Abstract
A substantial and rapid decarbonisation of the global economy is required to limit anthropogenic climate change to well below 2°C average global heating by 2050. Yet, emissions from fossil fuel energy generation – which dominate global greenhouse gas emissions – are at an all-time high. Progress and action for an energy transition to net zero carbon is critical, and one in which geoscience sectors and geoscientists will play multiple roles. Here, we outline the landscape of the geosciences and the energy transition in the context of the climate crisis, and intergovernmental policies on climate and social justice. We show how
geoscience sectors, skills, knowledge, data, and infrastructure, both directly and indirectly, will play a key role in the energy transition. This may be in the responsible sourcing of raw materials for low carbon energy technologies; in the decarbonisation of heating; and in the near-permanent geological capture and storage of carbon through novel technology development. A new and
unprecedented challenge is to reach Geological Net Zero, where zero carbon emissions from geological resource production and consumption are achieved via permanent geological storage. We identify overarching and cross-cutting issues for a sustainable and fair net zero carbon energy transition, and the associated geoscience challenges and opportunities. Finally, we call for geoscience professionals to recognise and take responsibility for their role in ensuring a fair and sustainable energy transition at the pace and scale required.
geoscience sectors, skills, knowledge, data, and infrastructure, both directly and indirectly, will play a key role in the energy transition. This may be in the responsible sourcing of raw materials for low carbon energy technologies; in the decarbonisation of heating; and in the near-permanent geological capture and storage of carbon through novel technology development. A new and
unprecedented challenge is to reach Geological Net Zero, where zero carbon emissions from geological resource production and consumption are achieved via permanent geological storage. We identify overarching and cross-cutting issues for a sustainable and fair net zero carbon energy transition, and the associated geoscience challenges and opportunities. Finally, we call for geoscience professionals to recognise and take responsibility for their role in ensuring a fair and sustainable energy transition at the pace and scale required.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 10072 |
| Number of pages | 22 |
| Journal | Earth Science, Systems and Society |
| Volume | 3 |
| Early online date | 6 Jul 2023 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 6 Jul 2023 |
Bibliographical note
AcknowledgmentsWe thank reviewers David Manning and Simon Jowitt whose input together greatly focused the manuscript; we also thank Kathryn Goodenough for editorial handling. This work was completed as part of the Geological Society of London’s Energy Transition theme.
Keywords
- Decarbonisation Paris Agreement
- Geological Net Zero
- Critical strategic metals
- CCS CDR Geothermal
- Just Energy Transition
Access to Document
- Gardiner_etal_ESSS_Geosciences_And_The_VoR
© 2023 Gardiner, Roberts, Johnson, Smith, Bond, Knipe, Haszeldine, Gordon and O’Donnell. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.