6.9C Mitigation Strategies

• Mitigation Strategies

  • Mitigation strategies can help rebalance the carbon cycle
  • Rebalancing the carbon cycle is seen as vital in preserving the Earth’s life systems
  • The IPCC stated in 2014 that it was possible to keep within the target of no more than a 2°C increase in average global temperatures if:
  • Fossil fuel use was significantly reduced
  • Fossil fuel use was totally eliminated by 2100
• • Mitigation strategies usually operate through five specific methods:
  • Carbon taxation
  • Renewable switching
  • Energy efficiency
  • Afforestation
  • Carbon capture and storage (CCS)
  • The UK has led the way with many of these strategies but politics and austerity measures since 2011 has had an impact
• Carbon taxation:

  • Carbon price floor tax sets a minimum prices companies will have to pay to emit carbon dioxide which was unpopular and the policy was frozen in 2015
  • Lower road taxes for low-carbon cars were scrapped in 2015
  • In 2015, oil and gas exploration tax relief was expanded to support fossil fuels which led to the fracking debate
• Renewable switching:

  • Renewable energy (solar, wind and wave) provide intermittent electricity, while fossil fuels provide continuous power which is vital for our current demands
  • The Climate Change Levy, designed in 2001 to encourage investment in renewable energy was cut in 2015
• Energy efficiency:

  • The Green Deal scheme encouraged energy-saving improvements in homes e.g., energy efficient boilers and lights, improved insulation which was scrapped in 2015
  • Energy suppliers must comply with the Energy Company Obligation scheme to deliver energy efficient methods to households
• Afforestation:

  • Tree planting in the UK is increasing which helps carbon sequestration
  • Tree planting involves the Forestry Commission, charities (e.g., the National Trust and Woodland Trust), landowners and local authorities,
  • The Big Tree Plant campaign encourages communities to plant 1 million new trees (mostly in urban areas)
• Carbon capture and storage:

  • Few actual geologic carbon capture and storage projects exist in the world, despite its potential
  • Canada’s Boundary Dam is the only large-scale working scheme
  • In 2015, the UK cancelled its investment into full-scale projects at gas and coal powered plants in Scotland and Yorkshire