Green hydrogen, Tunisia’s solar potential and electric car troubles | Letters
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Green hydrogen, Tunisia’s solar potential and electric car troubles
Jakob Andersen, Denys Bennett and David Rees respond to an editorial on how poor countries are affected by environmental decisions taken by richer nations
Your editorial on “green hydrogen” (27 August) correctly asserts that low-carbon emissions in Europe should not come at the cost of environmental destruction abroad. However, it does not sufficiently consider alternative sustainable hydrogen opportunities available in Europe or elsewhere.
The predictions of technology forecasters and energy developers for this exciting energy commodity seem myopic. This is because a significant contender for driving the hydrogen economy is constantly being left out of the picture: biogenic hydrogen.
One particularly interesting approach is to produce hydrogen using thermochemical processes such as gasification, which produce a massive added benefit: biochar. Biochar, which acts as a soil amendment, can be used to boost the output of existing biomass systems or even to enable biomass growth from arid areas.
Jakob Andersen
CEO, Mash Makes, Copenhagen, Denmark
A more sensible use for Tunisian solar electricity than manufacturing hydrogen locally might be to export it via the proposed Tunisia-Sicily interconnector for which European Commission grant funding of €307m has been announced. This could displace electricity imported from mainland Italy, which could then be used to manufacture green hydrogen.
Denys Bennett
Welwyn, Hertfordshire
Your editorial on the sustainability of hydrogen production in Africa makes a valid point, but overlooks the fact that electric cars are a green panacea for wealthier nations and will be simply unaffordable for the rest of the world. Apart from their individual cost, electric vehicles also require huge public investment in infrastructure.
There are already significant question marks over whether this is achievable at scale in the UK. If going electric is achieved in countries with developed economies, all it will do is leave the rest of the world stranded with the internal combustion engine in its current polluting form.
Forcing the motor industry to devote its resources to developing electric cars has also diverted attention from investing in alternative fuels or finding more effective ways to deal with emissions. If it is to have a global impact, a greener solution to road transport needs to be one that is less resource-intensive and more affordable. We seem to be heading in the opposite direction.
David Rees
Winchester
