Energy Justice in the Dutch Heating Transition

Abstract

The energy transition is a fundamental shift in the world’s energy landscape, aimed at reducing carbon emissions and transitioning to a more sustainable, low-carbon energy system. This transition is closely aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement, the landmark international treaty adopted in 2015, which seeks to limit global warming, with an aspirational target of limiting it to 1.5 degrees celsius. The European Union has been a key player in both the development of the Paris Agreement and its implementation, demonstrating its commitment to combating climate change. To achieve this target, the European Union is pursuing various strategies, including the decarbonization of its energy sector. In order to stay in line with the goals, drastic actions are being carried out without entirely assessing the long term outcomes. Energy transitions are often accompanied by changes in the distribution of benefits and harms, and if these changes are not managed equitably, they may increase existing inequalities and create new forms of injustice.
The government of the Netherlands has taken several measures to achieve climate neutrality, one crucial task being the replacement of natural gas in its heating network. The heating sector so far has been reliant on shale gas for the past few decades, and the government now wants to implement new alternatives that are more sustainable. To anticipate the most favorable options, governmental bodies and local authorities are utilizing tools to assist them in their decision-making processes, especially energy system models.
Energy system modelling is a process of developing and analyzing models that represent the components and processes of energy systems. These models help to simulate the operation and behavior of energy systems under different scenarios and conditions, and to evaluate the impacts of policy decisions and technology choices. However, energy system models often neglect the social dimensions which are essential components of energy justice. This study aims to present a critical analysis of the representation of energy justice in energy system models through a case study and identifies the challenges of integrating energy justice considerations into energy system modelling. Thus the
following main research question was formulated:
To what extent have energy justice principles been represented in Energy modelling employed in the Dutch Heating Transition?
To set up the study, it was essential to establish the concept of energy justice and explore what kind of modelling approaches were being deployed. A literature review on this topic helped to understand the concepts, and select an energy justice framework that would serve as the base for this study (Sovacool & Dworkin, 2015). The framework provided a set of justice principles that were selected to assess the modelling use cases. This thesis explores the integration of energy justice principles within energy system modelling through an analysis of two distinct use case approaches in the municipality level, in the districts of Amersfoort and Drechtsteden in the Netherlands. These two use cases were chosen since they both had a large, diverse population, they had implemented a Heat Transition Vision and they made use of an energy model in their decision making process. The study aims to understand how energy justice considerations are manifested in the models and transition visions that were drafted, the challenges and opportunities they present, and their implications for equitable and sustainable energy transitions.
The study then included a document analysis to collect information, where a total of eleven reports were scrutinized to find how justice principles were defined in the models and heat visions. This was followed by semi structured interviews with eight participants from varied backgrounds, to gather their perspectives on how justice principles were interpreted and the challenges they faced. The data collected was categorically grouped in themes, focusing on affordability, transparency, resistance and sustainability. The results of this study reveal that both use cases incorporate elements of energy justice in an indirect manner. Affordability is addressed through mechanisms like tax credits and
investment allowances. Transparency is facilitated through engagement platforms and collaborative sessions, promoting stakeholder involvement. While resistance in the form of economic barriers is recognized, social aspects of resistance receive less attention. Sustainability is evident through considerations of energy-saving potential and monitoring carbon emissions.
While energy justice principles are not explicitly defined in the models, various attributes and mechanisms correspond to these principles. However, challenges and limitations include diverse interpretations of energy justice, tensions between prioritizing technical and social dimensions, and the quantification of ethical concepts. The difficulty in selecting the right modelling approach and the right source of information also leads to uncertainty and complexity.
This study contributes to the understanding of energy justice by providing empirical insights into its integration within energy system modeling. The findings highlight the complexities and possibilities of this integration, offering lessons for policymakers, researchers, and model developers. Recommendations for future research include exploring the impacts of energy justice measures in other sectors of the transition and also utilizing other frameworks to assess energy justice.