Click on a destination to see the related article(s) !
~~~
Dear Readers,
Our trip is now over, we are back in
Paris! We are happy to tell you that this journey was the first episode
of the project One
ClimateOne
Challenge.
We will remain active on the facebook page (which you can access even if you do not have a facebook account).
Here we will post news related to the topics we discussed in our
articles.
We
are glad we
could cover key subjects of the climate change issue such as
socio-economic development, water resources, climate extremes,
mitigation actions and adaptation actions. A serious topic which we did
not talk about is agriculture and food
security.
Thank you for following us. Your feedbacks nourished our motivation.
We
also want to thank all the experts we had the chance to meet. We hope your actions
will be successful and we hope we helped, by writing these articles and
by communicating about your challenges and your willpower.
To all of you, stay tuned, and think carbonless ! :-)
Carolina and Frédéric
"The most important trip you may take in life is meeting people halfway"
Our conversations started in December at the Ministry
of Environment of Colombia and they finished in mid of July at the Ministry of
Environment of Finland! In Bogota, Helsinki, New Delhi or Nouméa in New
Caledonia, the observation is the same : climate change is a reality.
Mitigation of the climate change is mandatory. In that
matter the action of the citizens of this planet is not sufficient : political
and social organization is crucial to trigger an effective mitigation of
climate change. Anyway the climate protection is not one of the first preoccupations
of the citizens. Due to the financial crisis of these last years for instance.
What is the status of the international negotiations concerning
climate protection?
The
United Nations meeting every year on climate change
We met Merja Turunen and Sirkka Haunia at the Ministry
of Environment in Helsinki. Merja is the Director of the Climate Change group
within the Ministry ; Sirkka is chief negociator for Finland.
Since 1995, and every year, the United Nations
organizes a conference on Climate Change (called Conference of the Parties, COP) to progress on climate change
negotiations. One of the most important COPs that was held so far took place in
Kyoto in 1997, where the Kyoto Protocol was
approved.
Merja Turunen, Sirkka Haunia and Frédéric - July the 9th
Scientists and environmental associations have
complained about the lack of decisions in the last COPs. However some results
have been obtained.
In Copenhagen, Denmark, in 2009, the result was a
political agreement, the Copenhagen
Accord. Many supported its adoption as a step towards a better future
agreement. However, some countries opposed it. The COP “took note” of the Accord. For the first time, China and
other major developing countries were leading discussions.
The logo of the United Nations climate change conferences
In Cancun, Mexico, in 2010, the need to cut global
emissions to limit global average temperature rise to 2°C was recognized. Governments
agreed to boost action to curb emissions from deforestation and forest
degradation in developing countries with technological and financial support (called
REDD+ program). Financial achievements
were reached such as the Green Climate
Fund : a fast start finance of 30 billion USD from industrialised countries
to support climate action in the developing world, up to 2012, and the
intention to raise 100 billion USD in long-term funds by 2020. Also the Cancun Adaptation Framework was created to
increase financial and technical support for adaptation projects in developing
countries.
Durban
and the new involvement of the developing countries
“Last year in Durban, South Africa, Parties decided to aim for the second commit period (which means that the Kyoto mechanisms would be continued) of the Kyoto Protocol”, Sirkka says.
A message at the entrance of the Finnish Ministry.
“It was also decided to start negotiations for a new agreement (the Durban Plarform) in which all Parties have legal commitments to reduce emissions”. The participants agreed on a new way of acting: not only the developed countries will be concerned with cutting emissions. For the future agreements, the objectives will be based on every country’s potential to reduce emissions.
Sirkka explains : “The new agreement should be ready by 2015 and enter into force by 2020, when the second commitment period Kyoto Protocol is over, whereafter there would be only the new agreement. It is a big change, a big challenge!”
The next COP will take place in Doha, Qatar, at the
end of the year. “Many decisions need to be made, including
the length of the second commitment period. Also issues related to long
term financing are urgent, because the fast start financing period ends
2012”, Sirkka says. “The political commitment of major carbon emitting countries
will also be closely followed. European Union is ready to commit on more
ambitious objectives if other countries show positive signs.”
They call him Ice
Man. No, he is not a character of the latest Batman movie, but an Indian engineer whose idea, born in 1987,
helps villages in the north of India to guarantee their water supply!
Water for the only harvest of the year
Ladakh is a region
of the world located in the Jammu & Kashmir northern state of India. It comprises
mainly high altitude desert mountains above 3 000 meters. It is a popular
trekking destination for its stunning landscapes.
