SUSTAINABILITY

CREATING A MORE SUSTAINABLE FUTURE

Mammoet’s Head of Sustainability,Erica Gray, discusses engineered heavy lifting’s role as an enabler of the transition to a low carbon future

Moving towards a low carbon future for the heavy industries is a hugely challenging endeavor. But it is an area in which we can make great progress towards limiting the worst impacts of climate change and meeting the goals set out by the Paris Climate Agreement. On the road to making the heavy industries carbon-neutral, our biggest hurdle is not the technical challenge, but the need to let go of “the way we’ve always done it”. I believe embracing change, taking risks, and becoming truly entrepreneurial in our approach is the route to creating a low carbon future.

Over the last couple of years there have been increasing calls for the world to switch to more sustainable economic models and practices. However, there is a big gap between this demand and what is currently practically possible.

“ORGANISATIONS SUCH AS THE WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM AND THE DEVELOPMENT BANKS ARE URGING GOVERNMENTS TO SUPPORT THE POST-CORONAVIRUS ECONOMY BY INVESTING IN INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS THAT ARE SUSTAINABLE – THROUGH ‘GREEN STIMULUS PACKAGES.”

TEMPERATURES ON THE RISE

According to the United Nations’ annual ‘emissions gap’ report, global temperatures are currently on pace to rise as much as 3.2 degrees by the end of the century. This is significantly higher than the two degrees many countries have pledged to stay ‘well below’. Yet, in the five years since the Paris Agreement carbon emissions have continued to rise.

Organisations such as the World Economic Forum and the development banks are urging governments to support the post-coronavirus economy by investing in infrastructure projects that are sustainable – through ‘green stimulus packages. There has been much speculation that this is our big chance to re-launch economies on a more sustainable footing. However, there are many practical hurdles to overcome in satisfying an energy-hungry planet with limited resources. The kind of massive infrastructure change required to meet the Paris targets does not happen quickly and the reality is we will need to continue to satisfy the demand for power as we transition to low carbon solutions.

LOW CARBON STRATEGIES

To navigate this transitional period many of the world’s leading energy companies are setting out their plans. Recent legal and shareholder actions are adding extra pressure to this process by demanding that the energy sector sets out more ambitious low carbon strategies and roadmaps. The good news is we are not starting from scratch: there is much knowledge and experience that can be ‘reused and recycled’ for more sustainable applications. In this way, Mammoet’s expertise from the traditional heavy industries can help our customers to meet their strategic sustainability targets and to create a whole new “greener” infrastructure. >>>