We take a look at international subsidies for the fossil fuel corporations with Steve Kretzmann of Oil Change International. Is the G20 commitment to phase out fossil fuel subsidies all that it seems?
A pre-requisite for making the transition to a clean energy future is to switch subsidies from fossil fuels to renewable energy projects.
If that’s the case, why are we still bank-rolling dirty energy projects in developing countries? World Bank lending for fossil fuels rose by 94% between 2007 & 2008 to over $3billion which far outweighs the $476M they gave to “new renewables” energy projects. World Bank lending for coal in particular rose 256% from 2007 to 2008. This contradicts the Banks own rhetoric in their “World Development Report” published in September that advises against “locking the world into high-carbon infrastructure”.
Steve Kretzmann of Oil Change International has been campaigning for the elimination of fossil fuel subsidies for many years. He says that if the G20 leaders were serious about their Pittsburgh commitment to ending World Bank and Export Credit Agency support for fossil fuels, they could do it at the stroke of a pen. However, rather than putting their own house in order first, the focus of the G20 appears to be the subsidies that developing countries use to make energy services affordable for the poor...
For references see:
http://climateradio.org
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The 300-350 Show is made for ResonanceFM in London and is syndicated free to not-for-profit community radio stations and independent media outlets around the globe.
The programme is named after what is now believed to the safe level in parts per million (ppm) of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This finding is based on the work of James Hansen and his team in a paper titled "Target Atmospheric CO2: Where Should Humanity Aim." http://arxiv.org/abs/0804.1126
If that’s the case, why are we still bank-rolling dirty energy projects in developing countries? World Bank lending for fossil fuels rose by 94% between 2007 & 2008 to over $3billion which far outweighs the $476M they gave to “new renewables” energy projects. World Bank lending for coal in particular rose 256% from 2007 to 2008. This contradicts the Banks own rhetoric in their “World Development Report” published in September that advises against “locking the world into high-carbon infrastructure”.
Steve Kretzmann of Oil Change International has been campaigning for the elimination of fossil fuel subsidies for many years. He says that if the G20 leaders were serious about their Pittsburgh commitment to ending World Bank and Export Credit Agency support for fossil fuels, they could do it at the stroke of a pen. However, rather than putting their own house in order first, the focus of the G20 appears to be the subsidies that developing countries use to make energy services affordable for the poor...
For references see:
http://climateradio.org ---
The 300-350 Show is made for ResonanceFM in London and is syndicated free to not-for-profit community radio stations and independent media outlets around the globe.
The programme is named after what is now believed to the safe level in parts per million (ppm) of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This finding is based on the work of James Hansen and his team in a paper titled "Target Atmospheric CO2: Where Should Humanity Aim."
http://arxiv.org/abs/0804.1126
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