Almost 80% of the farmers in the region depend on snow
and glacier melt water for irrigation and domestic use. The summer-season
cultivation is short. It is during April and May that the farmers sow for the
only harvest of the year. If it is not sown at this time, the crop cannot be
fully maturated, resulting in low yielding crops.
Since winters are getting shorter and warmer, and glaciers
are retreating rapidly, less and less water is available, and sometimes at the
wrong period. The crops are not as good as in the past, less food is available.
Already the entire population of some villages had to leave and migrate because
of this change.
A successful try
An artificial glacier (Picture : LNP)
Chewang Norphel was born in Leh, the capital of
Ladakh. During 35 years he worked in the region as a civil engineer. In 1987,
Chewang decided to help four villages in Shara valley. He says : “At that time
the water supply was already a serious problem for four villages since there
was only one stream in the valley.”
“I came out with an idea. What if water could be
stored during winter so that it is available later during spring? Which
practically means building… an artificial glacier! And it worked! We managed to
force the creation of a glacier which provided few months after the water that
the villages needed.”
A stone structure is built to
retain the diverted water
which will accumulate and
create the artificial glacier. (Picture : LNP)
Chewang explains how an artificial glacier works : “At
the start of winter, water is diverted from a main stream to let it flow onto a
sloping hill. Distribution channels are constructed with stones on the hill.
Ice retaining walls are built at regular intervals to impede the flow of water and
to make shallow pools. This is how a huge quantity of water is kept stored!”
The hill must be located on a shaded area, facing
north side, where winter sun is blocked by a ridge or a mountain slope. This
will ensure that the accumulated water stock will not melt during the winter. The
process of ice formation takes place during the 3 to 4 winter months and as a
result a big reserve of ice accumulates on the mountain slope.
(Picture : LNP)
Ice Man concludes : “The artificial glacier starts
melting in spring, right in time for first irrigation. After the success of Shara glacier, we
have built about 10 more glaciers.”
The brilliant idea of Chewang has changed the life of many.
Adaptation to climate change is already a vital necessity in several areas in
the world, let’s react all together before adaptation concerns all of us!
Chewang and Carolina at the office of Leh Nutrition
Project where Chewang currently works as Chief Project Officer.
~~~
During these last years, Chewang has received the following awards and honours:
Best Rural Engineer Award from the President of India ; Rural Engineer Award
by Center for Science and Environment, New Delhi ; Asian Innovative Award of
Hong Kong, Far Eastern Economic Review Magazine ; CNN-IBN ‘Real Hero’ Award, 2008(a video, here).
At the end of last year, Thailand experienced the
country’s heaviest flooding in 50 years. The flood claimed 800 lives and paralysed
Thailand for long weeks.
Atchara Suriya works in a tourism agency in Bangkok.
We had the chance to meet her at the end of May and, in the middle of a
conversation, we started to talk about the floods of 2011. This is what she
told us.
Heavy monsoon rainfalls
“I am originally from the town of Pathum Thani, north
of the capital Bangkok. My region has been one of the most affected by the
floods. These last months have been very special for us”. Atchara explains: “The
floods resulted from strong rainfalls. Depending on the place, the water went
up slowly or very suddenly. At one of my friend’s, it took less than 12 hours
for the water to go up to 1 meter.”
“I got only 50
cm in my home. My family and I did not leave. My parents did not want to because
of the belongings and because of… our two dogs! So, like lots of others, we decided
to stay, and spent our time on the 2nd floor or on the roof of the
house. I remember that preventing the water to come from the outside was useless
since the toilets or the drainage would overflow. The old people would not stop
saying : this never happened before, this
never happened before!”
Pathum Thani is some kilometres
far from Bangkok. The ancient capital Ayutthaya is a little bit further North.
The whole region on this
map particularly suffered from the floods. It is here that lots of automotive
and electronics plants operate.
“Of course the life in the village changed. Everything
stopped. Everything turned to be more expensive. During this exceptional
situation we could see lots of positive behaviour. For instance those who had a
car would share it with others. People who had never talked to each other would
start to do it. The village got organized differently”. About the action from the authorities, Atchara says : “We
could see that we had no experience of flood. There was such a lack of organization
from both the people and the authorities.”
Crippled tourism and industry
When we were in the ancient
capital Ayutthaya, we
could
observe the marks
left by the water…
“The whole region kind of stopped. Firstly the tourism
was impacted. The ancient capital Ayutthaya is close to my town, a little bit
north. The historical heritage there was at risk and much less tourists came
during the flooding months.
Secondly, the region where I live is an industrial
area, there are lots of factories around. The floods stopped the activity for
most of them. Lots of small companies basically closed as the losses were too
big. In some Japanese companies, the Thai people had to
choose between moving to Japan and work there for a certain period… or losing
their job. A cousin of mine stopped working for one month. She stayed at home,
with no revenue, in 2 meters high waters.”
