This is a guest post written by Marion Sebbage of epiphany
Despite the best efforts of UK citizens, charities and organizations
to highlight the importance of renewable energy across the nation, it seems
like the country is lagging behind neighbors not only in G20 nations, but
across the world as a whole. With this in mind, window treatments specialist
Direct Blinds - as part of its commitment to energy-saving technologies - has
created
the World Energy Rating infographic, demonstrating which
countries have made huge strides in the transferring of energy systems to
renewable power sources.
Using data gathered by the world-leading Yale Center for
Environmental Law and Policy, Direct Blinds was able to rank the top ten
countries in the world that have the highest percentage of energy production
that comes from renewable sources. On top of this, the company has highlighted
the ten nations that produce the smallest amount of carbon dioxide for each
kilowatt-hour of energy created.
Perhaps surprisingly, Paraguay headed to the top of both lists,
given that all of its power needs are directly sourced from hydroelectricity;
this effectively means it creates no carbon dioxide per unit of energy. On top
of this, the forward-thinking people of Norway and Iceland are also able to
boast about the renewable energy options they have, which meet nearly all of
their electricity needs.
However, Direct Blinds was able to underline how so-called
'less-developed' nations are putting many of their more economically-sound
counterparts to shame. These include Mozambique (99.92 per cent renewable
energy provision), Zambia (99.69 per cent) and the Democratic Republic of Congo
(99.5 per cent).
Ultimately, the Direct Blinds infographic discovered that the UK's
carbon output per kilowatt-hour is roughly in the middle of the scale for the
G20, yet only 3.92 per cent of its energy comes from renewable sources; this
puts it third-bottom of the table, ahead of only South Africa and the oil-rich
Saudi Arabia.
Of course, the company is keen to highlight the ways that homeowners
can reduce their own carbon footprint by looking at the way they reduce the
amount of energy used, however high or low renewable energy usage is in the UK.
Alongside Direct Blinds' offering of energy-saving blinds - capable of
retaining heat in the home - people may also want to consider the addition of
insulation and double glazing to where they live. Given that winter's just
around the corner - and we all know how cold it can be - it may be best for you
to invest in your warmth. You never know, you may just save yourself a lot of
money.
