The International Energy Agency (IEA) has called on international leaders to address energy security concerns in a sustainable manner and step up their efforts to address climate change.
Speaking at the UN’s COP-17 climate talks in Durban, South Africa, IEA Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven urged countries to take action on improving the sustainability of energy systems, rather than to wait for a comprehensive international climate deal.
She called the expected lack of progress at the Durban meeting a “cause for concern”. The IEA is concerned that the world is locking itself into an unsustainable energy future by failing to make bold decisions on energy policy.
“I have a simple message for the participants in these talks – don’t wait for a global deal. Act now. You can and should implement robust policies that will give your citizens affordable, reliable access to energy in a sustainable way,” said van der Hoeven.
She also said that opportunities to reach climate and sustainability objectives were “rapidly closing”. The IEA has identified a number of policy tools that could be used to enhance energy security and reduce carbon emissions, including energy efficiency, boosting the deployment of renewables and putting a price on carbon.
However it believes that financing remains a key challenge. Van der Hoeven has called on emerging BRIC economies to tap domestic funding sources and direct them to low carbon investments.
The IEA’s annual World Energy Outlook, released in November, was meant to send a stark message to the participants at the COP-17 climate negotiations by concluding that the world is locking itself into an insecure, inefficient and high-carbon energy system. It warned that if bold policy actions are not put in place over the next several years, it will become increasingly difficult and costly to meet the goal set at last year’s talks of limiting a global temperature increase to 2°C.
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