Atchara concludes : “I hope the authorities will learn
from what happened, I hope we can be better organized to face floods. Nature is
changing. But nature rules our life so we must pay attention to it. We are
responsible for it!”
An economy hit for a long time
Climate change includes changes in precipitation
around the world. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) declares the following: “Anthropogenic
influences have contributed to intensification of extreme precipitation at the
global scale. It is likely that the frequency of heavy precipitation or the
proportion of total rainfall from heavy falls will increase in the 21st century
over many areas of the globe. This is particularly the case in the high
latitudes and tropical regions, and in winter in the northern mid-latitudes.”
The 2011 heavy rainfalls and the resulting flood had a
huge impact on Thailand’s economy. The country’s growth in 2011 was only 0,1% ;
much less compared to 2010 growth of 7,8%. More than
10 000 factories were forced to close and to lay off more than 350 000 workers
while production was suspended. Japan economy shrank 2,3% in the fourth quarter
2011 partly due to the flooding that disrupted production at leading
manufacturers such as Sony and Honda. The worldwide supply chain of hard disk
drives – used in computers – was disrupted and the prices rose up. The
manufacturer Western Digital announced recently that the situation will not
come back to normal before… 2013.
Honda cars under water - Ayutthaya region
Photo : Getty Images
~~~
In Asia and the Pacific, 42 million people were
displaced by environmental disasters between beginning 2010 and beginning 2012 (Asian Development Bank)
U.S. insured losses from weather disasters have
soared from an average of about $3 billion a year in the 1980s to about $20
billion a year in the last decade, even after adjusting for inflation (Swiss Re)
Does the price of an iPhone include the services
provided by nature? No, it does not. Ecosystems which naturally filter water,
forests which clean the air, or organisms which provide medication are all
available… and free. The price of an iPhone neither includes the cost of the
damages caused to nature.
This situation has to change since these services
become more and more rare due to the level of exhaustion nature is attaining
all over the world. There must be a price to pay for endangering nature, and
for contributing to climate change. Nature does not renew itself at the pace
humankind requires today…
Political leaders slowly realize that reducing
pollution must be encouraged and that the transition to a low-pollution economy
must start. Australia, which has the highest level of carbon emissions per capita
among the developed countries, understood this and will not allow its businesses
to pollute the air for free any more.
Carbon Price
Coal-fired thermal power station -
The UK will soon
have regulations to
permit new construction of coal-fired
thermal stations only
if they are equipped
with carbon capture and storage.
This technology, still
under development,
captures the carbon from the combustion
of the coal and
stores it underground.
From the 1st of July Australia will not be
the same as its economy and culture will head to a low-carbon approach. Indeed
from this date a carbon tax, also called Carbon
Price, will be effective.This not without a vast controversy and many speculations
about the economic impact of this decision. The decision being to tax the
carbon emissions of around 300 companies which represent two thirds of
Australia’s total emissions (the other third being car transportation and farm
activities). Companies concerned are mainly electricity providers, but also
coal and gas companies, aluminium producers and cement companies.
A smooth mechanism
The companies concerned by the Carbon Price will
legally require a permit for each ton of carbon that they release into the
atmosphere. Every year a fixed number of permits will be established so that
the total emissions of these companies are controlled. Between 2012 and 2015,
the Australian government will regulate the system. The price of a ton will
start at 23 US dollars.
During these first three years there will be enough
permits so that companies can adjust progressively to the system: companies
will start to treat pollution as a cost of doing business.
After 2015 the price of the permits will be fixed by
an emission trading system. The
number of permits available will get tighter over time. Companies will need to invest in cleaner ways of
producing energy, for instance, by exploiting Australia’s renewable energy potential.
They will also need to invest to be more energy efficient.
This governmental initiative has the potential to
reduce up to 1,1 billion tons of carbon emissions by 2020. This is the
equivalent to reducing by 2020 Australia’s emissions by 25% compared to 2000
emissions. This is also equivalent to permanently removing 70 million cars of
the road by 2020.
From
where the money comes and where it goes
Many Australians fear this tax will raise the prices
of their expenses. According to the recently published reportThe Carbon Price and the Cost of Living by
The Climate Institute, an independent Australian research organization,
this tax will not necessarily increase greatly those expenses. In the worst
case scenario, the Carbon Price could result in a 0,6% increase in the cost of
living of the Australians over the 2012-2013 period. This worst case scenario corresponds
to companies passing to the consumers 100% of the cost of the tax. This will
probably not be the case since the companies would lose too much
competitiveness and will prefer to avoid buying permits. Quite naturally the
companies will rather invest in greener ways of doing business…
With the money that will be recovered from the Carbon Price,
the Australian Government will mainly: cut specific taxes and other payments to
households; financially help concerned companies to adjust; and promote energy
efficiency, renewable energies and other low-pollution support.
