Topic: Environmental Impacts of Emerging Energy Technology
Country: Venezuela
Delegate Name: Andrea Clinton
School: Royal Oak High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Venezuela position papers GLIMUN 2010 committees
The country of Venezuela recognizes the increasing emergence of new energy technologies. However, as a major producer of oil, and oil being our primary export, we have kept our focus on fossil fuels, and not put as much emphasis on emerging technologies. Oil is still the world’s primary source for energy, consuming 169 quadrillion BTU’s of energy in the year 2006 alone, accounting for 35.9% of the total of world primary energy production. In that same year, hydroelectric, nuclear, geothermal, solar, wind, wood, and waste energy combined produced a fraction of that amount, totaling 62 quadrillion BTU’s. Venezuela considers this as key evidence showing that trying to shift away from fossil fuels, especially oil, would be an impossible task in the near future, especially with the number of developing nations with increasing demand for cars and technologies which run on fossil fuels. Therefore, although emerging energy technologies lead to reduced emissions of CO2, we should put more focus on ensuring the safety and efficiency of sources of energy like oil and other fossil fuels.
Still, Venezuela believes that whatever “green” technologies already in place should be as safe and efficient as possible, leading to minimal damage to the environment and those inhabiting it. Though Venezuela regrets the statistic that 6000 birds are annually killed in the United States by wind turbines, we believe that more lasting and negative effects can occur from improper and unsafe methods of obtaining oil. The recent BP oil spill has accounted for at least 4,768 death of local wildlife, and the damaging of the home of over 8,300 species of wildlife. The Exxon Valdez oil spill led to the deaths of nearly 225,000 birds.
On the topic of lithium, we must consider the safest ways for it to be mined because of its corrosive nature. We also must question the best way to dispose of it. Is recycling the only environmentally safe option, or are there other ways to dispose of them without negatively impacting the environment? Also, how can we charge lithium batteries with minimal impact on the environment? Even if we work to make methods of obtaining, disposing, and charging lithium safer, it would be very hard for developing nations to fund research for projects like these. Though foreign countries could offer their donations and aid, Venezuela feels that the most efficient way to get developing nations on the right track in producing more efficient energy sources is if they themselves learn how to obtain, manufacture, and implement these technologies without having to rely as much on other nations.
