healthier, happier and richer

In November 2009, 3% of OECD electricity was generated by renewables other than hydro. 14% came from hydro. And this was only 17% of what electricity was then used, not total energy used.

Spain and South Africa both have lots of coal, but no significant oil or gas. Yet their responses to the energy security issues this raises have been dramatically different.

Last night, I went to hear the UK’s shadow foreign secretary, William Hague, give a speech about what a UK Conservative government would do about diplomacy and climate change. This is one of a series of speeches on climate from the shadow cabinet this week, which is encouraging.

All low carbon options must be pursued to control climate change. However, that means all options that are genuinely low carbon, not all those that claim to be low carbon.

President Obama is committed to controlling climate change. He has allocated billions of dollars to renewable energy and promised to engage seriously with international negotiations. However, Obama is not perfect and should not be above criticism.

‘Biofuel’ is the name given to fuel derived from plants and used for transport. Globally, production of this has more than tripled since 2000.

There are several myths or misunderstandings that have grown up surrounding climate change and renewable energy. Both sides of the debate can be at fault. This article tries to debunk some of nonsense that is often cited as fact.

How well have Obama and Energy Secretary Chu done so far on promoting energy efficiency, renewables, CCS and electric vehicles? A very positive assessment is made by the Center for American Progress.