In a new study, scientists show that a mix of policy measures, including both technological solutions and behavioural changes, can significantly reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from energy use in buildings and transport.
The team, led by the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria, included ECI researchers, Charlie Wilson, Hazel Pettifor, and Mauren Agnew.
Rik van Heerden, is a researcher at the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) and lead author of the study. He said:
Shifting to renewable energy is vital for achieving net-zero, but how we use energy is just as important. With support of the right policies and infrastructure, final energy users can make a powerful contribution to reaching climate goals.”
Energy use in buildings and transport is a significant source of GHG emissions, accounting for over 20% of those globally. In a recent study, PBL and IIASA scientists with colleagues from other institutions highlight that a set of comprehensive demand-focused strategies could reduce CO2 emissions from buildings and transport by 51-85% and 37-91% respectively, compared to a scenario based on current policies.
“Reducing energy demand also has major benefits beyond greenhouse gas emissions reduction,” says Bas van Ruijven, IIASA Sustainable Service Systems Research Group leader and a co-author of the study.
The demand-side measures explored in this study lead to higher energy security, better air quality, more food security, and several other sustainable development goals.”
The study outlines a mix of promising policy measures, which could help to maximise the benefits. In buildings, measures such as electrifying energy use through heat pumps, improving insulation, and reducing energy demand through behavioural shifts can significantly lower emissions. Similarly, in transport, electrifying vehicles, enhancing efficiency, and promoting the behavioural shift to popularise the use of public transport and cycling can drastically reduce emissions. Moreover, the study shows that many of the identified measures can interact synergistically with minimal trade-offs, further accelerating decarbonisation.
The ECI’s Prof Charlie Wilson, a study co-author, added:
Net-zero progress and policy in the UK has all been about how we generate electricity. Our new study shows that how we use electricity and other energy resources is both vitally necessary, highly complementary, and massively important in its contributions to reaching net-zero.”
The study uses quantitative scenarios generated with global Integrated Assessment Models (IAMs), specifically designed to capture the interactions between the energy system, the economy, and the environment. In addition, to refine the scenarios, the authors have also gathered inputs from policymakers and experts in demand sectors.
Read the study in Nature Energy in full: Demand-side strategies enable rapid and deep cuts in buildings and transport emissions to 2050