6/9/2002
World Summit Renewable Energy Goals to be Delivered by EU Coalition

The European Union has announced that it is forming a coalition of like-minded countries and regions committed to increasing their use of renewable energies through quantified, time-bound targets. The initiative was unveiled during the World Summit on Sustainable Develoment by European Environment Commissioner Margot Wallström and, Mr Hans Christian Schmidt, Environment Minister of Denmark - representing the EU's current Danish Presidency. The plan is seen as a key means of implementing one of the principle outcomes of the Summit, namely that the global share of renewable energy sources should be urgently and substantially increased.

Minister Schmidt and Commissioner Wallström said: "The World Summit has shown that energy, like water, is at the very core of the development agenda, but for development to be sustainable that energy needs to be clean. Increasing the use of clean renewable energy will have multiple benefits for rich and poor countries alike, from cutting the emissions that are changing the global climate to improving the health of millions in the developing world who have to breathe the smoke of their wood-fired stoves."

They continued: "Setting time-bound targets for boosting the share of renewable energy, as the European Union and others have done, will give us a clearer timeframe for delivering the substantial increase to which the international community has committed itself here in Johannesburg."

They added: "The initial response to our initiative from those with whom we have already discussed it has been extremely positive. African, Latin American, Caribbean and other European countries have all shown interest, and we will be talking to others in the coming days. I am extremely pleased to see that so many are interested in forming a 'coalition of the willing' to translate the Summit's commitment into firm targets."