About Energy
Energy underpins virtually every aspect of our economy and day-to-day lives. However, the use of fossil fuels, which currently provide the bulk of our energy, releases greenhouse gases (such as carbon dioxide) into the atmosphere. Due to factors such as population growth and changes in lifestyle, the demand for energy has increased to levels where the burning of fossil fuels is releasing enough greenhouse gases into the atmosphere to begin to directly affect our climate system.
There is now a scientific consensus that climate change is real and a threat to the world we live in. The UK is currently responsible for the release of around 3 per cent of the world's global greenhouse gas emissions, despite having only 1 per cent of the world's population. UK energy industries are the largest single contributors to UK greenhouse gas emissions, contributing over a third (54 million tonnes) of the total amount of carbon dioxide emitted in the UK.
To help lessen the effects of climate change, we must reduce the level of greenhouse gases emitted. This can be achieved by generating our energy from sources that emit low or even zero levels of greenhouse gases, such as renewable energy. We can also make sure that we use energy as efficiently as possible.