The Low Lifecycle Costs In New Energy

New study smashes myths about “embodied” energy in wind and solar

Simon Evans, 12 December 2017 (Carbon Brief via RenewEconomy)

“Building solar, wind or nuclear plants creates an insignificant carbon footprint compared with savings from avoiding fossil fuels…[Understanding future emissions from low-carbon power systems by integration of life-cycle assessment and integrated energy modelling, which] measures the full lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions of a range of sources of electricity out to 2050, shows] the carbon footprint of solar, wind and nuclear power are many times lower than coal or gas with carbon capture and storage (CCS). This remains true after accounting for emissions during manufacture, construction and fuel supply…Critics sometimes argue that nuclear, wind or solar power have a hidden carbon footprint, due to their manufacture and construction…Yet zero-carbon sources of electricity are not the only ones to have a hidden, indirect carbon and energy footprint…For coal and gas, these lifecycle energy uses and emissions come from extraction machinery and fuel transport. Significantly, they also come from methane leaks at pipelines, well heads or coal mines. These lifecycle emissions continue, even if coal or gas plants add CCS, which also may not capture 100% of emissions at the power plant…” click here for more

click to enlarge

Tweet