From Smoke To Mirrors: How New Zealand Can Replace Fossil Liquid Fuels With Locally-Made Renewable Energy By 2040

Synopsis

Using fossil fuels affects the world's climate. If humanity does not change to climate-neutral energy, human-caused climate change will undermine the future of our species. From Smoke to Mirrors describes a master plan for banishing fossil liquid fuels from New Zealand's economy by 2040. New Zealand scientists showed how we could do this way back in the 1970s. At that time, the technology was not ready - but now it's on the brink of practical reality. Fossil liquid fuels - petrol, diesel, jet fuel (kerosene), and fuel oil - are central to many critical industries such as food production and distribution. Non-road industries such as agriculture, construction, and aviation, use forty percent of all the liquid fuels sold in New Zealand. That is why From Smoke to Mirrors considers all types of machinery and vehicles, not just trucks and cars. Road transport and cars are important, but unless we climate-neutralise all existing liquid fuel users, there will be little hope of managing human-caused climate change. From Smoke to Mirrors shows that: Carbon pricing schemes (such as a carbon tax, or emissions trading scheme) cannot promote the transition from fossil liquid fuels to renewable energy; the inflation-adjusted running costs of cars and trucks in 2040 will be no more expensive than they are today; New Zealand can produce enough renewable energy to eliminate fossil liquid fuels from its economy by 2040. New Zealand's indigenous renewable petrol and diesel would be among the world's cheapest renewable liquid fuels, provided we start planning the necessary infrastructure very soon. Some of these conclusions contradict conventional wisdom about managing human-caused climate change. That's because From Smoke to Mirrors takes a practical perspective. It looks at real technology that is fully commercialised, or very nearly so. The transition plan takes a long-term view. It is designed to naturally adapt to new technologies as they become practi