Mathiesen, Brian Vad

Rothballer, Carsten

Stiff, George

Trier, Daniel

English

The findings of Heat Roadmap Europe 4 (HRE4) proves that a common and coordinated effort of all Europeans for the transition to a low-carbon future in accordance with the Paris Agreement is not only possible, but cost-effective and affordable with existing technologies available on the market today. Therefore it would be an ethical, political and organisational failure, if the European Commission, its Member States as well as regional and local governments together won’t be able to ensure the change required to keep global warming significantly below 2 °C compared to the preindustrial area. In particular, current and planned policies should be aligned with the vision of a carbon emission free heating and cooling sector by 2050, as the sector corresponds to about 50% of the final energy demand in Europe and has a crucial role to play in the connectivity and affordability of the entire sustainable energy system of the future. This includes energy, environmental, economic, tax and educational policies, while ensuring that the impact of any legislation on all levels does not hinder the development towards this goal, but instead encourages and accelerates the transition. There is no sustainable alternative for the future of Europe than a decarbonised, integrated energy system. Postponing the challenges will only make the transition organisationally more difficult and unnecessarily expensive, but will not make the challenge itself become obsolete. The emission targets required to meet the Paris Agreement must be reached sooner, rather than later in order for society to benefit from the improvements created. The scientific and technolocially neutral research initative Heat Roadmap Europe verifies how choosing the path of decarbonisation in an integrated manner will be beneficial for all governmental levels, wether if the main priorities are economic, social or environmental. Based on the outcomes of Heat Roadmap Europe, the authors call for action from all politicians in Europe to accept their responsibility to take on their necessary role as leaders towards a fossil fuel free energy system by setting up the decisive framework which will have guided Europe to an economically feasible, socially accepted and environmentally needed low-carbon future

Guidelines for the Energy System Transition:The Energy Union Perspective - Heat Roadmap Europe

https://vbn.aau.dk/ws/files/290996898/HRE4_D7.17_EU_vbn.pdf

Guidelines for the Energy System Transition:The Energy Union Perspective - Heat Roadmap Europe

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