EuroWorkshop: Geology and the energy transition

The European Federation of Geologists (EFG), the Royal Geological and Mining Society of the Netherlands (KNGMG) and CHPM2030 (a Horizon 2020 project) will jointly organise a EuroWorkshop on Geology and the energy transition on May 23, 2019 in Delft, the Netherlands.

An optional fieldtrip “Exploring the Anthropocene”, on the Sedimentary dynamics of the Dutch coast – showing how the current Dutch landscape was formed during the Holocene sea level rise – will be organised on May 24, 2019.

The 77^th EFG Council meeting will be held on May 25 and 26, 2019 in Delft (for EFG delegates only).

The world is changing, the energy industry is changing, and geologist needs to change with it. As we consider renewable energies, new models on how to distribute energy to its users, policies to encourage initiatives and our remaining dependency on the traditional energy industry, it remains uncertain how our society will come through the energy transition and where geoscientists will fit in the mix. Will they still have a central role and how will geoscientists adapt to this new world?

The world is trying to find a way through these issues by diversifying into different types of energy, such as biofuels, hydrogen, solar and wind. We will show examples that geoscientists are showing the path on how renewable energy benefits from the knowledge of geoscientists. This geological knowledge enables a durable and safe transition.

Objectives

The aim of this EuroWorkshop is to provide insights into the energy transition and how it has affected geosciences. The first session will be discussing the European policies that have been adopted to encourage the energy transition to gain an understanding of how these policies will provide directions for future developments: “Policy discussed by policymakers”.

The aim for the afternoon is to present actual projects where geoscience plays a key role in the realisation of the energy transition: “Projects presented by geologists for geologists”.

Furthermore, it is our aim that the provided information and knowledge will improve our understanding of the future role geoscientists have to play in the energy transition, facilitate cross-fertilisation between different scientific areas and contribute to the objective to bring our society a step closer to reaching the goal of zero CO² emissions.