On 3 December, 2020 POST and the non-partisan International Cryosphere Climate Initiative (ICCI) hosted a closed briefing as one of a series of “Cryosphere 1.5°C Briefings”. These are the notes from the briefing. As this was a closed event for Parliamentarians and parliamentary staff, questions and comments during the different rounds of discussion have not been attributed.
Documents to download
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Future of Natural Gas in the UK (458 KB, PDF)
- In 2014, the UK imported 45% of its gas.
- The Government plans to boost UK natural gas production to prevent or minimise falls in gas-related jobs, tax and investment.
- To stay within globally agreed climate change limits some existing gas reserves will likely need to go unused. This raises questions about new UK gas exploration.
- Burning natural gas produces lower greenhouse gas emissions than burning coal or oil. Switching to gas can help to meet short-term emission targets for power generation, heating and transport.
- However, installing too many new gas-using units may create barriers to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the long term.
- Most long-term gas use depends on the use of carbon capture and storage or biogas.
Related Links
Documents to download
-
Future of Natural Gas in the UK (458 KB, PDF)
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