The United States can meet the energy needs of a growing economy and achieve science-based cuts in global warming pollution without nuclear power or coal, according to a report released last week by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Greenpeace, the European Renewable Energy Council (EREC), and Dr. Joseph Romm of the Center for American Progress.
The report, commissioned from the German Aerospace Center (the German equivalent of NASA), finds that off-the-shelf clean energy technology can cut U.S. carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels by at least 23% from current levels by 2020 and 85% by 2050 (equal to a 12% cut by 2020 and an 83% cut by 2050 from 1990 levels)–at half the cost and double the job-creation of what it would take to meet U.S. energy needs with dirty energy sources.
The report, entitled "Energy [R]evolution," is co-authored by Greenpeace and EREC and includes a foreword by Dr. R.K. Pachauri, chairman of the Nobel Prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
The report assumes that only currently available technologies will be used and no appliances or power plants will be retired prematurely, and adopts the same projections for population and economic growth included in the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Outlook.
"Every day that we don’t deal with the crisis of global warming, it’s only going to get worse, it’s only going to get more costly, there’s only going to be more damage to our environment," Sanders said. "This report shows that we can address climate change while improving our economy. The time is now to move forward aggressively on energy efficiency and creating new sustainable energy and millions of good-paying jobs in the process."
Based on the IPCC’s findings, developed countries as a group must reduce emissions by at least 25-40% below 1990 levels by 2020 to minimize the risk of the worst impacts of global warming. In addition to the domestic emissions reductions in the energy sector, the Energy [R]evolution provides guidance on how the United States can achieve the IPCC’s targets by financing clean technology in the developing world.
The domestic reduction goals set by the United States will have profound impacts on the commitments other countries are willing to undertake and on the prospects for a strong agreement at the Copenhagen Climate Summit in December. President Obama’s goals for near-term emissions reductions fall short of what the science shows is needed and what the Energy [R]evolution scenario claims is achievable.
The blueprint details the specific technologies and timetables necessary to achieve these goals, such as:
To implement the Energy [R]evolution scenario, Greenpeace supports a strong cap on global warming pollution, an end to all fossil fuel and nuclear subsidies, mandatory efficiency standards for vehicles, buildings and appliances, binding targets for renewable energy generation and strong financial support for clean energy in developing countries.
"Unlike other energy scenarios that sacrifice the climate, our Energy [R]evolution scenario shows how to save money and maintain global economic development without fueling catastrophic climate change," said Sven Teske, Greenpeace International’s senior energy expert and co-author of the report. "All we need to kick start this plan is bold energy policy from world leaders."
The full report is available at the link below.
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