy,
dictates the climate policy in the province. With these interconnected relationships in mind, and the latest discussions between the US and China, it would certainly be beneficial to BC to establish a formal working group for addressing climate change as it relates to the BC - China trade relationship.
Research Theme II: Sustainable communities
Behavioural change has significant impact on energy consumption
April 10, 2013. A recent report
released by the European Environment Agency (EEA) discusses the relationship between consumer behaviour and energy consumption. The report focuses on three main areas: energy efficiency measures and behaviour change; structural factors such as pricing schemes; and last, the rebound effect. It found that targeted policy interventions can deliver energy savings as high as 20%. For instance, direct feedback through smart metering gives people the information they need to know if their energy consumption is excessive. The report also found that community initiatives can introduce new pro-environmental social norms, and pricing mechanisms can increase the efficiency of energy delivery while simultaneously providing energy savings. The report concludes that a combination of approaches holds the greatest potential for reducing energy consumption through behavioural change. A
survey to gain opinions from energy users on the report will be active until May 17.
The findings of this study reinforce the belief that behavioural change is important for reducing energy consumption. A variety of tools already implemented in British Columbia, such as smart meters and the BC Carbon Tax, provide a combination of approaches as recommended in the EEA report. Along the same lines, one of the commitments outlined in the BC Climate Action
Plan was to look at new ways to encourage overall tax savings through shifts in behaviour that reduce carbon consumption. Furthermore, work has been completed to incorporate environmental sustainability principles into school curricula to inform students how they can reduce their individual impacts. A Sustainable Schools Best Practices Guide, developed in 2010, was designed for schools to address sustainability issues and is intended to create a “culture of sustainability” through behavioural change.
Research Theme III: Resilient ecosystems
Mitigating short-lived climate pollutants slows climate change impacts
April 14, 2013. Researchers have used data from a suite of climate models to examine predictions of sea level rise
(SLR) in the coming century. In particular, the study examined the role of short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs). These substances remain in the atmosphere for weeks or months in the case of black carbon and ozone, or decades in the case of hydroflurocarbons and methane. Researchers used models to predict the rate and amount of SLR by 2050 and 2100, with and without the mitigation of SLCP and/or CO2 emissions. They discovered that “in the near term, SLCP mitigation is more effective than that of CO2” in slowing both temperature rise and SLR. Still, reductions in both types of emissions are necessary, and could reduce overall SLR by 31-50% and SLR rate by 50-66% by 2100. The authors stress the urgency of mitigation actions, as their effectiveness is reduced by about 30% if mitigation is delayed for 25 years.
The mitigation scenarios used by the models are based on the “maximum adoption of available technologies” by 2015. However, many regions are not on track for such emission reductions, including BC. The government has redefined natural gas as a ‘clean source of energy’ when used to produce liquefied natural gas (LNG) and is pursuing a ‘full speed ahead’ approach to extracting and exporting the province’s natural gas deposits. As discussed in last week’s
News Scan, natural gas extraction invariably produces some ‘fugitive emissions’ of methane and will increase BC’s greenhouse gas emissions past legislated targets. Far from decreasing SLCPS, natural gas production thus increases methane emissions, which have the greatest impact on warming and SLR of all the SCLPs discussed above. Some may argue that the focus must be on reducing this methane leakage
and increasing our reliance on natural gas as an alternative to coal and other fossil fuels, but others assert that only a shift to renewable energy sources will drastically reduce emissions and slow climate change.
Research Theme IV: Social mobilization
New findings released on renewable energy communications
April 9, 2013. When new renewable energy projects are proposed, policy makers and decision makers are faced with the task of communicating project details with the public to understand opinion, and generate awareness. To assist with this task, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has just released a new report, which synthesizes the best practices in communication for decision makers and policy makers. The report, titled “Communication Best-Practices for Renewable Energy
(RE-COMMUNICATE)", looks at 15 renewable energy communication strategies developed by industry, government and civil society, and puts forward a series of recommendations to improve practice at all stages of a communication strategy, from the time of strategy inception and research, right through the implementation and evaluation stages. Key findings include that renewable energy (RE) campaign strategies should make use of the latest research in the field of behavioral economics to maximize the impact of campaigns, that emotive and innovative messaging is required to generate positive responses, and that communication strategies must be proactive in addressing negative media coverage.
The findings of the IEA report could be valuable to British Columbian policy makers and decision makers who are currently engaged in the pre-planning stages of several renewable energy projects. For example, the Site C clean energy project
is a hydroelectric dam and generation station proposed along the Peace River in Northeastern BC. The project proponents, who recently submitted an Environmental Impact Statement, face opposition from individuals, civil society groups, and
first nations groups. BC also has abundant wind energy
resources in the northeast of the province, which may be developed to help power the growing energy needs of the natural gas sector. Relevant IEA recommendations include gaining a better understanding of public opinion surrounding renewable energy projects at the pre-planning stages, and pro-actively addressing these concerns as they arise within the media. Another valuable insight is that while public support is strong for renewable energy in the ‘abstract’, this support diminishes as projects become tangible, and the public is able to understand the impacts the project may have in their community. The report further finds that following project implementation, public support tends to increase over time, and that one of the most effective ways of generating public support is to “increase public participation in the planning of, and profiting from, renewable energy
projects”.
Research Theme V: Carbon management in BC forests
Controlled fires and forest thinning promotes forest growth: study
April 15, 2012. Scientists working in Ohio investigated
the effects of various control treatments on forest growth. They looked at controlled burning, thinning, and a combination of the two. They then extracted tree cores to look at growth. Using a data set from 1991 to 2012 they examined tree rings to measure the influence of forest thinning practices over that time period. Between 2000 and 2005 an ongoing experiment in controlled thinning was conducted. The tree rings during this period were substantially larger than the period before and after, suggesting an increase in growth. The study looked at chestnut oak, yellow poplar, hickory trees and white oak. All but white oak responded positively to thinning treatments, while white oak trees showed no change in growth patterns.
Many rural BC communities are at risk from wildfire, a risk that will increase over time as average summer temperatures rise. BC now has an excellent opportunity to combine community wildfire risk abatement, via thinning for example, with district-scale bioenergy development, which in effect combines climate change adaptation with mitigation measures. This promises to reduce community energy expenditures and create local employment while enhancing community energy security. Research on this topic, entitled “Community Fire Interface Biomass Utilization For Heating Fuel” and supported by the Pacific Institute for Climate Solutions, has been underway for two years. A White Paper that describes the risk issue and the opportunity presented by dealing with it, including positive economics aspects, will be released by PICS later this spring.
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Asian development outlook 2013: Asia's energy challenge
At cross-purposes: subsidies and climate compatible investment
Study: Arctic summers warmest in 600 years
Renewable power: Germany’s energy gamble
Examining CO2 concentrations and flow dynamics in streams
Energy as dirty as 20 years ago on slow climate effort, IEA says
Keystone emissions seen as equal to 46 coal power plants
