True Sustainability With Low Embodied Energy
Abstract
As more companies, institutions, governments, and individuals set and commit to carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction goals, and as policies, technologies, and infrastructure grow to meet intermediate goals, we find ourselves facing an emerging challenge of embodied energy. Energy is invested or used in the manufacture of (energy-saving) products and (energy) infrastructure. In the near term, a bow wave of CO2 emissions from infrastructure tends to counter the progress toward reductions from lower consumption. Will that bow wave undermine the important pace of reductions necessary to stave off runaway Climate Change? Indeed, we must replace our consuming of our stored solar energy assets (fossil fuels) with our daily solar income (vast and renewable). But, a whole other challenge, of reducing the use of stored solar for building the new energy infrastructure, emerges. This challenge mandates a Doing More With Less program, as we are now still just doing more with not enough less. Our current state of the art for renewable energy infrastructure – mounting, PV panels, concrete ballast, Electric Vehicles, and storage – is metal and material intensive, high in embodied energy, and ultimately more costly than it could be. The science of tensioned cables for the mounting of solar photovoltaic panels can significantly reduce embodied energy to a fraction of conventional mounting. True sustainability will require lowering embodied energy, as energy infrastructure must be replaced as service lifetimes are met. Keywords: Embodied, Invested, Production, Energy, Emissions, GHG, Sustainability, Carbon