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  • Essay / Energy transition and sustainable mobility in Spain

    It is known that the lifestyle of today's modern society in developed countries is not sustainable at the rate of resource depletion. Our planet is finite and its resources are being used at a faster rate than they can regenerate. Additionally, not all resources are renewable; some, like fossil fuels, are not renewable over the human lifespan. Developed economies and countries mainly rely on fossil fuels to power their production and consumption cycle. In addition, the system is not sustainable because due to the pollution generated, the earth and its ecosystems are degraded. The most important is the impact caused by air pollution; Greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere increase the Earth's overall temperature. The phenomenon known as “global warming” is causing a series of progressive consequences that would make Earth an uninhabitable planet. Thus, countries and global institutions have the task of preventing this phenomenon. Country governments are the most effective agents since they are responsible for the policies that support the way each country operates. They have legal power over their citizens and over businesses operating within their territorial borders. Spain is one of the countries that has set itself an ambitious goal in the fight against global warming. Former Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez expressed the goal of decarbonizing the country by 2050. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essay First, the United Nations has an institution that reports information from the world's leading environmental and climate scientists. around the world to produce a reliable source of information. information on which countries can take action and sign agreements to combat climate change. This institution is the International Panel on Climate Change. An article in The Guardian newspaper published last year informs us of the IPCC's warnings about the Paris Agreement: "only a dozen years remain for global warming to be kept at a maximum of 1, 5°C, beyond which even half a degree will be reached.” significantly worsen the risks of drought, floods, extreme heat and poverty for hundreds of millions of people” (The Guardian, Climate Change). The IPCC experts agree on this maximum period of 12 years to modify the functioning of our society in order to adapt a more sustainable way of life and not to exceed the 1.5°C increase in global temperature. the Earth. The objective is nevertheless ambitious and countries will therefore have to define and implement innovative and drastic measures. The possibility of combating climate change exists and is enshrined in the Paris Agreement “a commitment to keeping temperatures between 1.5°C and 2°C” (The Guardian, Climate Change). The planet has long tried to warn us that either we change or the consequences can be catastrophic. Recognizing this problem, world leaders came together in 2015 to sign the Paris Agreement. He established measures to curb climate change. In Spain, for example, 5.8 metric tons per person are emitted each year (the global average is 4.9) (World Bank data, CO2 emissions). To reduce air pollution, a plan of decarbonization measures is necessary. One of the main obstacles to the decarbonization process is that fossil fuels (coal, gas and oil) remain themain source of electrical energy production, well ahead of nuclear and renewable sources. What is the main problem with renewable energy? To explain it in understandable terms “the irregularity in the fluctuation of wind and sun, which causes the electricity grid to be unstable” (Robert Fares, Scientific American Blog Network). To help meet energy demand through the use of these sources, it is necessary to have intelligent energy management systems. On the other hand, in the event of oversupply, hydrogen storage or production technologies can be used to help stabilize the network. However, until this type of equipment becomes a reality, alternatives to coal-fired power plants, such as gas-fired power plants, are needed. The closure of coal-fired power plants in Spain is a process developed since the beginning of 2010, the aim of which is the closure of all coal-fired power plants. coal-fired thermoelectric power plants in Spain. As of December 1, 2018, the country had 15 infrastructures of this type, whose operating deadline was calculated for 2020. The phenomenon materialized especially in 2018, when the PSOE government announced that it would close all power plants thermal companies which have not invested to reduce their emissions. their CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. The reason given for the closure of the power plants is that coal is the most polluting fossil energy, and the prospect of replacing its use with that of renewable energies in order to curb the greenhouse effect and global warming. In Spain there are two of the 30 most polluting thermal power plants in Europe, the As Pontes thermal power plant and the Aboño thermal power plant, although only that of the García Rodríguez bridges is in the top 20, being the twentieth most more polluting. According to some studies, closing coal-fired plants would require an investment of 3 billion euros in existing natural gas combined cycle plants to fill the electricity generation gap. Additionally, due to the price difference between fuels, it is estimated that their price could increase by up to 10%. The enormous economic and social impact of the measure has provoked all kinds of negative reactions among the groups concerned. Those affected by the closure of coal-fired power plants in Spain (e.g. workers or owners) might object due to “but they do it” reasoning. in other countries”, or even “other activities also pollute”. This way of looking at our current situation is simply wrong: all emissions are heading into the same atmosphere of the same planet, the one we all live on, and killing us all. This is about showing leadership and encouraging other countries to join us in reducing emissions. A possible solution would be to replace energy vectors with others that emit less, by replacing the consumption of petroleum products, by limiting them to uses for which there is no viable alternative without emissions (for example in air transport or certain industrial processes), through electrification of demand and use of energy vectors with lower emissions (for example, use of natural gas instead of petroleum derivatives in transport and goods). This would mean: increasing the penetration of electric vehicles from 0% to almost 100% in 2050, moving between 40% and 60% of heavy transport, which is currently carried out almost entirely by road (95% in 2015), towards electric rail. and intensify the transition to energy vectors for reducing emissions in the sectorsresidential, industrial and services through the electrification and gasification of consumption, where appropriate (Deloitte, “Claves De La Descarbonización Del Modelo Energético En España”). In total, electricity consumption is expected to be increased by 42%, with current energy consumption being 65-67% by 2050 (Deloitte, “Claves De La Descarbonización Del Modelo Energético En España”). production park based exclusively on renewable energies. The future electricity production mix should reach 90 to 100% from renewable sources in 2050; from REE, the main Spanish operator of its electricity system, we know that “38% of production was renewable in 2015” (Renewable energy in the Spanish electricity system, 9). Achieving this level of penetration will require the installation of renewable energy for electricity generation (wind and solar PV), as well as sufficient supporting capacity to ensure security of supply. In addition, it will also be necessary to implement energy efficiency measures to reduce final energy intensity, for example through new construction actions, rehabilitation of existing buildings and new industrial processes All actions previous ones, which we will call “decarbonization levers” are essential to achieve the objectives by 2050. It is said that it will not be enough to achieve a 100% renewable electricity production mix if the use of fossil fuels in transport, thermal uses in buildings or industrial processes continue. Nor will it be enough to concentrate all efforts on energy efficiency, if we do not obtain a fleet of emission-free generators. Finally, the fundamental challenge of a massive deployment of electric mobility is reducing the impact of transport on the climate. The resulting challenges specifically concern: the organization of mobility as well as the adoption of charging infrastructures, the interaction of the electric mobility system with the electricity network, considering here the energy storage function of batteries, technological progress and industrial production of vehicles and various components. Overall, these issues involve the community more than the individual vehicle user. Public policies and projects in favor of electric mobility based on the use of private or shared vehicles will be necessary. Already, the Spanish government is “considering creating an online map of charging points for electric cars” (Antonio Sabán, Coche Electrico). The conditions of availability and attractiveness of an electric mobility system for potential users are discussed, particularly with regard to the deployment of the charging infrastructure and its suitability to existing land use patterns. Current policy approaches supporting the adoption of electric mobility are promising. But for the moment, the complexity of the electromobility system does not allow valid conclusions to be drawn on the effectiveness of the measures put in place. In addition to public policy intervention, economic, technical and industrial factors will also determine the success of e-mobility. Ultimately, a large-scale measure against the fight to eradicate greenhouse gas emissions is like the transportation challenge already mentioned above. The objective is to transform current transport into electric transport. For this, the challenges are multiple. They mainly focus on the logistics of charging infrastructure. Current service stations should be replaced by electric charging stations suitable for all types of vehicles. They are already starting.