{"id":17410,"date":"2020-09-28T12:26:27","date_gmt":"2020-09-28T02:26:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/?p=17410"},"modified":"2020-09-29T10:48:30","modified_gmt":"2020-09-29T00:48:30","slug":"angus-taylors-tech-roadmap-is-fundamentally-flawed-renewables-are-do-able-almost-everywhere","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/?p=17410","title":{"rendered":"Mark Diesendorf. Angus Taylor&#8217;s tech roadmap is fundamentally flawed \u2014 renewables are do-able almost everywhere."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/mark-diesendorf-226\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Mark Diesendorf<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/unsw-1414\">UNSW<\/a>.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>The Morrison government in late September revealed the five low-emissions technologies it will prioritise for investment. The so called &#8216;<a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.industry.gov.au\/data-and-publications\/technology-investment-roadmap-first-low-emissions-technology-statement-2020\" target=\"_blank\">technology roadmap<\/a>&#8216; offers scant support for renewable energy, for reasons which do not stand up to scrutiny.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The technologies at the centre of the roadmap are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>clean hydrogen<\/li><li>energy storage<\/li><li>low-carbon steel and aluminium<\/li><li>carbon capture and storage<\/li><li>soil carbon.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Federal energy minister Angus Taylor said proven technologies such as solar and wind \u201care not the focus of the roadmap\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Recently Taylor has sought to justify the government\u2019s lack of support for renewable energy. This includes <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.abc.net.au\/radionational\/programs\/breakfast\/taylor-gas-17-sept\/12672104\" target=\"_blank\">saying<\/a> two-thirds of Australia\u2019s emissions now are produced \u201coutside the electricity grid\u201d \u2013 implying renewable energy has little role to play beyond the power sector. But I believe that claim is misleading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Renewables are versatile<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>The graph below, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.industry.gov.au\/sites\/default\/files\/2020-07\/nggi-quarterly-update-dec-2018.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">based on official data<\/a>, shows the sources of Australia\u2019s greenhouse gas emissions in 2018. It reveals 82% of the national total stems from energy emissions. This does not just include electricity generation, but non-electrical heating, transport, and emissions from extracting, moving and using fossil fuels (or fugitive emissions).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Almost all these emissions can be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.climateworksaustralia.org\/resource\/decarbonisation-futures-solutions-actions-and-benchmarks-for-a-net-zero-emissions-australia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">avoided<\/a> by renewable energy, such as by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>using electric heat pumps (such as reverse cycle air conditioners), solar hot water, and geothermal and solar thermal for heating<\/li><li>replacing gas and coal with renewable energy for heating in <a href=\"https:\/\/arena.gov.au\/assets\/2019\/11\/renewable-energy-options-for-industrial-process-heat.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">industrial processes<\/a><\/li><li>a transition to <a href=\"https:\/\/thedriven.io\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">electric vehicles<\/a> plus cycling and walking.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Technologies to support these uses are already commercially available.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Renewable electricity cannot directly replace fossil fuel use in activities such as air and sea transport, and industrial processes such as steel-making. But with a bit of development, it can be used to produce <a href=\"https:\/\/grattan.edu.au\/news\/green-steel-is-no-longer-a-fantasy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&#8216;green&#8217; hydrogen<\/a> and ammonia, which promise to decarbonise those areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Hydrogen is not the emissions reduction panacea Taylor seems to suggest it is. However, together with energy efficiency, green hydrogen could substitute for Australia\u2019s non-energy industrial emissions (6.4%) together with those from air and sea transport (about 5%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Hydrogen: a trojan horse?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-wordpress alignleft wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-datawrapper\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" title=\"Australia&#039;s emissions in 2018\" src=\"https:\/\/datawrapper.dwcdn.net\/QCF0h\/3\/#?secret=EJAZF55HMa\" data-secret=\"EJAZF55HMa\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"637\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The roadmap prioritises &#8216;clean&#8217; hydrogen. This does not just refer to hydrogen produced using renewables. The government says hydrogen can be produced cleanly with coal and gas if resulting carbon is captured and stored. In fact, the plan claims fossil fuel-derived hydrogen \u201cmight be the lowest cost clean production methods in the short-term\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Carbon capture and storage is an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2018\/feb\/16\/itd-be-wonderful-if-the-claims-made-about-carbon-capture-were-true\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">expensive, energy-wasting technology<\/a>. Despite federal governments having spent more than <a href=\"https:\/\/www.aph.gov.au\/Parliamentary_Business\/Committees\/Senate\/Environment_and_Communications\/CarbonCaptureBill\/Report\/d02\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">A$1.3 billion<\/a> on the technology, a commercially viable plant has not come to fruition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/earth-may-temporarily-pass-dangerous-1-5-warming-limit-by-2024-major-new-report-says-145450\">Earth may temporarily pass dangerous 1.5\u2103 warming limit by 2024, major new report says<\/a><\/strong>.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>The government will also establish Australia\u2019s first regional hydrogen hub, at a cost of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.minister.industry.gov.au\/ministers\/taylor\/media-releases\/investment-new-energy-technologies\">A$70 million<\/a>, to \u201cscale-up demand and take advantage of the advancements in this low emissions, high powered source of energy\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Almost all the proposed locations are close to coal mines or gas field, suggesting the government is preparing to wager big on hydrogen from fossil fuels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In fact, the government\u2019s plans on hydrogen (and associated steel and aluminium production), as well as carbon capture, may all lock in fossil fuel use for decades. This outcome is completely at odds with what\u2019s needed to address the <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/earth-may-temporarily-pass-dangerous-1-5-warming-limit-by-2024-major-new-report-says-145450\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">climate emergency<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Renewable energy: a market failure<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/9368\/original\/943kp32r-1333588613.