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Will the Post-Covid World Accelerate Renewables?

  • Publish Date: Posted almost 4 years ago
  • Author: Steve Walia

Although the current Coronavirus pandemic shows no signs of abating, and as lockdown continues in its various guises across the world, policymakers are looking carefully at the economy and assessing how - and when - it might rebound.

 

Immediate estimates are certainly worrying, and it may be some years before a growth situation can be seen again, if the notion of 'growth' is something that people still want to see. Some early reports by the Guardian suggest that people want to see lifestyle and wellness indicators prioritised alongside pure economics.

 

Could this mean that the world of renewables gets an inadvertent boost? The UK was already making significant strides towards its cleaner low-carbon economy, but many renewable development projects have paused or slowed during the quarantine period.

 

However, fuel demand has virtually dried up, and oil hit negative pricing last month. Pollution appears to be diminishing. Natural views which have been shrouded in haze, fog and mist have begun to emerge once again. There has been a great deal of reporting on the positive environmental signs that people everywhere have witnessed - from bluer skies through to the return of species which had been pushed to the fringes by our busy commercial lives.

 

There are also fewer cars on the roads and air travel - one of the most polluting industries - has all but dried up. The positive signs that the public are witnessing could certainly help the renewables industry to continue its impressive progress as public support intensifies. With more people set to work from home in the longer term and social distancing here to stay, accelerated progress towards a greener and low-carbon future could be one of the few benefits to emerge from this worrying time.