"In the United Kingdom, we have 460,000 [employed] in the new low carbon sector… It is the fastest growing sector in the British economy, and it is growing exponentially," King said at the largest business-focused side event of the Paris climate conference.
Based on the Climate Action program and the UN Environment Program (UNEP), the innovation forum is focused mainly on the emerging green economy.
The growth experienced by the low carbon sector is largely due to innovation, King said, emphasizing the importance of private sector investment in the area. "The idea is to achieve cheaper energy form non fossil fuel energy sources, and we need innovative ideas," he added, noting that some differences have emerged over the private-public balance in renewable resource investment.
The UK's Microgeneration and Local Energy Bill 2008 has paved the way for rapid growth in domestic green energy generation, as well as for a number of microgeneration startups. Over 3.5 GW of power is generated in the UK using microgenerator technologies, according to the microgeneration certification scheme.
