Friday, August 10, 2012

The dirty secrets of clean energy and the future of environmentalism

I must admit it: I am a techno-optimist with regards of climate change issues. Or at least I was, before reading ‘Green Illusions’ by Ozzy Zehner. In the first half of the book, Ozzy breaks down any argument that ‘green’ energy technologies could help to save the planet…

Solar? Inefficient, dirty in making, dirty in cleaning (of which it needs a lot in the best locations: deserts), dirtier still at the end of life.
Wind? Unpredictable, bound to a limited number of (remote) locations, generates loads of CO2 in the production process.
Biofuels? Pollutes water, and ethanol is quite dirty and non-renewable.
Clean Coal? A hoax! Hydropower? A cause for geopolitical tensions. Geothermal? Causes earthquakes.

It’s not that Ozzy is in denial of the challenges ahead, quite the contrary. But he arguments that producing more energy, even if it’s alternative and green(er), brings us nowhere: “Alternative energy production expands energy supply, placing downwards pressure on prices, which spurs demand, entrenches energy-intensive modes of living’. Ultimately, green energy drives demand for dirty energy.

Makes sense, which is probably why in California energy providers earn more money the less their customer spend energy! The motivation might not be to save the planet, but this kind of decoupling brings us a far way nevertheless…

In the second part of the book Ozzy offers his views on what else can make our future more sustainable, convincingly arguing that environmentalists should focus on such issues rather than on so-called ‘green’ energies.

Some are a bit surprising, for instance when he makes a strong case for the support of women rights, which through multiple effects would benefit a greener future. Some are quite rational: both the challenges and the solutions lie in an different conception and management of our cities. Some got me laughing: making cities more bicycle-friendly is something most European towns already heavily invested in. Some of the remarks and ideas in the book are clearly meant for an American audience.

I love books that shake preconceived assumptions. This one is certainly doing that, and offers some valuable ideas on how to think differently. ‘The only clean energy is: less energy’!



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