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Most of the technologies that could reduce greenhouse gases are not only expensive but would need to be embraced on a global scale, scientists say. Many projections for 2030 include as many as 1 million wind turbines worldwide; enough solar panels to cover half of New Jersey, massive reforestation; a major retooling of the global auto industry; as many as 400 power plants fitted with pricey equipment to capture carbon dioxide and store it underground; and, most controversial, perhaps 350 new nuclear plants around the world.

Ramping up the use of renewable energy would lead to the "rape of nature", meaning nuclear power should be developed instead.

IN WONKISH circles, energy efficiency used to be known as “the fifth fuel”: it can help to satisfy growing demand for energy just as surely as coal, gas, oil or uranium can. But in these environmentally conscious times it has been climbing the rankings. Whereas the burning of fossil fuels releases greenhouse gases, which contribute to global warming, and nuclear plants generate life-threatening waste, the only by-product of energy efficiency is wealth, in the form of lower fuel bills and less spending on power stations, pipelines and so forth. No wonder that wonks now tend to prefer “negawatts” to megawatts as the best method of slaking the world's growing thirst for energy.

natural gas is okay but it's not ideal. It still emits greenhouse gases and NOx. It's also becoming more volatile and is likely to become much more expensive over the coming years. Also, the power mix in Ontario will become cleaner over the next decade -- no coal, more nuclear, hydroelectric, wind and natural gas. So there's an argument that heating your home with electricity could be cleaner than using natural gas, if you can do it efficiently -- in other words, if you can find a better way than using resistance heating.

a 34-year-old engineer who was a cryogenics expert with the U.S. Navy, realized that conventional air-source heat pumps that are popular in the U.S. south do not perform well in cold climates and are therefore not economical. So he went ahead and built his own, called Acadia, and it can operate efficiently down to minus 30 degrees C.