Climate | Energy

In its new RESCUE study, the German Environment Agency (UBA) analyzes how to achieve greenhouse gas neutrality and reduce raw material consumption by 70 percent by the year 2050. The RESCUE study describes six scenarios of possible transformation pathways for which details must be fleshed out. The scenarios are meant to help the federal government achieve the agreed goal of greenhouse gas neutrali

200 international experts meeting in Berlin.

UBA and AWI demand more climate action and protection of the oceans and the mitigation of risks for coastal regions.

Efficiency increase oftentimes reduces product or service costs, which can in turn ramp up consumption (due to reduced prices), thus partly canceling out the original savings. This is known as the rebound effect.

In the first half of 2019 electricity produced from renewable energies made notable gains over the same period in the previous year. During the first six months of the year production was around 129 billion kilowatt hours, about 10 percent more than the same period in 2018 (+ 12 billion kWh). But the rate of new build of wind energy turbines has slowed in 2019.

Climate projections provide information about possible future climate developments. They constitute an important basis to gain information about climate impacts and possible adaptation options. Climate projections are the result of the application of climate models that are based on emission and concentration scenarios.

The 2018 emissions of the roughly 1,870 stationary installations in Germany recorded in the European Emissions Trading System (EU-ETS) amounted to around 422 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (CO2eq). This is a 3.5-percent decrease compared to the previous year. The decline in emissions is chiefly due to lower emissions in the energy industry.

Lesser use of fossile energy and favourable weather conditions helped with the decline.

Developments in 2018 in the renewable energy sector reflect a rather mixed picture: in the electricity market renewable energies covered nearly 38 per cent of overall gross final electricity consumption, due mainly to the year’s unusually sunny weather. In the heating sector, the share of renewables rose only slightly, virtually unchanged compared to previous years at just under 14 per cent.

Guidance for planners and operators of refrigeration equipment

The Paris Agreement set the international goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. To achieve this, it is essential to rapidly reduce greenhouse gas emissions towards zero. Additional measures are needed to remove CO2 from the atmosphere, such as reforestation. However, UBA advises against betting on untried, risky technologies.

According to the IPCC, global warming must be limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius in order to mitigate the risks. An UBA position paper outlines how the EU climate policy could be aligned with this goal. Already by 2020, the parties to the Paris Agreement are to submit their updated national climate contribution to limit global warming. Up to now, far less has been promised than would be necessary.