What’s in the UK’s plan for climate neutrality by 2050

In short:

  • Stop selling petrol and diesel cars by 2030
  • Goodbye to gas boilers from 2035
  • Clean energy only from 2035: mainly wind power but focus on nuclear power
  • A scheme that traces a groove and could affect other European countries

UK

In keeping with the COP26 Conference of the Parties on Climate, the United Kingdom has presented its plan for the elimination of net CO2 emissions between now and 2050. A complete document of over three hundred pages, ambitious to say the least, which also becomes relevant in perspective: the passage discovered by London will undoubtedly influence many other Western countries. For this you need to know the main lines, so as not to be surprised.

an investment of around £800 billion

Some figures are enough to understand the scope of the plan that Boris Johnson’s government has decided to implement. There is talk of a public and private investment of around £800 billion between now and 2037 to allow the ambitious transition program to be implemented. The ecological transition, according to the UK plan, will create 190,000 jobs by 2025 and 440,000 by 2030.

Clean energy only by 2035

One of the cornerstones of the ecological transition can only go through the production of electricity. To be precise, from power plants that do not emit greenhouse gases. There are essentially two materials proposed by the United Kingdom to replace thermoelectric. On the one hand, of course, renewable. London plans to install a total of 40 gigawatts of wind farms at sea by 2030. In fact, the document speaks of “offshore wind”, or giant wind turbines that blow off the waters of the oceans. This result will be achieved by mobilizing an investment of 150-270 billion pounds by 2037. The other component, and this one that is also particularly relevant to continental Europe, is a reassuring re-launch of nuclear power.

Atomic is the hero once again

Of course, the document mentions an investment of £120 million in a fund for the development of nuclear energy-related technologies, as well as the construction of small reactors. The truth is that the United Kingdom will have to rely heavily on the splitting of uranium and plutonium atoms, with the exception of fossil fuels. In fact, the summary refers to the “exploration of large-scale nuclear-related projects”, so as to invest more and guarantee a new generation of plants. Although scenarios designed by the British government required wind power to support the island’s energy subsistence on its propellers, nuclear power would play a complementary role of the first order (and it cannot be excluded that for years to come). its use in, which guarantees the energy production not adapted to the weather).

“The 2050-B scenario offers low power intensity, so less power is needed”

It is forbidden to heat their homes with gas boilers

Heating of buildings also gets attention. In fact, the use of gas boilers has not been considered at all in the program to achieve climate neutrality. Its sale will also be banned till 2035. However, with citizens not being able to afford the full cost of replacing their equipment with the latest generation (and therefore more expensive), the government says it will spend £450 million to facilitate the transition to such new boilers. ready to allocate. One way to balance costs with respect to current costs.

Not to mention petrol and diesel, will be banned from garage

By 2030, there will be no fossil fuel cars for sale in UK dealerships. A strong commitment following the establishment of a £620 million fund to contribute to the purchase of electric cars. This is another element that needs to be taken into account and which explains the urgent need to increase the power generation capacity in the coming years. It will also amount to over £2 billion that will be allocated for upgrading electricity infrastructure.

A presentation for “leading by example” and resuming negotiations

It cannot be denied that the long and frank presentation of the United Kingdom has a component linked to the role of the organizing country of COP26. “We have shown the world that sustainability and growth go hand in hand, and this outcome has resulted in other countries following us in the net zero emissions target”, reads the report’s introduction. A sort of attempt to resume negotiations, which, less than two weeks after the work began, evokes pessimism even from Elizabeth II’s English Crown.

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