ENB on the side – 14th Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development - Issue #9 PUBLISHED BY THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (IISD) in cooperation with UNDP Written by: Robynne Boyd Peter Wood Director of IISD Reporting Services: Langston James "Kimo" Goree VI Issue #9 Friday, 12 May 2006 Online at http://enb.iisd.org/csd/csd14/enbots/ Events convened on Thursday, 11 May 2006 Title: Sustainable Energy Presented by the European Commission - Directorate General Environment Steve Sawyer, Greenpeace International, introduced the session, emphasizing that the way in which countries decide to invest the anticipated 16 trillion dollars into the energy sector over the next two decades will shape the global energy matrix and determine how well climate change will be addressed. Stavros Dimas, European Environment Commissioner, said the challenge of sustainable energy can be achieved, noting CSD-14’s role of highlighting best practices and addressing the key policy challenges. He then described sustainable energy practices, by addressing internal European schemes, including increasing their primary energy consumption to 12% by 2010 from the current 6%, and the EU Emission Trading Scheme. Pieter Van Geel, State Secretary for Environment, the Netherlands, said that in order to meet the energy challenge, an integrated approach is vital, noting that it does not make sense to discuss climate change or industrial development in isolation. He also addressed the need for innovative finance, and welcomed the World Bank’s Clean Energy and Development investment framework, saying that energy access must play a role. Lindiwe Benedicta Hendricks, Minister of Minerals and Energy of the Republic of South Africa, underscored the role of renewable energy as a component of sustainable energy, highlighting the White Paper on Renewable Energy and the Johannesburg Renewable Energy Coalition. She addressed the prevalent problem of paraffin use in South Africa, saying that an energy strategy is needed that utilizes a cost-effective bouquet of options including LPG, bioethanol gel, and is achieved through public-private partnerships in order to eradicate paraffin use. She emphasized the import role of women in achieving this and requested support from the EU to help her country shift towards cleaner fuels. Steve Cunningham, Chief Operating Officer of E+Co, discussed clean energy finance raising, saying that his company provides modest loans or equity investments to create local enterprises that bring clean energy into developing countries, by blending public and private resources. He said that overall their portfolio performance has been strong, with over 120 investments of US$16.7 million in 35 countries, with US$111 million from third party co- financing, and highlighted CAREC, an innovative mezzanine and debt facility. Participants discussed: E+Co’s involvement in Latin America and Africa; market distortions that create barriers to renewable energy; the World Bank’s involvement in programmes that do not support sustainable development; the increase of aviation emissions; and nuclear as an energy option. More information: http://www.greenpeace.org http://ec.europa.eu/index_en.htm http://international.vrom.nl/pagina.html?id=5450&ref= http://www.dme.gov.za/ http://www.energyhouse.com/ Contacts: Steve Sawyer, Greenpeace International Steve Cunningham Title: Energizing the Millennium Development Goals: Ministerial Luncheon Presented by UNDP Ad Melkert, UN Under-Secretary General and Associate Administrator, UNDP, opened the event and noted CSD’s role in addressing the MDGs. Agnes van Ardenne-van der Hoeven, Minister for Development Cooperation, the Netherlands, said that the international community’s recognition that energy is fundamental to the MDG’s is long overdue, noting that the recent drought in Africa has reduced hydroelectric potential. She encouraged other donor countries to make a commitment that matches the level of urgency. Eric Solheim, Minister of International Development, Norway, said that Norway is ready to extend its expertise in energy development to the developing world, and encouraged developing countries to direct benefits achieved from oil and gas exploitation towards development goals. He noted that Norway has initiated cooperation with Mozambique regarding development of oil and gas resources. Mohamed Ibn Chambas, Executive Secretary, Economic Community of West African States, noted that half of the 250 million people in this region live in absolute poverty and that it is unlikely that they will meet the MDGs any time soon. He noted the importance of the whitepaper on energy access, and highlighted that accelerated provision of energy is consistent with goals of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. Irene Freudenschuss-Reichl, Director-General for Development Cooperation, Austria, noted that Africa is a focus of Austrian development cooperation, noting that it behooves the international community to offer their support for Africa obtaining energy access. She encouraged the development of policy recommendations that are regionally tailored, and to build upon work that has already been done. Abul Barkat, University of Dhaka, Bangladesh, noted the disparity in energy access between rural and urban regions, as well as between the rich and the poor. He noted that energy security has consequences for livelihoods and food security, and remarked on the importance of the politics of development, including governance, exclusion, and corruption. Shoji Nishimoto, UNDP, noted the value of decentralization, and called for an end to the poverty cycle that results from a net global flow of capital northward. He added that if the international community truly cares about reducing inequality, cost concerns will not be the only factor considered. More information: http://www.undp.org/energy/ Contacts: Agnes van Ardenne-van der Hoeven Mohamed Ibn Chambas Abul Barkat Shoji Nishimoto Title: Ambitious Environmental Policy: The Basis for Sustainable Industrial Development Presented by the Government of Germany Chair Andreas Kraemer, Institute for International and European Environmental Policy, introduced the panel. Sigmar Gabriel, Federal Minister for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, Germany, highlighted two common challenges that humanity faces: providing access