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NEWS FROM THE WORLDWATCH INSTITUTE
We would like to thank everyone who responded to the article
we
sent out recently, "A New Marshall Plan? Advancing Human Security and
Controlling Terrorism." Rich countries need to approach the appalling
inequities of the world with the same boldness and determination that
the United States brought to bear in Europe under the Marshall Plan.
The response to this piece was very strong and very positive. If you
would like to read the article, click here:
http://www.worldwatch.org/alerts/011009.html
Energy After September 11:
A Commentary
By Seth
Dunn, Research Associate
Worldwatch Institute
The tragic terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and
Pentagon, and the subsequent military response, have raised thorny
questions about U.S. energy policy. How does oil import dependence
factor into the U.S. military presence in Saudi Arabia-a major grievance
of radical Islamic fundamentalists? How might continued heavy reliance
on imported Middle Eastern petroleum complicate American efforts to
eradicate terrorism from the region? Are nuclear power plants potential
targets of future terrorist attacks?
While there are no easy answers to
questions such as these, it
is clear that the existing energy and power
infrastructure in the United
States exhibits several vulnerabilities. These
include the risk of
disruption of oil supply from politically volatile
regions, the danger
of electricity outages if power plants are targeted,
and the risk of
exposure to nuclear plant accidents.
The good news is that two long-term
trends underway in the
world's electricity and energy systems-toward
micropower and
hydrogen-can help to lessen these vulnerabilities.
Micropower, or distributed generation,
limits the risk of
disrupted power supplies. Terrorists would have great
difficulty
targeting hundreds of dispersed fuel cells or solar panels in
office
basements and backyards and on rooftops. Hydrogen, the lightest and
most
abundant element in the universe, is increasingly viewed by industry
as
the ultimate energy carrier.
The enabling technology for hydrogen is
the fuel cell, which
combines hydrogen with oxygen to produce electricity
and water. Fuel
cells are now being vigorously developed as successors to
batteries,
power plants, and the internal combustion engine. Derived first
from
natural gas and later from renewable energy, hydrogen promises a
clean,
domestic source of energy that can lessen oil dependence.
Although the trend toward micropower and
hydrogen was underway
prior to September 11, these events-and the
difficulties encountered in
responding to them-illustrate the consequences
of not engaging in a more
concerted public policy effort to accelerate the
introduction of these
promising energy solutions. Indeed, they strengthen
the case for an
Apollo-scale effort to develop an infrastructure for
producing,
delivering, and using hydrogen. While there are costs in
building a
hydrogen economy, they must be weighed against the risk of
continuing to
rely on oil imports from the Middle East-which holds more
than 65
percent of the world's proven petroleum reserves.
In addition to improving energy security,
a micropower-hydrogen
energy system could bring energy services to the 1.8
billion poor people
around the world who lack access to modern energy-a
common source of
social unrest in many parts. It could also alleviate urban
air pollution
problems and lay the groundwork for a low-carbon,
climate-benign energy
economy. And a micropower-hydrogen energy system
presents enormous
economic opportunities for forward-looking companies and
countries that
see the strategic advantage of switching to new energy
sources-as did
Winston Churchill, when he switched the British navy from
coal to oil
during the First World War.
--End--
Links to Worldwatch resources on alternative energy:
Worldwatch Paper 157: Hydrogen Futures -- Toward A Sustainable
Energy
System http://secure.worldwatch.org/cgi-bin/wwinst/WWP0157
-
August 2001
The Hydrogen Experiment
http://secure.worldwatch.org/cgi-bin/wwinst/136b?2DFUuHXt;;63
- World
Watch Magazine, November/December 2000
Worldwatch Paper 151: Micropower - The Next Electrical Era
http://secure.worldwatch.org/cgi-bin/wwinst/WWP0151?2DFUuHXt;;68
- July
2000
State of the World 2001
http://secure.worldwatch.org/cgi-bin/wwinst/ESOW01a?KzixgJSn;;302
-
Chapter 5, Decarbonizing the Energy Economy
Vital Signs 2001
http://secure.worldwatch.org/cgi-bin/wwinst/EVS012?KzixgJSn;;397-
Part
One: Key Indicators: Energy Trends
Links to Worldwatch press
releases on alternative energy:
Hydrogen Rising in Energy Policy Debate
http://www.worldwatch.org/alerts/010802.html-
News Release, August 02,
2001
The Choice: An Energy Strategy for the 21st Century
http://www.worldwatch.org/alerts/010517.html
- News Release, May 17,
2001
20th Century Power System Incompatible
with Digital Economy
http://www.worldwatch.org/alerts/000715.html
- News Release - July 15,
2000
For further information, please contact
Niki Clark, 202-452-1992
x 517, nclark@worldwatch.org
The Worldwatch
Institute web site is at
http://www.worldwatch.org
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sites,
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include
the address of the Worldwatch web site (http://www.worldwatch.org) and
attribute the article to the Worldwatch Institute, 1776 Massachusetts
Avenue NW, Washington DC 20036.
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Worldwatch Institute
1776 Massachusetts Ave NW
Washington, DC 20036
telephone: 202
452-1999
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