How many bison does it take to solve a climate crisis?
In this issue:
Electricity – Utility or Commodity?
With the increase in large data centres with global connectivity which have the capacity to take or reduce load virtually instantaneously, it means electricity systems and markets will need to adapt to very short notice changes. It also means there may be opportunities for demand management. The link below will take you to an interesting, high-level article from Columbia University on how systems and markets may need to change. To see how these issues might materialise and be resolved in New Zealand, you’ll need to come along to our Conference where these issues will be debated on a panel comprising Orion, the EA, Datacom and Enel X.
Only 19% more for net zero
The latest New Energy Outlook from Bloomberg New Energy Finance is now available. The latest edition presents two scenarios (Economic Transition and Net Zero) at global and country level, looking at how key sectors such as electricity, industry, buildings and transport will need to invest and change under each scenario. Interestingly, the report concludes the cost of the net zero route would be only 19% more than the alternative which would see temperatures increase by 2.6C above pre-industrial levels. The Executive Summary is available free.
Carbon credit crunch looming
In a portent of what New Zealand will face as a country in 2030, analysis from Abatable indicates demand for eligible carbon credits by airlines under the CORSIA (Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation) agreement will outstrip supply 14 times. The analysis doesn’t venture to the potential cost of purchase under that scenario but fundamental economics tells us the answer will not be pretty.
Words and deeds
Words and deeds often don’t match and more examples have emerged in CDP’s latest release on deforestation commitments, Time for Transparency. Of the 881 companies reporting on forest data, only 64 (less than 8%) can report zero deforestation in at least one supply chain with credible data to back up the claim. That’s not to say positive progress isn’t being made by others but it’s clear there’s still a long way to go.
The cost of poor decisions
Election fever is rampant around the world and the outcomes could have a serious impact on the prospects of keeping temperature increases in check. A new report from Wood Mackenzie has added to the climate concerns of a Trump victory in the US by predicting it could result in a drop off of US$1 trillion (NZ$1.63trn) of energy transition investment. Alongside that, it predicts slower uptake of EVs, renewables and other technologies such as carbon capture and hydrogen. Specific targets, such as a net zero electricity sector could be repealed and it would likely make accessing capital more difficult.
How many bison does it take to solve a climate crisis?
We can’t answer that one accurately but it seems 170 bison are what’s needed to offset the emissions of 43,000 cars, which seems like a pretty good conversion ratio. Researchers from Yale have analysed the impact of rewilding 170 European bison into the Romanian Tarcu mountains. In grazing 48 square kilometres, they helped capture an incremental 54,000 tonnes of carbon a year, around 10 times the normal rate for the area. The scientists suggest such rewilding could increase an ecosystem’s carbon budget by 60%-90% with a global potential to increase natural capture by 6.4 billion tonnes a year, roughly the annual emissions of the US. That would take around 20 million bison (or equivalent); not a complete solution but a hell of a start.