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Choosing your energy sources, choosing your future

Jürgen Maier
NGO F.U.E.

Cédric Philibert
IEA

Give us a three-point definition of a "clean energy"

Clean energies are energy sources that do not create any side effects that are hazardous or harmful to people or the environment. That means they don't emit polluting gases or generate hazardous waste at any point in their production cycle. Fossil fuels and nuclear power don't meet those criteria.
Fossil fuels not only emit substantial quantities of greenhouse gases, their extraction and processing also cause major environmental damage (oil tankers, etc.). Nuclear power generates huge quantities of nuclear waste, whose safe disposal is still an unsolved puzzle.
Plus, there is no way to justify the risk of nuclear accidents. Only renewable energies can, in theory, be classified as clean energies.

The ideal energy source is one which causes the least amount of damage during its production, processing, transport and final use. Fossil fuels, which supply 80% of the world's energy, do not come close to meeting that criterion, even though natural gas is less polluting than oil or coal.
Electricity generated by nuclear plants offers definite advantages in terms of air pollution and climate changes. But drawbacks include the risk of accidents, waste and possible proliferation, though new types of reactors may be able to sharply reduce those problems. That leaves renewable energies, which usually have the smallest environmental impact (though the report is mixed for biomass). Shortcomings: cost and often sporadic production.

Give us a three-point definition of a "clean energy"