Video from the Australian
Government explaining the impacts of climate change as part of their Clean Energy Future plan.
As these 300 companies will look for ways to reduce
their environmental footprint, every citizen can do the same. Simple changes in
behaviour or investing in energy efficiency are making a difference!
~~~
Australia is not the first country to implement a
carbon tax. As shown in the here-after table, European countries have taken
similar measures. Each country’s tax diverges one from the other depending on the
concerned fuels, types of industry or pollution sources.
Why are Melbourne and Sydney regularly declared two of the most liveable cities in the world? Access to education and health,
culture, infrastructures, the criteria are numerous. Other criteria are
environmental care and sustainable development. And in these fields, Sydney has
started the transformation from an old town to a green and sustainable city… a
proactive transformation which will soon be an example for any major city
around the world.
Political determination
We met Bhakti and Nik on April the 27th, at
Sydney City Hall. On this picture is Nik!
In 2008 the City of Sydney launched the program Sustainable Sydney 2030 and committed the
city to becoming a “green, global and connected city”. At the end of April we
met Dr. Bhakti Devi and Nik Midlam who work for the City of Sydney as managers defining
and implementing the program. Bhakti is managing water strategy and Nik is
responsible for carbon strategy. “Around 5 years ago, global context made the
climate and carbon emissions issues be in the forefront”, says Nik. Bhakti adds
: “the City of Sydney has an old city center, with old systems. It had to be
rethought. The ambitious program could start, with the push of Allan Jones who
is the leader of the development program and who performed a similar and
successful job before in London”.
“A key objective of the program is cutting down the
carbon emissions”, Bhakti says. “The City of Sydney has set a target of
reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 70% below 2006 levels by 2030”.
A leading environmental performer
Solar panels on the roofs of Sydney City Hall.
Nik explains : “It is a global transformation that
will occur. Concerning the choice of renewable energy, solar energy will be
promoted as much as possible. The City of Sydney has the chance to be located
in a sunny region”. Bhakti adds : “We are also working on adding a new pipe in
the water supply network, a recycled
water pipe, which shall be used for flushing for instance. Adding a second
pipe in the water networks is a big investment but it will allow saving lots of
energy. Today in a building an average 20% of the consumed water is used for
flushing! Recycled water should be used instead of drinking water.”
The program sets out a global path for reaching the targets
by improving energy efficiency, encouraging people
to cycle and walk, utilising waste as a resource, converting non-recyclable
waste to energy, recycling water and… implementing a Decentralised Energy Network, powered by Trigeneration.
What is Trigeneration?
The City of Sydney requires approximately 4 million
MWh of electricity per year. Traditionally, this electricity has been provided
by large, regionally located coal fired power plants. These power plants produce
large amounts of electricity, but also produce significant amounts of
greenhouse gas emissions. The electricity sector is responsible for
approximately half of all Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions as well as approximately
80% of greenhouse gas emissions within the City of Sydney (City of Sydney).
Nik explains : “Trigeneration is the simultaneous production
of electricity and the exploitation of waste heat from the generation process
to supply heating and hot water needs. In addition, the heat can also be
converted into cooling via a heat–driven chiller”. Electricity, heating and cooling…
Trigeneration system (Picture: City of Sydney)
In a first instance, the
trigeneration system will burn gas, which is a fossil fuel, and therefore will
not provide carbon free electricity. However the system produces far fewer
greenhouse gas emissions than the traditional coal fired power stations.
Presentation of trigeneration
Subsequently, renewable
gases will be used. “These renewable gases will come from the city waste! They will be
created using waste to gas conversion
technologies”, says Bhakti. This will displace fossil fuel gas in the trigeneration
systems, enabling them to provide carbon free electricity, as well as carbon
free thermal energy for heating and cooling…
Nik concludes : “By 2030,
the City should have the capacity to meet up to 100 per cent of electricity
demand by local electricity generation". A self-sufficient green city…
let’s follow Sydney!
City of Sydney Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction
Target - BAU : Business As Usual (Picture: Kinesis 2008)
In addition to the trigeneration system, several changes will allow Sydney to
reach their emission reduction target : lighting technology, renewable
electricity, transport…
~~~
On the other side of Australia, we met Oscar Arteaga who
works as a Senior Engineer for Smart Grid development at
Western Power, a State Government owned corporation which operates the
electricity network in Western Australia. He explained us that a significant
investment is underway to step out of a conventional electricity grid and put
into operation a Smart Grid!
