As of: 12.05.2006

• Title: Modern Environmental Policy and Energy Security

• Speaker: Federal Environmental Minister Sigmar Gabriel
• Occasion: Luncheon at the American Council on Germany in cooperation with the Friedrich Ebert Foundation
• Date/Location: 12.05.2006, New York

Ladies and gentlemen,

We are currently experiencing a renaissance of environmental policy. Unlike in the 1970s, this is not only due to the massive environmental problems that are drastically increasing in intensity and frequency all over the world.

• Climate change is advancing at a more rapid pace than was predicted years ago. Its consequences are already a reality.
• The exploitation of natural resources is increasing.
• The continuing loss of biodiversity and the destruction of tropical forests are alarming.

This poses a threat to the natural basis of life and the development opportunities of current and future generations.

The real reason for the current renaissance of environmental policy is, however, the economic pressure resulting from rising energy prices. With an oil price of more than 75 U.S. dollars per barrel, only a global revolution in efficiency can guarantee medium-term energy security.

More than 9 billion people would not be able to cover their energy and resource needs with the currently dominant technologies.

India has doubled its oil consumption since 1992. China has been the second largest importer of oil since 2004. Industrialised countries and emerging countries are currently competing for the same resources. This affects the price development and poses incalculable risks for foreign and security policy. These risk scenarios are well known, Sudan is one of them. Nor is nuclear power an alternative - uranium is also a raw material with a limited range and has a high potential for conflict, as we are currently witnessing with the situation in Iran.

However, it is important to point out that countries such as China and India have not caused these problems.

India and the China have as much right to development and prosperity as we do. The reason for these problems lies in the OECD countries themselves:

• We are still not using energy and resources efficiently enough and
• our technologies, our production processes and our products do not merit the label 'sustainable'.

Instead of setting a good example of energy and resource efficiency to developing and emerging countries we are wasting energy and raw materials.

Yet there is huge interest in an efficiency revolution in the emerging countries in particular. China recently initiated the introduction of the green gross domestic product and is aiming for a "society of energy saving and environmental protection" with a circular economy, energy saving and the increased use of renewable energies. China reaffirmed this here at the U.N. last week.

At the Sino-German Environmental Forum in Qingdao in January 2006 we agreed on a strategic partnership with China on a circular economy, sustainable energy policy and renewable energies. For we strongly believe that industrialised countries and emerging countries have to work together towards a global revolution in efficiency. No one side - neither the OECD countries nor the emerging countries - will be able to master the energy and raw material crises alone.

There is growing awareness worldwide that modern environmental policy does not conflict with successful economic policy. Economies that promote energy and resource efficiency in good time improve their chances of prosperity in the long term. Protecting the natural foundations of life is a prerequisite for maintaining a well-functioning economy.

The visible impacts of climate change and the depletion of natural resources clearly illustrate this. The reinsurance sector has long been a key protagonist for intensified efforts in the field of climate protection.

Public pressure on governments in industrialised countries is growing - here in the U.S. too. There is increasing awareness of how vulnerable highly industrialised countries such as the U.S. and Germany are when it comes to energy issues.

We have to move away from oil and from dependence on fossil energies.

We have to move towards renewable energies, which are available in unlimited supplies. We have to expand the use of wind energy, hydropower, solar energy, biomass and geothermal energy - not only for electricity production, but for heat production and fuels too.

Furthermore, we have to take a quantum leap with regard to the efficient management and use of energies and resources.

By 2030, around 17 trillion U.S. dollars must be invested in energy supply systems worldwide. To achieve this we need investment security and incentives. The Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto Protocol are the right approach. The international climate regime must now swiftly create ambitious framework conditions for the post-2012 period on the basis of the decisions taken in Montreal. Our goal must be to limit the rise in the global temperature to a maximum of 2 degrees Celsius compared with pre-industrial times.

If not, our planet’s ecological balance will be irreversibly damaged. The consequences would be more severe than most people would currently like to imagine.

Climate change is a threat to our entire planet. It is already claiming human lives. It is burdening us with incalculable costs. The countries that are least responsible for climate change are the ones that are suffering most from the consequences.

We therefore have to promote cooperation between countries that possess new energy technologies and countries that would like to use them. The Kyoto Protocol’s Clean Development Mechanism is an excellent, cost-effective tool for this. Germany plans to considerably expand CDM cooperation to ensure a rapid reduction in climate gas emissions in as many regions of the world as possible. To facilitate a future-oriented energy supply and sustainable economic growth.

Industry has a key role to play. By investing in resource- and energy-efficient production methods companies can achieve more than some governments.

Fund managers should make use of the opportunities available to support enterprises acting with particular environmental awareness by placing corresponding emphasis on such companies in fund portfolios.

A responsible, ambitious environmental policy is the basis for sustainable industrial development. A circular economy, resource and energy efficiency and the increased use of renewable energies are the right answer to rising global market prices for energy and raw materials. Binding targets, legislative provisions, economic incentives and effective controls are vital for increasing energy and resource efficiency.

Environmental policy thus makes a crucial contribution to energy security, to sustainable development for 9 billion people and to reducing the causes of conflicts.