Clean Tech Is Getting Its Way Back

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Anne Marie Peterson
Will clean energy be more affordable in the future?

Climate fighters won a battle yesterday, when the U.S. and China announced a “Climate Change and Clean Energy cooperation”, meaning the two biggest emitters in the world joined hands to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Autor*in Louisa Wong -, 11.20.14

Climate fighters won a battle yesterday, when the U.S. and China announced a “Climate Change and Clean Energy cooperation”, meaning the two biggest emitters in the world joined hands to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

In the climate deal announced yesterday, China promised to move to a more energy-efficient future and to expand its total energy consumption coming from zero-emission sources to around 20 percent by 2030. This reinstates that clean energy from combustible renewables such as geothermal, solar, wind and waste can be the main source of energy in the future.

Two Percent Nuclear Energy: Can’t Bare More Pain

Within the 87 perent of non-renewable energy used globally, nuclear energy makes up two percent. Nearly three years after the disaster at Fukushima’s No. 1 nuclear power plant, which suffered triple meltdowns in the wake of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami, local communities are still struggling to rebuild. The township is still heavily affected by health risks posted by contaminated soil and other radioactive waste. Local authorities have singled out two municipalities as storage sites, however, it’s not clear how the trash will be treated and disposed of. If we don’t want to see this kind of disaster happen again, further expansion of other forms of non-fossil fuel energy seems to be a way out. That clean tech has environmental benefits is an unbeatable fact, but is it good for economic growth?

Clean Energy Costly

A recent study coming out of the Business School of the Imperial College in London, UK shows that investment in clean tech (clean technologies: include smart devices including iPhones, renewable energy such as wind power and green transportation), helps economic growth in the long run. The researchers say a breakthrough in one area of clean technology is more likely to affect other areas, that innovative knowledge can spill over easily within this young industry. Look at gigantic battery ‘gigafactories’ like, Tesla and SolarCity in the U.S., they create jobs and do solar panels business that drive big economies of scale with lowering costs and have a lower environmental impact in the long run.

We definitely need more clean tech initiatives to move us faster to a cleaner world.

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