Published on: Friday, July 19, 2024
By: David Thien
SOGCE 2024 organiser Dolly Jimayol presenting a memento Stanley Chong.
KOTA KINABALU: Positive ways in which local authorities in Sabah can contribute to the goal of net zero include development planning, promoting Green Building Standards, ensuring good public transportation and active mobility, good waste management practices, utilising innovation, technology, and data-driven solutions, with good community engagement and education.
These desirable values and actions were elaborated on by Stanley Chong Hon Chung, the Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Local Government and Housing Sabah at the Sabah Oil, Gas & Energy Conference & Exhibition 2024 (SOGCE’24) at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC).
Chong said in his presentation: “Net Zero refers to the balance of greenhouse gas (GHG) removal with greenhouse gas emissions so that the overall net emissions are zero. It is crucial for mitigating climate change and limiting global warming to a safe level.
“Local authorities can promote climate action, energy conservation, and sustainable living practices by engaging communities, businesses, and civil society organisations, fostering collective responsibility and ownership,” Chong said, adding that to achieve net zero emissions, local governments should utilise smart city technologies, renewable energy systems and digital tools.
“Local authorities can reduce methene emissions, for example, from landfills, by implementing waste reduction, recycling, having composting programmes, promoting a circular economy, encouraging waste segregation and using advanced technologies like converting waste to energy.
On public transportation and active mobility, Chong said that local authorities can promote sustainable mobility by investing in green public transportation, cycling infrastructure, pedestrian-friendly urban environments, reducing reliance on private cars, and thus reducing GHG emissions.
“By having Green Building Standards and energy efficiency codes, sustainable construction practices can be promoted to reduce emissions with lower carbon footprints, thereby enhancing building and infrastructure sustainability.”
Hence, through good development planning, local authorities can promote sustainable urban planning and development by incorporating net zero principles to reduce carbon emissions by focusing on compact, walkable, and transit-oriented development, said Chong.
He noted that according to the Sustainable Energy Development Authority (Seda), Sabah has a wealth of renewable energy resources readily available for power generation use that is severely underutilised.
Power generation in Sabah relies heavily on natural gas up to 86 per cent, whereas renewable energy comprises a meagre 7.3 per cent of Sabah’s total power generation mix, despite its long-term benefits for environmental sustainability and the State’s energy security.
Sabah is projected to have over 11.67 Tscf of natural gas reserve which represents roughly 15 per cent of the national natural gas reserve.
The indigenous gas resources in Sabah are considered lean gas, which contain high concentrations of methane up to 90 per cent.
The chemical characteristic of the gas makes it suitable for power generation and production of methane-chain petrochemicals such as methanol, urea and ammonia derivatives.
Chong noted that based on the Sabah Gas Masterplan, Petronas has identified 6.8 Tscf of gas in the West Coast of Sabah potentially available for monetisation from 2020 to 2040, subject to technical and commercial viability.
Of the 6.8 Tscf of gas identified, 62 per cent or 4.2 Tscf of gas is committed for existing power generation and petrochemical plants across Sabah, while 2.6 Tscf is available for new industries and power plants.
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