309
• Offshore oil and gas production and offshore wind generation are susceptible to
storms. Such facilities are routinely shut down and evacuated in advance of
major storms.
• Coastal and island facilities are vulnerable to tropical cyclones (e.g., hurricanes
and typhoons), storm surges, and sea level rise. In 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated much of the electric grid of Puerto Rico, leaving nearly all of its over three
million inhabitants without electricity for weeks and a significant part of its population without electricity for months.
• Away from the coast, low-lying power plants, refineries, rail line, electric grid
facilities, and other facilities are susceptible to flooding following extreme rainfall events, as well as strong wind events, wildfires, and other climate-impacted
occurrences.
• Heatwaves can damage rail lines, which are the primary mode of transport for
coal. For example, temperatures over 35 °C can cause buckling of rails known as
“sun kinks.”
• Extreme low-temperature events like the 2014 “polar vortex” event in the USA,
can cause power plants to become non-operational.
There are many examples of each of these types of impact in all parts of the world.
As has been noted already, increased warming of the earth’s atmosphere causes
an intensification of the earth’s water cycle resulting in more frequent and more
extreme weather events. Thus, the impacts listed above are projected to become
more frequent as a result of climate change.
Impacts of climate change on energy systems through impacts on water are noted
above and include influences on the production of oil and natural gas production,
cooling for thermoelectric power plants, water flows for hydropower, and irrigation
for bioenergy crops.
Impacts of climate change on energy systems through impacts on land are also
noted above and include influences on land use for energy production, as well as for
traditional and modern forms of biomass.
11.4.3.2 Climate Change and Energy Demand
Warmer temperatures and more extremes in temperature will result in more energy
demand for cooling and less for warming. Thus, energy demand will, in most locations, result in a net increase in energy use, if other factors such as efficiency and
demand management do not change.
In mid- and low-latitude regions, electricity demand peaks in summer months,
particularly on hot afternoons. Because current electricity systems have little capacity to store energy, real-time demand and generation must be in balance. Therefore,
electric power generation capacity is built to meet peak demand with some margin
of safety. Thus, many electric power plants operate only for brief periods of extreme
demand during (usually) hot periods or (at higher latitudes) cold periods. Such peak
demand services represent one of the significant inefficiencies of electric systems.
11 Climate Change
• Offshore oil and gas production and offshore wind generation are susceptible to
storms. Such facilities are routinely shut down and evacuated in advance of
major storms.
• Coastal and island facilities are vulnerable to tropical cyclones (e.g., hurricanes
and typhoons), storm surges, and sea level rise. In 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated much of the electric grid of Puerto Rico, leaving nearly all of its over three
million inhabitants without electricity for weeks and a significant part of its population without electricity for months.
• Away from the coast, low-lying power plants, refineries, rail line, electric grid
facilities, and other facilities are susceptible to flooding following extreme rainfall events, as well as strong wind events, wildfires, and other climate-impacted
occurrences.
• Heatwaves can damage rail lines, which are the primary mode of transport for
coal. For example, temperatures over 35 °C can cause buckling of rails known as
“sun kinks.”
• Extreme low-temperature events like the 2014 “polar vortex” event in the USA,
can cause power plants to become non-operational.
There are many examples of each of these types of impact in all parts of the world.
As has been noted already, increased warming of the earth’s atmosphere causes
an intensification of the earth’s water cycle resulting in more frequent and more
extreme weather events. Thus, the impacts listed above are projected to become
more frequent as a result of climate change.
Impacts of climate change on energy systems through impacts on water are noted
above and include influences on the production of oil and natural gas production,
cooling for thermoelectric power plants, water flows for hydropower, and irrigation
for bioenergy crops.
Impacts of climate change on energy systems through impacts on land are also
noted above and include influences on land use for energy production, as well as for
traditional and modern forms of biomass.
11.4.3.2 Climate Change and Energy Demand
Warmer temperatures and more extremes in temperature will result in more energy
demand for cooling and less for warming. Thus, energy demand will, in most locations, result in a net increase in energy use, if other factors such as efficiency and
demand management do not change.
In mid- and low-latitude regions, electricity demand peaks in summer months,
particularly on hot afternoons. Because current electricity systems have little capacity to store energy, real-time demand and generation must be in balance. Therefore,
electric power generation capacity is built to meet peak demand with some margin
of safety. Thus, many electric power plants operate only for brief periods of extreme
demand during (usually) hot periods or (at higher latitudes) cold periods. Such peak
demand services represent one of the significant inefficiencies of electric systems.
11 Climate Change