FROM AMBITION TO OBLIGATION: ROYAL DUTCH SHELL ORDERED TO REDUCE CO2 EMISSIONS IN LINE WITH PARIS AGREEMENT

2021 ◽  
Vol 80 (3) ◽  
pp. 425-428
Author(s):  
Andrew Sanger
2019 ◽  
Vol 78 (310) ◽  
pp. 103
Author(s):  
Adalmir Antonio Marquetti ◽  
Gabriel Mendoza Pichardo ◽  
Guilherme De Oliveira

<p><strong>ABSTRACT</strong></p><p><strong></strong>This study investigates regularities in the production of GDP and CO2 emissions for 84 countries between 1980-2014. The empirical strategy is derived from an ecological-economic framework in which both outputs are produced employing capital, energy and labor. Moreover, we propose an expanded version of the Kaya identity, which creates a link between the growth rate of CO2 emissions and capital accumulation to evaluate the distribution of abatement efforts under the Paris Agreement. By using a new dataset, we found evidence of relative decoupling in developing countries and absolute decoupling in some developed countries. Our findings show that the individual voluntary definition of the emission targets under the Agreement resulted in an unequal distribution of the abatement efforts among developing and developed countries. In the absence of higher energy or environment-saving technical changes, the required reductions in capital accumulation are sharper for developing than developed countries.</p><p> </p><p>¿SE COMPARTEN LOS ESFUERZOS DEL ACUERDO DE PARÍS IGUALMENTE? <br />REGULARIDADES DE PRODUCCIÓN DEL PIB Y CO2<br /><strong></strong></p><p><strong>RESUMEN</strong><br />Este trabajo investiga las regularidades en la producción del PIB y las emisiones de CO2 en 84 países entre 1980 y 2014. La estrategia empírica deriva de un marco ecológico-económico en el cual los dos bienes se producen utilizando capital, energía y trabajo. Proponemos una versión expandida de la identidad de Kaya que crea un vínculo entre la tasa de crecimiento de las emisiones de CO2 y la acumulación de capital para evaluar la distribución de los esfuerzos de abatimiento del Acuerdo de París. Mediante el uso de una nueva base de datos, encontramos un desacoplamiento relativo en los países en desarrollo y un desacoplamiento absoluto en algunos países desarrollados. Nuestros hallazgos muestran que la definición individual voluntaria de las metas de emisiones del Acuerdo resulta en una distribución desigual de los esfuerzos de abatimiento entre los países en desarrollo y desarrollados. En ausencia de un mayor cambio técnico ahorrador de energía o del ambiente, las reducciones requeridas en la acumulación de capital son más agudas para los países en desarrollo que para los desarrollados.</p>


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 2411-2421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robbie M. Andrew

Abstract. India is the world's third-largest emitter of carbon dioxide and is developing rapidly. While India has pledged an emissions-intensity reduction as its contribution to the Paris Agreement, the country does not regularly report emissions statistics, making tracking progress difficult. Moreover, all estimates of India's emissions in global datasets represent its financial year, which is not aligned to the calendar year used by almost all other countries. Here I compile monthly energy and industrial activity data allowing for the estimation of India's CO2 emissions by month and calendar year with a short lag. Emissions show clear seasonal patterns, and the series allows for the investigation of short-lived but highly significant events, such as the near-record monsoon in 2019 and the COVID-19 crisis in 2020. Data are available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3894394 (Andrew, 2020a).


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robbie M. Andrew

Abstract. India is the world’s third-largest emitter of carbon dioxide and is developing rapidly. While India has pledged an emissions-intensity reduction as its contribution to the Paris Agreement, the country does not regularly report emissions statistics, making tracking progress difficult. Moreover, all global estimates of India’s emissions are for its financial year, not aligned to the calendar year used by almost all other countries. Here I compile monthly energy and industrial activity data allowing the production of estimates of India’s CO2 emissions by month and calendar year. Emissions show clear seasonal patterns, and the series allows the investigation of short-lived but highly significant events, such as the near-record monsoon in 2019 and the COVID-19 crisis in 2020. Data are available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3894394 (Andrew, 2020).


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mikkel Bennedsen

Abstract Following the Paris Agreement of 2015, most countries have agreed to reduce their carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions according to individually set Nationally Determined Contributions. However, national CO2 emissions are reported by individual countries and cannot be directly measured or verified by third parties. Inherent weaknesses in the reporting methodology may misrepresent, typically an under-reporting of, the total national emissions. This paper applies the theory of sequential testing to design a statistical monitoring procedure that can be used to detect systematic under-reportings of CO2 emissions. Using simulations, we investigate how the proposed sequential testing procedure can be expected to work in practice. We find that, if emissions are reported faithfully, the test is correctly sized, while, if emissions are under-reported, detection time can be sufficiently fast to help inform the 5 yearly global "stocktake" of the Paris Agreement. We recommend the monitoring procedure be applied going forward as part of a larger portfolio of methods designed to verify future global CO2 emissions.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (17) ◽  
pp. 5398
Author(s):  
Birol Kılkış ◽  
Malik Çağlar ◽  
Mert Şengül