What
does it mean? A Smart Grid is a more reliable, sustainable and
economically efficient electricity network.
More reliable because it uses smart meters and
electronic sensors to monitor its performance and increase its ability to
repair itself following a system disturbance. All this reduces the frequency
and duration of power outages.
More sustainable because consumers actively
participate. They can visualize their real-time energy demand to better manage
their electricity consumption, especially during peak periods. Consumers and
network operators can also control, via the smart meter infrastructure, the
operation of major power-consuming devices. Smart Grid can also accommodate
many small energy sources, such as on-site renewable energy generation.
More economically efficient because energy providers
can have real-time and historical information of their network performance in
order to improve network utilisation as well as power reliability and quality.
Wai-O-Tapu thermal area, Rotorua region. The active fault lines along the length of New Zealand
(green colour),
where the Pacific and Australian plates meet. (Picture: NZ
Waikato Regional Council)
New Zealand is a volcanic and seismic area. The tragic
earthquake of 2010 in the Canterbury region, South Island of the country, was a
sad reminder of this. Such an area is also a place where the earth’s interior shows
itself at the surface, offering a unique experience of nature…
A natural source of energy
Hot water and steam from deep soils sometimes
naturally gather in what is called a geothermal reservoir. A natural reservoir…
of energy. Properly processed, this water and steam can be transformed to
electricity for instance. These are the basis of geothermal energy.
As the energy is available naturally, it does not
require any fuel to process it. This is why very low emissions of greenhouse
gases result from the transformation. And this is why geothermal energy is considered
as a low-carbon technology, among the low-carbon solutions that humankind must
promote.
The Nga-Awa-Purua geothermal station provides enough
electricity for about 140 000 homes.
“Although few regions in the world are currently
undertaking geothermal projects, the potential is huge”, says Jonathon
Clearwater. Jonathon works as an engineer at Mighty River Power. The company is
a specialist in geothermal development, operating several stations in the North
Island of New Zealand.
“Indonesia, Philippines, USA, or Iceland for instance take
benefit of their geothermal capacities. Japan also has a lot of potential”,
adds Jonathon. In the Philippines, 27% of the electricity comes from geothermal
energy.
New Zealand takes advantage of the chance
A geothermal power station. The extracted water can be
up to 300°C. (Picture : Mighty River Power)
Jonathon explains : “geothermal electricity generation
commenced in 1958 at Wairakei station. At that time, the plant was only the
second geothermal plant in the world producing electricity. New Zealand was world
leading! Development was slow in the following decades, mainly due to cheap
petrol during the 1990s and the early 2000s. But now the technology is back.
Expensive oil and global warming have changed the deal.”
“Mighty River Power has the exciting mission to
promote this reliable and renewable energy”, Jonathon adds. “Any project is
very specific as the technology must adapt to a site which is always unique. It
is a case by case task.”
At Kawerau power station, the geothermal energy is not
transformed to electricity but is directly used as heat for the nearby paper
factory.
The carbon footprint of the electricity production
All electricity generation technologies emit
greenhouse gases at some point in their life cycle but some are more
environmentally friendly.
Geothermal electricity emits low quantities of
greenhouse gases. It means that in order to produce a kilowatt-hour of
electricity, few quantities of greenhouse gases are released into the
atmosphere. By greenhouse gases we mean the carbon dioxide (CO2) and other gases. The quantity of these other gases is usually
measured as gram of equivalent CO2 (g
CO2-equivalent).
The unit “g CO2-equivalent per kilowatt-hour” is often
used to compare the different technologies. The following comparison chart
helps to identify what are the solutions for humankind to produce low-carbon
electricity.
In this chart, the emissions of greenhouse gases
concern the whole life cycle of the technology: operation but also construction
and maintenance; the extraction, processing and transport of their fuel (when
applicable); and their decommissioning and disposal.
Unfortunately not all regions of the planet allow
developing geothermal or hydro-electric energies. Wind and solar solutions,
which are subject to climate variations, have lots of potential. It is certain
that new solar technologies will be a big part of our future energetic system.
Sun sends a huge quantity of energy to Earth and today only a very low
percentage of it is used by man. A star for a better air…
We had the chance to meet Jonathon on the 18th of
April, at the office of Mighty River Power in Rotorua, located in the middle of
New Zealand North Island.
~~~
About marine technologies...
At the end of 2011, the French electricity company Electricité de France installed their first marine turbines in the North of France. The installation will bring electricity to around 2000 homes.
