I am pleased to find some positive news about the challenge of the Climate Crisis that is upon us, and that is why I cannot resist commenting on this good news. There are 7 countries in the world that already run on 100% renewable energy, and another is about to enter that select club.
The seven countries are (in alphabetical order): Albania, Bhutan, Ethiopia, Iceland, Nepal, Paraguay, and Democratic Republic of the Congo. And they get the energy through wind, solar, hydroelectric or geothermal means. And there are other countries that are very close to that goal, which is the case of Norway, which already obtains 98% of its energy from renewable sources.
They are not very big countries, but they are setting an example by showing others the path to follow.
Some countries like Iceland and Norway have natural resources suitable for the generation of renewable energy, but there must also be a political will to go down that path, since in the case of Norway it has fossil fuels that it does not use to generate energy.
And another positive fact to highlight is that in 2023 the renewable energy capacity increased by 50%, exceeding 500 GW of power. Which is the highest growth in recent decades.
In addition, there are already some electricity generating companies that provide their customers with information on the origin of that electricity. Recently my supplier informed me that in the previous year the origin of the energy they supplied had been:
- Renewable 42.7%
- Nuclear 20.2%
- Cogeneration 3.1%
- Other renewables 5%
- Natural Gas 25.1%
- Coal 2.8%
- Fuel 1.1%
It can be seen that around 70% of the energy supplied does not produce environmental pollution, which is an important step in the right direction.
The PROBLEM is that despite this positive data, we are still very far from the objectives to be achieved in 2030, but that does not mean we have to fall into total pessimism, because I am clear that if we wanted to, we could.
A strong political commitment, important citizen participation, great investment in clean technologies and international cooperation are needed so that we are able to leave a more sustainable future for future generations.
Will we do it ?
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