March 26, 2025
Can the US Metropolitan Regions Decarbonize by 2050: Strategies and Pathways
Anu Ramaswami
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton University
Can the US Metropolitan Regions Decarbonize by 2050: Strategies and Pathways
Anu Ramaswami
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton University
Anu Ramaswami and Lynne Durkee, introducer
Minutes of the 24th Meeting of the 83rd Year
President Geroge Bustin called the meeting to order. Frances Slade led the invocation. We observed a moment of silence to honor the passing of longtime member Father Daniel Skvir, who died on March 24, 2025.
There were two guests, both of whom are applying for membership. Toby Tuckman introduced Burt Like, and David Scott introduced Albert Stark. The total attendance was 130. The minutes for the previous meeting were read by Pricilla Roosevelt.
Lynn Durkee introduced our speaker, Dr. Anu Ramaswami, an interdisciplinary professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Princeton.
We all know about the goal of getting to net zero but how are we going to get there?
Dr. Ramaswamy studies metropolitan areas and how they can attain the goal of net zero by 2050. She analyzes multiple societal outcomes, including development, climate resilience, zero-carbon goals, air pollution, health and well-being, and equity. Decarbonization is necessary to mitigate the effects of climate in multiple economic sectors.
Dr. Ramaswami referred to studies that she has been working on in Denver, the Minneapolis-St Paul (Twin Cities) metro area, and, more recently, in metropolitan areas throughout the world, mostly in India (Chennai and Delhi). The goal is to link knowledge with actions.
The focus on metropolitan areas comes from the way the world has been and continues to develop. In the U.S., 70% of the population is in urban areas and 80% of the GDP is generated in these areas. It is forecast that by 2050 fully 70% of world population will be living in urban areas. Already 30-40% of Asian cities are in urban areas. A startling statistic is that 2/3 of future 2050 urban infrastructure does not yet exist. These will be built over the next three decades, along with rebuilding extant aging infrastructure.
The framework used to address this issue includes seven key physical processing systems: 1) buildings; 2) green/public spaces; 3) waste and sanitation; 4) food supply; 5) municipal water supply; 6) transportation; and 7) energy supply.
The strategies include
They track systemic linkages between zero-carbon pathways and health. Pollution in some areas of India is so extreme that just a little bit of decarbonization will have a positive impact on people’s health. Professor Ramaswami is currently working with the U.N. on a project to track decarbonization (including the cost) in metropolitan regions, focusing on the global south, including parts of Africa, Asia, and South America. She noted that in China 65,000 premature deaths could be avoided by using efficiency and urban-industrial cooperation. Urban agriculture can also create well-being.
The dominant strategy for decarbonization is grid decarbonization and the switching of heating to electricity. In the Denver area, half of carbon emissions come from buildings. Another major emitter is transportation. Cement is important in many countries (2% in Denver and 10% in Delhi). Cement, steel, fertilizer, and freight are among the most carbon-producing items in the Twin Cities. Concrete is a huge emitter of CO2, with limestone being heated to high temperatures in creation of cement. Concrete is the second-most used material (after water) by humanity.
Professor Ramaswami showed plans for how the Twin Cities might go about decarbonizing, including increased multi-family new buildings, technology-efficient buildings, behavior and smart grid, and grid decarbonization. Local governments could encourage ride-sharing and peripheral reforestation but switching heating to electricity will have the biggest impact.
Her group has measured extreme heat in various areas, notably India, but even in New Jersey. The impact differs depending upon what work people do. A question is how one can combine decarbonization with the heat problem and poverty (and the movement out of poverty, producing more air conditioning) in these global cities.
A question addressed the issue of developing countries, who argue that it is not fair that they are supposed to be worried about decarbonization while they are trying to develop; already developed countries have utilized coal, oil, etc. while they developed. It was noted that CO2 emissions in the U.S. is 25 metric tons per person, while in India is it 1-2 metric tons per person.
The effect of emissions is less from population and more from affluence, using the formula (IPAT) Impact equals Population times Affluence times Technology.
