Steady but modest progress on renewable energy adoption found

The world has "steady but modest progress" in improving global access to electricity and safe cooking fuels, energy efficiency and the world energy renewable sources add mix energy-unit industry Manager at the World Bank-sustainable energy Department at a recent press conference in London, Vivien Foster said.

Were representatives of the three agencies (the World Bank, the World Energy Council and UK based charity start time gap) behind the sustainable energy for all (SE4ALL) global tracking report, last week published Precis on the one hand, clarify and answer questions from journalists. The report describes the baseline of the sponsored programme towards their goals for 2030 works.

The three 'pillars' (access to electricity, energy efficiency and more renewable energies) of the SE4ALL program are "a very complex story," according to foster renewable energy. She praised the renewable energy revolution in the past 20 years, with its dramatic expansion of wind and solar energy. But the problem, they said, is, that renewable energy from a very small base line amount are grown worldwide demand for energy considerably has increased share of renewable energy so the total final energy consumption which is small world consumption (TFEC); the revolution has produced only a jump from 2 percent in global equities, she said.

The energy mix of the world, the report says, make 18 percent renewable energy and renewable energy sources are about half of the new energy projects. However, foster pointed out that more than half of that amount is traditional biomass used for cooking in developing countries, while another quarter modern bioenergy. "So overall three quarters which we call renewable bio-energy, is" said they and the sustainability of most of this is not well understood. "An upper limit so the 18 percent really, because an unknown part is not sustainable," she said. The medium-term agenda for the SE4ALL team to improve, for example by tracking deforestation includes the definition of "renewable", she said.

As traditional biomass explained most of the global renewable energy foster is the continent of least developed have the largest share of renewable energy now (two-thirds of the global renewable energy used today in Africa and Asia), and this percentage is declining, since these continents modernize and update, for example, on liquid fuels, which tend to cook fossil fuels. The opposite trend features in the developed world: for example Europe has doubled its share of renewable energies since 1990. The net effect of these countervailing trends in the course of time you said, is not known.

Since biomass supply is limited and that hardly increasing global use of traditional biomass, i.e. other renewable energies "must quadruple" 2030 compensate foster initiatives such as SE4ALL try to solve people, said. Has been enormous progress in the past 20 years, said you, "but the world is moving very fast and it is hard to keep. Progress is only slightly before the huge increase in population and energy consumption. Do we move forward,"warned"We must run even faster."

Another problem is that the three '' pillars '' of the program SE4ALL are connected to each other, the team said. For the necessary scale-up, which is possible to renewable energies, energy efficiency must be achieved so that less energy is consumed. Access to electricity is the UN priority, but it must be implemented with energy efficiency and renewable sources, which built. Foster - said there is "a small amount of tension" between the objectives of access and increase of renewable energies, in particular with the aim, solid biomass for cooking, to replace because it tends to replace liquid fossil fuels.

The SE4ALLs said foster renewable energy goals, significant financing scale ups are needed. Currently, all projections (such as the International Energy Agency-new policy scenario, in which nations meet only their existing commitments) fall far short of the goal, double the amount in the global mix up to the year 2030.

Going forward, the report team plans to also associate investment plans and marketing within the finance community and to involve the industry in promoting technology and know transfers all over the world. "Business must be part of the solution," said Christophe free, World Energy Council Secretary General, and political risk must be reframed. Governments must "take risks not to understand these goals, and that translate into policy," he said.

"We need to work very seriously on the political environment," said foster. Currently, the project partners discuss countries "enable environments" for renewable energies introduction. All sectors of renewable energies a sustainability Protocol over the medium term need to foster, as the international hydro power Association-new sustainability said Protocol. And fossil fuels subsidies must be reduced, said free. He said these subsidies "there is to fight poverty, but they are not really doing." We can confirm only on the whole, today, that we are not the best way to structure of subsidies." The more discussion needs, he said.

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As more nuclear plant damage is found, press Japan repair efforts

Military personnel prepared to transfer workers from radiation to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in a hospital. «More photos»

TOKYO - with new characters you have the severe of the damage and contamination at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant crippled emerged, geruht employee repair efforts Saturday plans in fresh water for days spraying the reactors with salt water for pumping. At the same time, a new reading a sample of sea water in addition to the plant showed an increase in contamination of some days ago.

TimesCast | Radiation in Tokyo's water an elderly couple sat a man Center for radiation leaking from the damaged Fukushima of nuclear installations on Friday in soma, Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. «More photos»

The developments followed a decision evacuated by the Japanese authorities on Friday to encouraging people a larger band of territory to the complex start, in the midst of signals, the plant under control anytime soon would be difficult.

In an interview with a national audience at a press conference on Friday night, two weeks after the earthquake of magnitude 9.0 and the devastating tsunami, which it followed Prime Minister Naoto Kan dodged a reporter of the question whether the Government was ordering a complete evacuation, said officials were simply follows the recommendation of the Commission for Japan nuclear safety.

"The situation requires more caution," Mr Kan, heavy and tired looking, said the nation. "Our measures are designed to prevent, that the circumstances worse." The authorities said she would now help people leave wanted the range of 12 to 19 miles outside the plant, and that they now "voluntary evacuation" promotion, from the area.

These people indoors, had stay March 15 get, while to evacuate the facility had ordered within a 12-mile radius. The United States has to remain at least 50 miles recommended its citizens.

Mr Kan said "The State of the system is still very precarious,". "We work hard to ensure that it not be worse." "We must ensure that it no further deterioration."

On Saturday, the nuclear and industrial agency said that a test of sea water of a monitoring station Friday taken from the level of iodine-131 in 50 becquerel per cubic centimeter showed in the work - 1,250 times of the permitted. That was up from 147 times of the normal level on Wednesday, the Agency said. to make it not accurate for Wednesday.

Drink a half litre of water would be tantamount to getting a 1 milliSievert dose, the Agency said, as the amount that a person obtains a year from natural sources.

Hidehiko Nishiyama, Deputy Director of the Agency, said that he expected the iodine quickly, dilute to minimize the impact on wildlife, General and noted that fishing activities in the area was suspended after the Quake and tsunami. "It is unlikely that immediate impact on local residents are," he said.

A sign of the possible deterioration of the plant itself came to the reactor workers, the attempted, an electric cable with a pump in a turbine connect no. 3. building next to the reactor were injured when she entered into water, which was found significantly more radioactive than normal be. On Friday, officials and experts offered conflicting explanations of what wrong gegangen-but stressed all greater damage to the reactor systems and more pollution had earlier indicated it as officials.

Two workers were when poured water over their boots and said to their feet and ankles, officials burned and exposed to radiation. A third worker was not the same exposure higher boots and suffering.

As the affected workers, many of those are subcontractors of Tokyo electric power, who are paid a small daily wage for hours of work in dangerous conditions risk of their lives. They are sometimes ill-equipped and trained for their job.

On the Saturday concentrated to the workers to try, the lighting reactor No. 2 central control room, an important step towards the restoration of unity cooling system restore. You were also in fresh water pump for no. 1, no. 2 and no. 3 units in the midst of concerns. Days of dumping salt water on the units had raised concerns about possible corrosion.

Said the National Institute of radiological sciences, that the radioactivity of the water, the the three injured workers in joined had 10,000 times the level normally in the coolant water was seen in the work. It said that the amount of radiation that the workers were intended, to the water exposed to have two to six Sieverts was.

Hiroko Tabuchi and David Jolly reported from Tokyo and Keith Bradsher from Hong Kong. Takeshi Takizawa from New York reporting helped Tokyo and Denise Grady.

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