You'd be amazed what you can do if you try

I recently wrote about how proponents of comprehensive climate change and clean energy legislation need to come up with a simpler and clearer narrative. But such a narrative obviously needs more detail as the conversation gets further into the weeds. I've written a lot about the need for action based on the science. In addition I've had a few posts on the economic and national security cases for acting urgently. One angle I really haven't delved into as much I would have liked is the technology aspect of this debate. The technology is obviously available to us and we are starting to see that with the right policies we can deploy these resources on a much larger scale that will result in a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and an increase in new jobs.

So this begs the question, why aren't we trying harder?

UK Nuclear Energy Policy

I recently came across this Financial Times article about UK nuclear energy policy. It's a bit dated but thought you might want to take a read.

Essentially it talks about the difference in views between the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats. Yet despite these differences, there remains a commitment to nuclear energy, which emits zero greenhouse gases (GHGs). Furthermore, the private sector appears relatively unfazed about the need for 100% private sector funding so long as they have the regulatory certainty needed to make long term plans about nuclear new build.

If you really want to get into the weeds on UK nuclear energy policy take a look at their 2008 Nuclear White Paper and, more recently, the UK's draft National Nuclear Policy Statement.

National Academy of Sciences reports

NAS released three reports yesterday emphasizing why the US should reduce emissions and develop a plan to adapt to the inevitable impacts of climate change.

I recommend reading this excellent article in Science Daily outlining the key messages of the reports.

The case for action on climate change has never been stronger. We need a comprehensive, aggressive, and pragmatic effort to begin reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions now. Ignoring the problem will not make it go away.