What is Climate Change and Why Does It Matter - Coursework Example

Contemporary Issues in Business (Individual Report) Contemporary Issues in Business Climate Change and Energy What is Climate Change and why does it Matter? Over long periods of geological time, the earth’s climate has been constantly changing in response to the tilt and shape of the earth’s orbit as it moves around the sun, the strength and intensity of the sun coupled with the composition of the earth’s atmosphere, the basic shape and position of the continents. There has been strong evidence that some human activities such as the use of fossil fuels are responsible for the constant emission of harmful greenhouse gases that are now causing an increase in the earths temperate in addition to other changes in climate (Richter 2010). Greenhouse emissions are currently projected to increase significantly within the next few decades which will cause an increase in global temperatures and subsequently put to great risk the human society and natural environment worldwide (Pedersen and Nordic Council of Ministers 2000). Climate Change and the Greenhouse Effect The temperature on the surface of the earth is largely determined by the balance between the energy that is constantly re-radiated to space from the earth mostly in the form of infra-red radiation and the energy that comes from the sun which is seen to be in the form of visible radiation (sunlight). When the sunlight passes through the earth’s atmosphere, it has relatively very little warming effect but when it finally manages to come into contact with the earth’s surface, it warms it and the earth in turn warms the atmosphere by both convection and via emission of infra-red radiation which are absorbed by the greenhouse gases (R.I.C. Publications 2007). The greenhouse gases eventually return some of the infra-red radiation back to the earth’s surface which ends up further warming the earth’s surface. An analogy of this chain of events is often made with reference to greenhouses which generally allow sunshine to pass through their clear plastic or glass which in turns stop the heat that is inside the green house from escaping into the atmosphere and hence the use of the term “greenhouse effect” (R.I.C. Publications 2007). Fossil Fuels and the change in Climate System Fossil fuels are formed when the bodies of living organisms die and remain compressed and heated over extremely long periods of time to form natural gases, oil and coal. When burned, fossil fuels are seen to produce significant amounts of energy a factor which causes them to be considered as an extremely valuable energy source. However, the burning of these fossil fuels produces the emission of carbon dioxide, resulting in the introduction into the carbon cycle of carbon that would have otherwise still remained trapped in the earth’s geosphere (Downie, Brash and Vaughan 2009). It is currently estimated that the burning of fossil fuels is responsible for adding to the atmosphere an estimated 3.2 billion metric tons of carbon. Because the earth’s carbon cycle is unable to absorb all of this excess carbon being released into the atmosphere, the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide is seen to have gone up from the pre-industrial estimates of 280 parts per million (ppm) to the nearly 400 ppm seen today. As such the atmospheric carbon dioxide levels are now seen to be at their highest in at least 650,000 years ((Großbritannien Secretary of State for the Environment 2006). Global Fossil Fuels Consumption Global Coal Consumption Coal is considered to be the most carbon-intensive fossil fuel. The burning of coal releases more Carbon dioxide per unit of volume as compared to the burning of natural gas or natural oil. Coal reserves are relatively easily accessible, well distributed, abundant and easy to use. Coal-fired power plants are estimated to produce approximately 40 percent of the total electricity produced in the world. The burning of coal generates most of the heat that is used in cement kilns, steel and iron production. Approximately 66 percent of worldwide steel production comes from the iron made in blast furnaces using coal fuel (Downie, Brash and Vaughan 2009). Oil Consumption The proven international oil reserves are estimated to stand at approximately 1,315 billion barrels or 387 billion tons. These oil reserves are spread out far much more uniquely as compared to coal. The Middle East contains approximately 61 percent of the global oil reserves followed in second place by Africa with 11 percent. North America has just under 5 percent of the oil (Downie, Brash and Vaughan 2009). With a consumption rate of 21 million oil barrels per day, the United States is considered to be the world’s largest oil consumer, closely followed by the European Union at 14 million barrels per day, with china coming in third at 7 million barrels per day and increasing rapidly. Japan stands at 5 million barrels per day while Russia stands at 3 million barrels. Consumption in crude oil is seen to account for approximately 36 percent of the world’s total global energy consumption (Downie, Brash and Vaughan 2009). Natural Gas Consumption The consumption of natural gas accounts for 23 percent of the world’s energy mix, which is a figure that ranks behind oil and coal. Natural gas is widely used in Europe and the United States. The world’s proven gas reserves total an estimated 173 trillion cubic meters which is a figure that has been seen to be growing at an estimated average annual growth rate of 3.5 percent since 1980. The world’s top consumer of Natural gas is