German official says U.S. at competitive disadvantage in renewable energy race

(Photo of German wind farm from Flickr and photographer Dirk Ingo Franke).

News Update: We’ve gotten ourselves into quite a bind. Reluctant to embrace alternatives to fossil fuels, the U.S. now lags far behind Europe in renewable energy technology. The German deputy environment minister said this competitive disadvantage makes America less likely to welcome international agreements to fight global warming. Last year the European Union produced 10% of its electricity from renewable sources, double the percentage in the United States. Germany, a world leader in use of renewables, got a record 18% of its electricity from renewable sources in 2007. We may find ourselves falling further behind instead of grabbing a piece of the alternative energy business. Time to wake up. For starters, extend renewable tax credits to encourage investment. Then we can pass that RES (renewable electricity standard) the Senate squelched by 1 vote last year. (PlanetArk)