Synergistic impacts on social benefits, including health care, income equity, and rural development, positively combine with economic development resulting from improved and efficient use of financial resources and a cleaner local, regional, and global environment. Building a strong foundation of diverse supply, clean generation and efficient use leads to continuous improvement for health, wealth, and environmental prosperity for all citizens. Rationalization of the fuel mix for power generation is evolving throughout our hemisphere. Nuclear energy capacity additions, though important, are relatively modest. How we harness this energy to produce electric power involves thoughtful consideration of acceptable economic and environmental impacts that can be managed through the full range of clean energy options.
Electricity is one of the most dynamic and widespread energy sources in the hemisphere.
The region's energy dynamics are characterized by increasingly rapid growth of demand in lesser developed countries with electricity consumption accelerating to become a larger percentage of total energy demand. Increasing use of electricity as a primary energy provider results from the efforts of governments to electrify countries, increasing industrialization, and the quality of life improvements associated with home lighting and appliance use. There is a wide spectrum of clean energy options that are commercially available today with others at various stages of research and development. These options, with their key economic, environmental and technical parameters, are discussed. The current situation, as well as a road map to expedite full consideration of these clean energy options, are presented.