{"id":55626,"date":"2020-11-14T18:45:16","date_gmt":"2020-11-14T23:45:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/?p=55626"},"modified":"2020-11-14T18:45:16","modified_gmt":"2020-11-14T23:45:16","slug":"sustainability-is-wishful-thinking-get-ready-for-the-energy-downshift","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/?p=55626","title":{"rendered":"‘Sustainability is wishful thinking’: get ready for the energy downshift"},"content":{"rendered":"
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‘Sustainability is wishful thinking’: get ready for the energy downshift<\/a><\/h3>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Green<\/div>
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SUPPLIED<\/cite><\/div>\n
Green promises: EV charging stations are appearing in suburban streets. But will the economics actually stack up?<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The problem with \u201csustainability\u201d is its implication that economic growth can still continue on blithely in a world of zero carbon and a green energy transition. But expect a rude shock. JOHN McCRONE reports.<\/strong><\/p>\n

When I arrive for the interview, Professor Susan Krumdieck is busy clearing out her office.<\/p>\n

A mechanical engineer at the University of Canterbury for some 20 years, Krumdieck is upping sticks and heading off to run an energy transition project in Scotland\u2019s Orkney Islands.<\/p>\n

Covid permitting, of course. \u201cThey\u2019re all still in lockdown over there,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

My question seemed simple enough. Is New Zealand finally getting serious about sustainability?<\/p>\n

There seem positive signs, I suggest.<\/p>\n

After years of mucking about with emissions trading schemes and other half-hearted curbs on climate change, the Government now appears to be building\u00a0a national energy transition strategy.<\/a><\/p>\n

The vow to be carbon-neutral by 2050 has been cemented into legislation. Change is going to be enforced through new institutional mechanisms like the Climate Change Commission.<\/p>\n

There are agreed sub-goals, such as the commitment to be 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2035.<\/p>\n

It all sounds like a plan \u2013 a roadmap to a better future.<\/p>\n

Krumdieck answers by hauling out a wad of old yellowing magazines from a packing box. Decades of saved articles warning humanity of impending environmental disaster and resource woes.<\/p>\n

Already she intends to set me straight.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell I\u2019m cleaning out and I\u2019ve been finding roadmaps. Like piles of them,\u201d she chuckles wryly.<\/p>\n

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\"University<\/div>
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SUPPLIED<\/cite><\/div>\n
University of Canterbury\u2019s Susan Krumdieck: We need to head back to the 1950s in terms of our energy use.<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u2026click on the above link to read the rest of the article\u2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

‘Sustainability is wishful thinking’: get ready for the energy downshift SUPPLIED Green promises: EV charging stations are appearing in suburban streets. But will the economics actually stack up? The problem with \u201csustainability\u201d is its implication that economic growth can still continue on blithely in a world of zero carbon and a green energy transition. But […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[30580,30578,4002,30579,769],"class_list":["post-55626","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-energy-2","tag-energy-downshift","tag-john-mccrone","tag-new-zealand","tag-stuff","tag-sustainability"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55626","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=55626"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55626\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":55627,"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55626\/revisions\/55627"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=55626"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=55626"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/olduvai.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=55626"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}