Wind Power Industry Calls For Urgent Progress In Cancun Climate Talks

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Wind power can and must make a significant contribution to saving the climate, according to a declaration issued by international wind industry representatives at the Global Wind Energy Council's (GWEC) Wind Power for a Low Carbon Economy conference at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Cancun, Mexico.

Wind power could produce more than 12% of the electricity needed globally by 2020, saving 10 billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the process, or 1.5 billion tons per year. This would represent more than half of the emissions reductions envisaged by industrialized countries in their pledges to the Copenhagen Accord, according to GWEC.

‘The wind industry stands ready to play its part as a key solution to combating climate change and a leader of the energy revolution our planet urgently needs,’ says Carmen Becerril, president of Acciona Energia SA. ‘But it cannot fulfill its full mitigation potential without unambiguous political commitment from the decision makers gathered here in Cancun.’


GWEC called for action in the following areas:

– Make progress toward a robust climate agreement. The global wind energy industry urgently calls for decision makers in Cancun to make rapid progress on negotiating an ambitious and legally binding international agreement to meet the 2 degrees C limit set out by the Copenhagen Accord.

– Raise pledges. The 2020 pledges made by industrialized countries under the Copenhagen Accord fall short of the emissions reductions required for averting dangerous climate change, and the level of ambition needs to be increased toward the upper end of the range of 25% to 40% emissions reductions below 1990 levels.

Industrialized countries can and must review their pledges for reduction targets and raise them very substantially, as well as assist developing countries' often ambitious programs to decarbonize their electricity systems with both public finance and private investment through the carbon markets.

– Recognize the potential of wind power for achieving substantial cuts. Wind energy is already making a significant contribution to reduce emissions in both industrialized and developing countries, and by 2020, substantial savings of CO2 can be achieved. Under a new 2020 climate agreement, wind energy alone will provide for a significant portion of the emissions reductions.

SOURCE: Global Wind Energy Council

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