to safe and secure energy systems, and providing energy supply and production, without replicating the mistakes of industrialized countries. He stressed the importance of decoupling economic growth and environmental degradation and highlighted the use of CDM to transfer capital and technology from developed to developing countries. He encouraged governments to provide incentives for businesses to undertake CDM projects. Du Ying, Vice-chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, China, highlighted a new law that requires the country to increase the use of renewable energy from 5.3% to 16% by 2020, noting that these figures exclude large hydropower. He said to achieve their goals, China will: formulate supplementary laws, standards and policies; strengthen research and development of wind power equipment; and promote renewable energy in urban planning and rural area development. He called upon all countries to use renewable energy and energy efficiency to reduce GHG emissions and strengthen cooperation. Jürgen Heraeus, Heraeus Holding, stressed that the most important element for entrepreneurs is unlimited freedom. He said that with freedom comes responsibility, and added that entrepreneurs should care about the environment because: the main goal of business is to be as economically efficient as possible; saving the environment means reducing input and maximizing output; caring for the environment makes a company more competitive; and protecting the environment now will avoid higher costs in the future. Martin Viessmann, Viessmann Group, focused on energy efficiency against the background of rising energy costs and limited resources, emphasizing that energy efficiency is increasingly important for sustainable environmental economies. He noted Germany’s largest energy saving potential is in transport and heating, saying they could save a total of 10% energy consumption if they replaced obsolete heating systems and an additional 20% by changing traditional systems to biomass geothermal or solar thermal. He highlighted the European Energy Management and Audit system as an example of a successful environmental policy. Monique Babut, UNEP, discussed the concept of a circular economy, saying it goes farther than use of renewable energy by trying to close the loop between environmental impact and economic growth. She noted aspects of the circular economy that local and central governments need to be aware of, including the reuse and recycling of resources and waste, sustainable product innovation, and market mechanisms to incorporate environmental factors into the economic system. She invited all governments to support the panel and urged governments, industry and civil society to create a circular economy. More information: http://www.ecologic.de http://www.bmu.de/english/aktuell/4152.php http://www.chinacp.com/eng/cporg/cporg_ndrc.html http://www.heraeus.com/hh/eng/holding_home.nsf/$frameset/start http://www.viessmann.com/web/germany/de_publish.nsf/content/viessmann-com http://www.undp.org Contacts: Andreas Kraemer Jürgen Heraeus Martin Viessmann Monique Barbut Title: Household Energy and Health Presented by GTZ Susanne Weber-Mosdorf, WHO, noted that indoor air pollution is a neglected issue associated with 1.5 million deaths per year, and gave an overview of the WHO report “Fuel for Life: Household Energy and Health.” Maria Neria, WHO, drew attention to the different conceptions of what constitutes “energy” in developed and developing countries, and noted that health burdens associated with household energy are borne disproportionately by women and children. Surya Sethi, Planning Commission, India, said that household energy is at the core of six of the eight MDGs, and mentioned that the recent re-drafting of India’s energy policy has taken this into consideration. He said that although subsidies may be required to provide the poor access to clean energy, loss of life and quality of life are on the line. Paul Mubiru, Commissioner for Energy, Uganda, addressed the need to examine sustainable supply issues, noting that growing populations are placing greater demand on natural resources. He highlighted the success of the improved efficiency stove programme, but noted that energy is needed for economic activities as well as for cooking. Jafrul Islam Chowdhury, State Minister for Environment and Forests, Bangladesh, said that access to energy and energy efficiency must be part of a long-term solution to poverty reduction. He called for increasing forest cover, and for creating greater awareness about the health benefits of using improved stoves. Andrew Scott, Practical Action, noted that efforts to improve household energy in the developing world have been undertaken for 30 years, yet clean fuels remain neither available or affordable. He said that improved stoves can help the situation, but local habits will determine whether they are actually used. Pieter Van Geel, State Secretary for Environment, the Netherlands, provided a donor’s perspective on the issue, saying that energy is key to achieving the MDGs, and that donors need to restructure the delivery of aid using concrete targets. In this regard, he indicated that his country aims to provide 10 million people with energy access by 2015. He noted the need to address both cooking and electricity needs, and to pay attention to women’s needs. Participants discussed: the role of renewables in providing energy access; how to scale up efforts; and the importance of disseminating results. More information: http://www.hedon.info/goto.php/index.htm http://www.energyandminerals.go.ug/erd.html http://www.practicalaction.org http://www.gtz.de/hera Contacts: Marlis Kees Paul Mubiru Surya Sethi Andrew Scott Jafrul Islam Chowdhury The Earth Negotiations Bulletin on the side (ENBOTS) © is a special publication of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) in cooperation with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). This issue has been written by Robynne Boyd and Peter Wood. Photos by Leila Mead and Diego Noguera. The Digital Editor is Diego Noguera. The Director of IISD Reporting Services is Langston James “Kimo” Goree VI . Funding for the publication of ENBOTS at the Fourteenth Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-14) is provided by the United Nations Development Programme. 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