United Kingdom Committed to Sustainable Energy Sources

The United Kingdom is committed to a sustainable energy policy that will reduce emissions without compromising economic growth, according to a government document submitted to the United Nations.

LONDON, England 2002-02-13 [SolarAccess.com] “In the longer term, more energy will have to come from energy sources which emit little or no carbon dioxide, in particular from new and renewable sources,” says the country position filed in advance of the World Summit on Sustainable Development to be held in Johannesburg this autumn. “Renewable energy is a resource-efficient means of generating power.” In the 1990s, Britain shifted from coal and other carbon-intensive fuels toward natural gas and nuclear energy. The main objective of its proposed renewable energy strategy is to “stimulate the renewable energy market and to increase the contribution of electricity supplied from renewable sources to 10 percent in 2010.” “The renewable energy policy is designed to help make the cost of electricity from renewables that much more attractive and encourage further development,” according to the document. “The key goal is to provide a framework for helping to achieve secure economic and sustainable energy supplies.” Last August, Energy Minister Brian Wilson launched a follow-up statutory consultation on measures to increase green electricity under the Renewables Obligation, including £1 billion to renewables to encourage technologies and to set more ambitious targets for renewable energy for the longer term. The government has also introduced a Climate Change Levy to tax the use of energy and use the money to support renewable energy, and it soon will start its £215 million emissions trading program to reduce carbon emissions by 2 megatonnes a year by 2010, while generating new jobs and investment opportunities.