Renewable electricity production, from sources such as wind power and solar power, is sometimes criticized for being variable or intermittent. However, the International Energy Agency has stated that deployment of renewable technologies usually increases the diversity of electricity sources and, through local generation, contributes to the flexibility of the system and its resistance to central shocks.

There have been “not in my back yard” (NIMBY) concerns relating to the visual and other impacts of some wind farms, with local residents sometimes fighting or blocking construction. In the USA, the Massachusetts Cape Wind project was delayed for years partly because of aesthetic concerns. However, residents in other areas have been more positive and there are many examples of community wind farm developments. According to a town councilor, the overwhelming majority of locals believe that the Ardrossan Wind Farm in Scotland has enhanced the area.

The market for renewable energy technologies has continued to grow. Climate change concerns, coupled with high oil prices, peak oil, and increasing government support, are driving increasing renewable energy legislation, incentives and commercialization. New government spending, regulation and policies helped the industry weather the 2009 economic crisis better than many other sectors.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Renewable energy debate, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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According to Campbell:

* There are no new potential oil fields sufficiently large to reduce this future energy crisis.

* The reported oil reserves of many OPEC countries are inflated, to increase their quotas, or improve their chance of getting a loan from the World Bank.

* The practice of gradually adding new discoveries to a country’s list of ”proven reserves”, instead of all at once, artificially inflates the current rate of discovery.

In 1989 Campbell claimed that there would be a shortage towards the late 1990s. In 1990 he claimed that 1998 would represent a “depletion midpoint.” These early assessments were, however, according to Campbell himself, “based on public domain data, before the degree of misreporting by industry and governments was appreciated.” Since that time, Campbell has been predicting that the peak of oil production will cause a catastrophic worldwide economic depression.

One theory, held by many in the oil industry and the United States Department of Energy , is that oil production will continue to increase, due to technological advances and the geopolitical pressure caused by rising oil prices. They argue that:

* Much of the world’s oil reserves come from areas that have not been fully explored because they are politically unstable, like Russia and Iraq. Nobody knows how much oil is really left in those areas, and economic pressure could result in a new exploration boom.

* New methods of extracting oil from existing fields are currently being developed. This may even expand the definition of “oil”: Hydrocarbons exist in shale and tarry sands, and as a result companies like Exxon predict that there are up to 14 trillion barrels (2,200& km³) of exploitable hydrocarbons left in the world, which could fuel the oil industry for another century.

The U.S. Department Of Energy report ”Peaking of World Oil Production: Impacts, Mitigation, and Risk Management”, often referred to as the ”Hirsch Report”, proposes an urgent mitigation approach to deal with the possibility of oil production going into decline in the immediate future.

It states: “The peaking of world oil production presents the U.S. and the world with an

unprecedented risk management problem. As peaking is approached, liquid fuel prices and price volatility will increase dramatically, and, without timely mitigation, the economic, social, and political costs will be unprecedented. Viable mitigation options exist on both the supply and demand sides, but to have substantial impact, they must be initiated more than a decade in advance of peaking.”

The current debate in the U.S. revolves around energy policy, and whether to shift funding to increasing conservation measures, fuel efficiency, and other energy sources such as wind power, solar power, hydropower, and nuclear power.

Campbell has previously predicted production peaks which have not realized, some people are criticizing his methods because of that.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Colin Campbell (geologist), under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article Znamya (space mirror), under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development (Uganda), under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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The event is primarily sponsored by the US Department of Energy and includes a decathlon of 10 individual contests for the students and their homes. It takes place biannually in October on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. The teams’ houses and the sponsors’ educational exhibits form a solar ‘village.’ The public, media, industry representatives and invited dignitaries tour the homes and exhibits and learn about the powerful combination of solar energy, energy efficiency and the best in home design.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Alberta Solar Decathlon Project, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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*Mary Archer, Baroness Archer — scientist specialising in solar power conversion.

*Karen Armstrong, FRSL — author on comparative religion.

