Most arguments I hear opposing clean energy, are to do with reliability. What happens when the wind doesn't blow, or the sun doesn't shine, or the oceans are becalmed?
There is nothing to prevent the use of multiple technologies that compliment each other and provide certainty of power generation. That includes having gas or diesel as a backup. I have worked on islands where the sole source of power is diesel generation. It is very expensive and will be even moreso in the future. If clean energy can provide power, 90% of the time, then the use of fossil fuel has been reduced in a significant way?
Reliable energy and freshwater have the ability to open up all kinds of industries in places where it was not possible before. Archipelgos, such as Indonesia, the Phillipines and the West Indies are prime examples where reliance on fossil fuel transported by ships is restraining development. Likewise those nations require freshwater, with those resources they can advance and create wealth without relying on handouts from developed nations.
