Automation sustainability progress at COP29.

Innovations accelerating energy management, emissions reduction and decarbonisation

Emerson is attending COP29 in Baku, (AZ), participating in Climate Action’s Sustainable Innovation Forum and Hydrogen Transition Summit. Chief sustainability officer Mike Train will share his insights on how automation technologies are helping accelerate the energy transition and the collaboration and investment required to scale breakthrough innovations across emerging clean energy sectors.

Emerson partners with both established industrial companies and new-to-the-world start-ups to advance their commercialisation and sustainability roadmaps. The company’s technologies and services support four key areas: energy source decarbonisation, energy and emissions management, electrification and grid system, and circularity and waste reduction.

Mike Train

“Achieving a sustainable transformation of the global economy by 2050 demands an unprecedented level of collective determination and cooperation among companies, governments and non-profits,” said Train. “We must maintain the resolve to work through challenges and make progress, navigating the policy and economics of the transition, and attracting the next generation of talent to the field.”

Train will speak during COP29 at the below panels:

• Sustainable Innovation Forum – Powering the Future: Rapid scaling of clean energy for stability and resilience, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 11:25 a.m. (local time).
• Hydrogen Transition Summit – Informed Policy Frameworks: The role of the private sector in supporting informed and ambitious policy, Friday, Nov. 15, 10 a.m. (local time).

COP29 attendees can explore Emerson’s latest innovations at Stand 102 in the Climate Action Innovation Zone, Baku Marriott Hotel Boulevard. The exhibit will showcase examples of how Emerson’s Boundless Automation™ enables its customers to deploy their decarbonisation strategies faster and more efficiently.

Environmental sustainability is a business imperative for Emerson and its value chain partners – from suppliers and customers to employees and communities. In 2023, with a continued focus on energy efficiency and Scope 1 emission abatement strategies, Emerson achieved a Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions intensity reduction of 52% since 2021. For its locations worldwide, the company has also procured 49% of electricity from renewable sources, progressing toward its goal to source 100% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030.

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Brazil's ecological transformation plan.

The Government of Brazil launched its Ecological Transformation Plan at COP28 in a presentation by the Finance Minister, Fernando Haddad with The Minister for Environment and Climate, Marina Silva; the President of the BRICS Bank and former President of Brazil, Dilma Rousseff; the President of the Brazilian Development Bank, Aloizio Mercadante; the President of the of the Inter-American Development Bank, Ilan Goldfajn; and the Secretary for Climate, Energy and Environment of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, André Aranha Corrêa do Lago.

The plan challenges development paradigms by envisioning a new role for the Global South in the contemporary world. It is a proposal that presents the region as the center of the green economy by advocating for environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive globalization.

" ...interrupt five centuries of extractivism and environmental destruction to position Brazil at the forefront of sustainable development!"

In his presentation, Minister Haddad stated that initial studies from the private sector indicate that ecological transformation could generate 7.5 to 10 million jobs across all sectors, with a focus on the bioeconomy, agriculture, and infrastructure segments, as well as income-generating opportunities.

However, to realize this scenario, the same studies estimate that Brazil needs additional investments in the range of $130 to $160 billion per year over the next decade. The investments should occur mainly in infrastructure to promote adaptations, produce energy, enhance industrialization, and improve mobility.

Minister Haddad praised Brazil's ability to mobilize investment and create sustainable infrastructure through public investments. He cited national examples that make the country "a giant in renewable energy," highlighting the network of hydroelectric plants, the unified electrical system, ethanol production, and the role of Petrobras and other leading national companies in the research and development of biofuels.

Citing examples of implementation measures, the minister referred to the creation of a regulated carbon market, the issuance of sustainable sovereign bonds, the definition of a national taxonomy focused on sustainability, and the revision of the Climate Fund. The initiatives aim to create conditions for a new wave of investments with the goal of concentrating industrial technologies, modernizing science, and qualifying the workforce nationally.

Advancements.
"The Ecological Transformation Plan that I have the honor to present to you today aims to unite forces around a historic goal: to interrupt five centuries of extractivism and environmental destruction to position Brazil at the forefront of sustainable development," declared Minister Haddad.

Haddad announced advancements in key areas for the ecological transformation of the Brazilian economy, achieved by the current administration since the minister attended the COP in Egypt last year. One of them was the nearly 50% reduction in deforestation in the Amazon due to the reactivation of prevention and control actions in the biome.

The minister listed the recently approved Bills on green hydrogen and offshore wind energy generation by the National Congress as crucial sectors for the energy transition that hold enormous potential for the country. Brazil also revised the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) to achieve a 53% reduction in emission levels compared to the year 2005, a climate goal more ambitious than that of many developed countries.

