Transcript GEOG 352 - Vancouver Island University

Kirklees
GEOG 352
Day 9: Chapter 5 (Energy)
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Kristianstad
Images of Kirklees and Kristianstad
Reminder that outlines are due
On Thursday…..
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Housekeeping Items
 What did you think of Kathryn’s presentation? Any
specific feedback?
 One question we didn’t get to address was that of
‘market failure.’ Wikipedia defines market failures as
“scenarios where individuals' pursuit of pure selfinterest leads to results that are not efficient – that
can be improved upon from the societal point-ofview.” In what sense is the housing market on parts
of the West Coast a manifestation of this?
 How was the film on energy alternatives in India?
 Thanks to Corentin for stickhandling logistical issues
in my absence. The conference was of interest and
there were definitely presentations at the conference
that were relevant to our course, which I will try to
3 share with you at a later date.
Housekeeping Items
 Today, we have a couple of presentations on housing
issues (Taylor and Jenna) that couldn’t be presented
while I was away and the start of the energy
presentations (Karla, Dana, Ashley #1, and
Genevieve – not all have to present today).
 Regarding energy, on September 27th, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
released its fifth assessment report on the state of
the world’s climate.
 As they note in their press release: “Warming in the
climate system is unequivocal and since 1950 many
changes have been observed throughout the climate
system that are unprecedented over decades to
millennia. Each of the last three decades has been
successively warmer at the Earth’s surface than any
preceding decade since 1850, reports the Summary
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for Policymakers of the IPCC Working Group…
IPCC REPORT
 ‘Our assessment of the science finds that the atmosphere and
ocean have warmed, the amount of snow and ice has
diminished, the global mean sea level has risen and the
concentrations of greenhouse gases have increased,’ said Qin
Dahe, Co-Chair of IPCC Working Group I.
 Thomas Stocker, the other Co-Chair of Working Group I said:
‘Continued emissions of greenhouse gases will cause further
warming and changes in all components of the climate
system. Limiting climate change will require substantial and
sustained reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. Global
surface temperature change for the end of the 21st century is
projected to be likely to exceed 1.5°C relative to 1850 to
1900 in all but the lowest scenario considered, and likely to
exceed 2°C for the two high scenarios,’ said… Stocker. ‘Heat
waves are very likely to occur more frequently and last longer.
As the Earth warms, we expect to see currently wet regions
receiving more rainfall, and dry regions receiving less,
although there will be exceptions,’ he added.”
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Pathways to Energy Sufficiency
 Energy consumption from non-renewable fossil
fuels is at the heart of what is contributing to
climate change.
 Initially in the face of the politically caused
‘energy crisis,’ a number of countries (including
Canada) explored alternatives to fossil fuel
consumption – to oil, in particular. However, after
oil became available again and the price dropped,
this research and development was dropped – in
Canada at least. However, Denmark was one of
the countries that did not let it go.
 The National Round Table on Environment and
the Economy, which explored greenhouse gas
reduction strategies, that the authors quote on p.
112 has since been terminated by the Harper
6 government.
Pathways to Energy Sufficiency
 The chapter profiles two cases: the Kirklees/ Yorkshire
Energy Services program in the UK, and the FossilFuel-Free Kristianstad program in Sweden. Though a
few years old now, other success stories are reviewed
in Chris Turner’s The Geography of Hope.
 The first was an attempt to influence citizens’ decisions
around energy that would have an impact on GHG
emissions.
 It involved a collaboration amongst agencies, credit
unions and contractors, with assistance from senior
governments, and enabled not only significant
improvements in energy consumption, but also
economic and social benefits.
 The program was successful in not only educating
residents about the advantages of energy conservation
7retrofits, but provided effective financial incentives.
Pathways to Energy Sufficiency
 The second case involves a small city, whose
population is much smaller than Nanaimo, and a
collection of 25 adjacent towns and villages who
collectively make up a territory about the size of the
Regional District of Nanaimo. Joined together the
population of the area is almost equal to Nanaimo City
by itself.
 For the past nearly thirty years, the region has been
exploring alternative energy, beginning with the
municipal energy company that started utilizing waste
wood chips instead of oil in the mid-80s. These are
used in a combined heat and power (CHP) process that
contributes to an ever-expanding district heating
network.
 Instead of waste heat generated by combustion being
lost, it is captured and used to heat water and or
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buildings.
Pathways to Energy Sufficiency
 In addition the municipal company that operates the
landfill built a biogas production plant to capture and
use methane from decomposing garbage and food
industry waste to produce electricity.
 From 1998 to 2002, the proportion the source of
energy for municipal buildings went from 48% fossil
fuel 9%, and biofuels going from 27 to 78%.
Households are also encouraged through grants to
switch from oil to wood pellets, and biofuels are being
explored as an energy source for vehicles.
 In addition to pre-existing hydro power, and the new
shift to CHP, the region is also relying increasingly on
windpower (see chart on p. 123).
 These two cases give clues for the major projects: the
capital benefits are described on pp. 124-125, and the
9lessons of the cases are offered on pp. 125-126.