Despite the fact that U.S. renewable energy production has
increased by more than 300 percent in the last 10 years, the country
still lags far behind Europe and Indonesia and is only slightly
ahead of Mexico, according to a new report from the Natural
Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
NRDC is advocating for countries to adopt policies to increase
the percentage of electricity they get from renewable sources to 15
percent by 2020.
According to Jake Schmidt, NRDC's International Climate Policy
Director, favorable government policies and strong private-sector
investments have increased the availability of renewable energy in
the U.S. and elsewhere.
"Unfortunately, the very policies that have increased our
renewable energy supplies and reduced our dependence on dirty fossil
fuels are now under fire in the United States and elsewhere,"
Schmidt said. "That's not just a threat to the thousands of new jobs
being created by the renewable energy industry, but also a threat to
our health, our environment and our planet."
Schmidt urges a global agreement to spur the deployment of
renewable energy.
For more:
- see the
report