Pierre Desrochers

GGR 333 – Energy and Society – Net Zero and Electrification

Overview and Key Issues

Definition

Net Zero Climate. “What is Net Zero?

UNFCCC. “Race to Zero Campaign.”

UN 2020. “The Race to Zero Emissions, and Why the World Depends on It.” (December 2).

Strategy

Morgan, Gwyn. 2021. A Practical Path to Lowering Canada’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions | C2C Journal (July 21).

Cembalest, Michael. 2019. Eye on the Market: Mountains and Molehills: Achievements and Distractions on the Road to Decarbonization. J. P. Morgan Annual Energy Paper (March) (Read the “Preamble on the Green New Deal” and the “Executive Summary”).

IEA. Energy Subsidies: Tracking the impact of fossil-fuel subsidies.

SNC Lavalin. 2020. The Race to Net Zero (snclavalin.com).

Princeton University. 2021. Net-Zero America: Potential Pathways, Infrastructure and Impacts.

Fossil Fuel-related

Lynch, Michael and Ivan Sandrea. 2021. The Pandemic and the End of Oil? The Pandemic, Peak Oil Demand, and the Oil Industry. EPRINC.

Chestney, Nina. 2021. “Global fossil fuel use similar to decade ago in energy mix, report says.” Reuters (June 14).

Gross, Samantha. 2020. “Why are Fossil Fuels so Hard to Quit?” Brookings Institution (June 5).

PTI. 2018. “Coal is Still King in Global Power Production.” Money Control (November 30).

Alternatives-related

Morgan, Gwyn. 2021. Wind and Solar Power Can’t Drive Down Global Emissions | C2C Journal (September 27).

Koningstein, Ross & David Fork. 2014. “What It Would Really Take to Reverse Climate Change? Today’s renewable energy technologies won’t save us. So what will?” IEEE Spectrum (November 18).

Van Kooten, Cornelis. 2021. “Canadian Climate Policy and Its Implications for Electricity Grids.” Fraser Institute (October 21).

Mining-related

Amos, Jonathan. 2021. “Move to net zero ‘inevitably means more mining’,” BBC News (May 24).

Berman, Robby. 2019. “Japan finds a huge cache of scarce rare-earth minerals. Japan looks to replace China as the primary source of critical metals.” Big Think (January 5).

Herrington, Richard. 2021. “Mining our way to net zero.” Geoscientist (September 1).

Herrington, Richard. 2021. “Mining our green future.” Nature Reviews Materials 6: 456-458.

Supporters

Government of Canada. 2022. A clean electricity standard in support of a net-zero electricity sector: discussion paper – Canada.ca

Chao, Julie. 2021. “Getting to Net Zero – and Even Net Negative – is Surprisingly Feasible, and Affordable. New analysis provides detailed blueprint for the U.S. to become carbon neutral by 2050.” Berkeley Lab (January 27).

IEA. 2021. Net Zero by 2050. A Roadmap for the Global Energy Sector. (May)

IRENA et al. 2018. Renewable Energy Policies in a Time of Transition

Don’t believe hydrogen and nuclear hype – they can’t get us to net zero carbon by 2050 | Jonathon Porritt | The Guardian (March 16, 2021)

Seibert, Megan and Bill Rees. 2021. “Through the Eye of a Needle: An Eco-Heterodox Perspective on the Renewable Energy Transition.” Energies 14 (15), 4508.

Big but affordable effort needed for America to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, Princeton study shows (December 15, 2020) (See also Princeton University’s Net Zero America)

Barnard, Michael. 2020. What Does Bill Gates’ Favorite Energy Guru, Vaclav Smil, Get Wrong? | CleanTechnica.“ (November 13)

Below 2C. 2020. “It’s Closing Time: Stranded Liabilities Are the Flipside of Stranded Assets.” (September)

Moriarty, Patrick, and Damon Honnery. 2020. “Feasibility of a 100% Global Renewable Energy System.” Energies 13 (21): 5543.

Roberts, David. 2019. “The Green New Deal, Explained. An insurgent movement is pushing Democrats to back an ambitious climate change solution.” Vox (January 7).

Arndt, Channing, Doug Arent, Faaiqa Hartley, Bruno Merven and Alam Hossain Mondal. 2019. “Faster Than You Think: Renewable Energy and Developing Countries.” Annual Review of Resource Economics 11: 149-168.

Rhodes, Joshua D. 2017. “Energy wonks have a meltdown over the US going 100 percent renewable. Why? (theconversation.com) June 22.

Rhodes, Joshua D. et al. 2017. Are solar and wind really killing coal, nuclear and grid reliability? (theconversation.com) May 11.

Canadian Institute for Climate Choices. 2021. Canadas-Net-Zero-Future . (February).