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip\" alt=\"A steelworks\" width=\"377\" height=\"239\"\/><figcaption>Steel made from renewables-derived hydrogen will reduce emissions substantially. AAP.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>The Morrison government <a href=\"https:\/\/www.minister.industry.gov.au\/ministers\/taylor\/media-releases\/investment-new-energy-technologies\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">says<\/a> solar panels and wind farms \u201care now clearly commercially viable and have graduated from the need for government subsidies\u201d. The roadmap classifies renewables as mature technologies, giving them low priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The government intends only to invest in such mature technologies \u201cwhen there is a clear market failure, like a shortage of despatchable generation, or when these investments secure jobs in key industries\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/morrison-government-lays-down-five-technologies-for-its-clean-energy-investment-146584\">Morrison government lays down five technologies for its clean energy investment<\/a><\/strong>.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p>But an existing market failure means the future of wind and solar farms is by no means assured. <a href=\"https:\/\/reneweconomy.com.au\/wind-and-solar-farms-face-more-cutbacks-due-to-new-network-constraints-42800\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Congestion<\/a> on transmission lines is limiting renewables growth. More infrastructure is urgently <a href=\"https:\/\/reneweconomy.com.au\/four-key-steps-to-take-australia-towards-100-per-cent-renewable-electricity-29993\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">needed<\/a> to connect renewable energy to the grid, and transmit it where required.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Federal funding is also needed urgently to help the states create renewable energy zones, as <a href=\"https:\/\/aemo.com.au\/-\/media\/files\/major-publications\/isp\/2020\/final-2020-integrated-system-plan.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">recommended by<\/a> the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO). These areas would involve the coordinated development of grid infrastructure, such as transmission lines, in places with big renewable energy potential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet the government package doesn\u2019t prioritise these essential measures \u2013 and markets will not build them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Reason to hope<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"alignleft is-resized\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/359299\/original\/file-20200922-24-1urwezk.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip\" alt=\"A solar farm\" width=\"377\" height=\"251\"\/><figcaption>The government must increase investment to integrate renewable energy into the grid. AAP\/Lukas Coch.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Amid the economic downturn brought on by COVID-19, there were high hopes the Morrison government would invest in a green-led recovery. While its roadmap contains a few bright spots, such as a focus on energy storage, overall it is not the emissions-busting plan Australia needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But there is reason for hope. In the absence of federal government leadership on emissions reduction, others are stepping up with ideas. The <a href=\"https:\/\/bze.org.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/BZE-Million-Jobs-Plan_FINAL_web.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Million Jobs Plan<\/a>, for example, envisages investment in zero-emissions technologies that could create more than a million new jobs in Australia over five years. The plan, by think tank Beyond Zero Emissions, has been backed by Atlassian co-founder Mike Cannon-Brookes and senior business leaders. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.climatecouncil.org.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Climate-Council_AlphaBeta-Clean-Jobs-Plan-200720.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Other<\/a> groups have proposed similarly promising <a href=\"https:\/\/assets.cleanenergycouncil.org.au\/documents\/advocacy-initiatives\/A-Clean-Recovery.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">plans<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The government\u2019s latest energy plans are a failure of logic. An economic recovery that moves Australia far beyond fossil fuels is the way forward environmentally, socially and economically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/a-dose-of-reality-morrison-governments-new-1-9-billion-techno-fix-for-climate-change-is-a-small-step-146341\">&#8216;A dose of reality&#8217;: Morrison government&#8217;s new $1.9 billion techno-fix for climate change is a small step<\/a><\/strong>.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:12px\">Photo Lukas Coch\/AAP\/Dave Hunt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:12px\"><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/mark-diesendorf-226\" target=\"_blank\">Mark Diesendorf<\/a>, Honorary Associate Professor, <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/unsw-1414\" target=\"_blank\">UNSW<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:12px\">This article is republished from<em> <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Conversation<\/a><\/em> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/angus-taylors-tech-roadmap-is-fundamentally-flawed-renewables-are-doable-almost-everywhere-146352\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">original article<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mark Diesendorf UNSW. The Morrison government in late September revealed the five low-emissions technologies it will prioritise for investment. The so called &#8216;technology roadmap&#8216;&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":17412,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"sfsi_plus_gutenberg_text_before_share":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_show_text_before_share":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_icon_type":"","sfsi_plus_gutenberg_icon_alignemt":"","sfsi_plus_gutenburg_max_per_row":""},"categories":[44,36,55],"tags":[336,801,804,805,587,806,807,672,811,673,808,810,809],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17410"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=17410"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17410\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17448,"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17410\/revisions\/17448"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/17412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=17410"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=17410"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.socialpolicyconnections.com.au\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=17410"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}