REN21's Renewable Energy 2021 Global Status Report disclosed an "alarming gap" between environmental targets and actions taken regarding renewable energy use.
According to the magazine Edifícios e Energia, the contribution of these energy sources in buildings continues to grow, with a clear emphasis on their use for electricity.
According to the press release issued by REN21, the 15 G20 countries have failed, or barely met, their renewable energy targets. It is not news that the buildings sector favors "significantly" for CO₂ emissions, as buildings account for about 33 percent of final energy use.
According to the same Buildings and Energy report, although renewable energy is the fastest growing energy source for buildings (growth of 4.1 percent per year on average between 2009 and 2019), the truth is that renewable energy accounted for only 14.3 percent of total energy demand in buildings in 2019.
However, REN reveals that the electricity sector has been making great progress, and the rise in renewable energy consumption is more noticeable in this sector and less evident in heating, for example.
However, this transition is necessary to meet determined environmental goals, since fossil fuels are not only responsible for climate change, but also favor the loss of biodiversity and pollution.
In this sense, it is essential to certify the energy efficiency of buildings in order to enable higher shares of renewable energy.
The truth is that the pandemic has impacted the use of energy in buildings.
Today, and in more and more regions, covering parts of China, the EU, India and the United States, it is cheaper to build new wind or solar photovoltaic plants than to operate existing coal-fired power plants, it should be noted.
According to the REN report, this progress could and should be applied in all other sectors.
The information made available by this new report shows that we are far from a paradigm shift in this area, which would be essential for a clean, healthier and more equitable energy future, the magazine reveals. Proof of this is the fact that the share of fossil fuels in energy consumption has not decreased for the 10th consecutive year.
The report concludes that governments need to give a stronger push to renewable energy in all sectors, says Buildings and Energy.
Deutsch
Português
English
Français
Español
Nederlands
Русский
中文(简体)
