Last week, we added electricity emissions to OnlyFacts.
Our feature chart has three buttons at the top: electricity by power output, by emissions output and emissions intensity.
Emissions intensity means emissions* divided by electricity produced. That is, how much bang do we get for our buck?
Let's look at emissions output first.
Data viz is always tricky when you're trying to put big and smallish numbers together.
Above, you can see that emissions from brown and black coal totally obscure emissions from wind and solar.
That's why we decided to show these charts as a percentage of the total. It doesn't help much in the chart above, but it helps a lot in the chart below.
Here are the same energy sources by power output.
You can't see wind and solar in the first chart. But you can see them in the second. That means renewables are making up a growing proportion of Australia's electricity generation, while barely adding to our emissions.
Pretty simple story, right? We think it's valuable, nonetheless.
Now, take a look at the emissions intensity of each source.
Liquid fuel really pops out there. That's talking about gasoline/petrol, diesel and jet fuel. That is, the stuff that powers Australia's transportation, aviation, shipping, agriculture and mining.
Remember, these charts are about emissions produced when generating energy. So the liquid fuel emissions come from burning or combusting the fuel itself, in order to release its energy.
Australia has a small but significant oil and gas industry, and refines crude oil that it imports.
But add to that the millions of cars burning fuel themselves, and we can see why alternative fuels and electric vehicles are a big part of the solution.
What we're reading
ICYMI: Australia is underreporting methane emissions: The International Energy Agency says Australia failed to report more than 80% of its fugitive emissions (methane leaks from coal and gas production). The Australian Government’s data is compiled from reports made by mining and gas companies whereas the IEA measures methane in the atmosphere and traces it back to originating sites. (The Sydney Morning Herald)
The Ocean is the Next Frontier for the Carbon Removal Industry: Use the oceans to draw down atmospheric carbon dioxide? Start-ups are saying they can do just that. They’re attracting tens of millions of dollars in funding. But questions remain about the effects these approaches have on ecosystems, not to mention whether all the carbon they say they can tuck away into the world’s oceans will stay there. (Time)
Data note: Emissions intensity means emissions* divided by electricity produced ... Of course, it's not that straight-forward. Emissions intensity only uses Scope 1 emissions, also known as direct emissions, in its calculation. They're the greenhouse gases that come directly from the facilities themselves.