Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
advantages usurped by developing nations. his threat is increasingly evi-
dent in recent times, as the technological advantages that have been enjoyed
by irms in industrialized nations are increasingly eroded. As wind advo-
cate Tom Wizelius summarizes, “Even if the economic subsidies for wind
power during its early stage of development are relatively expensive for the
economy, politicians have calculated that in the longer run it will generate
economic beneits.”
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In national defense, the strategic disadvantages of fossil fuels are
becoming increasingly evident. Fossil fuels are largely imported (using
tankers, barges, trucks, or pipelines that make easy military targets),
scarce (thus, increasingly expensive) and subject to high degrees of
international competition.
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As energy expert Daniel Yergin points out,
domestic energy supply limitations restrict a nation's capabilities to sus-
tain lengthy military operations. Historically, insuicient access to oil at
strategic stages of warfare contributed signiicantly to the downfall of
both the German and the Japanese armies during the 1940s.
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In recent
times, the world witnessed the perils associated with foreign energy
dependency when Russia curtailed delivery of liquid natural gas supplies
to the Ukraine.
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Clearly, establishing a national energy portfolio that
focuses on encouraging the cultivation of domestically derived sources of
energy represents a prudent initiative in the context of national security.
Although very few countries can boast fossil fuel production that exceeds
annual demand, all countries can bolster domestic energy security to
some extent by harnessing alternative energy sources (geothermal, wind,
hydro, solar PV, biofuels, etc.).
his should not be misconstrued to imply that complete independence in
energy is a goal that all nations should strive to achieve.
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Clearly, for many
nations there will be resource barriers which inhibit such a goal.
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Moreover,
the economic theory of comparative advantage suggests that complete
energy independence may in fact be economically suboptimal.
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However,
it is clear that for many nations, the current reliance on fossil fuel supplies
imported from unstable foreign countries subverts national security.
he inluence that energy has on other aspects of global stability was
summed up succinctly by authors Kurt Campbell and Jonathon Price in the
context of US national security:
Every major issue confronting the United States today—including climate
change, the rise of China and India, jihadist inancing, an increasingly bellicose
Russia, worrisome trends in Latin America, and endemic hostilities in the Middle
East—is either inextricably linked to or exacerbated by decisions associated with
energy policy.
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