Archivo etiqueta «Energía»
By Yossi Beilin, a former Israeli minister of justice, the head of the Geneva Initiative, an independent peace organization (THE NEW YORK TIMES, 25/06/10):
Quietly and with barely any public confrontation, Israel is creating a new enemy for itself: the Kingdom of Jordan. In the situation that we justifiably or unjustifiably find ourselves now — boycotted and isolated — we do not need to lose the only Arab state with which we have peace-like relations.
This is the story: Jordan is a poor country, lacking almost any natural resources, that spends billions of dollars each year to import … Seguir leyendo
Por Günther Oettinger, comisario europeo de la Energía (EL PERIÓDICO, 19/06/10):
La Unión Europea es el tercer consumidor de biocombustibles más importante del mundo, después de Brasil y de Estados Unidos. Aunque ahora solo un poco más del 3% del combustible que se utiliza en el sector del transporte procede de energías renovables, este porcentaje deberá ser en el 2020 como mínimo del 10%. Los biocombustibles están destinados a desempeñar un papel muy importante para alcanzar los objetivos generales de uso de energías renovables en la UE y son los más importantes del par de alternativas existentes hoy (la … Seguir leyendo
By Ed Miliband, the coordinator of the Labour manifesto, the former energy and climate change secretary and MP for Doncaster North (THE GUARDIAN, 13/06/10):
It is no accident that the government has seemed paralysed in responding to the Deepwater Horizon crisis, not knowing whether or not to defend BP in the face of politicians’ and public opprobrium. The reason is that it is unable to understand that the root causes of the crisis are ideological.
To blame or not blame BP is really not the point. BP must take its share of responsibility along with other US private companies … Seguir leyendo
By Steven Hill, the author of Europe’s Promise: Why the European Way is the Best Hope in an Insecure Age (THE NEW YORK TIMES, 08/06/10):
With toxic black ooze spreading throughout the Gulf of Mexico, it may be time for the Obama administration to think seriously about national energy policy. It could learn plenty by looking across the Atlantic.
The average European today emits half the carbon of an average American and uses far less electricity. It takes 40 percent more fuel for an American car to drive a mile than a European car. Europe overall has managed to … Seguir leyendo
By Richard Ward, chief executive of Lloyd’s. Lloyd’s and Chatham House will publish a report, Sustainable Energy Security: Strategic Risks and Opportunities for Business (THE TIMES, 04/05/10):
The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has already been described as the biggest environmental crisis in US history. The efforts to stop the leak, repair the damage to the ecosystem and compensate those whose livelihoods depend on clean waters will come at a tremendous cost to BP. We still don’t know what the final bill will be — or how BP and its reputation will manage.
Tough questions are rightly … Seguir leyendo
Por Mariano Marzo, catedrático de Recursos Energéticos en la Universidad de Barcelona (EL PAÍS, 01/06/10):
El pasado 22 de abril, coincidiendo con la celebración del Día de la Tierra, la plataforma petrolífera Deepwater Horizon se hundía bajo las aguas del golfo de México, tras una explosión y posterior incendio que costó la vida a 11 trabajadores. La plataforma, propiedad de Transocean, había sido contratada por BP y sus socios (Anadarko y Mitsui Oil) para la perforación del pozo Macondo, ubicado en el fondo marino, a unos 75 kilómetros de las costas de Luisiana y bajo una columna de agua … Seguir leyendo
By John Hofmeister, the former president of Shell Oil (THE GUARDIAN, 16/05/10):
When the president calls your top executive “ridiculous” from the rose garden of the White House, it’s a low point. When late-night TV hosts make demeaning jokes about your company, it’s a bad day. When your industry distances itself, you are lonely. When the facts are awful (11 deaths, a lost rig, an open well flowing into the sea), it’s a very bad time.
Having sat in the US chair for Shell and knowing what America thinks of foreign-owned companies operating in its critical industries, here’s my … Seguir leyendo
By Bruce Usher, an executive in residence at Columbia Business School and the former chief executive of a company that operates emission reduction projects (THE NEW YORK TIMES, 07/05/10):
With the disastrous oil spill in the Gulf, talk has once again turned to clean energy. What few people appreciate is that the demand for everything from solar panels to energy-efficient light bulbs is already booming. Worldwide, $162 billion was spent in new clean-tech investments in 2009 alone.
