Abstract
Humanity faces tremendous challenges as a result of anthropogenic climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions. The mix of resources deployed in order to meet the energy needs of a growing global population is key to addressing the climate change issue. The goal of this research is to examine the optimal mix of energy resources that should be deployed to meet a forecast global energy demand while still meeting desired climate targets. The research includes the unique feature of examining the role that geoengineering can play in this optimization. The results show that some form of geoengineering is likely to be needed by the middle of the 21st century as part of the optimal energy strategy in order to meet a specified climate goal of 580 ppm CO2‐eq greenhouse gas concentration (or ≈2 °C average global temperature rise). The optimal energy mix would need to rely on energy efficiency, nuclear, geothermal, hydro, and wind energy for over 50% of global energy needs. In addition, the overall cost of the optimal energy mix is sensitive to the assumed amount of achievable energy efficiency, carbon taxes, deployment of electric vehicles, and the assumed discount rate.
Highlights
Follow this and additional works at: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/sysc_fac Part of the Economics Commons, Geotechnical Engineering Commons, and the Physics
It is an optimization model designed to determine the set of energy resources and geoengineering that should be deployed in order to meet a given energy forecast at the lowest cost subject to specified resource and climate constraints
In all cases where geoengineering was deployed in order to meet the specified climate limit, the global temperature rise was held to a maximum value of 1.97 °C throughout the course of the simulation
Summary
Follow this and additional works at: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/sysc_fac Part of the Economics Commons, Geotechnical Engineering Commons, and the Physics. Humanity faces tremendous challenges as a result of anthropogenic climate hand, the steps that would be required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through change caused by greenhouse gas emissions. The mix of resources deployed reductions in the use of fossil fuels would in order to meet the energy needs of a growing global population is key to addressing the climate change issue. The goal of this research is to examine the optimal mix of energy resources that should be deployed to meet a forecast global energy demand while still meeting desired climate targets. Involve large economic and social impacts.[4] This imposes significant political inertia and resistance on the part of both governments and the general public to take any substantial action in the near. The research includes the unique feature of examining the role that geoenterm to cut greenhouse gas emissions
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