Draft #2 Summary_Reader Response: "How can Southeast Asia’s clean energy transition be sped up?"
In the article “How can Southeast Asia’s clean energy
transition be sped up?”, Daubach (2019) addressed the challenges faced with the
transition towards clean energy, and discussed possible solutions to help
accelerate the consumption of clean energy in the region, which were mentioned
at Temasek’s Ecosperity conference. The author stated that Southeast Asia is a
region with diverse stages of development, where a single solution is not
applicable to the entire region. The article also stated that Southeast Asia is
the only region in the world where the dependence on coal to produce power has
increased, contributing to the production of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas,
into the atmosphere. The article also mentioned Singapore, where utilizing
conventional forms of clean energy on a large scale may not be suitable. The
article then highlighted nuclear fusion, which has great potential due to its
advantages. However, reducing the usage of energy is equally important, which
can be achieved through district cooling. In addition, businesses and policymakers
should form closer partnerships to reduce cost in key sectors, in order to
accelerate the use of clean energy.
While the challenges and solutions discussed were insightful,
the author failed to explain other essential considerations related to fusion
power, and give examples on how businesses and policymakers could work together
to accelerate the use of clean energy.
The author explained the advantages of nuclear fusion, and
mentioned that existing nuclear fusion facilities are not capable enough to
generate electricity on a large scale. However, there are other aspects that
the author did not cover. For instance, the potential health risk involved with
nuclear fusion. While nuclear fusion does not produce long lasting radioactive
materials, there is a possibility of tritium being released into the
environment. Tritium is radioactive and difficult to contain, as it is able to
infiltrate certain materials like, concrete, rubber and even steel. It also
mixes well with water, and can enter a person’s body through several ways, like
being inhaled, eaten or being absorbed through the skin. Even though there is a
small quantity of tritium in the reactor, huge amounts could be released during
normal operations through leaks, and an accident could release even more
tritium. Fusion reactors also pose several issues, for instance, a large “parasitic
power consumption”. This means that a substantial amount of the power produced,
is being used by the reactor.
Apart from the potential health risk, the public's “receptibility”
is also essential, as certain parts of the region may not be comfortable with
the use of nuclear power. For example, in Malaysia and Thailand, the public’s
acceptance towards nuclear power continues to be low. Nuclear accidents have
also occurred in the past, like the Fukushima Daichi nuclear power accident
which took place in Japan in the year 2011. This incident has highlighted the
issue of nuclear power safety, and has continued to be the public’s most
pressing concern.
The article also states that policymakers and business
should work together to speed up the usage of clean energy. However, it does
not give examples as to how both parties can work together to meet this goal.
One way to achieve this goal is through establishing a training centre. This
could create opportunities for businesses to share their ideas with
policymakers, to help them better understand renewable energy. For
instance, the Sustainable Energy Association of Singapore (SEAS) and Asian
Development Bank (ADB) have launched a training centre, which will train
government officials in the region on policy, financial, and technological
issues relating to clean energy in an effort to help countries accelerate their
usage of renewable energy.
Although the solutions discussed by the author has the
potential to speed up the consumption of clean energy in Southeast Asia, a more
comprehensive consideration of the solutions should be made.
(630 words)
References
Daubach, T.
(2019, July 19). How can Southeast Asia's clean energy transition be sped up?
Retrieved from https://www.eco-business.com/news/how-can-southeast-asias-clean-energy-transition-be-sped-up/
Nuclear
Fusion Power. (2019, July). Retrieved September 27, 2019, from https://www.world-nuclear.org/information-library/current-and-future-generation/nuclear-fusion-power.aspx.
Putra, N.
A., & Andrews-Speed, P. (2018, June 28). Prospects for Nuclear Power in
ASEAN. Retrieved September 28, 2019, from https://thediplomat.com/2018/06/prospects-for-nuclear-power-in-asean/.
Jassby, D.
(2017, April 19). Fusion reactors: Not what they're cracked up to be. Retrieved
September 28, 2019, from https://thebulletin.org/2017/04/fusion-reactors-not-what-theyre-cracked-up-to-be/.
Shah, V.,
& Chaem, J. (2015, March 26). Meeting Southeast Asia's ambitious clean
energy targets. Retrieved September 28, 2019, from https://www.eco-business.com/news/meeting-southeast-asias-ambitious-clean-energy-targets/.
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