Maldives wants to become the first country to go carbon neutral

Mohamed Nasheed, the president of the Maldives, an island in the Indian Ocean, has declared that he wants to become the first country in the world to go carbon neutral, in ten years. The rising seas caused by climate change could put the island nation under water by the end of this year.

Mohamed Nasheed wants other countries to follow his example, and will formally announce it tonight after a screening of 'The Age of Stupid', which is a film about a man living in 2055 who looks back on 2008 and wonders why people didn't stop climate change when they had the chance.

Two British climate change experts, Chris Goodall and Mark Lynas, came up with the ten year plan, which includes a renewable electricity generaion using wind turbines, solar power and a biomass plant. Battery banks would provide back-up if these other methods could not work. Everything would be powered this way, including cars, homes and boats.

The Maldives is one of the world's lowest countries, with a population of 385,000 and if the sea even rose only one metre the whole country could be lost.
Norway wants to be carbon neutral by 2030, but the Maldives is really on the front line of climate change as such a small change could affect it.
The cost of the project is going to be about $110 million a year, but they are confident they will make that back quick as they will no longer need to import any energy measures.

The President said: