Britain

The British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) has unveiled new data on the nation's wind power industry, and it's a mix of good and bad news.

Europe's third largest electricity market passed the 4 gigawatt (GW) milestone for installed wind power capacity. The latest GW was added in less than a year, a big improvement over the 14 years it took to install the first GW.

"Deployment of wind is rapidly accelerating," the BWEA said.

Still, the windiest nation in Europe has a long, long way to go to catch up with competitors on the continent. Germany, which has one of the worst wind resources in Europe, has an installed capacity of 25 GW. No. 2 Spain is at roughly 17 GW.

For now, the BWEA says 12 GW are either operational or in the British pipeline. That puts wind squarely on track to beat out nuclear power in installed capacity by 2012. Another 9 GW worth of turbines is awaiting approval. If they get the go ahead, the UK will be two-thirds of the way to its 30 GW wind energy target by 2020.

That's a big if.

After a disappointing UN climate summit speech that expounded on the dangers of global warming but offered no new U.S. commitments to stop it, President Obama has one more chance this week to take charge as a climate leader as the international action moves to Pittsburgh for a two-day G20 meeting.

When Obama organized the Pittsburgh gathering of the world's wealthiest nations, he tasked the G20 finance ministers with developing a plan for rich countries to help developing nations deploy clean energy and adapt to climate change.

The divide between developed and developing nations over that funding has become one of the largest barriers to a new climate agreement at Copenhagen in December.

It also appears to be increasingly pushed down the G20 agenda, behind the global economic recovery and even bankers' bonuses. Rather than financing, President Obama has focused his G20 statements on a new proposal to phase out fossil fuel subsidies instead.

"It's time for heads of state to step up as world leaders and start putting adequate figures on the tables," said Barbara Stocking, CEO of Oxfam Great Britain, whose group is calling for a commitment of $150 billion a year for developing nations.

"We do not have the luxury of time with climate change. Too long have these negotiations been treated like trade talks, with countries watching out for their own individual interests."