Global Biodiversity Implications of Alternative Electrification Strategies Under the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways
Abstract
Meeting global electrification goals while simultaneously addressing climate mitigation will require transformative changes to the energy sector, primarily large-scale renewable energy deployment. However, renewable energy infrastructure expansion requires significant land-assets and could come at high costs to ecosystem integrity, creating potential mismatches in global climate and biodiversity conservation priorities. Here, we explore the potential land requirements and biodiversity implications of alternative future global electrification pathways as depicted under the Shared Socioeconomic Scenarios (SSPs). High-resolution estimates of global energy densities for ten renewable and conventional technologies were overlain with global richness data to estimate biodiversity footprints (species per GWh) for each technology. Regionally explicit electricity generation scenarios (2020 to 2100) were downscaled to 50-km depictions of future technology deployment and were additionally constrained by scenarios of protected land exclusion and variant local energy development policies. Biodiversity footprints were used to explore land and biodiversity impacts through a heuristic cumulative biodiversity impact (CBI) score. CBI variation among SSPs was not a clear tradeoff in global climate mitigation and biodiversity conservation, but an outcome of total electricity demand, energy efficiency, and the total magnitude of renewable energy development and storage technologies. Despite comprising <= 7% of total generation, biomass energy contributed the mostmore »
- Authors:
-
[2];
[3]
- Baylor Univ., Waco, TX (United States). Dept. of Environmental Science
- Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States). Environmental Sciences Division
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1819594
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1820045
- Report Number(s):
- PNNL-SA-161542
Journal ID: ISSN 0006-3207
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC05-00OR22725; AC05-76RL01830
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Biological Conservation
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 260; Journal Issue: NA; Journal ID: ISSN 0006-3207
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; 29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY; Renewable energy; Land sharing; Land sparing; Biodiversity; Conservation; Climate change; biodiversity, SSP, GCAM
Citation Formats
McManamay, Ryan A., Vernon, Chris R., and Jager, Henriette I. Global Biodiversity Implications of Alternative Electrification Strategies Under the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways. United States: N. p., 2021.
Web. doi:10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109234.
McManamay, Ryan A., Vernon, Chris R., & Jager, Henriette I. Global Biodiversity Implications of Alternative Electrification Strategies Under the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways. United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109234
McManamay, Ryan A., Vernon, Chris R., and Jager, Henriette I. Tue .
"Global Biodiversity Implications of Alternative Electrification Strategies Under the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways". United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109234. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1819594.
@article{osti_1819594,
title = {Global Biodiversity Implications of Alternative Electrification Strategies Under the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways},
author = {McManamay, Ryan A. and Vernon, Chris R. and Jager, Henriette I.},
abstractNote = {Meeting global electrification goals while simultaneously addressing climate mitigation will require transformative changes to the energy sector, primarily large-scale renewable energy deployment. However, renewable energy infrastructure expansion requires significant land-assets and could come at high costs to ecosystem integrity, creating potential mismatches in global climate and biodiversity conservation priorities. Here, we explore the potential land requirements and biodiversity implications of alternative future global electrification pathways as depicted under the Shared Socioeconomic Scenarios (SSPs). High-resolution estimates of global energy densities for ten renewable and conventional technologies were overlain with global richness data to estimate biodiversity footprints (species per GWh) for each technology. Regionally explicit electricity generation scenarios (2020 to 2100) were downscaled to 50-km depictions of future technology deployment and were additionally constrained by scenarios of protected land exclusion and variant local energy development policies. Biodiversity footprints were used to explore land and biodiversity impacts through a heuristic cumulative biodiversity impact (CBI) score. CBI variation among SSPs was not a clear tradeoff in global climate mitigation and biodiversity conservation, but an outcome of total electricity demand, energy efficiency, and the total magnitude of renewable energy development and storage technologies. Despite comprising <= 7% of total generation, biomass energy contributed the most to biodiversity impacts. However, our results suggest that land conservation practices and local strategies aimed to promote energy diversification could have greater implications for future biodiversity conflicts than alternative SSPs. Hence, there is great uncertainty in how future global electrification pathways will influence biodiversity depending on local land use and conservation policies.},
doi = {10.1016/j.biocon.2021.109234},
journal = {Biological Conservation},
number = NA,
volume = 260,
place = {United States},
year = {Tue Jul 13 00:00:00 EDT 2021},
month = {Tue Jul 13 00:00:00 EDT 2021}
}
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Occurrence Download
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- The Global Biodiversity Information Facility
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- The Global Biodiversity Information Facility
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