Published: Sep 19, 2022 | Updated at: Sep 19, 2022
Seven of the warmest years on record have all occurred in the last decade.
Slowly but surely, climate change is having a real-world impact on the economy and our daily lives. Summers are getting hotter while sea levels and forest fires continue to rise. These effects are both environmental and economic.
This is why the energy transition is so important to the modern economy. Competition and incentives have worked together to help bring down the cost of green energy, making it the perfect time to make the switch. This, paired with a few behavioral changes, can help achieve net zero by 2050.
Want to learn more about going net zero? You’ve found the perfect blog. Here’s everything you need to know about the energy transition and how it can help us achieve net zero.
What Is the Energy Transition?
The energy transition is a process in which renewable energy solutions are developed to replace our reliance on fossil fuels. While renewable energy has been around for a while, fossil fuels still dominate the entire energy sector. Oil is responsible for roughly 33% of all global energy production while coal is responsible for around 27%.
When it comes to electricity production, the world is heavily reliant on coal and gas. Coal is responsible for around 37% while gas is used for around 24% of all electricity production. Some countries may have embraced renewable energy solutions, but the transition is also expensive.
The energy transition outlines a clear path forward toward green energy solutions. This process does not only look at grid generation but also innovative solutions such as solar panels.
Green Energy Solutions
Green energy solutions are at the center of the energy transition. Fossil fuels need to be replaced by modern solutions to help reduce carbon emissions along with the effects they cause around the world. These green solutions are renewable and include nuclear, hydropower, wind, and solar power.
Green energy production includes nuclear, hydropower, wind, and solar. These solutions can be created at scale to rival traditional energy plants that rely on fossil fuels. Hydropower plants use the force generated by flowing water to turn turbines and generate an electrical current.
Wind farms can house hundreds of massive windmills. This harnesses the power of the wind while solar panels work to absorb sunlight to generate a stable electrical current. Nuclear is more complicated but has a similar carbon footprint to other solutions.
These solutions are safe and viable but cost a lot of money to build from the ground up. Despite the limitations of solar, wind, and hydropower, nuclear is one of the most efficient and safest methods to produce clean energy. However, it’s also incredibly complex and expensive at the same time.
The energy transition outlines a path for both grid and local production. This plan includes homes reducing their energy usage and producing energy locally to take demand off the grid.
The easiest option is to simply reduce your energy usage at home. This can come through behavioral changes such as turning off lights that aren’t in use or reducing the time your heating system is on. However, manufacturers are also creating energy-efficient lights, devices, and appliances.
With these upgrades, your energy consumption can go down by using more energy-efficient products. Companies that make use of energy-efficient solutions can create greener products.
In this way, buying bread from a bakery that uses solar panels to supplement its energy usage can be a small way to reduce your overall carbon footprint.
The most common method to help transition to green energy at home is to install solar panels in your home. These panels have dropped in price over the last decade, making them more affordable than ever before. While solar panels may not be enough to go fully off the grid, the average home can save over $100 a month through reduced energy bills.
Solar panels can help you reduce your dependency on the grid and can help transition your energy usage toward green energy. This is a great way to move to green energy even if your local electricity supplier still uses fossil fuels to generate electricity.
The ability to generate your own electricity at home is a unique aspect of green energy that is completely new to the market. Miniature coal plants may have been difficult to build in your backyard, but solar panels can be installed within a few hours. This makes the solution affordable, safe, and more accessible than ever before.
What Is Net Zero Energy?
The problem with fossil fuels is that they release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere contributes to rising temperatures around the world. This is why green solutions are so important as they reduce the amount of carbon dioxide being produced and released into the atmosphere.
This showcases the goal of transitioning from fossil fuels to green energy. This will reduce the amount of carbon dioxide we are releasing into the atmosphere.
As we transition to green energy solutions, the amount of carbon dioxide will continue to reduce. Once we are no longer adding to the carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, we would have achieved net zero.
In this way, net zero energy means that we are no longer increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Achieving net zero would mean that the carbon dioxide we add to the atmosphere is equal to the carbon dioxide that we remove from the atmosphere.
While this is good to stabilize and regain control of climate change, additional efforts can then take place to help reduce the total amount of carbon in the atmosphere. Achieving net zero helps shift the goal from stabilization to reducing the effects of climate change.
Net Zero Energy 2050
The Net Zero Energy 2050 plan seeks to radically transform the way we produce and distribute energy. This plan includes a residential component to help reduce strain on the grid. However, this focuses on transitioning the grid generation facilities as well.
Reports on achieving net zero by 2050 estimate that renewable energy solutions will grow to account for over 66% of all energy generation. In addition to this, the energy industry would have created an additional 11 million jobs at the same time. This makes it beneficial both environmentally and economically.
Achieving Net Zero
There are many factors to take into consideration when working towards achieving net zero carbon emissions. However, the most important factor is the cost of the transition. Solar technology has managed to come down in price over the last decade, leading to a large spike in solar installations.
This shows the direct link between set-up costs and installation rates around the country. These reduced costs help both homeowners and entrepreneurs install solar in their homes. This shows the commercial possibilities of green energy solutions as well.
The Energy Transition Roadmap
Each country and territory have its own plan to combat the effects of climate change. While some countries have not kept their word, the Paris Agreement was designed to bring the world together on this issue. Signed in 2016, this agreement outlines a global plan to hold the global average temperature to under 2 degrees Celsius.
In most countries around the world, the transition roadmap includes residential incentives. These incentives are designed to help make solar panels more accessible for homes.
In addition to this, government grants are being distributed to help fund large-scale solar and wind farms. This can help transition the grid away from fossil fuels and toward green energy solutions.
These grants have also allowed solar companies to grow and compete with each other. This helped lower the overall price of the technology, making it even easier for people to install solar in their homes.
There have also been several solar appliances and devices over the last few years. This includes solar lights, battery banks, and geysers to heat your home's water supply with green energy.
Energy Transition 2050
The energy transition is vital to help combat the effects of climate change on our world and economy. Green energy solutions are becoming more affordable, making it the perfect time to switch and work towards net zero.
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