A report out from the International Energy Agency (IEA) says the world will need to spend $45 trillion if it wants to cut in half the amount of carbon dioxide emissions by 2050. And part of that money will need to be spent on solar and wind power.
In this story posted on Bloomberg.com, Nobuo Tanaka, the IEA’s executive director, says the U.S. and leading economic nations will need to go through a “Global Energy Revolution”:
“A global energy technology revolution is both necessary and achievable, but it will be a tough challenge,” Tanaka said in the statement. “The world faces the daunting combination of surging energy demand, rising greenhouse gas emissions and tightening resources.”
The world needs to build 32 new nuclear power plants and 17,500 wind-power turbines each year to halve emissions by 2050, according to the Paris-based energy adviser. G-8 environment ministers last month pledged to achieve such a reduction. By contrast France, Europe’s biggest nuclear power, has 58 reactors.
The agency said that increased use of nuclear power, the development of renewable energy sources, such as solar power, and carbon capture and storage are vital to reducing emissions. Carbon capture is a technology in which carbon dioxide emissions are caught in the air and stored underground.
So, if environmental reasons aren’t enough to get you on board with clean energy, consider this: non-renewable petroleum jumped more than $11 a barrel today… closing at a record $139+! And its expected to climb to $150 a barrel by July 4th. Happy Independence Day, huh?