tagged w/ Sustainable Energy
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About 100 of the fully electric, rechargeable battery-powered Smart ForTwo cars will hit the streets of Central London in December. London was chosen as the first city for the trial because of it's pre-existing network of free public charging stations. If all goes well, we could see these commercially available as soon as 2010. About 100 of the fully electric, rechargeable battery-powered Smart ForTwo cars will... more
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The Sustainable Solutions Caravan set out on an Epic journey from San Francisco to Costa Rica in a fleet of veggie oil powered vehicles on a first of a kind adventure through Latin America. The Sustainable Solutions Caravan set out on an Epic journey from San Francisco to... more
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Commission on Oil Independence
21 June 2006
Foreword
In December 2005, the Government appointed a commission to draw up a comprehensive
program to reduce Swedens dependence on oil. There were several reasons for this. The
price of oil affects Swedens growth and employment. Oil still plays a major role for peace
and security throughout the world. There is a great potential for Swedish raw materials as
alternatives to oil. But, above all, the extensive burning of fossil fuels threatens the living
conditions of future generations. Climate change is a fact which we politicians must face.
Broad and long-term political efforts are needed.
Interest in the Commissions work is and has been enormous. Many people took part in the
hearings which were the start of the Commissions work. In contacts with me or other
members of the Commission, very many more took part by presenting proposals, criticizing,
and analyzing problems and solutions.
Since the objective of ridding ourselves of our dependence on oil by the year 2020 is bold,
and the issue embraces the whole of society, it was essential that the Commission should have a broad base. Experts from industry, agriculture and forestry, science and special experts on energy efficiency and district heating met for the discussions we had. In this way, the Commission was forced to examine conflicts of goals and different aspects of practically all the issues.
The result is a consensus report. No member of the Commission gained a full hearing for
his/her standpoints and views. But all were prepared to look for compromises, weigh up the
pros and cons and accept not fully achieving their own ideal position on each individual issue. This openness meant that we were able to agree on the best common denominator in the task we faced: to mark out a path to strengthen Swedens competitiveness and take a substantial step towards reducing emissions of greenhouse gases. This greatly pleases me.
On only one point were we not able to agree. The question as to whether protection is needed for domestic and EU-produced ethanol divided the group. On the one hand, Christian Azar stated that Sweden should be proactive for the abolition of the European tariff protection of its own production of ethanol. This is a respectable position. On the other hand, most of the members of the Commission supported the view that protection and stimulation of our own ethanol production is needed during the initial phase.
Apart form this, the Commission is in total agreement on the contents of the report.
I hope this spirit can continue to characterize discussions about our dependence on oil. The
next stage will now follow. The changes required will not be realized solely by political
decisions, nor by market forces in industry alone, nor by individual farmers and forest farmers
who see future opportunities for profit. Not until all the positive forces in society aim for the
same goals can Sweden achieve independence from oil. In this work, I hope the
Commissions report will be an important contribution.
Stockholm, 28 June 2006
Göran PerssonCommission on Oil Independence
21 June 2006
Foreword
In December 2005, the... more
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New Zealand has declared its aim to be carbon neutral in electrical energy by 2025, in stationary manufacturing energy in 2030 and in transport energy by 2040.
The New Zealand government has a history of leadership in sustainable energy planning already signaled its intention to be a leader in carbon neutrality when it announced its Emissions Trading Scheme in September. The October launch of the New Zealand Energy Strategy to 2050, titled Powering our Future: Towards a sustainable low emissions energy system, has provided further detail of the steps.
The strategy includes plans for substantial reductions in emissions, along with carbon offsetting projects such as increasing national forest area by 250,000 hectares by 2020. By 2025, the goal is to obtain 90 percent of all electricity from renewable sources. Is this achievable? We think so: Provision of renewable electricity is cheaper in New Zealand compared to other countries due to abundant renewable energy resources. Around 70 percent of New Zealand energy production is already from renewable sources, and a number of large scale wind farm proposals have recently been approved.
I love New Zealand.
New Zealand has declared its aim to be carbon neutral in electrical energy by 2025, in... more
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