EARTHWITNESS MAGAZINE ISSUE #005

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Contents

Cover Photograph: © Siemens

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Editorial

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Cover Story

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Renewable Energy

© Paul Langrock Agentur Zenit

Wind Power

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Renewable Energy

Mark Z. Jacobson

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© Linda A. Cicero / Stanford News

Wind Power

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Under the Patronage of H.H. General Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces

Abu Dhabi, 19-21 January 2009

www.WorldFutureEnergySummit.com

Now it’s your turn Vinod Vinod Khosla Khosla

Join the leaders, be part of the solution Top government officials, heads of global organisations, leading environmentalists and the largest international investors are meeting once again at the World Future Energy Summit, 19-21 January 2009, Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre to discuss, debate and plan for the Future of Energy.

Register now for the World Future Energy Summit Conference to debate the global agenda on climate change and alternative strategies; uncover investment opportunities and technical solutions; and hear groundbreaking industry developments. Conference passes (from US$1,000) include networking lunches and functions, full conference documentation, and an exclusive ticket to the Zayed Future Energy Prize Ceremony.

Over 300 international companies 12 country pavilions 6 interactive features 1,000s of ideas for the future Free seminars, networking areas, publications Over 15,000 visitors from around the world Platinum Sponsors

Gold Sponsors

Top Tier Partners

Dr Dr Pachauri Pachauri

Presented by

Abu Dhabi, 19-21 January 2009

www.WorldFutureEnergySummit.com

Principal Sponsor

Register now online:

www.WorldFutureEnergySummit.com

Andris Andris Piebalgs Piebalgs

Dr Dr Susan Susan Hockfield Hockfield

Dan Dan Arvizu Arvizu

Plus...

Tony Tony Blair Blair

HRH Prince Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange H.E. Abdulrahman Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, Secretary-General, GCC José Carlos Aguilera, Director-President, BrasilEcodiesel Steve Bolze, President and CEO – Power and Water, GE Energy Ditlev Engel, CEO, Vestas Sigmar Gabriel, Federal Minister for the Environment, Germany Prof. Herbert Girardet, Director of Programmes, World Future Council H.E. Connie Hedegaard, Minister for Climate and Energy, Denmark Jean-Paul Jeanrenaud, Head of Business and Industry Policy, WWF Int’l Alvaro Lorente, Chief Executive Officer, Torresol Energy Dr. Frank Mastiaux, CEO. E.ON Climate and Renewables Esteban Morrás, CEO and Board Member, Accciona Energy Prof. Hermann Requardt, Chief Technology Officer, Siemens AG

Organised by

On behalf of

UNEP Report

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s we welcome 2009, there is evidence the dawning New Year may carry “green” expectations of environmental action, most notably, on climate change.

Old and new environmental benefactors are making enthusiastic pledges on the policy front. Voluntary action, on the other hand, continues to be a major driver on the ground.

In December 2009, all eyes will be on Copenhagen in anticipation of a possible substantial climate deal at the UN climate conference. But as early as January 2009, the same eyes, and thoughts, will be on Washington.

CO2, which can be counted towards meeting Kyoto targets... It is estimated the number of CDM

Should Polluters Pay? In Copenhagen, consensus over a legallybinding agreement will signify that the world is taking serious steps towards saving the planet’s environment. The rich world will need to commit to legally-binding, post2012 carbon-emissions reduction schemes.

On 20 January, the new U.S. President and his new administration take office – and centre-stage – including a new widely hailed ‘dream green team’.

The key positions of Energy Secretary, Scientific Adviser, and Head of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have been scooped by top climate scientists, who are known for advocating America’s urgent move towards less carbonintensive energy production and more vigorous action on climate change.

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The appointments provide significant evidence of how serious the President-elect is about facing up to the climate challenge.

President-elect Obama wants to spend $150 billion over the next decade to promote alternative energy sources, a proposal, he says, that would create millions of “green collar” jobs. He has also called for an 80 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 through a cap-and-trade programme.

