Where To Put New Energy

Renewable energy has space to grow

20 August 2019 (Physics World)

“…Low-emission energy sources like wind and solar can have a larger geographical footprint than fossil-fuel plants of equivalent capacity. Even so, the renewable-energy potential of already developed land is more than enough to fulfil pledges made as part of the Paris Agreement and could satisfy the total energy demand projected for 2050…Renewable-energy schemes are not without environmental impact…so it’s important to choose locations and generation techniques that cause the least possible harm…Natural lands are still relatively free from the direct impact of development; they’re typically forests, grasslands and other ecosystems that have not been appropriated for agriculture or other uses. Converting such areas to human use decreases their biodiversity and releases carbon stored in soils and biomass…

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…[A new analysis] showed that the total renewable-energy potential of the world’s converted land is 17 times that required to meet the nationally determined contributions committed to…[and] the 10 largest emitters – including the EU28 as a single region – can all fulfil their pledges using land within their own national boundaries…For a more ambitious target of total fossil-fuel replacement by 2050 (including transport-related energy generation), the researchers found that, globally, converted land has more than one and a half times the potential capacity needed. Fewer individual nations could achieve the goal independently, however, so international agreements and electricity interconnections would be needed…[But because] converted land is already used for other purposes, integrating new energy infrastructure will be challenging…” click here for more

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