Newsmaker

Govts need develop technology,co-op to cut emission

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-11-23 14:48

MEXICO CITY - Governments should give priority to technology development and cooperation in their efforts to promote energy conservation and emission reduction, Sergio Revah, a leading Mexican expert on environmental biotechnology told Xinhua on Monday.

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Revah, a professor at Mexico's Autonomous Metropolitan University (UAM), said that technology can help a lot in emission reduction in an interview prior to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP-16), scheduled for Nov 29- Dec 10 in the Mexican resort city of Cancun, which will gather leaders or their representatives from some 180 countries to discuss issues of climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.

"Technology can also help us develop new energy and alternative energy which is less harmful to the environment, such as wind energy, heat energy and even nuclear energy, which have less impact on the atmosphere," he said.

"There have also been advances of technology not at the emission side, but at the capture side, because one of the problems is how to solve the balance between emission and capture from the environment," he added.

Revah also stressed the importance of technology cooperation and transfer for the proliferation of more efficient and cleaner energy alternative.

Technology transfer has been widely carried out, though the issue of intellectual property rights is yet to be solved, he said, adding that supporting technology development and transfer can bring great return and opportunities to the governments.

"There are many developing countries, which, due to the fast growth of their economy, may meet some difficulties in energy saving and emission reduction, but technology transfer can help them solve some problems in a very successful way," he added.

He also stressed the importance of legislation in emission reduction, because some related laws are yet to be strictly enforced in some countries.

At present, climate changes have become a major challenge to the whole world. While calling on the governments to step up legislation to fight against climate changes, experts are also urging citizens to develop a healthier and low-carbon life style.

"For example, in the United States, there are more than 300 million inhabitants with a life style of extreme consumption, which have a great impact on the atmosphere. They emit about one quarter of the greenhouse gases into the air. We need people to be committed, change their habits and adopt modest life styles," he said.