THE POWER OF RENEWABLES

 

 



Let me start by saying that my background of the issues I'll be writing about is limited, as I am using this platform of blogging to educate myself more through reading and writing. By all means, if you disagree with a point, educate everyone with facts and not just mere opinion. With that said, let's begin.

 

The website, Project-Syndicate.org, boasts some of the most revered thinkers in many contemporary issues of today. I highly recommend it. Moreover, and as is natural for anyone, I found a particular article of interest to me, written by Bjorn Lomborg, adjunct professor at the Copenhagen Business School.

 

He states in his article, The Poverty of Renewables, that Solar and Wind subsidies have wasted 58.6 billion USD, which could have otherwise gone to poverty alleviation programs, such as better health care, more jobs, and lower taxes. He also says that "forcing everyone to buy more expensive, less reliable energy" is counterproductive, and government financing of renewable energies should instead focus their attention on the poor, and not on the environment.

 

While I agree to some extent with Mr. Lomborg, one must consider the dire stress our environment is currently in. In times of pressing issues, it is necessary and just for the world's experts to unite and focus their attention on solving a particular issue. This is the case with environmental degradation on all fronts. Scientists from the American Association of Applied Science (AAAS) recently published their report, What We Know. If you have not read it, I recommend you do so. In it, they state the pressing need of action on limiting our impact in the environment, unless facing consequences for all of humanity in the near future.

 

Mr. Lomborg also states that China's energy, since 1971, continues to come from "highly pollution coal." While their extraordinary economic growth has lifted 680 million people out of poverty, Lomborg seems to say that this feat was due to their reliance on highly polluting coal. I would look at other factors that contributed to this success in poverty alleviation, than just the coal. Also, it is important to look at China's recent move to "declare a war on climate change," as its biggest cities, particularly Beijing, have been plagued with smog for many years. This strong commitment by the Chinese government is a major stepping stone that although investments and a small degree of uncertainty will always be in new technologies such as renewables, their benefits are high for everyone alike.

 

If international focus is divided, as Mr. Lomborg seems to support, then substantial progress will not be as fast as needed for us to avoid extreme changes to our planet, Earth.