Russia which uses an estimated 610 billion cubic meters annually, with the United States’ estimated consumption coming a close second at 604 billion (Großbritannien Secretary of State for the Environment 2006). The Use of Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom During the Late 1990s the total contribution of power by nuclear power plants to the annual electricity generated in the United Kingdom was estimated to be at around 25%. This figure has constantly been on the decrease as some of the older worn out nuclear power plants have effectively been shut down, while the aging plants have seen their nuclear power generation capacity steadily declining (Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom 2010). Figures indicate that in 2011, 365 billion kWh (TWh) of electrical power was produced in the United Kingdom. This power was comprised of 15.5 TWh (4.2%) from wind, 109 TWh (30%) from coal, 8.6 TWh hydro, 14.9 TWh from biofuels and wastes, 145 TWh (40%) from gas and 69 TWh (19%) nuclear (Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom 2010). Currently there are a total of 16 operating nuclear reactors in the UK with a power generation capacity of about 10GWe (Downie, Brash and Vaughan 2009). New Nuclear Procedure and Policy in the United Kingdom The United Kingdom originally intended that the Sizewell B nuclear reactor would be the first of a new fleet of PWRs to be installed in the country, but later on in the 1990s, these plans were abandoned. The question of setting up new nuclear power plants within the United Kingdom was ruled out until the year 2006 when the government revised its energy policy to reverse its opposition to the establishment of new nuclear power stations (Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom 2010). In recent times, the government policy in both Wales and England has been quite supportive towards the establishment of new nuclear power plants that should essentially be built and financed by different players in the private sector. These plants should be installed with internalized decommissioning and waste costs that should be in line with the normal internationally recognized industry norms (Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom 2010). The Public Opinion in Regards to the use of Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom Despite the Fukushima accident that happened in Japan in July 2012, the public opinion in support of the use of nuclear power in the country is high with a recent YouGov survey finding that 63% of Britons actually happened to support the use of nuclear power in the country and only 22% of them opposed the building of new nuclear power plants. It has been worryingly noted that interest in Global warming by Britons has decreased to a low of 59% as compared to the 72% levels that were seen in 2008. A recent YouGov survey conducted in October found out that 40 % of a poll sample of 1734 Britons felt that the United Kingdom should be using more nuclear power than it presently does which is an increase from the 35% that was seen in a similar poll conducted in November 2011 (Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom 2010). The Use of Wind Power in Britain and the Tradeoffs Made by the Government in This Regard Wind power production in Britain has been on the decrease; recently, the Britain’s Energy Minister John Hayes stated that the government planned on establishing a firm limit on the building of any more onshore wind farms (The Telegraph 2012). Over the years, there has been loud criticism from a number of parties as to the establishment of more wind farms in the country. Onshore wind farms are being blamed for creating an eyesore by their covering hundreds of square miles of British country side with unsightly wind turbines (Financial Times 2012). In the year 2008, the announcement by the then Prime Minister Gordon Brown stating that the country would be spending up to about £ 100 billion in the establishment of wind farms was met with approval from the then Tory Leader David Cameron. In recent years, it can be noted that the United Kingdom has been able to meet its greenhouse gases reduction targets and this lead to Mr. Hayes’s claim that the country did not need any more onshore wind farms to meet its renewable energy targets (Mail Online 2012). It is claimed that the government arranged a trade-off to pay wind farm developers a subsidy of 100 percent of all the power that their onshore wind farms produced. Offshore wind farms were to be subsidised at 200% (Mail Online 2012). The United Kingdom arranged this tradeoff in an attempt to mitigate the country’s contribution to climate change as well as make an attempt geared at reaching its set greenhouse gases reduction targets (Financial Times 2012). The Impact of Wind Energy on Climate Change Though wind energy is considered to be a prime source of green energy, there have been concerns that the spinning wind turbine motors happen to generate a lot of turbulence as they spin in their wake. This generated turbulence has been blamed for causing an increase in the vertical mixing of the water vapor and heat that end up affecting the downwind meteorological conditions. In general, wind farms have been proven to cause a general cooling during the day time hours and a warming during the night (Science Daily 2005). The Existing Market Reforms Established by the United Kingdom with the aim of Controlling Carbon Emissions The United Kingdom government issued out a new white paper, the Electricity Market Reform white paper which made several key proposals including the proposal