*Jackie Ashley — broadcaster, journalist, and contributor to ”The Guardian” and ”The New Statesman”.

*Louise Bagshawe — Conservative Party MP (2010—).

*Wendy Beckett — BBC art historian.

*Dame Gillian Beer, DBE — literary critic and former President of Clare Hall, Cambridge (1994—2001).

*Nicola Blackwood — Conservative Party MP (2010—).

*Tina Brown — columnist, talk-show host, author, and magazine editor, notably of ”Vanity Fair” (1984—1992) and ”The New Yorker” (1992—1998).

*Frances Cairncross, CBE — journalist, economist, and Rector of Exeter College, Oxford, Oxford (2004—).

*Edwina Currie — former Conservative Party MP (1983—1997).

*Ruth Deech, Baroness Deech, DBE — lawyer, bioethicist, and former Principal of St Anne’s (1991—2004).

*Anne Dreydel, OBE — co-founder of the Oxford English Centre, now St Clare’s International School.

*Rose Dugdale — former debutante, notable IRA member and art thief.

*Andrew Edmonds (current student) — contestant on the reality TV show Big Brother 11.

*UA Fanthorpe, CBE, FRSL — English poet.

*Helen Fielding — novelist known for the ”Bridget Jones” series.

*Miriam Gross — literary editor and co-founder of ”Standpoint” magazine.

*Mary Harron — Canadian screenwriter and filmmaker, known for ”American Psycho”.

*Zoë Heller — journalist and novelist, known for ”Notes on a Scandal”.

* Ben Hudson — stage name Mr Hudson, British R&B/pop artist.

*Diana Wynne Jones — fantasy novelist, known for the ”Chrestomanci” series and ”Howl’s Moving Castle”.

*Martha Kearney — broadcaster and journalist, currently of BBC Radio 4′s ”The World at One”.

*Penelope Lively, CBE, FRSL — novelist and Booker Prize winner for ”Moon Tiger”.

*Max More — philosopher and futurist, founder of the Extropy Institute.

*Justice Ruma Pal — judge of the Supreme Court of India (2000—2006).

*Melanie Phillips — journalist and author, winner of the Orwell Prize.

*Libby Purves, OBE — radio presenter and journalist, drama critic for ”The Times” (2010—).

*Sir Simon Rattle, CBE, FRSA — prominent English conductor, currently the principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic (2002—).

*Dame Cicely Saunders, OM, DBE — Anglican nurse, physician, writer, and pioneer of the hospice movement.

*Frances Stonor Saunders — journalist, historian, television, film-maker, and former associate editor of the ”New Statesman”.

*Susan Sontag — prominent American author, literary theorist, and political activist.

*Russell Taylor, MBE — writer, journalist and composer.

*Polly Toynbee — journalist, writer, and columnist for ”The Guardian” (1998—).

*Jenny Uglow, Order of the British Empire — critic and noted biographer, currently editorial director of Chatto & Windus.

*Jill Paton Walsh, CBE, FRSL — novelist and children’s writer.

*Mara Yamauchi — noted long-distance track and marathon runner.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article St Anne’s College, Oxford, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article Intelligent Small World Autonomous Robots for Micro-manipulation, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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The actual effects of removing fossil fuel subsidies would depend heavily on the type of subsidy removed and the availability and economics of other energy sources. There is also the issue of carbon leakage, where removal of a subsidy to an energy-intensive industry could lead to a shift in production to another country with less regulation, and thus to a net increase in global emissions.

Policy suggestions

Jacobson and Delucchi (2009) have advanced a plan to power 100% of the world’s energy with wind, hydroelectric, and solar power by the year 2030, recommending transfer of energy subsidies from fossil fuel to renewable, and a price on carbon reflecting its cost for flood, cyclone, hurricane, drought, and related extreme weather expenses.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Economics of climate change mitigation, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article Bossley Park High School, under the G. N. U. Free Documentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki

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