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Toward a vision of sustainable biomass:

Toward a vision of sustainable biomass:. Adventures at the intersection of technology, economics, ethics and politics. John Sheehan National Bioenergy Center National Renewable Energy Laboratory University of Illinois, Chicago June 7, 2004. Overview. The conundrum of sustainability

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Toward a vision of sustainable biomass:

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  1. Toward a vision of sustainable biomass: Adventures at the intersection of technology, economics, ethics and politics John SheehanNational Bioenergy Center National Renewable Energy Laboratory University of Illinois, Chicago June 7, 2004

  2. Overview • The conundrum of sustainability • Biomass sustainability—an analytical perspective • Biomass—a political perspective • Biomass—a search for a vision • A plea for transparency, education and dialogue

  3. The conundrum of sustainabilityMalthus • “...the great question is now at issue, whether man shall henceforth start forwards with accelerated velocity towards illimitable, and hitherto unconceived improvement; or be condemned to a perpetual oscillation between happiness and misery, and after every effort remain still at an immeasurable distance from the wished-for goal” • Thomas Malthus, An Essay on the Principle of Population (1798)

  4. The conundrum of sustainabilityMalthus as Scrooge • “...the great question is now at issue, whether man shall henceforth start forwards with accelerated velocity towards illimitable, and hitherto unconceived improvement; or be condemned to a perpetual oscillation between happiness and misery, and after every effort remain still at an immeasurable distance from the wished-for goal” • Thomas Malthus, An Essay on the Principle of Population (1798)

  5. The conundrum of sustainability“Tragedy of the Commons” “Ruin is the destination toward which all men rush, each pursuing his own best interest in a society that believes in the freedom of the commons. Freedom in a commons brings ruin to all.” - Science (Dec 1968)

  6. The conundrum of sustainability“Tragedy of the Commons” “The class of ‘No technical solution problems’ has members. My thesis is that the ‘population problem,’ as conventionally conceived, is a member of this class.” • Science (Dec 1968)

  7. The conundrum of sustainability“Tragedy of the Commons” “Mutual Coercion Mutually Agreed upon” -How do we get to that state of mutually agreed upon coercion?

  8. The conundrum of sustainability“Tragedy of the Commons” “That morality is system-sensitive escaped the attention of most codifiers of ethics in the past… The laws of our society follow the pattern of ancient ethics, and therefore are poorly suited to governing a complex, crowded, changeable world.” • Science (Dec 1968)

  9. The conundrum of sustainabilityPolitical epithet • Senator “Malthus”

  10. The conundrum of sustainabilityThe “Kumbaya” definition • “[S]ustainable development meets the needs of the present without compromising the needs of the future generations.” • Our Common Future. United Nations’ World Commission on Environment and Development (1987)

  11. The conundrum of sustainabilityE. O. Wilson • “The common aim must be to expand resources and improve quality of life for as many people as heedless population growth forces upon Earth, and do it with minimal prosthetic dependence. That, in essence is the ethic of sustainable development.” • Edward WilsonConsilience (1998)

  12. Technology Ethics Economics Politics SustainabilityThe intersection of science and ethics Sustainability—the ultimate example of “consilience”

  13. Sustainability and BiomassThe example of ethanol • Fuel ethanol made from non food biomass sources • Requires “new” technology: • To break down (hydrolyze) cellulose and hemicellulose to sugar • To ferment unusual sugars

  14. Technology Ethics Economics Politics Sustainability and BiomassCost competitiveness over time

  15. Technology Ethics Economics Politics Sustainability and BiomassLife cycle assessment

  16. Technology Ethics Economics Politics Sustainability and BiomassLife cycle assessment

  17. Technology Ethics Economics Politics Sustainability and Biomass Energy impacts

  18. Technology Ethics Economics Politics Sustainability and Biomass Global Warming impacts

  19. Technology Ethics Economics Politics Sustainability and Biomass Reactive nitrogen

  20. Ethics Politics Biomass Political perspective 1970 1980 1990 2000 CARTER REAGAN BUSH I CLINTON Formation of DOE Deep Cuts in Renewable Energy Energy Policy Act of 1992 Bouncing Budgets Earmarks Tech Transfer Creation of SERI Ramping up Tech Transfer and funds Emphasize Basic R&D “Moral Equivalent of War” - R&D - Demonstration

  21. Ethics Politics Biomass Political perspective BUSH I Renewables

  22. Ethics Politics Biomass Political perspective …a case of attention deficit syndrome

  23. Biomass The politics of net energy

  24. BiomassPolitics, progress and projections Uncertainty And confusion Political-driven Projections

  25. “The Role of Biomass in America’s Energy Future”Seeking a new vision • Natural Resources Defense Council • Dartmouth • Michigan State University • Princeton • Union of Concerned Scientists • DOE national labs • U. Tenn

  26. “The Role of Biomass in America’s Energy Future”A holistic approach • Considers “levers” that effect both energy supply and energy demand

  27. “The Role of Biomass in America’s Energy Future”A holistic approach • Combines technical and social elements to paint possible futures

  28. “The Role of Biomass in America’s Energy Future”A path forward

  29. “The Role of Biomass in America’s Energy Future”A path forward

  30. “The Role of Biomass in America’s Energy Future”A path forward

  31. “Holistic dialogue” • Defines a choice in a holistic, systematic context • “The cradle to grave” perspective • Normalized comparisons rather than whole system visioning • Addresses “technical” aspects only

  32. “Holistic dialogue” • Ethical dimension • Defining Jefferson’s “pursuit of happiness” • Technical dimension • Life cycle assessment helps to sort out the uncertainties of the moral and ethical choices we need to make from the uncertainties of the science.

  33. “Holistic dialogue” • “Let us engage in the serious business of conducting our discussion rationally and logically, to discover the truth about points on which we differ.”

  34. “Holistic dialogue” • …western civilization is the civilization of the Logos. Liberal education, up to the end of the twentieth century, carried forward the Great Conversation. • Robert M. Hutchins

  35. Biomass and the energy debate • As long as technical experts continue to offer expert opinions, the public will continue to scratch their heads in wonder • We need to educate and engage our public in both the ethical and the technical questions involved

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