WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION DESCRIBES MEANS TO ASSESS RENEWABLE ENERGY, IN STATEMENT TO COMMITTEE ON NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

Press Release
EN/232

WORLD METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION DESCRIBES MEANS TO ASSESS RENEWABLE ENERGY, IN STATEMENT TO COMMITTEE ON NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

An official of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) this morning urged the expert Committee on New and Renewable Sources of Energy and on Energy Development to ensure that energy efficiency software packages were used in a cost-effective way. Also this morning, the Committee was addressed by a representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Lars E. Olsson, of the WMO World Climate Programme, said the organization was developing methods to assess the environmental impact of new and renewable energy sources and had data on wind and solar energy that could already be provided to countries. The Committee might consider noting in its report the need for using such assessments in energy development for developing countries. The WMO was continuously working on projects related to capacity-building in developing countries.

In a paper circulated in the Committee, Mr. Olsson said energy was a priority area in several of the WMO's activities and programmes. Reference had been made in the Framework Convention on Climate Change to energy, promotion of sustainable management and conservation of resources.

T.B. Johansson, of the UNDP, told the Committee that his agency was shifting from being a funding agency to a goals and programming agency, and from agency implementation to national implementation. The UNDP was working on energy projects in the areas of capacity-building, regulatory arrangements, demonstration projects and support for national programs.

The UNDP maintained an "energy account" to facilitate bank lending for projects in Asia and Africa, he continued. In the western hemisphere, the UNDP was participating with development banks in support of energy projects, and the UNDP Global Environment Facility was providing considerable funding for efficiency and renewable energy projects.

Also this morning, the Committee discussed a paper on the development of energy resources in developing countries, which had been presented to it

Energy Committee - 2 - Press Release EN/232 5th Meeting (AM) 14 February 1996

yesterday afternoon. One expert said that in developing countries both commercial and non-commercial energy were employed. The non-commercial proportion of that mix was in decline, due to exhaustion of ready firewood and the increased sale of firewood and charcoal. Developing countries should undertake diversification of energy supplies with special emphasis on renewable energy. Biomass resources would likely be limited due to limitations on water resources, he said.

One expert urged that developing countries strive to diversify their resources with renewables, but cautioned that it would be at least 50 years before the energy produced by those resources equalled that produced by fossil fuels. Energy consumption in developing countries would not stabilize until efficiency was increased in those countries fourfold.

Other experts expressed the fear that if nuclear energy continued to develop at its present rate, the increased production of nuclear materials would create toxic waste and lead to weapons proliferation. However, another expert suggested that nuclear energy's proportion of power production in developing countries be expanded through the development of new technologies.

An expert emphasized that in developing countries the development of energy resources and their exploitation were more important than environmental concerns. Another noted that some developing countries had generous energy resources in the form of hydroelectric potential and biomass, but lacked the financial resources necessary for their exploitation. Another expert said wind energy capacity had been growing very rapidly in India, encouraged by private investment. By end of the year, India would occupy second position in wind generation after the United States.

Several experts stated that statistics that indicated a correlation between literacy and electricity were not definitive. Several developing countries had achieved high levels of literacy simply through political decisions and public education. One expert termed the comparison "dangerous" because it was "productivist" thinking, which simply sought to maximize energy output and was seriously outmoded. Another expert said that the large capital requirements faced by developing countries for energy production expansion could be reduced by a 30 per cent reduction in energy consumption gained through simple energy efficiency.

The representatives of Germany, Netherlands, Russian Federation, France, Italy, Algeria, Paraguay, India, Austria and Uruguay spoke in this morning's discussion.

When it meets again at 3 p.m. today, the Committee will hear a report on renewable sources of energy and biomass.

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