Environment | Forum encourages regional cooperation for green economy

Ambrose So

Appeals for regional collaboration have spilled over into an annual forum held to promote the application of renewable energy and innovative efforts. Ideas discussed in the forum were aimed towards achieving a sustainable environment in the future and cutting carbon emissions.
On the sidelines of the fourth edition of the International Forum for Clean Energy, held yesterday at the Sands Cotai Central, the event’s director-general, Ambrose So, urged the government to jump on the global bandwagon of developing clean energy by expanding cooperation with mainland authorities.
“We have been talking about regional cooperation in recent years, so why not expand it into the clean energy realm as well?” he stressed.
His advice came after a brief talk with the mainland scholar He Zuoxiu, an experienced researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences who has introduced a concept that combines wind, solar and hydraulic technologies in order to produce power. The concept is already being adopted across China, He Zuoxiu noted.
However, the use of such technology has yet to take hold. The scientist noted that the forum allowed the Chinese representatives in attendance to interact with their European counterparts on enhancing the model, which will require cooperation between government departments in the long run. According to He, currently each natural resource application is separately governed by different Chinese agencies on the mainland.
“And now it’s time for them to come together to complement one other and make it work better,” he mentioned.
The scholar’s appeal appears in the 2015 Blue Book of Clean Energy, a compilation of updated findings from research conducted by experts on an ongoing basis. It is one of the main features of the annual event, which takes place every year, and its contents were handed in to the mainland policymakers for their reference.
With China recently pledging to lower its carbon emissions at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris, He said that the nation has gravitated away from nuclear power in favor of natural sources of power.
Apart from that, it was said that Macau should increase its reliance on electricity-powered vehicles in order to align with the nation’s strategic vision. The forum’s director, who also serves as the head of the SJM Holdings Limited, promised to exchange his casinos’ shuttle coaches for more environmental-friendly vehicles if they are available for rent in the market despite increased operational costs.
“You have to give up a bit to achieve the idea of environmental protection, but it would do good for the environment in return,” Ambrose So said, while citing a mainland model that travels 180 kilometers on a 20-minute-recharge battery. He also called on the government to push for the adoption of green vehicles.
In addition, So claimed that, for the time being, all gaming operators have already made considerable headway in cutting down on carbon emissions, which is reflected in their lighting of choice and overall architectural design.