BRUSSELS, June 13 (UPI) -- The Global Wind Energy Council said Thursday the international community needs to do more than just pay lip service to renewable energy and pollution.
GWEC said it was calling attention to the steady use of fossil fuels ahead of next week's Group of Eight summit in Northern Ireland.
The organization said the fossil fuels industry gets six times more in government subsidies than the renewable energy sector. At the same time, carbon dioxide levels continue to increase.
"While world leaders pay lip service to combating climate change, what they are actually doing is subsidizing carbon dioxide emissions to the tune of $110 per ton," GWEC Secretary-General Steve Sawyer said in a statement Thursday. "Fossil fuel energy subsidy reform could take us a long way toward protecting the climate."
GWEC estimates wind energy could have 1,000 gigawatts worth of installed capacity by 2020 and cut emissions by 9 billion tons per year with the right policies in place.
The British government said Wednesday it was supporting wind technology projects with a combined $3.1 million in investments. The U.S. Interior Department announced last week it would auction off acreage in the Atlantic Ocean in July for the development of offshore wind farms.
GWEC said Saturday marks the fifth annual Global Wind Day.
