Ingenieur Vol.81 January-March 2020 | Page 52

INGENIEUR FEATURE Sustainable Energy Management Environmentalism Vs Consumerism By Ir. Rocky H.T. Wong The UN Brundtland Commission, 1987, defined Sustainable Development as “Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Sustainable Energy is Malaysia’s “5 th Fuel” that is, Energy Efficiency (EE) on the Demand Side and Renewable Energy (RE) on the Supply Side of the Energy Equation. You cannot have one without the other. Sustainable Fuel is a conjoined twin unlike the four other fuels that make up our Nation’s policy on energy mix for electricity generation, i.e. oil, gas, coal and hydro (besides micro- or mini-hydro that come under the 5 th Fuel (RE) classification). Sustainable Energy Management forms a part of the universal green agenda for our Planet to attain sustainable development – a shared concern of mankind. Sustainable Development is Environmentalism. Consumption by the living (such as humans, animals, plants etc.) creates Consumerism – to satisfy need, but not greed! So, are Environmentalism and Consumerism compatible? Can Environmentalism and Consumerism be Compatible? When dealing with sustainable energy management, we are in effect dealing with broader environmental issues of universal concern. In that instance what readily comes to mind are issues relating to the commonly recognised and understood “3R’s”, they are: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. But is that all there is to it? Because there are also the “3E’s” which together define, in some manner, the holistic approach in understanding complex environmental issues: ● Ecology (the impact) ● Economics (the consequence) ● Equality (affects all without discrimination, meaning inclusiveness) Pollution brings about environmental issues and challenges. We have to understand the contributing factors to pollution. The issues are referred to as “3P’s”: ● People ● Priorities ● Politics It is “people” — the ever-increasing population of the world who have an insatiable hunger for more global resources than Mother Earth can provide — who are depleting the finite over time. Mother Earth understands our need, but not our greed. To slow down the rate of consumption, Governments of the world and global bodies e.g. the United Nations (UN), World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Trade Organisation (WTO), etc., faced with unchecked demands, will have to prioritise their efforts to contribute towards sustainable development. Intervention into the sincere and businesslike attempts to rank priorities is usually politics driven. Those with power, either by the mandate of the people, or the mandate of haven, will have a say in the merit-order ranking of priorities. It is evident everywhere and over the spectrum of 50 VOL 81 JANUARY-MARCH 2020