Page 44 - Climate Control News magazine Oct-Nov 2022

Review
Search is on for
fastest route to net zero
A REPORT IDENTIFYING the most rapid and least cost approach to the decarbonisation of building operations is set to be released by the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC).
The report examines the critical role of the built environment in delivering Australia’s net zero emissions by 2050 and follows months of industry consultation.
Speaking at the ARBS Exhibition ASBEC execu- tive director, Alison Scotland, said the technology already exists to reach net zero, well before 2050.
“Let’s aim for the year 2035. But first Australia will need a lot more heat pumps, as well as the staff skilled to install them,” Scotland said.
“Another problem is that gas is still in wide- spread use especially in New South Wales and Victoria.”
The report looks at what technology will get to net zero the fastest and at the least cost.”
ASBEC modelled three different scenarios out to the year 2050.
The first scenario was electrification with renewable energy. This is where all new build- ings are fully electric and powered by renewa- bles and existing buildings retrofitted.
The second was a mix of renewable electricity and renewable gas.
In this scenario renewable electricity is domi- nant with natural gas displaced with biogas.
The final scenario was renewable electricity and gas blends.
This is where renewable electricity is domi- nant, some natural gas is displaced with renew- able gas and credible offsets are used to achieve net zero and/or green hydrogen.
“The transition to net zero is different depending on where you live in Australia because gas is a big factor,” Scotland said.
“It is even more complex when addressing
The report examined the critical role of the built environment for Australia to reach net zero by 2050.
HVAC; there are so many different plant rooms and all of them are unique in their own way.
“When it came to HVAC this project raised more questions than answers. Hopefully this paper will help address many of these issues.”
Because Australia requires rapid solutions Scotland said electrification is the most likely route to take.
“To make it work HVAC needs to be at the forefront of decision making,” Scotland said. “Investing in skills development is also critical,”
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