Green revolution: still possible amid deep recession?

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/0107/p05s01-wogn.html

Green revolution: still possible amid deep recession?

Economic retreat could hamper green investment – but it could also spur a drive to move economies away from fossil-fuel dependencies.

By Mark Rice-Oxley | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

from the January 7, 2009 edition

In 2008, oil prices spiked then collapsed, climate-change talks stuttered, and nuclear power reemerged. Europe banned incandescent light bulbs, Britain made cutting emissions legally binding, and US President-elect Barack Obama appointed the greenest US cabinet ever. But what does this augur for 2009? While nature and the economy can be wildly unpredictable, experts believe a warmer year is coming. At the same time, carbon-dioxide emissions are likely to drop as businesses slow. Some experts hope "green collar" jobs will help reverse the recession, but fossil fuels will probably continue to power much of the world for years. When and if the economy picks up steam, demand for oil will rise – as will prices.

Will the recession defeat efforts to combat climate change?

Leaders like Barack Obama are promising a "green new deal" through formidable investment in the green economy. Environmentalists say that green technology is far more labor intensive than traditional energy sources such as oil and nuclear. There will also be plenty of jobs in the energy efficiency segment, according to Lester Brown, founder of the Washington-based Earth Policy Institute, who sees benefits to both economy and environment from retrofitting buildings, for example.

"If you compare wind and solar technologies versus coal," he adds, "it's much more labor intensive by a factor of 2 or 3. So if you're interested in creating jobs, you have to look at efficiency and renewables."

Andrew Simms, policy director at the London-based New Economics Foundation, says substantial investment in an "environmental transformation program" could create "countless green-collar jobs."

…

[Tesha]

1. Not only possible, but even more essential!

Let's hope Obama and the Democrats have the nerve to include
a large amount of funding for green infrastructure projects within
their emerging stimulus package.

Tesha