to set up and Emissions Performance standards that would effectively prohibit the construction of any plants that would have relatively high levels of carbon emissions. The government would set up what can effectively be considered to be a carbon tax that would help steer the UK market towards the use of low carbon power. This policy would essentially have a longer time frame and relatively higher levels than the current UK Climate Change levy that is taxed on the various nuclear sources and fossil fuels (Great Britain. HM Government 2009). In May 2012, the UK published draft legislation that was intended to reform the United Kingdom’s electricity market. The government estimated that it needs to attract additional investments to the tune of about £110 billion if it is to be able to attract the development of low carbon generating capacity in addition to meeting the United Kingdom’s climate change goals. Among the tradeoffs that the government plans to make in line with the draft legislation include, the implementation of a Feed-in tariff (FIT) that will replace the United Kingdom’s Renewable Obligation. FIT will be effected through contracts for difference (CID). Under this plan the United Kingdom government will pay the electricity producers the difference if the market price for electricity is lower than the agreed “strike price”, inversely if the market price happens to be generally higher than the agreed strike price, the electricity generator will pay the government (Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom 2010). The United Kingdom and the 1997 Kyoto Protocol With the increasing global climate change that was being experienced, there was a need for countries to cut their general overall carbon emissions so as to prevent any serious interference with the climate. Several developed and developing countries met in December 1997 and agreed to commit themselves to certain set targets that were aimed to slow down or cut their greenhouse gases emissions that were mainly responsible for causing climate change. The six main greenhouse gases that were targeted included nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide, sulphur hexafluoride, methane, perfluorocarbons and hydroflurorcarbons. Under this agreement the UK agreed to reduce its emissions by 12.5% (Oberthürand Ott 1999). The United Kingdom has been pivotal in setting very strong greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets. The country’s emissions since the 1990 baseline are seen to be quite encouraging with the country having already exceeded the Kyoto Protocol target by almost twice of the required 12.5% target. The country’s cuts in the emission of gases like nitrous oxide and methane are seen to be most effective. Carbon dioxide emissions are seen to have reduced by almost one-tenth which poses a big challenge if the United Kingdom is to be able to meet its mid-century greenhouse gases emission targets (Chrisbeales 2012). Another key emission reduction target was an 80% cut in greenhouse emissions by the United Kingdom to be effected by 2050. This cat was made into law in the Climate Change Act of 2008 (Chrisbeales 2012). In the April 2009 budget, the UK set out an interim target of a 34% cut in greenhouse emissions to be effected by the year 2020 (Chrisbeales 2012). Bibliography: Richter, B. 2010. Beyond smoke and mirrors: climate change and energy in the 21st century. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press. R.I.C. Publications, 2007. Climate change: the ultimate challenge? Greenwood, Western Australia: R.I.C. Publications. Downie, D., L., Brash, K., and Vaughan C., 2009. Climate change: a reference handbook. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. Großbritannien Secretary of State for the Environment. 2006. Climate change: the UK programme 2006. Norwich Stationery Off. Nuclear Power in the United Kingdom. 2010. World Nuclear Association. Accessed on 13th January 2013 from: http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf84.html Great Britain. HM Government. 2009. The UK low carbon transition plan: national strategy for climate and energy. London: TSO, 2009. Science Daily. 2005. Wind Farms Impacting Weather. Environmental Engineers Detect Turbines’ Turbulence Effects. Accessed on January 13th, 2013 from http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/2005/1012-wind_farms_impacting_weather.htm Financial Times, 2012. Offshore wind turbine orders grind to halt. Accessed on January 14th, 2013 from http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e8824b96-2676-11e2-9109 -00144feabdc0.html#axzz2I2Nrytq0 Mail Online, 2012. Ten years too late, it’s good riddance to wind farms – one of the most dangerous delusions of our age. Accessed on January 14, 2013 from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-2225544/Good-riddance-wind-farms- -dangerous-delusions-age.html Chrisbeales 2012. UK emission targets. Accessed on January 14, 2013 from http://www.chrisbeales.net/environment/emissions_UK%20targets.html Oberthür, S., and Ott., H., E., 1999. The Kyoto protocol : international climate policy for the 21st century : with 15 tables. Berlin [u.a.] Springer. Pedersen, H., and Nordic Council of Ministers. 2000. Ways of reducing consumption and emission of potent greenhouse gases (HFCs, PFCs and SF6). Copenhagen : Nordic Council of Ministers. The Telegraph. 2012. Death knell for wind farms: Enough is Enough says minister. Accessed on January 13, 2013 from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/energy/9644558/Death -knell-for-wind-farms-Enough-is-Enough-says-minister.html Read More