Oxford University. About us – Net Zero Climate.

Energy Transitions Commission (ETC). 2020. Making Mission Possible: Delivering a Net-Zero Economy (energy-transitions.org).

Critics

McTeague, Dan. 2022. “Exit, stage left: Justin’s transition.” Canadians for Affordable Energy (June 29).

Lyman, Robert and Parker Gallant. 2022. “Grand Delusion: The Liberal Government’s Proposed “Clean” Electricity Standard.” C2C (April 27).

Darwall, Rupert. 2022. “Net-Zero and ESG Are Worsening the Energy Crisis – and Weakening the West.” Real Clear Energy (March 17).

Murphy, Rex. 2022. “Why is it Canada’s ‘duty’ to destroy its economy and Confederation in the pursuit of net zero?” National Post (January 20).

Van Kooten, Cornelis. 2021. “Canadian Climate Policy and Its Implications for Electricity Grids.” Fraser Institute (October 21).

McTeague, Dan. 2021. Energy Poverty in Britain – Will it Happen in Canada – Canadians for Affordable Energy (September 29)

Ridley, Matt. 2021. “Power Mad. Visions of an eco apocalypse have been used to justify a headlong charge to carbon zero for years… but this current crisis is a mere harbinger of the candle-lit future that awaits us if we do not change course.” Daily Mail (September 21)

Quesnel, Joseph. 2021. Banning Natural Gas Heating in Cold Manitoba Just a Dumb Idea | Frontier Centre For Public Policy (fcpp.org) (September 2)

Wojick, David. 2021. “Electric power fantasies are lining up.” CFACT (June 15) Electric power fantasies are lining up | CFACT

Menton, Francis. 2021. Don’t Get Discouraged About The Preposterous Plans To Eliminate Fossil Fuels — Manhattan Contrarian (June 5)

Wojick, David. 2021. “It takes big energy to back up wind and solar.” CFACT (March 21).

Bryce, Robert. 2021. “This Blizzard Exposes the Perils Of Attempting To ‘Electrify Everything’.” Forbes (February 15).

Bailey, Ronald. 2021. “What Would It Take to Reach Biden’s Carbon-Free Electric Power Goal by 2035? Parsing technology trends, policy proposals, and clean tax cuts.” Reason (February 8).

Foss, Michelle Michot. 2021. “How Fossil Fuels, Ironically, Are Critical in The Development of Renewable Energy Sources.” Forbes (February 8).

Mills, Mark P. 2020. Mines, Minerals, and “Green” Energy: A Reality Check. Manhattan Institute (July 9).

Driessen, Paul. 2020. “How Exactly Do They Plan to Ban Fossil Fuels?” Townhall.com (March 15).

Montford, Andrew. 2019. “Green Killing Machines.” GWPF Report 36 (read the Executive Summary).

NIPCC (Non-governmental panel on climate change). 2018. Climate Change Reconsidered II: Fossil Fuels (Summary for Policy Makers).

Bast, Joseph and Peter Ferrara. 2018. Policy Brief: The Social Benefits of Fossil Fuels. Heartland Institute (May 30).

Belzile, Germain. 2017. “Opinion: Abandoning Coal would Betray the Poor.” Toronto Sun (November 25).

Lyman, Robert. 2016. Why Renewable Energy Cannot Replace Fossil Fuels by 2050. A Reality Check. Friends of Science.

Sharma, Sadhvi. 2015. “India is Right : Coal Makes the World Go Round.” Spiked! (December 3).

Forbes, Viv. 2015. “Green Energy Plunders the Biosphere.” Master Resource (July 20).

Mann, Charles C. 2014. “Renewables aren’t Enough. Clean Coal is the Future.” Wired (March 25).

Goklany, Indur. 2012. “Humanity Unbound: How Fossil Fuels Saved Humanity from Nature and Nature from Humanity.” Cato Policy Analysis No. 715.

Menton, Francis. 2021. “More News On The Progress Toward Eliminating Fossil Fuels.” Manhattan Contrarian (October 3).

O’Neill, Brendan. 2021. “Keep Burning Those Fossil Fuels.” Spiked (November 12).

Geraedts, Henry. 2021. Net Zero 2050: Rhetoric and Realities. Canada’s interests are ill-served by wishful politics. Johnson Shoyama School of Public Policy (University of Saskatchwan) (June 22).

Net Zero 2050: Rhetoric and Realities – Graduate School of Public Policy.

Lee, Marc. 2021. Dangerous Distractions. Canada’s carbon emissions and the pathway to net zero. CCPA (June).

Gamage, Michelle. 2021. “‘Net-Zero’ Emissions May Not Be as Green as You Think.” The Tyee (June 21).