In 2008, several thousand projects from around the world joined Kyoto’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). The Mechanism allows a country with an emissionreduction or emission-limitation commitment under the Kyoto Protocol to implement an emission-reduction project in developing countries. Such projects can earn saleable certified emission reduction (CER) credits, each equivalent to one tonne of

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Strengthening the CDM

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Rolex Awards

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© Rolex Awards/Marc Latzel

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Dec ‘08/ Jan ‘09 © Rolex Awards/Marc Latzel

© Rolex Awards/Jess Hoffman

Rolex Awards

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© Rolex Awards/Marc Latzel

Rolex Awards

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© Rolex Awards/Marc Latzel

© Rolex Awards/Marc Latzel

Climate Change

Christoph Steiner

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Biochar’s Success at Poznan The International Biochar Initiative (IBI) announced at Poznan 2008 that the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) has submitted a proposal to include biochar as a mitigation and adaptation technology to be considered in the post-2012Copenhagen agenda of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Biochar is a fine-grained, highly porous charcoal that helps soils retain nutrients and water. The carbon in biochar resists degradation and can sequester carbon in soils for hundreds to thousands of years.

IBI executive director Debbie Reed said, “The UNCCD submission is a great success, and is paralleled by a lot of very positive discussions and interest in biochar amongst country delegates as well as observers of the process.”

The UNCCD, a sister convention to the UNFCCC, has identified biochar as a unique opportunity to address soils as a carbon sink. According to the submission document: “The world’s soils hold more organic carbon than that held by the atmosphere as CO2 and vegetation, yet the role of the soil in capturing and storing carbon dioxide is often one missing information layer in

taking into consideration the importance of the land in mitigating climate change.”

UNCCD also cites the ability of biochar to address multiple climate and development concerns while avoiding the disadvantages of other bioenergy technologies that deplete soil organic matter (SOM). Debbie Reed said, “Pyrolysis systems that produce biochar can provide many advantages. Biochar restores soil organic carbon and soil fertility, reduces emissions from agriculture, and can provide clean, renewable energy. Conventional biomass energy competes with soil building needs for crop residue feedstocks, but biochar accommodates both uses.”

Reduced deforestation is another biochar advantage cited by the UNCCD in their submitted proposal for including biochar in carbon trading mechanisms: “The carbon trade could provide an incentive to cease further deforestation; instead reforestation and recuperation of degraded land for fuel and food crops would gain magnitude.”

UNCCD proposes to include biochar in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), and to revise the rules to account for biochar as a permanent means of carbon capture. UNCCD also proposes adjusting

the carbon offset rules to allow greater financial flows to help developing countries increase soil organic matter with biochar.

Biochar has one important additional advantage over other land use carbon sequestration projects – carbon sequestration through biochar is easy to quantify. It is also relatively permanent.

The UNCCD says: “Potential drawbacks such as difficulty in estimating greenhouse gas removals and emissions resulting from land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF), or destruction of sinks through forest fire or disease do not apply to biochar soil amendments.”

Overall, the potential magnitude of biochar as a climate mitigation tool is great. IBI board chair Dr. Johannes Lehmann said, “We are pleased that the UNCCD has recognised the potential of biochar. Results from IBI’s preliminary model to estimate the potential of biochar carbon sequestration show that biochar production from agriculture and forestry residues can potentially sequester one gigaton of carbon in the world’s soils annually by 2040. Using the biochar energy co-product to displace fossil fuel energy can approximately double the carbon impact of biochar alone.”

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Green IT

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The Complete Guide to Sustainability

Sustainability Middle East

C a ll: + 9 7 1 - 5 0 - 1 4 7 8 0 1 0 inf o @s ustainabilityme.com

YALE ENVIRONMENT 360

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© Mari Tefre/Global Crop Diversity Trust

CONSERVATION

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© Paul Cuoco

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Environment

Think before you make a change. Your incandescent bulb may not be energy efficient, but it is not toxic as many of the CFLs

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ENVIRONMENT

YALE ENVIRONMENT 360

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RENEWABLE ENERGY

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Renewable Energy

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Health

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© Berti Pozo

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© Berti Pozo

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© Berti Pozo

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© Berti Pozo

Climate Change

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P.O. Box 121441 Sharjah Airport International Free Zone UAE TEL: +971 6 5576171 FAX: +971 6 5576181 info@nautilusyachts.com www.nautilusyachts.com

Nautilus Yachts FZC

World’s First Coupe Cruiser

Climate Change

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Ferretti Luxury Beach Residence and Pershing Luxury Beach Residence will be one of the finest living spaces for those looking for exclusive luxury on Waterfront. Escape into the most dramatic seascape, designed with top-quality Italian design.

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