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Global Warming:Emissions Sources and Solutions
J. Drake HamiltonScience Policy DirectorFresh EnergyApril 20, 2023
Fresh Energy – our core goals
• Healthy economy• Healthy people• Healthy environment• Energy independence
Fresh Energy – our core goals
• Healthy economy• Healthy people• Healthy environment• Energy independence
Fresh Energy promotes public policy to create an energy system that sustains our economy,
our people, and our planet.
NASA’s Dr. James Hansen:The Window of Opportunity
We must cut emissions by 80 percent
by 2050.
We must begin to significantly reduce
emissions within 10 years.
Minnesota Global Warming Legislation
Next Generation Energy Act of 2007
State goal to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions to at least
15 percent below 2005 levels by 2015
30 percent by 2025
80 percent by 2050
Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Minnesota by Major Activity (Ciborowski 2006)
-
20,000,000
40,000,000
60,000,000
80,000,000
100,000,000
120,000,000
140,000,000
160,000,000
19
70
19
72
19
74
19
76
19
78
19
80
19
82
19
84
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86
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98
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00
20
02
20
04
Year
CO
2-E
qu
iva
len
t T
on
s
Other
Waste
Agricultural
Energy
Global Warming Emissionsby Sector, Year 2000
Transport26%
Industrial Process
5%
Res/Com Fuel Use
9%
Fossil Fuel Ind. (CH4) 3%
Industrial Fuel Use
14%
Waste4%
Electricity32%
Agric.7%
US
MN
Waste3.6%
Industrial Process
1.1%Transport26%
Res/Com Fuel Use
11%
Fossil Fuel Ind. (CH4)
1.6%
Industrial Fuel Use
12%Electricity
Consumption 32%
Agriculture13%
Human Causes of Global Warming
1) power plants that burn coal, and
2) oil-consuming vehicles, and
3) energy use in buildings
4) agriculture
Stabilization Wedges: Solving the Climate Problem for the Next 50 Years with Current Technologies (Pacala and Socolow 2004)
“Humanity can solve the carbon and climate problem in the first half of this century simply by
scaling up what we already know how to do.”
Needed: Cut 7 billion tons of carbon per year
Focusing on technologies that have the potential to
produce a material difference.
Strategies available for reducing global carbon emission rate by 1 GT/year
Transportation
1. Increase fuel economy for 2 billion cars from 30 to 60 mpg
2. Decrease car travel by half for 2 billion 30 mpg cars (from 10,000 to 5,000 miles per year )
Source: Science Magazine “Toward a Hydrogen Economy”S. Pacala and R. Socolow August 2004
Strategies (continued)
Power Plants
3. Increase coal burning efficiency output from 32% [today]
to 60% for twice today’s coal power
4. Replace 50% of coal plants with natural gas plants
5. Replace coal power with nuclear energy: double world’s nuclear capacity
6. Replace coal power with wind: Add 2 million wind turbines
7. Replace coal power with photovoltaic systems: 700 times the current capacity
Source: Science Magazine “Toward a Hydrogen Economy”S. Pacala and R. Socolow August 2004
Strategies (continued)
Capturing CO2
8. Carbon capture and storage at baseload power plants
9. Capture CO2 at hydrogen plants
10. Capture CO2 at coal-to-synfuels plants
Source: Science Magazine “Toward a Hydrogen Economy”S. Pacala and R. Socolow August 2004
Strategies (continued)
Conservation & Preservation
11. Reduced deforestation
and increase reforestation: decrease tropical deforestation to zero plus add new tree plantations at twice current rate
12. Conservation tillage on all cropland
Source: Science Magazine “Toward a Hydrogen Economy”S. Pacala and R. Socolow August 2004
Strategies (continued)
Other
13. Add four million wind turbines to produce H2 to replace gasoline in hybrid cars
14. Replace some liquid fossil fuels with ethanol generated from biomass
15. Efficiency: Cut carbon emissions by 25% in buildings and appliances
Source: Science Magazine “Toward a Hydrogen Economy”S. Pacala and R. Socolow August 2004
Keeping Climate in Control
In the next 50 years, we need twice as
much energy with no increase in
carbon dioxide emissions
•50 times more wind power•700 times more solar power•60 mpg vehicles•34 million barrels per day
of biofuels•25% increase in building energy efficiency•1,400 coal plants replaced with natural gas•1,600 gas-fired plants that capture and store
carbon
All of the measures would need to be taken!
Learn More and Share the Information
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www.fresh-energy.org
April 20, 2023