This paper addresses the challenges the policymakers face concerning the EU decarbonization and total electrification roadmaps towards the Paris Agreement set forth to solve the global warming problem within the framework of a 100% renewable heating and cooling target. A new holistic model was developed based on the Rational Exergy Management Model (REMM). This model optimally solves the energy and exergy conflicts between the benefits of using widely available, low-temperature, low-exergy waste and renewable energy sources, like solar energy, and the inability of existing heating equipment, which requires higher exergy to cope with such low temperatures. In recognition of the challenges of retrofitting existing buildings in the EU stock, most of which are more than fifty years old, this study has developed a multi-pronged solution set. The first prong is the development of heating and cooling equipment with heat pipes that may be customized for supply temperatures as low as 35 °C in heating and as high as 17 °C in cooling, by which equipment oversizing is kept minimal, compared to standard equipment like conventional radiators or fan coils. It is shown that circulating pump capacity requirements are also minimized, leading to an overall reduction of CO2 emissions responsibility in terms of both direct, avoidable, and embodied terms. In this respect, a new heat pipe radiator prototype is presented, performance analyses are given, and the results are compared with a standard radiator. Comparative results show that such a new heat pipe radiator may be less than half of the weight of the conventional radiator, which needs to be oversized three times more to operate at 35 °C below the rated capacity. The application of heat pipes in renewable energy systems with the highest energy efficiency and exergy rationality establishes the second prong of the paper. A next-generation solar photo-voltaic-thermal (PVT) panel design is aimed to maximize the solar exergy utilization and minimize the exergy destruction taking place between the heating equipment. This solar panel design has an optimum power to heat ratio at low temperatures, perfectly fitting the heat pipe radiator demand. This design eliminates the onboard circulation pump, includes a phase-changing material (PCM) layer and thermoelectric generator (TEG) units for additional power generation, all sandwiched in a single panel. As a third prong, the paper introduces an optimum district sizing algorithm for minimum CO2 emissions responsibility for low-temperature heating systems by minimizing the exergy destructions. A solar prosumer house example is given addressing the three prongs with a heat pipe radiator system, next-generation solar PVT panels on the roof, and heat piped on-site thermal energy storage (TES). Results showed that total CO2 emissions responsibility is reduced by 96.8%. The results are discussed, aiming at recommendations, especially directed to policymakers, to satisfy the Paris Agreement.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (9) ◽  
pp. 1836-1857 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiangyu Teng ◽  
Liang Chun Lu ◽  
Yung-Ho Chiu

Author(s):  
Risto Ciconkov ◽  

Indicators at a global level are presented: population in the world today and forecasts for developed and developing countries. The following diagrams are presented: world total primary energy consumption, global CO2 emissions from combustion since 1971, as well as cumulative CO2 emissions by regions since 1750. Facts for climate change are included (according to WMO and IPCC): increase in GHG concentrations, increase in air temperature, rise in sea level, etc. The consequences of global warming are listed: extreme rainfall and floods; high temperatures – heat waves, droughts, wildfires; huge damage to agriculture; harmful impacts on the environment, etc. The IPCC provides several scenarios for a global rise of air temperature up to 2100, for a global rise of sea level etc. The activities of the international community on climate change are organized through: IPCC, UNFCCC, Kyoto Protocol, Paris Agreement and continuous negotiations. The European Union (EU) is probably the most advanced in the battle against climate change. Some important strategies are outlined: by 2020, by 2030, and by 2050. Heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration systems (HVACR) are connected with energy consumption, which means they are a source of GHG emissions. The situation with HVACR systems is such that even in EU countries, the fossil fuels are dominant in the heating systems. Future solutions for HVACR systems are described. The first step is to increase the energy efficiency of buildings and HVACR equipment. The concept of "nearly zero-energy buildings" should be worked on. HVACR systems should be based on renewable energy sources (RES). The considered solutions include heat pumps, solar panels, thermal storage, district heating, combined heat and power, condensing boilers, reversible air conditioners, the concept of "smart" buildings, automation of HVACR systems with digital technology, etc. The political, economic and social aspects of climate change are analyzed. Capitalism society, market economy, profit, is the main reason for today's climate change situation. On the end, there is a discussion highlighting the need for urgent and major investment in RES and energy efficiency. For rich countries, this is really achievable. But developing countries, representing 83% of the world's population, need financial assistance, and this needs to be regulated through the Paris Agreement. Obstacles of a political nature are also possible (US and Paris Agreement).


Author(s):  
Richard Pearson ◽  
Andrew Coe ◽  
James Paterson

A sustained global effort is required over the next few decades to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, in order to address global warming as society seeks to deliver the Paris Agreement temperature goals. The increasing availability of renewable electricity will reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. However, some applications, such as long-haul aviation, are particularly challenging to de-carbonise. The conversion of waste, biomass or existing CO2 emissions into sustainable fuels via FT synthesis offers one solution to this problem. This paper describes some of the challenges associated with this route to these alternative fuels and how Johnson Matthey and bp have solved them.


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