Nuclear energy is almost universally feared and reviled, and not without reason. And yet, China has doubled its nuclear capacity since 2014, climate scientists have called for an increase in nuclear power, while the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change identifies increased production of nuclear energy as a key element in avoiding global warning. Why is such an obviously dangerous and polluting energy source considered an important element of the green energy transition?
In Mexico, the energy transition is the subject of an increasingly heated debate. Despite the president’s vow to de-privatise the energy industry and foster renewables, grassroots activists are questioning the government’s new course; they deem its energy policies as unjust and unequal, aimed at favouring the economic interests of private companies instead of addressing the needs of the people, and claim for alternative energy transitions.
by James Crooks
The production of energy through the burning of biological materials has been considered a renewable, reliable and even relatively clean alternative to the use of fossil fuels. However, as the industry has grown these claims have faced increased scrutiny; critics have claimed that biomass on a large scale has negative long- and short-term environmental impacts not only on pollution but on biodiversity generally. So we have to ask: is biomass an energy source of the future?