Tag Archives: green
Jonathan Elliott – Can The UK Be A Green Energy Giant?
Posted on 09 July 2013 by ELN reporter That’s one of the big questions the nation faces right now – and from the looks it, with renewable energy projects cropping up all over the UK, the potential for rapid growth is strong. The emphasis on cutting carbon emissions and ramping up the UK’s green credentials is hardly a secret: the government has targets to meet and there are EU goals and industry calls for investment to boot. But I wonder if the country will capitalise on its potential to become a world leader. We may be a dominant force when it comes to offshore wind – but surely that’s to be expected from an island with our infrastructural and financial assets. Keep it fresh – look beyond offshore wind turbines I believe we should have one eye on continuing to build up our vast arrays of turbines and another on fresh initiatives. It strikes me there are some genuinely exciting examples to point to right now. Take the Swansea Bay Tidal Lagoon initiative. This is a plan to invest £650 million on harnessing power from the ebb and flow of the tide. Developers say the lagoon would be the first of its type anywhere in the world, able to supply Swansea’s entire domestic electricity needs and run for more than 120 years. While the project is still very much in its infancy it’s generating a huge amount of interest. It’s easy to understand why. The company says it will save an estimated 216,000 tonnes of CO2 a year – as much as taking 81,000 cars off the UK’s roads every year and could provide 3,600 construction jobs. The lagoon’s appeal notches up even further if you think about similar projects it could inspire in other areas of the UK coastline. Obviously this is all speculation – much depends on the developers getting financial backing, not to mention approval from the relevant authorities. But early signs are undeniably encouraging. With plans for the facility to be operational by 2017, the ambition is clearly there. Watch this space. Digest this – a new UK-wide anaerobic digestion network Elsewhere, keep an eye on an adventurous programme by Tamar Energy. They want to create a network of 40 anaerobic digestion (AD) power plants in the UK – and all by 2018. With four stations set to become operational in 2014 and another 14 sites in various stages of development, the firm seems dedicated to meeting its ambitious target. If successful, their AD sites will produce enough electricity and gas to power more than 200,000 homes. What’s more, with the plants using organic waste to generate renewable energy, Tamar’s project is an effective waste management solution for local authorities. A renewables revolution – but is the backing there? Notwithstanding the role private firms have to play in driving a potential renewables revolution in the UK, government support for the sector remains crucial. With cutbacks on the agenda and austerity the theme of many a spending review, we’d be forgiven for concerns that clean energy firms may not get the backing they desire. Still, there are some promising signs. Greg Barker, Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change, recently told the Intersolar Conference in Germany that the UK “has a reformed, robust and fully-financed support framework for renewables, set all the way to 2020 and beyond”. In the latest Spending Review the Chancellor announced an extra £800 million worth of funding will be pumped into the Green Investment Bank. Finally, the Scottish government recently opted to introduce new subsidies designed to make it less expensive to develop offshore wind farms: the backing is there to provide carbon-neutral businesses with a platform to build. If the majority are dedicated to clean power and the UK continues to dedicate itself to renewables then the nation could well establish itself as a global giant in the green energy arena in the coming years. Imagine the economic benefits in store as the driver of that bandwagon. Jonathan Elliott is the MD of Make It Cheaper , which helps small businesses save money on energy and other bills. If you would like to get a quote on your energy needs, please call 0800 158 5265. Continue reading
UN Carbon Market Scheme Passes 7000 Project Mark
Last updated on 8 July 2013, 10:07 am By Ed King The world’s largest emissions trading scheme has passed the 7000 project mark, despite continued concerns over its viability and a collapse in carbon prices. The Clean Development Mechanism’s newest project is a biogas capture plant in a Philippine chicken farm, which will reduce emissions by 48,000 tonnes, equivalent to 10,000 cars. The news is welcome boost to the UN, which runs the CDM under the Kyoto Protocol. One thousand new projects have been accepted since February, but certified emission reductions (CERs) prices remain low, having dropped 90% in 2013. Biogas is produced by the anaerobic digestion with bacteria or fermentation of biodegradable materials such as manure, sewage & crops “Despite unfavourable market conditions, the CDM continues to provide a mechanism for real emission reductions and real sustainable development for those who wish to use it,” said Peer Stiansen, Chair of the CDM Executive Board. “The Board will continue its efforts to make the CDM the best tool it can be to reduce emissions and spur development, but Parties must do their part and set ambitious emission reduction targets to incentivize climate action and these types of green growth projects.” The CDM currently operates in 88 developing countries, allowing companies in the industrialised world to invest in emission reducing projects in developing countries and earn carbon credits in the process. Over the past decade the CDM has spurred more than USD 215 billion of low-carbon investment in developing countries, issued credits equal to 1.3 billion tonnes of CO2, and added more than 110,000 Mega Watts of renewable energy to global electricity grids. But with governments setting low emission reduction targets, the demand for credits has collapsed, leading to calls for the market to be saved with a $2.5 billion bailout. Speaking to RTCC two weeks ago, Joan MacNaughton, vice chair of the high-level policy dialogue that reviewed potential solutions to the CDM’s predicament in 2012, said the CDM would likely play a vital role in any global emissions deal agreed in 2015 and needed to be helped. “The fund is a temporary, interim means to ensure we can retain its functionality,” MacNaughton said. “The real solution is in increasing the demand for offset credits and that means higher levels of ambition on emission reductions by the parties and reaching that agreement will take some time. “Until we get an agreement on a new mechanism and higher [mitigation] ambition, then we will be able to take advantage of these projects. “All of this is not about maintaining the market for its own sake. It’s about retaining it as a means to an end, which is reducing greenhouse gases. Without it the wound continues to bleed.” – See more at: http://www.rtcc.org/…h.unadivFg.dpuf Continue reading
Breath Of Life For Europe’s Emissions Scheme
Whether Europe can truly fix its broken emissions trading system remains to be seen, but for now, at least, it isn’t prepared to see the thing die. Instituted in 2005, the Emissions Trading System was intended as a key mechanism for driving down the amount of CO2 that EU countries were spewing into the atmosphere. The idea was that over time, the ceiling would gradually be lowered, in the process allowing market forces to find the best emissions-reducing mechanisms as companies traded permits to release greenhouse gases. But then the Great Recession happened. Slow economic growth (and even retraction) since 2008 has left Europe awash in carbon allowances, with prices too low to incentivize investment in low-carbon technologies. Still, by passing the fix the EU parliament avoided virtually abandoning the system. “Across all continents, Europe’s experience of a market-based system for reducing CO2 emissions is being considered, and seen as a credible option, as most recently in China. We shall not let the ETS be the victim of short-term concerns. Structural reform of our Emissions Trading System will follow to ensure it remains the cornerstone of EU’s climate policy.” Continue reading
