Capacity Building in the Field of Wind Energy 6 - 15 December, 2009

1. Climate Change & Electricity Generation
Eng. Rafik Youssef Georgy
Consultant for New & Renewable Energy Authority
Tel : ( )–
Fax : ( )–
Mobile : ( )–
E-mail : rafik@nreaeg.com

2. Definition of Climate Change
►There is a growing scientific consensus that increasing
levels of greenhouse gas emissions are changing the earth’s
climate.
►The natural greenhouse gases include carbon dioxide
(CO ), water vapor (H O), nitrous oxide (N O), methane
(CH ) and ozone (O ), and are essential if the Earth is to
support life.
►With the exception of water vapor, carbon dioxide is the
most plentiful.

3. Definition of Climate Change
►Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in
, burning fossil fuels and the increased energy needs
of a growing world population have added man-made, or
anthropogenic, greenhouse gas emissions into the
environment.
► Carbon dioxide constitutes a tiny fraction of the earth’s
atmosphere about one molecule in three thousand but is the
single largest waste product of modern industrial society.

4. Definition of Climate Change
►The concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere
has risen from about parts per million by volume to the
current level of over parts per million by volume and
anthropogenically caused atmospheric concentration of
methane has doubled.
► Increasing concentrations of greenhouse gases trap more
terrestrial radiation in the lower atmosphere (troposphere),
artificially enhancing the natural greenhouse effect.

5. Definition of Climate Change
The CO level has
increased sharply since
the beginning of the
Industrial Era and is
already outside the
bounds of natural
variability seen in the
climate record of the last
years.
Continuation of current
levels of emissions are
predicted to raise
concentrations to over
ppm by .

6. Definition of Climate Change
Instrumental
Temperature Record
from –
indicates a global
warming over the
past century, with
many peaks and
valleys suggesting
the natural year-to-
year variability of
climate.

7. Definition of Climate Change
“Developing countries face a fundamental
choice. They can mimic the industrial
countries, and go through a development
phase that is dirty and wasteful and creates
an enormous legacy of pollution. Or they can
leapfrog over some of the steps followed by
industrial countries and incorporate modern
efficient technologies.”

8. Climate Change Cost
►Developing Countries Trade-off between:
•Cost of adopting cleaner and advanced
Cost
technologies, and
Cost of climate change consequences
►CDM as a tool for reconciliation.

9. Climate Change and Electricity Generation
►Substantial, pre-industrial abundances for CH and N O
are found in the tiny bubbles of ancient air trapped in ice
cores. Both gases have large, natural emission rates, which
have varied over past climatic changes but have sustained a
stable atmospheric abundance for the centuries prior to the
Industrial Revolution.
► Emissions of CH and N O due to human activities are
also substantial and have caused large relative increases in
their respective burdens over the last century.

10. Climate Change and Electricity Generation
►Industrial Revolution and increase in the world
population caused large relative increase in electricity
generation.
► Increase in electricity generation needs to increase in the
using of fossil fuel.
► Increase in the using of fossil fuel, increase emission of
greenhouse gases.

11. Climate Change and Electricity Generation
Cause for global warming: Carbon dioxide emissions in
million tons per year over the last years.

12. Climate Change and Electricity Generation
Power generation is the main Biological degradation is the
source of increase main source of increase

13. Climate Change and Electricity Generation
Other human activities
Global trends in major long-lived greenhouse gases through the
year . These five gases account for about of the direct
climate change forced by long-lived greenhouse gas increases
since . The remaining is contributed by an assortment of
minor halogen gases, mainly HCFC- , CFC- and CCL

14. Climate Change and Electricity Generation
All energy sectors account for more than two thirds of
GHG emissions

15. Climate Change and Electricity Generation
From which sectors do the major greenhouse gas emissions come
from? The picture shows the sources individually for the gases of
carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide, respectively

16. Climate Change and Electricity Generation
Annual Greenhouse gases emission from
power station represented about % from
total sectors emission .
Power stations have a big share of
greenhouse gases emissions
It is the single largest emission source
worldwide

17. Mutual Interactions Between Electricity
Generation and Climate Change
►Power generation emits large quantities of CO .
►CO contributes to global warming and hence
climate change
►Climate change leads to extreme environment
variation phenomena, e.g. drought and lower
rainfall profiles.
►Scarcity of cooling water needed by fossil fuel –
fired power stations.

18. Climate Change and Power Generation
The importance of using Renewable Energy
No GHG emissions
Clean, non polluting and environment
friendly
Available every where in the developing
countries
If overcoming relatively high kWh cost,
Then An Ideal Solution