This article can be found at http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/29/science/earth/29fossil.html?pagewanted=1&ref=science
What if Americans produced more energy than they used? Though it may seem like an environmental fantasy, this is already underway in other parts of the world, including the subject of this story, Tocco Da Casauria, Italy. This small Italian city’s remarkable renewable energy program has greatly boosted its economy and improved public life. Surprisingly, the rest of the country has been slacking off: Italy is “not on track to meet either its European Union-mandated emissions-reduction target or its commitment to get 17 percent of its total power from renewable sources by 2020.” The success of this small town underlines the importance of local environmental change, and hopefully it will have a significant impact on policies across the country, and across the world.
“Tocco is now essentially energy independent from a financial standpoint, generating 30 percent more electricity than it uses,” writes the author, Elisabeth Rosenthal. She could have been more concise in this story, but the in-depth explanation of the way this town works is interesting, and certainly jaw-dropping to American readers—here in America, “electricity is cheap and government policy has favored setting minimum standards for the percentage of energy…[b]ut in countries where energy from fossil fuels is naturally expensive…renewable energy quickly starts to flow.” Tocco is just one example of a host of European towns who are well on their way towards total sustainability and environmental harmony. When will America reach these heights of sustainable practices and environmental consciousness present in Europe? Not anytime soon, it seems.
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