Eng. Abdelhamid participated in the 8th International Energy Symposium organized by our national member, the Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects on 17 and 18 November 2011. He made a speech at the protocol session in which he expressed his honor to address such a distinguished group of high-ranking engineers, industry leaders, planners and key decision-makers, who have come from the various parts of the world to discuss one of the most important energy issues; “the global and regional energy politics and their impact on Turkey’s policies and strategies,” and the means for better utilization and marketing of energy.
He presented WFEO as the international non-governmental organization representing the engineering profession worldwide that was founded in 1968 by a group of regional engineering organizations, under the auspices of UNESCO, a respected and valuable source of advice and guidance on the policies, interests and concerns that relate to engineering and technology to human and natural environment.
Leaving the technical issues for discussions during the specialized sessions of the symposium, Eng Abdelhamid made a few remarks regarding energy and energy planning, mentioning that the era of inexpensive energy has been over for
sometimes which means that both industrial and developing countries are forced to enter a new era involving new energy mixes and energy consumption patterns.
The future options for more energy supply are numerous. In the case of developing countries the option to move towards nuclear energy is not rational because of the technology and the capital required. Large hydro-power projects are
possible but the large capital required and the fact that potential rivers cross several countries pose many difficulties. Furthermore, future expansion in the use of fuel-wood should not only be prevented, but it should be curbed down. All this points to the fact that renewable energy such as, hydro-power, solar and wind energies are among the best rational options.
As the new Middle East region starts to take shape, it is moving towards a new path seeking political and economical solutions involving multilateral and regional cooperation. The economic issues involved here can no longer be treated one by one in isolation of others. Thus, the long-lasting solutions and prosperity in this region can only come true if the components of energy, water, environment, democracy, refugees, disarmament, mass demographic movements and labor, including labor compensatory facilities can be treated as interactive components of one regional system where the whole region takes a share in providing the necessary input for development.
Meeting the world’s growing demand on energy services and at the same time addressing serious concerns about greenhouse gas contributions to the climate change are enormous challenges today. This has been realized in September 2011 by the WFEO in what is now known as “WFEO-Geneva Declaration.” In summary, the Declaration includes the following four points:
1-To guarantee a good quality of life for everyone, all available energy sources must be considered. Grater energy efficiency will slow down growth in energy demand but will entail costs that are not necessarily negligible.
2-The use of any given technology requires a thorough analysis of the technological, economical, and environmental feasibility of implementing scientifically sound and efficiently engineered solutions.
3-The technologies we need to supply energy for substantially improving global quality of life are available or at an advanced stage of development or are currently being demonstrated. The goal is to secure a low-carbon energy supply. If the
+2-degree C (degree centigrade) target is to be met, it is important that Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions-and CO2 (carbon dioxide) emissions in particular- be drastically reduced during the production and consumption of different forms of energy.
4-Switching to a low-carbon economy will take substantial investment and time. In transport sector, modifying unsustainable energy consumption patterns will necessitate difficult social adjustments.
Eng. Abdelhamid wished the organizers and participants success and indicated that WFEO stands ready to help in any way.
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