Bill McKibben has been described by The Boston Globe newspaper in the US as “probably the nation’s leading environmentalist” and has penned several books on climate change and energy policy including eaarth: Making A Life On A Tough New Planet.
In an interview with Renewable Energy Magazine last month, McKibben aired his concerns about the speed with which the global community is tackling climate change and questions whether or not the clean energy sector can ramp up sufficiently quickly to take over from fossil fuels in meeting world energy needs sustainably.
“What’s clear is it takes vigorous government action to help it grow really speedily,” says McKibben, who adds that the US should look to Europe, where feed-in tariffs, changes in the price of carbon, etc. have started making a difference.
The founder of 350.org cites believes Europe is way ahead of the US in this regard, citing the Scandinavians as initial flag bearers for renewables, with the “Germans having done a lot with solar”, and “the Spaniards doing lots with wind and solar”.
Nonetheless, McKibben’s vision about the global community’s ability to stop dangerous global warming is worrying. “Clearly, the science indicates we need a dramatic and quick reduction in the use of fossil fuels. I believe, very dramatic and very quick,” he says. “So far, despite advances in the renewable energy sector, we are putting off getting started.”
He adds that near-term prospects, at least in the US, remain even bleaker, “The US Senate couldn’t even bring itself to vote on a climate change bill last year, and that pretty much sunk the UN meetings at Copenhagen and now Cancun, so we’re not getting very far. And it appears that the situation is even more grim now that Congress has changed hands.”
However, McKibben ends with a stark reminder for everyone: “I’m afraid the unfortunate advantage that we may possess is that the planet is going to keep reminding people of what’s going on. It’s going to keep hitting us upside the head until we pay attention”.
To read the full interview with Bill McKibben, click here:
