Sir Nicholas Stern said carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology is essential.

Speaking at a members’ meeting of the Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute in the US last week, Stern said that CCS “it isn’t optional… it’s essential.” He added that the technology must be developed alongside renewable energy, given the world’s evergrowing demand for energy.

Stern said the risks of backing CCS are worth it because of the dire need for any and all carbon reducing technologies. “We need everything here,” he said.

Stern is an influential economist but has also garnered particular interest for his views on climate change and energy issues since the publication of the “Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change” in 2006.

The Review found that any costs incurred by tackling climate change far outweight the costs of inaction.