"The Ecological Transformation Plan is an evolutionary process, just like the challenge of climate change. It will seek to adapt to new paradigms and develop public policies to address not only past problems but also those of the future," added Haddad, who classified the plan as a realistic yet ambitious model for the reinvention of Brazil.

Joint Statement by Brazil and UAE on COP28 to COP30 Nature-Climate Partnership.

At the COP28 World Climate Action Summit, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil and President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the United Arab Emirates announced a bilateral partnership to strengthen dual nature and climate action between COP28 and COP30.

They underscored their shared commitment to address the interlinked challenges of climate change and biodiversity and ecosystem loss, emphasizing the urgency and complementarity of implementing the UN Convention on Climate Change, its Paris Agreement, the Convention on Biological Diversity and its Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.

The Presidents also highlighted that the partnership will focus on enhancing local livelihoods and supporting the development goals of indigenous and traditional peoples.

The cooperation builds on the UAE and Brazil’s Memorandum of Understanding signed in April 2023 and will include several priorities, such as:

• Tropical and mangrove forest protection, conservation, and restoration;
• Scaling innovative financial mechanisms for nature, including the new Tropical Forest Forever mechanism to finance standing forest;
• Finance and policy for local and indigenous communities, women, and youth related to climate and nature action;
• Global synergies between national strategies under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

Both countries also welcomed the opportunity to work closely in support of Brazil’s G20 Presidency in 2024, as well the incoming presidencies of UNFCCC COP29 and CBD COP16.

Brazil seeks to advance Mission 1.5 at COP28.

The Brazilian delegation to COP28 held a press briefing on Day 6 of the conference to provide an update on progress in the negotiations. At the same time, the speakers took the opportunity to emphasize Brazil’s overarching priority at COP28, which is to ensure that the average global temperature does not exceed 1.5oC.

The speakers included the head of delegation and Minister for the Indigenous Peoples, Sonia Guajajara; the Deputy Minister of Environment and Climate Change, João Paulo Capobianco; the Secretary for Climate, Energy and Environment of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, André Corrêa do Lago; and the National Secretary for Climate Change at the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, Ana Toni.

Minister Guajajara said that she was proud to head Brazil’s delegation during COP28 thematic day of the indigenous peoples. COP28 is being attended by more indigenous people than ever before. She said that indigenous peoples are a part of the solution of the climate crisis, adding that “we are 5% of the world’s population but are stewards of 82% of the biodiversity of the planet”.

João Paulo Capobianco referred to Brazil’s success in reducing deforestation by 49% between January and October 2023, avoiding 250m tonnes of emissions – a major achievement that was labelled by the Prime-Minister of Norway as “the most important climate news of the year” – and recalled that Brazil had presented the initiative “Tropical Forests Forever Facility”.

The chief negotiator of the Delegation, Ambassador André Corrêa do Lago, stressed the sense of urgency that needs to inspire the fight against climate change, which is why Brazil proposed “Mission 1.5”. At the time of the Paris Agreement, science had not yet fully explained the consequences of a 1.5oC warming – but now that they are clear, it is clear that we should forge a sense of purpose to cap warming at that level.

“The most consequential outcome of COP28 will be the Global Stocktake, which must be based on science and on equity”, Corrêa do Lago explained. “It will inform countries as they discuss climate finance in COP29 and develop the second round of NDCs, to be submitted by 2025, at COP30. The path from Dubai to Belém will be decisive for humanity’s success in fighting climate change,” he added.

The questions from the media covered a variety of issues, including fossil fuels. The delegation explained that Brazil benefits from a variety of transition options, including biofuels and green hydrogen. Recalling the statement delivered by the BASIC group (Brazil, South Africa, India and China) at the opening session, the delegation stressed that developed countries should take the lead in phasing-out fossil fuel production and consumption, in an accelerated manner.

Regarding the relationship between trade and environment, the speakers explained that trends towards unilateralism, protectionism and fragmentation of international cooperation jeopardize trust and, consequently, ambitious climate action. Both the Rio 1992 Declaration and UNFCCC state that trade policy measures for environmental purposes should not constitute a means of arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination or a disguised restriction on international trade, which is why Brazil is raising these issues both here at COP28 and at the World Trade Organization.

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A tear at COP28.

Not strictly speaking an automation story but the environment is important to all of us and this story highlights part of the struggle in the defence of our world.

Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was listed as the keynote speaker at a COP28 session entitled: ‘Protecting Nature for Climate, Lives and Livelihood’. However, amid cheers and rapturous applause from the audience, Lula took the stage accompanied by his Minister for Environment and Climate, Marina Silva… and handed her the microphone.

Marina Silva and President Lula da Silva

“I could not speak about forests without Marina,” Lula explained. “She was born in a forest, and was not literate until sixteen years of age, and yet, here she is - responsible for the dramatic environmental success that Brazil has achieved since my election! So, yes this is my speech, but Marina is the best person to deliver it from the heart!”

At this point, the President was clearly moved and there was a tear in his eye as a wave of emotion washed over the people in the audience, many of whom were also brought to tears. Those of us that regularly witness political speeches are not accustomed to such genuine, heartfelt shows of emotion, but for many of us it was very refreshing!

Highlighting the significance of Brazil’s recent achievements, a few minutes before Lula and Silva took the stage, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said: “Brazil’s success in reducing deforestation is the most important climate news this year.”

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More on Brazil's Ecological Transformation Plan.

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Monitoring methane and carbon dioxide emissions - Industrial and Environmental.

With the COP-28 climate conference starting in Dubai today (30 Nov 2023), political and media attention will focus on greenhouse gas emissions, and as a specialist manufacturer of methane and carbon dioxide emissions analysers, Signal Group is well-positioned to comment on the role of industrial process emissions on air quality and climate change. Here Signal’s Managing Director James Clements explains. 

First, it is important to be clear about the difference between air quality and the pollutants that exacerbate climate change. Basically air quality is affected by pollutants that can have a harmful effect, above certain concentrations, on living organisms, whereas climate change is caused by greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). 

Air Quality.

Most process emissions regulations focus on limiting the release of gases and particulates that can be deleterious to the health of humans and other organisms. Nitrogen dioxide for example, is known to be particularly harmful to human health, and sulphur dioxide can cause acid rain which harms trees and vegetation. Many Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) are hazardous to health, but they also have environmental effects, which include the formation of ozone, a constituent of photochemical smog. At ground level, ozone is generated when VOCs react with nitrogen oxides (NOx) in the presence of sunlight. Ozone can have both acute and chronic effects on humans; affecting the respiratory, cardiovascular and central nervous system, as well as reproductive health. Ground level ozone can also have harmful effects on vegetation and sensitive ecosystems.

Process emissions are tightly controlled by regulations, forcing businesses to implement abatement measures and to monitor emissions and demonstrate regulatory compliance. However, diesel and petrol vehicles are also combustion processes, and whilst their emissions are also tightly regulated, the potential problem with vehicle emissions is that they often take place in poorly ventilated urban areas where pollution can accumulate and affect large numbers of citizens. As a consequence, governments and local authorities around the world are looking for ways to lower pollution exposure on busy streets and near schools for example.

One of the ways in which urban areas can be protected from the most polluting vehicles is to implement ‘Low Emission Zones’ (LEZs) such as London’s ULEZ (Ultra LEZ). Under this scheme, the owners of older, more polluting vehicles have to pay a daily penalty if they wish to travel within the zone. This is naturally a politically sensitive issue, because many people rely on such vehicles and may not be able to afford a newer ULEZ compliant vehicle. However, there is no doubt that LEZs do improve air quality.

The manufacturers of industrial and vehicle engines and boilers are therefore constantly seeking to develop equipment which is both efficient and produces low levels of pollutants. Increasingly, however, there is a need to also reduce GHG emissions.

Greenhouse Gases.
GHGs are so-called because they absorb some of the heat that the Earth radiates after it warms from sunlight, and thereby trap this heat in the Earth's lower atmosphere, causing global warming – the greenhouse effect. The gases which behave in this way include carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and ozone (O3). CO2 is responsible for about three quarters of global warming and can persist for thousands of years. Methane causes most of the remaining warming but only persists in the atmosphere for about 12 years. Importantly, methane emission reduction initiatives therefore offer faster improvements in the fight against climate change.

The combustion of fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal has increased atmospheric methane concentrations by over 150% and carbon dioxide by over 50% since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Urgent initiatives are therefore underway to reduce CO2 emissions with many countries committing to significant reductions in GHG emissions as they strive to meet their Net Zero targets.

The old adage goes: ‘you can’t manage what you don’t monitor’ and this is a major driver for analyser sales at Signal, with increasingly large numbers of customers looking to develop engines and processes that offer improved efficiency as well as lower emissions of both air quality pollutants and GHGs.

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• See also Hyperspectral cameras for orbit! (29/11/2023)

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