The proposals for national policy statements on energy - Energy and Climate Change Contents


Memorandum submitted by the Royal Society of Chemistry

  The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Government draft National Policy Statements for Energy Infrastructure.

  The RSC is the largest organisation in Europe for advancing the chemical sciences. Supported by a network of 46,000 members worldwide and an internationally acclaimed publishing business, our activities span education and training, conferences and science policy, and the promotion of the chemical sciences to the public.

This document represents the views of the RSC. The RSC's Royal Charter obliges it to serve the public interest by acting in an independent advisory capacity, and we would therefore be very happy for this submission to be put into the public domain.

The document has been written from the perspective of the Royal Society of Chemistry and consequently our comments relate to only parts of the consultation document relevant to the chemical sciences.

1.  Do you think that the Government should formally approve ("designate") the draft Overarching Energy National Policy Statement?

  Last year, following an extensive consultation with a global network of scientists, the RSC published Chemistry for Tomorrow's World, where energy was identified as key area where chemists will help to provide solutions to allow us to move to a more sustainable economy. Efficiency maximisation and environmental damage limitation are important goals that should inform the UK's energy future. However, in addition, the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) also supports the view that a balanced portfolio of energy supply technologies will be required for the ongoing prosperity of the UK. Infrastructure that will support the current energy systems and allow for the necessary technological developments, is an important factor in the delivery of advancing the energy systems in the UK.

  Energy production and use is clearly a major component of the generation of greenhouse gas emissions. The RSC is supportive of the Climate Change Act that was introduced in 2008 making law a reduction in Kyoto green house gas emissions in the UK of at least 80% by 2050, and reductions in CO2 of 26% by 2020 against a 1990 baseline. The resulting "UK Low Carbon Transition Plan: National Strategy for Climate and Energy" and National Policy Statements for Energy have also been received with interest, as chemistry and science will play a major part in the implementation of this strategy.

  The RSC encourages the advancement of a variety of energy systems in the UK to provide a stable and environmentally sound source of energy to the nation. Developments in the energy infrastructure and in energy storage are necessary to realise the potential of renewable energy alongside fossil fuels with carbon storage technologies and nuclear energy.

ENERGY SYSTEM INFRASTRUCTURE AND STORAGE

  As society moves towards using renewable energy technologies for electricity generation, there will be a need to tackle changes in the energy system infrastructure to balance energy production from a variety of sources and geographical locations. Decentralised energy systems associated with renewable energy sources present a different set of infrastructure challenges and opportunities to the current, more centralised systems. Investment into advanced energy storage technologies will be necessary (eg advanced batteries, electro-chemical storage, super-capacitors), which will present significant opportunities and challenges for chemists. Such storage systems need to be resilient, as they will be important in tackling the intermittency of renewable energy sources and potential changes to electricity transmission and distribution. In addition, low carbon energy vectors will be required for the transport and storage of energy; hydrogen is offering a promising prospect in this respect.

RENEWABLE ENERGY

  Energy generated from renewable resources will be fundamental in ensuring a secure and continuous energy supply whilst minimising CO2 emissions and environmental impact. The UK will need to use a variety of renewable energy resources to meet its target of producing 20% of renewable electricity by 2020.

  The RSC published a major inquiry into Chemical Science Priorities for Sustainable Energy Solutions in 2005,[268] this report aimed to develop an outlook for chemical science research in the context of energy. It was also intended to provide guidance to funding bodies and policy makers on: the pivotal role that the chemical sciences will play in the transformations needed to achieve a sustainable energy system; and the priority areas that need to be supported to advance the fundamental knowledge necessary to address the key challenges in the energy system. Some of these resources have been considered in the draft NPS such as biomass and wind power.

  Regarding biomass to generate electricity, the RSC believes that there is considerable potential for developing the use of second generation energy crops such as the grass miscanthus, short rotation coppice (SRC) willow and poplar. These have been shown to reduce carbon emissions significantly when compared with both fossil fuels and first generation crops, and that energy production is the most efficient usage (rather than the production of liquid transport fuels).[269] Additionally if biomass power plants were fitted with carbon capture and storage technology, this would be a method to lower overall atmospheric CO2 levels.

  For every fuel type and utilisation process, it is essential that a full life cycle analysis (LCA) is conducted. This involves measuring all energy and chemical inputs and outputs for the entire process. However, these are meaningless without official standards regarding the factors to be included and assumptions made. It is essential for a European standard to be set if biomass is to be utilised efficiently. Also taken into account should be the environmental impact of growing these crops on native wildlife, soil condition, water sources and the competition with food crops.

  In addition to supporting those renewable resources outlined in the draft NPS, the RSC also believes that there is a considerable role in the UK for solar power as a proven and efficient technology. The conversion of sunlight into electricity can be achieved through photovoltaic devices, which directly convert sunlight into electrical current or by utilising solar-thermal systems where energy from the sun is focused to heat water into steam which drives a turbine.

FOSSIL FUELS AND CARBON STORAGE

  The RSC believes that due to increasing energy demand and supply security, fossil fuels are likely to remain part of the UK energy portfolio for the next 50 years.[270]2 In order to mitigate climate change, we must reduce CO2 emissions by using Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technologies. The RSC recognises, that under current economic conditions, industry is unlikely to invest in CCS technologies without strong government leadership or support. We believe it essential that any new plants are built "capture ready" so that CCS technology can be added in the future. Conversely it is vital that CCS technologies are designed that can be retrofitted to existing power plants.

  It is important to appreciate that carbon storage poses social as well as technological challenges; it cannot be assumed that storing huge quantities of CO2 in the Earth is publicly acceptable. Therefore, alongside research and development there must also be a programme of stakeholder engagement and education to ensure that the risks and benefits are fully explored.

  From the perspective of the chemical sciences, an alternative to long-term storage is developing uses for captured CO2 as a potential feedstock for the manufacture of useful chemicals, fuels and polymers. There are considerable scientific and economic challenges to be overcome in this area before such processes are feasible on a large scale, but it is important to note that this research offers a genuine use of CO2 rather than a storage option.

NUCLEAR ENERGY

  As a low-carbon technology that can help mitigate climate change, it is the RSCs view that nuclear power should remain part of the energy mix, at least until other renewable low carbon sources provide sufficient electricity to meet the country's needs and emission targets. Despite high construction costs, nuclear power is cheap compared to other low-carbon electricity generation technologies as the operational costs of nuclear power plants are very low, and their operational life long. Nuclear energy production involves various aspects of chemical research and chemists will make their contribution to the safe utilisation of nuclear energy.

  An inevitable consequence of nuclear fission power is its legacy of long-lived radioactive waste. There needs to be a commitment to research and development into the long term safety of geological disposal, as well as improved methods and means of storing waste. In terms of long term storage, the RSC believes that a geological depository for the storage of high-level radioactive waste is vital, and offers a lower level risk than surface storage. The position of new storage sites must be met with approval from local communities and undergo public consultation.

  The RSC recognise that scientific and technical expertise of the nuclear industry must be rebuilt to build, operate and decommission nuclear plants until it can be shown that additional nuclear power will not be necessary to meet our targets.

January 2010





268   Chemical Science Priorities for Sustainable Energy Solutions, RSC, 2005. Back

269   UK Bioenergy-The environmental impact of second generation crops, British Bioenergy News, 7, February 2008 Back

270   Petroleum Review, pp 26-27, June 2006 Back


 
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