One Big Day: How to deliver a low-carbon UK by 2050 In terms of climate change, Arup recognises that we have gone past questioning ‘why’ we need to respond. What we now need to do is encourage focus on the ‘how’, ‘what’, ‘when’ and ‘who’. Lots of disparate efforts are defining the way the world is tackling climate change, but it is a joined-up approach that must be encouraged.
“The costs of stabilising the climate are significant but manageable; DELAY WOULD BE DANGEROUS and much more costly.” Stern report, 2006 Over 500 UK business leaders and experts from both the private and public sectors came together at Arup’s ‘One Big Day’ event in London on 11 December 2007. Guests came from over 300 different organisations from a range of industries including transport, energy, finance, development agencies, local government and consumer products. This truly multi-disciplinary audience also included members from the event partners, the HSBC Climate Partnership, and around 70 participating Arup staff.
“Costs of tackling climate change now: 1% of global GDP (USD184bn) Costs of doing nothing: 5-20% of global GDP by 2050.” HSBC, 2007
Jon Snow, the award-winning journalist and broadcaster, chaired the event and led discussion on how government, business, technology and society can work together to deliver a low-carbon UK by 2050. Presentations were given by HSBC, Arup, the Greater London Authority, WWF, The Climate Group, and New Scientist magazine. Guests also engaged in open workshops facilitated by the Cambridge Programme for Industry and a lively ‘question-time’ session that pushed the climate change debate forward. The day’s outputs are to be collected in a White Paper that will complement the Government’s Climate Change Bill and inspire future debate and the work of new climate change institutes around the world. The day’s headlines are summarised here in this special A2 supplement. We hope you will find it useful for continuing the climate change debate within your own organisations.
Throughout the One Big Day event, we asked our attendees for their views on the influences and impacts of climate change through a series of snapshot polls. Results of the first two questions can be seen here and you’ll find more throughout this supplement.
Setting the scene The Climate Group’s outlook for a low-carbon economy combines significant commitments from leading UK companies and cities, strong stories of reducing Green House Gas (GHG) emissions, positive engagement in policy dialogue, and initial steps into consumer and business engagement.
Jim Walker, Chief Operating Officer, The Climate Group, helped to establish the organisation in late 2003 and is responsible for managing its operations. The Climate Group is an independent, non-profit organisation dedicated to advancing business and government leadership on climate change. At One Big Day, Walker examined where the UK stands in relation to the climate challenge, its targets and timescales.
“Of the issues people think the Government should be dealing with, environment is the fourth most commonly mentioned behind crime, health and education.” Jim Walker, The Climate Group
“One in seven people think that switching appliances to standby uses less electricity than actually turning them off ” National Consumer Council • The global carbon market, worth €20bn a year, is predicted to grow 20 times bigger by 2030 • More than one million people could be employed in the UK environmental industries within the next two decades (if Britain maintains its share of growth in the low-carbon energy sector) • UK residential energy efficiency has doubled since 1970, saving consumers £10bn
• Reductions in CO2 emissions amount to almost as much as the combined emissions of all the UK’s coal power stations
“Is the UK ready for a carbon emission reduction programme?”
A host of climate change bills, directives and targets have been set in the UK, with the ultimate aim of reducing emissions to secure the future. Catering for basic needs like housing, food, energy and resource distribution in a sustainable way is critical to meeting targets that amount to an ambitious 80% reduction in emissions by 2100. “Despite strong UK GHG reductions since 1990, business as usual will not get us to the desired targets.”, said Walker. “It is up to UK businesses to lead the international community on climate issues and whilst many are poised to benefit in a carbon constrained world, capacity and policy is limited in many cases. We believe the public is also increasingly concerned and carbon-literate, but struggling with information and easy routes to action.”
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CO2 reduction and resource consumption targets UK Climate Change Bill 2007
26-32% by 2020 / 60% by 2050
EU Energy End-Use Efficiency & Energy Services Directive 2006
Energy savings target of 9% over the period 2008 – 2016
UK Energy Efficiency Action Plan 2007
Commits to exceed EU target and save equivalent of 18% (272.2TWh) over the period 2008 – 2016
UK Energy White Paper 2007
Renewables to be 10% of electricity supply by 2010
EU Energy Policy
Renewables to be 20% of all energy (electricity, heat and transport) by 2020
Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation
Transport fuel suppliers to ensure 5% of total fuel sales are from renewable sources by 2010/11
Vision for a low-carbon UK
Finding the solutions
So what would life really be like in a low-carbon UK? Arup Director, Peter Head, is the leader of a newly integrated planning business within Arup’s own Consulting Sector. As a world leading expert in sustainable development, Head outlined a vision and delivery model for achieving a low-carbon UK. Solutions included:
With a truly multidisciplinary mix of people at every table, One Big Day was the perfect place to host some lively roundtable discussions. Arup challenged every group of individuals to work together to propose solutions to climate change by simply reinstating the facts: ‘We know there’s a problem. You’ve heard a vision and what’s already happening, so how do we start to find and deliver a solution? What is the model for delivering a low-carbon UK and how do we deliver it?’.
Economic incentives through carbon taxation
Community-based power generation
These could lead to large-scale behavioural changes throughout society, as well as energy demand reduction, and a shift in transport use from private modes to public.
This has the potential to become common place, with combined heat and power plants using biomass and waste for fuel.