The United States, with its expertise, capital and entrepreneurial spirit, is well positioned to dominate what could easily be the biggest market … Seguir leyendo
By Kerri (Houston) Toloczko, a senior analyst with the Alliance for American Manufacturing. She was appointed in 2006 by House Speaker Dennis Hastert to serve on the U.S.-China Economic and Security Commission (THE WASHINGTON TIMES, 29/04/10):
Toxic drywall driving owners from their homes, poisoned pet food killing Fluffy and Spot and defective tires causing injury and death – all sent to America by the People’s Republic of China.
Following on the heels of that safety record, now China could seek to supply us with sensitive components for nuclear power plants – with American taxpayers footing the bill.
As America … Seguir leyendo
By Michael Lynch, the former director of the Asian energy and security working group at the Center for International Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, an energy consultant (THE NEW YORK TIMES, 05/04/10):
The Obama administration’s decision to allow oil drilling off northern Alaska and the East Coast and in the eastern Gulf of Mexico is a bold political move that demonstrates a rational approach to energy policy. Yet, given the peculiarities of petroleum extraction, the public shouldn’t buy any arguments that it’s going to accomplish a lot in terms of energy independence or payback for taxpayers.
The … Seguir leyendo
By Thomas J. Pyle, president of the Institute for Energy Research and American Energy Alliance (THE WASHINGTON TIMES, 03/04/10):
Nearly 30 years ago, Congress imposed a moratorium on the safe and environmentally sound practice of offshore oil and natural-gas exploration. In the early 1990s, President George H.W. Bush imposed a similar ban in the form of an executive order. And while this ban was in place for decades, many in Congress and the public at large had no idea that the United States was the only country in the industrialized world purposely embargoing its own energy resources.
Fast-forward to … Seguir leyendo
By Eric Smith, a professor in the political science department at the University of California at Santa Barbara. He is affiliated with the university’s Bren School of Environmental Science and Management and the environmental studies program (THE WASHINGTON POST, 02/04/10):
The Obama administration sparked an uproar this week when it approved new oil and gas drilling in U.S. waters off the coasts of Virginia, other parts of the mid- and south Atlantic, the eastern Gulf of Mexico and parts of Alaska. Drilling remains off-limits near New Jersey and California, but Interior Secretary Ken Salazar called the decision “a new … Seguir leyendo
Por Xavier Sala i Martín, Columbia University, Fundació Umbele y UPF (LA VANGUARDIA, 01/04/10):
En 1784, el entonces embajador de Estados Unidos en París, Benjamin Franklin, observó que durante el verano, los franceses dormían por la mañana cuando el sol ya había salido y que, por la tarde, tenían que encender velas y lámparas para iluminar sus casas. Eso comportaba un absurdo gasto que podían evitar si cambiaban los relojes una hora. Como todavía no existía la “hora oficial”, el inventor americano propuso que, al cantar el gallo, se dispararan salvas de cañones para despertar a los dormilones. También … Seguir leyendo
By Roy Innis, national chairman of the Congress of Racial Equality and Niger Innis, national spokesman for CORE and co-chair of the Affordable Power Alliance (THE WASHINGTON TIMES, 24/03/10):
“I see Africa as a … partner with America on behalf of the future we want for all of our children,” President Obama declared in Ghana last July.
However, three months later, the president signed an executive order requiring that the Overseas Private Investment Corp. (OPIC) and other federal agencies reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with their projects by 30 percent over the next 10 years. The order undermines … Seguir leyendo
Por Ramon Folch, socioecólogo. Director general de ERF (EL PERIÓDICO, 16/03/10):
Sin energías renovables no hay futuro. Deberíamos metérnoslo en la cabeza. No son una opción, sino una exigencia fáctica. La humanidad siempre había funcionado con energía renovable –como la biosfera por entero, es su forma de hacer– y puede que lo haga de nuevo con el tiempo. En el interín, habrá habido el esplendoroso paréntesis de los combustibles fósiles, la rutilante excepción que ha permitido el fulgor de la civilización industrial y, también, el primer trastorno climático inducido por los humanos. Trescientos años pudiendo quemar intensamente carbono fijado … Seguir leyendo