Press release

Concern about rising energy consumption

Bangkok, United Nations Information Services (UNIS)---Energy consumption in some cases has grown faster than the GDP, states an ESCAP environment report to members of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific's (ESCAP) 56th session, June 1 to 7th in Bangkok at the United Nations Conference Centre.

In view of the significant increase in energy demand in the ESCAP region, ESCAP considers the need for increased energy development as urgent, particularly in developing economies where the gap between energy supply and demand was considerable.

Limited fossil fuel reserves and growing environmental concerns as well as the rising cost of expansion of electricity capacity were important factors underlining the need to urgently increase efficiency.

Implementing minimum energy efficiency product standards could play a positive role in curbing the growth of electricity consumption in the use of home appliances and residential sectors.

Environment-friendly fuels such as natural gas and renewable sources of energy would have an increasingly important role to play in future. There are environmental advantages in hydropower and geothermal, biomass, solar and wind energy. Nuclear energy is also considered a possible option as an effective source of energy.

With continued increase in energy demand the challenges in formulating policies towards providing affordable and sustainable energy services is enormous, ESCAP says. The possible range of options might include fuel switching, demand-side management and energy conservation.

Future energy systems should be environmentally sound, the report added. Private companies, consumer organizations and other NGOs could significantly assist in influencing consumer behavior towards selecting energy efficient equipment and appliances. The important role of NGOs and consumer organizations in promoting energy efficiency through creating public awareness was emphasized.