Widespread use of electric vehicles in towns and cities This could improve local air quality and reduce noise pollution. Existing power plants could also be used to capture all carbon and renewable energies such as wind and marine power.
Retrofitting, streamlining and upgrading Victorian infrastructure Street-by-street improvements could have a positive impact on home energy and reduce water shortages. All of these initiatives and more were envisaged to be driven forward by the introduction of a 2008 carbon reduction framework. Although only a vision at this stage, Head’s graphic descriptions of how each initiative could be achieved make it realistic. It is also entirely plausible that the framework could transform the UK by providing government, business and society with a clear and affordable model to bring about profound change.
“Will a low-carbon 2050 be a better place to live than a high-carbon 2007 UK?”
Dr Aled Jones, Director of the Climate Leadership Programme at the University of Cambridge’s Programme for Industry, led and facilitated the workshop session and said: “The fundamental goal or purpose of a good economy is to steadily improve the well-being of all people, now and in the future. This should be undertaken with due regard to equity, within the constraints of nature and through the active engagement of all its participants.” To achieve this aim the Cambridge Programme for Industry has identified three primary objectives: 1. Bring together business leaders, academics and political leaders (and royalty!) 2. Highlight ways to provide a more sustainable economy and processes to ensure the risk from climate change is minimised 3. Facilitate and promote events, dialogues, learning programmes, groups, high-level meetings, briefings and research
Ideas that came out of the One Big Day workshop session include: • Education for consumers at the point of choice – give sustainable credentials and guidance on products • Show people how to use less-energy providers to provide a service that demonstrates how to achieve economical consumption • Change the regulatory framework – make energy suppliers install sustainable systems • Set up a global forum of businesses from like-minded sectors including engineering firms and governments, to share ideas, localise solutions and drive them forwards • Introduce cross-banking forums to prevent unsustainable private investment and lead financial institutions to make environmentally friendly investment choices
Jon Williams, is Head of Group Sustainable Development at HSBC Holdings plc. He also sits on the UN Environment Programme (Finance Initiative Climate Change Working Group), and described how the private sector is changing the way it operates to respond to climate change.
Who can combat climate change? By examining how we are going to combat climate change, it became clear that ‘who’ is going to help us is equally as important. So, who are the most important players in starting the transformation to a low-carbon 2050? Political leaders must drive the reforms. It is clear people want to change but don’t know what to do, and advice from government could instantly resolve this. Taking action to stop climate change presents a real opportunity to do business a different way and we must all do our bit to make a difference. The roles of business, technology and civil society are equally important as that of government, and One Big Day offered a chance to hear from each of these.
The London Climate Change Action Plan aims to achieve an initial target of 500,000 tonnes emissions reduction in the UK’s capital city by 2010.
Mark Watts is Senior Adviser to the Mayor of London on climate change. At One Big Day, he explained how the London Climate Change Action Plan aims to turn policy into practice.
At HSBC, an environmental risk strategy has been developed and implemented. A Climate Change Centre of Excellence has also been founded to define and develop related investment opportunities.
Measures to achieve 60% carbon emission reductions by 2025 include: • Four new green programmes aimed at reforming homes, organisations, energy and transport in London • Encouraging Londoners to individually make changes including insulating their houses better, and travel differently in order to reduce their emissions • Working with businesses to improve the quality of buildings and operations to cut their emissions • Changing the way London’s energy is supplied to make it more decentralised and relieve pressure on the National Grid • Continuing the modal transport shift from cars to less carbon intensive options like walking
“It’s not about reducing quality of life. It’s about changing the way we live and cutting out wasteful use of energy.” Mark Watts, Senior Adviser to the Mayor of London on climate change Converting waste that currently goes to landfill would generate electricity for 1.2M homes and heat for 375,000 homes in London, UK
The HSBC Global Climate Change Benchmark Index was launched in 2007. This global reference index has been designed to reflect and track the stock market performance of key companies that are best placed to profit from the challenges presented by climate change.
“We believe that climate change represents the largest single environmental challenge this century and that financial institutions will play an important role in the shift to cleaner energy.” Jon Williams, Head of Group Sustainable Development at HSBC Holdings plc
“Climate change confronts us all, making the duty to protect the world’s finite resources one that applies to governments, businesses and individuals alike.” Stephen Green, Group Chairman, HSBC Holdings plc
Colin Butfield, Head of Campaigns at WWF, outlined ‘how’ the organisation’s ‘One Planet Future Campaign’ aims to ensure society, business and government work together to put in place policies and legislation that ensure the responsible use of resources. Currently, Colin and his team are addressing areas of the UK lifestyle which have the biggest environmental impact, namely, our homes, transport, food and the power sector. This work is aimed at reducing the UK’s footprint and steering us on to a path of greener living.
WWF wants the Government to strengthen its Climate Change Bill, which aims to reduce the UK’s carbon emissions. Initially the campaign’s focus is on reducing emissions from international aviation – the fastest growing source of emissions in the UK – and shipping. The campaign will run throughout the Climate Change Bill’s passage through parliament until it becomes law in the summer of 2008. Another major objective is to ensure legislation commits the UK to cutting emissions by 80% by 2050.
“The UK is the first country to introduce a Climate Change Bill, so this is a unique opportunity to set an example to the rest of the world.” Colin Butfield, Head of Campaigns, WWF
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visit: www.newscientist.com/lowcarbonuk e: onebigday@arup.com www.arup.com