Opinions
Why the answer isn't necessarily blowing in the wind
Driven by concerns about climate change and security of electricity supply, public and political commitment to renewable energy has never been stronger.
Generous financial support and market interventions have encouraged extremely rapid deployment in many European states and it is now a commonplace of the financial press that environmental business has become mainstream.
And so it should. But some are now asking whether this rapid growth, and politically-driven target setting at local and national level, is creating a secure position for environmental technologies, one grounded in the realistic perspectives of engineering and science, or, on the other hand, a mere flash in the pan caused by speculative, subsidy-hunting developments.
A wealth of data about the renewable energy experiment worldwide, and particularly in Europe, is now slowly emerging, allowing decision makers to evaluate the success of their policies. These results, as you would expect of real-world data, are mixed, and as we all get to grips with the implications, a change in the way the renewable energy sector operates is likely.
July 16, 2007
by John Constable
in Yorkshire Post
Driven by concerns about climate change and security of electricity supply, public and political commitment to renewable energy has never been stronger.
Generous financial support and market interventions have encouraged extremely rapid deployment in many European states and it is now a commonplace of the financial press that environmental business has become mainstream.
And so it should. But some are now asking whether this rapid growth, and politically-driven target setting at local and national level, is creating a secure position for environmental technologies, one grounded in the realistic perspectives of engineering and science, or, on the other hand, a mere... [continue via Web link]
| < prev | next > |
Note: this article may be subject to the Fair Use Notice.