Straits Times 6 Nov 08;
Expert says sum is for infrastructure alone and doesn't include research
MORE investments in green technology must come - and soon - if the world is to have any chance of holding back drastic changes to the climate.
How much more?
Well, an average of US$2 trillion is currently being spent every year on research into clean, renewable energy that does not harm the environment.
But closer to US$45 trillion (S$67 trillion) will need to be spent over the next 40 years to set up infrastructure to produce this renewable energy - and this sum does not include funds needed for research.
The US$45 trillion figure, more than 300 times Singapore's gross domestic product, is the reckoning of Dr Dan Arvizu, director of the United States-based National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
The money will pay for infrastructure to produce solar and wind power, both of which are environmentally friendly, renewable alternatives to burning fossil fuels to produce energy.
Extreme weather patterns, glacier melt and rising sea levels have been brought on by tonnes of carbon emissions. Such by-products of human activity stem chiefly from the burning of fossil fuels and fuel consumption by vehicle engines.
Dr Arvizu was speaking at the Singapore Energy Conference, held together with the inaugural Singapore International Energy Week.
The five-day event has attracted more than 2,500 delegates from over 50 countries.
Several economic reports - including Britain's Stern Review and an upcoming report by Australian economist Ross Garnaut - agree that as much as 20 per cent of global gross domestic product could be jeopardised if the world's environmental problems are left unchecked.
While research in green technology is under way, scientists must find ways of generating renewable energy on a large scale - enough to power megacities with more than 10 million people.
At the moment, renewable energy is being produced only in megawatt units, but the planet needs to start thinking about generating it in gigawatts - each 1,000 times a megawatt - to scale back the dependence on fossil fuels.
In other words, 'we need to start setting the bar higher', said Dr Arvizu.
He praised Singapore's move to put $170 million into funding research on clean energy, such as solar power and fuel cell production.
Another speaker at the conference, Mr Kapil Sibal, India's Minister for Science and Technology, called on countries to work together to slow down climate change, but without sacrificing economic growth.
Painting a bleak scenario, he said: 'We need a different mindset to deal with the holocaust that is impending.'
