KUWAIT: Green is a color that now symbolizes all environmentally friendly policies, whether these are accredited by global organization such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) or employed by governments to tackle the environmental crisis that we face today. Some of us might wonder where Kuwait stands in relation to countries that plan to enable citizens and expatriates to obtain at least 20 percent of their daily electricity quota from natural renewable recourses, such as Britain or s
ome states in the United States.

This tiny oil-rich country has the potential for providing massive renewable energy sources, but what it lacks is professional departments dedicated to dealing with this in any ministry, not to mention any ministry specifically established to deal with these critical issues, even with the constant concerns over the possibility of subsequent oil shortages.

Recently, there has been a lot of talk about a joint report from Kuwait University researchers and the Kuwait Oil Company, entitled 'Forecasting World Crude Oil Production Using Multicyclic Hubbert Model,' which predicts 2014 as being the fateful year when conventional crude oil production will peak.

If Peak Oil is this close, then, why are we failing to adapt? One reason might be widespread ignorance of the basics of environmentalism. Some people might not realize what terms such as 'green building' actually mean, with such critically important terminology missing from even our modern textbooks. This has led to a common unawareness of the global ecological crises and a consequent lack of any consideration for these urgent problems, such as global warming and pollution, which in turn will lead to furth
er amplification of these problems.

The fact that less than 40 percent of Kuwait's land area is developed, however, offers the country a wider range of options for utilizing such alternative, eco-friendly power resources here and using methods that could make a real difference in the long term. Kuwait has just begun to take this issue seriously, with both the Ministry of Electricity and Water and the Ministry of Oil seriously examining ways of being more environmentally friendly. In addition to dedicating a higher percentage of the budget to
'green' concerns, Kuwait has the ability to develop a new sector to handle environmental issues and pass on a more environmentally sound, healthier country to future generations.

While Kuwait could be seen at present as a grey country, with increased awareness, willpower and determination it could become 'green' through developing its environmentally friendly natural power resources, whether wind, solar or biomass. - Kuwait Times