Ending Fossil Fuels: Why Net Zero is Not Enough

Description

Around the world, countries and companies are setting net-zero carbon emissions targets. But "net-zero" is a term that conveniently obscures multiple futures. There could be a version of net-zero where the fossil fuel industry is still spewing tens of billions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere, and has built a corresponding industry in sucking it back out again. Holly Buck argues that focusing on emissions draws our attention away from where we need to be looking: the point of production. It is time to plan for the end of fossil fuel and the companies that profit from them. Fossil fuels still provide 80% of world energy and ceasing their use before there are ready alternatives brings risks of energy poverty. The fossil fuel industry provides jobs, as well as a source of revenue for some frontline communities. Conventional wisdom says that fossil fuels will be naturally priced out when cheaper, but this raises as many problems as it addresses. Ending Fossil Fuels tackles these problems seriously and also sets out a roadmap that offer opportunities for more liveable, inclusive future.

Holly Jean Buck is an Assistant Professor of Environment and Sustainability at the University at Buffalo in Buffalo, New York. Her book After Geoengineering explores best and worst-case scenarios for climate intervention.

Praise for After Geoengineering: one of the strengths of Buck's approach to her topic is the narrative nonfiction treatment of an issue often too complex for individual human imaginations ... She expertly preserves the nuance and complexity of figuring out what to do with the remains of an industry on which the entire global economy currently depends. * Issues in Science and Technology * Praise for After Geoengineering: A book to be read on its own terms...Buck's eloquent and useful * New Socialist * Praise for After Geoengineering: This is the guide to the future ... Written in graceful prose ... this book shines. Anyone worried about what comes next should read it. -- Andreas Malm, author of The Progress of This Storm and How to Blow Up a Pipeline Praise for After Geoengineering: A really fantastic book; as if Ursula K. Le Guin wrote a definitive study of carbon management options for the twenty-first century. A meticulously researched, beautifully drawn portrait of dozens of possible futures and how to make them reality. A must-read for anyone who cares about making a cooler and more just future for generations to come. -- Emma Marris, author of Rambunctious Garden: Saving Nature in a Post-Wild World Praise for After Geoengineering: Buck's brilliant-and hopeful-overview is not merely technical or economic, but addresses head-on the implications for climate justice. Beautifully written ... this book is required reading for how to navigate the crisis ahead. -- Matt Huber, author of Lifeblood: Oil, Freedom and the Forces of Capital Praise for After Geoengineering: Holly Jean Buck transcends stale debates and allows us to imagine a hopeful world beyond both capitalism and climate catastrophe. Providing a rigorous (and joyful!) look at technological options to buy time, adapt to change, and renew the planet, this radical book is long overdue. -- Paul Robbins, Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies Praise for After Geoengineering: Original, thought-provoking * Nature * Considered, beautifully written, and mindful of the many actors at play in shaping our planet. Most importantly, it foregrounds the importance of ensuring frontline communities' prosperity in our future economy. -- Antonia Jennings and Eleanor Radcliffe * Stir to Action * Ending Fossil Fuels is a thought-provoking analysis of barriers to decarbonisation, a fascinating read for anyone concerned about the looming climate catastrophe. -- Dr Sibo Chen * LSE Review of Books * Read it and join the ongoing global project to make the phasing out of fossil fuels the new common sense. -- Gabriel Carlyle * Peace News *