<aside> 💡 Introduction: The complicated tale of NYC’s climate history. The following document provides a very BRIEF overview (just a taste of what you should expect of the Climate Innovators Fellowship) of global and hyperlocal NYC trends and initiatives to tackle climate change.
The story is complex and challenging...but that’s why we are here: to detangle this tale and to bring evidence-driven and innovative solutions.
Author: Luna Ruiz
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According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the primary sources of greenhouse gas (GHS) emissions in the U.S. are:
Energy is one of the most complex climate challenges for all countries address. And like any complex story, New York City’s (NYC) energy story is no exception. Despite becoming one of the first American cities to start recording data about the energy and water used in large buildings in 2010, 85% of NYC’s electricity is still sourced from fossil fuels today. This statistic aside, there still has been significant progress. For example, in 2019, the City achieved a 23% reduction in its annual emissions from a 2006 baseline.
With climate change consequences becoming more prevalent, New York state passed the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act in 2019 which will requires the state to reduce its GHG emissions by 85% by 2050. Unlike other scalable solutions, energy is not a “one shoe fits all” type of challenge. Different energy sources are better suited from a technological, policy, and economic lens for different cities, states, regions, and countries. Therefore, to tackle the climate issue first-hand, NYC must think about resilience and adaptation as two key considerations to find sustainable solutions to stationary energy, food and waste, and transportation issues. As we delve into complex climate-related challenges and innovation, we will use NYC, specifically key points in the recently updated Pathways to Carbon-Neutral NYC plan, as our case study examples.
Adopting a macrolens: What’s Happening in our Global World?
“These numbers tell a remarkable story of resilience and hope. Despite the challenges and the uncertainty of 2020, renewable energy emerged as a source of undeniable optimism for a better, more equitable, resilient, clean and just future. The great reset offered a moment of reflection and chance to align our trajectory with the path to inclusive prosperity, and there are signs we are grasping it.” -IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera
At the end of 2020, global renewable generation capacity surpassed 2,799 GW with hydropower accounting for the largest share (1,211 GW); however, solar (127 GW installed) and wind (111 GW installed) are catching up. The two variable sources of renewables dominated capacity expansion in 2020 with 127 GW and 111 GW of new installations for solar and wind respectively. About 260 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy capacity went online in 2021: exceeding expansion in 2019 by close to 50% (to put into perspecit: 1 Gigawatt of power = 3.125 Million Photovoltaic (PV) Panels). According to IRENA’s annual Renewable Capacity Statistics 2021, more than 80% of all new electricity capacity added in 2021 was renewable ( solar and wind accounting for 91% of new renewables).
If this is impressive, these improvements are nothing compared to the ambitious and global cumulative goal of installing 358 gigawatts/1,028 gigawatt-hours by the end of 2030. According to BloombergNEF, this drastic expansion of stationary energy is estimated to require more than $262 billion of investment. The clean power ambitions of the U.S. and China (the two largest markets) will drive this trend and will represent more than 50% of all global storage installations by 2030.