Page - 25 - in options, Volume winter 2017/2018

asia 25 regional focus www.iiasa.ac.at winter 2017/18 ◼ options In recent decades, China has seen rapid expansion and growth of both its economy and the development of major cities. Much of this growth, however, has come at the price of severe air pollution and increased carbon emissions. China, historically rich in coal but not in oil or gas, has sought to combat the climate implications of this growth by increasing production of coal-based synthetic natural gas (SNG). While SNG helps to improve China’s extreme ambient air pollution, its production increases carbon emissions. Since demand for natural gas consumption has grown in China by nearly eight fold over the last 15 years and domestic natural gas production has failed to keep pace with the demand increase, synthetic natural gas has been identified as a highly practical solution. In a study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, IIASA researcher Fabian Wagner and his coauthors showed that China’s SNG development has important implications for regional air quality as well as overall global climate. While China’s plan to switch from coal to gas will help, research shows that use of SNG in the residential sector will have the biggest impact. “Our team evaluated a number of SNG deployment strategies to find what would most significantly improve China’s air quality and reduce carbon emissions,” explains Wagner. “We found that by allocating currently planned SNG to households provides the largest air quality and health benefits with the smallest carbon penalties.” JS In an effort to reduce human impact on the environment, nations around the globe are devising plans to curb carbon emissions and use renewable energy. Malaysia, which launched a renewable energy plan in 2010, is planning to facilitate its renewable energy sector by injecting biomethane into its natural gas grid. One of the most promising options for accomplishing this involves using palm oil mill effluent as the biogas. The great upside Evaluating outcomes of China’s synthetic natural gas development Further info Hoo P, Patrizio P, Leduc S, Hashim H, Kraxner F, Tan ST, & Ho WS (2017). Optimal Biomethane Injection into Natural Gas Grid – Biogas from Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) in Malaysia. Energy Procedia 105: 562-569. [pure.iiasa.ac.at/14646] Piera Patrizio patrizip@iiasa.ac.at Further info Qin, Y., Wagner, F., Scovronick, N., Peng, W., Yang, J., Zhu, T., Smith, K.R. & Mauzerall, D.L. (2017). Air quality, health, and climate implications of China’s synthetic natural gas development. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 114 (19): 4887-4892. [pure.iiasa.ac.at/14545] Fabian Wagner wagnerf@iiasa.ac.at is palm oil is extremely abundant in Malaysia—it is the world’s second largest producer of palm oil behind Indonesia. However, there is also still much unknown, as the use of biomethane within the natural gas grid has remained largely unexplored. In a study published in the journal Energy Procedia, IIASA researcher Piera Patrizio and her coauthors found that using roughly 300 biogas plants, biomethane could be injected into the natural gas grid to supply between 40% to 67% of the residential fossil gas demand (under current and projected carbon price scenarios). This could have a tremendous impact, the study shows, but the adoption of such biofuel in the country is highly dependent on the presence of suitable transport infrastructure. “The construction of biomethane injection infrastructure, especially the construction of gas pipelines, should be incentivized,” explains Patrizio, a postdoc in the IIASA Ecosystems Services and Management Program. “By fully supporting this plan, the Malaysian government can drastically reduce its carbon emissions and rely on a very sustainable energy source for decades to come.” JS Injecting biomethane into Malaysia’s natural gas grid