A Companion to the Philosophy of Technology

What Actions Can Be Taken?

First, it is essential that all countries and communities begin to prepare to adapt to the climate change to which the world is already committed and which will become more apparent over the next few decades.

Regarding mitigation, three sorts of actions are required if the reductions mentioned above are to be achieved. First, there is energy efficiency. Very approximately, one-third of energy is employed in buildings (domestic and commercial), one-third in transport and one-third by industry. Means are available to double the efficiency of energy use in all three sectors, in many cases with significant savings in cost. Second, a wide variety of non-fossil-fuel sources of energy are available for development and exploitation – for instance, biomass (including waste), solar power (both photovoltaic and thermal), hydro, wind, wave, tidal, geothermal energy and nuclear. Third, there are possibilities for sequestering carbon that would otherwise enter the atmosphere either through the planting of forests or by pumping underground (for instance in spent oil and gas fields). The opportunities for industry for innovation, development and investment in all these areas are large. Technology transfer from developed to developing countries is also vital if energy growth in developing countries is going to proceed in a sustainable way.

What about the cost of action, and how does it compare with the likely cost of damage if no action is taken? A recent review of the ...