Chinese President Hu Jintao and U.S. and European officials called Monday for a sharp rise in the world's use of solar and other nonpolluting power sources as they opened an international meeting on renewable energy. Some 1,200 delegates from 80 countries joined Chinese leaders at the Great Hall of the People, the seat of China's legislature in central Beijing, to discuss using solar power, wind energy and hydropower instead of coal and oil. "Strengthening the development and use of renewable energies is a must for us to address the increasingly serious energy and environmental issues," Hu said in a statement that was read to the conference by Vice Premier Zeng Peiyan. Participants in the conference included European Cabinet ministers and U.S. Energy Department officials.
