Oahu to host Blue Planet Summit

HONOLULU
Oahu to host Blue Planet Summit

By Lynda Arakawa
Advertiser Staff Writer

Dozens of local and national energy experts, environmentalists, business leaders and others are scheduled to gather on O'ahu in April to discuss ways to increase renewable energy programs.

The three-day Blue Planet Summit, planned by Honolulu-based nonprofit Blue Planet Foundation, aims to foster and bring attention to clean energy initiatives in Hawai'i and around the world.

"We want to see what we can do to help Hawai'i become that model for clean energy elsewhere," said Stephen Reed, executive director of the Blue Planet Foundation.

"If Hawai'i can help show how these things can be done in a way that's economical, that's environmentally friendly, then you can export that concept, that technology, that business model to other places."

Reed said the summit will be an annual event here. The summit — to be held at the JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa — is expected to include about 60 participants, including environmentalist Robert F. Kennedy Jr., National Geographic Society explorer Elizabeth Kapu'uwailani Lindsey, former U.S. Congressman Pete McCloskey, Stanford University environmental studies professor Stephen H. Schneider, and Bullitt Foundation CEO and coordinator of the first Earth Day Denis Hayes.

U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye and University of Hawai'i President David McClain are also scheduled to participate.

The summit will be closed to the public, but part of the event will be taped to air nationally on public television, and other segments will be recorded to be made available on either DVD or the foundation's Web site, or both, Reed said.

"We want to raise the level of the dialogue, to help the public be that much better informed about what the issues are," Reed said.

Inouye said in a statement that the summit "will provide a unique window on the world with Hawai'i in the spotlight for its diverse test beds in renewable energy efficiency, generation and distribution.

"In the end, we must each take a measure of personal responsibility to help ensure that what we leave succeeding generations is better than how we found it."

Reach Lynda Arakawa at larakawa@honoluluadvertiser.com.

UK: What's New from BERR, nuclear

10 January 2008: UK government invites new nuclear power into the energy mix

Building blocks for low carbon future outlined with publication of the Nuclear White Paper and Energy Bill

Energy companies were invited today to bring forward plans to build and operate new nuclear power stations as part of the UK’s strategy for a secure, diverse, low carbon energy mix.

The Government’s response to its nuclear consultation, in the form of a White Paper, was published alongside the Energy Bill which sets out a range of measures to address the twin challenges of tackling climate change and securing energy supplies.

• Nuclear White Paper/Energy Bill: press release
• Nuclear White Paper webpage
• The Future of Nuclear Power: The role of nuclear power in a low carbon UK economy website
• Energy Bill webpage

• Energy statistics: press release
• Energy Trends web page
• Quarterly Energy Prices web page

Earlier press releases can be found on the Central Office of Information (COI): News Distribution Services website.

UK: Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power

Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power

URN No: 08/525/A4

The Government published its Nuclear White Paper on 10 January 2008.

The White Paper set out the Government’s view that nuclear should be part of the UK’s low-carbon energy mix, that companies should have the option of building new nuclear power stations, and that the Government should take facilitative actions to enable this to happen.

Against the challenges of climate change and security of supply the Government believes that nuclear is an important part of our energy policy, alongside reducing our energy use, increasing renewables, and investing in new technologies.

The White Paper followed The Future of Nuclear Power: the role of nuclear power in a low carbon UK economy a public consultation on the future of nuclear power in the UK.

You can read the responses to the consultation by visiting the The Future of Nuclear Power consultation website.

Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power - full version

• Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power  (1022KB)

Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power - in sections

• Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power. Contents to overview  (231KB)
• Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power. Sections 1 to 3  (455KB)
• Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power. Annexes  (136KB)

Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on nuclear power - Welsh language version of the forewords and executive summary

• Ymateb i her ynni: papur gwyn ar bwˆ er niwclear  (607KB)
  URN 08/526

Footnotes

• The footnotes containing full web links can be found on the White Paper on Nuclear Power 2008: footnotes webpage.

Analysis of Consultation Responses

Full document

• The future of nuclear power: analysis of consultation responses  (6597KB)
  URN 08/534

In sections

• The future of nuclear power [analysis of consultation responses]. An overview of the consultation process (262KB)
• The future of nuclear power: [analysis of consultation responses]. Dialogue by Design analysis report: written responses to the public consultation  (835KB)
• The future of nuclear power: [analysis of consultation responses]. Opinion Leader analysis report on the findings from the deliberative events with members of the public  (3782KB)
• The future of nuclear power: [analysis of consultation responses]. Henley Centre HeadlightVision analysis of outputs from the nuclear consultation stakeholder meetings  (1347KB)

Other information

• Impact assessment of the Government's white paper on nuclear power  (146KB)
  URN 08/533
• Simplified flow diagram of UK energy supply and consumption 2006: shows the role of nuclear  (21KB)
  URN 08/527
• Annex A: Dialogue by Design analysis report on the future of nuclear power. Collation statistics  (277KB)
  URN 08/535
• Consultation on funded decommissioning programme guidance for new nuclear power stations  (99KB)
  URN 08/637

Facilitative actions

The facilitative actions set out in the White Paper are intended to enable companies to:

• Make planning applications from 2010
• Begin building new nuclear power stations from 2013 – 2014
• Bring them into operation from 2017 – 2020

A chart from the White Paper showing the timetable is available on page 136 of the white paper.