At least two questions have yet to be answered: What will it cost to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050? How will the cuts being implemented by DOGE impact this work?
Respectfully submitted,
Stephen Silverman
There were two guests, both of whom are applying for membership. Toby Tuckman introduced Burt Like, and David Scott introduced Albert Stark. The total attendance was 130. The minutes for the previous meeting were read by Pricilla Roosevelt.
Lynn Durkee introduced our speaker, Dr. Anu Ramaswami, an interdisciplinary professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Princeton.
We all know about the goal of getting to net zero but how are we going to get there?
Dr. Ramaswamy studies metropolitan areas and how they can attain the goal of net zero by 2050. She analyzes multiple societal outcomes, including development, climate resilience, zero-carbon goals, air pollution, health and well-being, and equity. Decarbonization is necessary to mitigate the effects of climate in multiple economic sectors.
Dr. Ramaswami referred to studies that she has been working on in Denver, the Minneapolis-St Paul (Twin Cities) metro area, and, more recently, in metropolitan areas throughout the world, mostly in India (Chennai and Delhi). The goal is to link knowledge with actions.
The focus on metropolitan areas comes from the way the world has been and continues to develop. In the U.S., 70% of the population is in urban areas and 80% of the GDP is generated in these areas. It is forecast that by 2050 fully 70% of world population will be living in urban areas. Already 30-40% of Asian cities are in urban areas. A startling statistic is that 2/3 of future 2050 urban infrastructure does not yet exist. These will be built over the next three decades, along with rebuilding extant aging infrastructure.
The framework used to address this issue includes seven key physical processing systems: 1) buildings; 2) green/public spaces; 3) waste and sanitation; 4) food supply; 5) municipal water supply; 6) transportation; and 7) energy supply.
The strategies include
- Reducing demand by integrated spatial planning, single-sector efficiency, conservation, and lifestyle changes; local resource circularities in food, energy-water sectors, and via district energy.
- Switching supply by decarbonizing electricity, electrifying heating and mobility, and converting carbon waste into valuable materials.
- Enhancing carbon uptake from trees, timber buildings, soil, etc.
They track systemic linkages between zero-carbon pathways and health. Pollution in some areas of India is so extreme that just a little bit of decarbonization will have a positive impact on people’s health. Professor Ramaswami is currently working with the U.N. on a project to track decarbonization (including the cost) in metropolitan regions, focusing on the global south, including parts of Africa, Asia, and South America. She noted that in China 65,000 premature deaths could be avoided by using efficiency and urban-industrial cooperation. Urban agriculture can also create well-being.
The dominant strategy for decarbonization is grid decarbonization and the switching of heating to electricity. In the Denver area, half of carbon emissions come from buildings. Another major emitter is transportation. Cement is important in many countries (2% in Denver and 10% in Delhi). Cement, steel, fertilizer, and freight are among the most carbon-producing items in the Twin Cities. Concrete is a huge emitter of CO2, with limestone being heated to high temperatures in creation of cement. Concrete is the second-most used material (after water) by humanity.
Professor Ramaswami showed plans for how the Twin Cities might go about decarbonizing, including increased multi-family new buildings, technology-efficient buildings, behavior and smart grid, and grid decarbonization. Local governments could encourage ride-sharing and peripheral reforestation but switching heating to electricity will have the biggest impact.
Her group has measured extreme heat in various areas, notably India, but even in New Jersey. The impact differs depending upon what work people do. A question is how one can combine decarbonization with the heat problem and poverty (and the movement out of poverty, producing more air conditioning) in these global cities.
A question addressed the issue of developing countries, who argue that it is not fair that they are supposed to be worried about decarbonization while they are trying to develop; already developed countries have utilized coal, oil, etc. while they developed. It was noted that CO2 emissions in the U.S. is 25 metric tons per person, while in India is it 1-2 metric tons per person.
The effect of emissions is less from population and more from affluence, using the formula (IPAT) Impact equals Population times Affluence times Technology.
At least two questions have yet to be answered: What will it cost to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050? How will the cuts being implemented by DOGE impact this work?
Respectfully submitted,
Stephen Silverman