Measures to Cut Carbon Emissions Are Put to the Test

By Michael McCarthy

While the Government’s undisguised enthusiasm for nuclear power took up most of the attention yesterday, the new Energy White Paper also contained measures designed to bring down Britain’s greenhouse gas emissions in all sectors.

They range from carbon trading for commercial businesses to revised subsidies for renewable energy, from "smart" electricity meters for homes to the possibility of constructing a giant electricity-producing barrage across the estuary of the river Severn.

The Trade and Industry Secretary Alistair Darling, responsible for energy matters, said that – taken together – the policies would be able to cut carbon dioxide emissions by between 23 and 33 million tonnes by 2020 – which he said was "the equivalent of removing all the emissions that we get from every car, van and lorry on Britain’s roads today".

The Government needs to work towards its stated target of reducing UK carbon emissions by 60 per cent by 2050, and is introducing a climate change Bill to make progress towards making it legally binding.

The measures include:

Carbon trading for commerce

Under the EU’s emissions trading scheme, heavy industrial plants are being forced to buy permits to emit greenhouse gases above the amount the Government allows them. But now ministers want to extend this to businesses such as supermarkets, banks and hotels, and even to public bodies such as the National Health Service. Your bank might eventually have to buy permits to keep its computers running and its lights on. The idea is to make energy saving a growing priority.

More windmills in the sea

The Government pushes investment in renewable energy – wind, solar, wave and tidal power – by the Renewables Obligation (RO), which forces electricity suppliers to buy a proportion of their electricity from renewable sources. The RO is to be reformed so that it gives more support to offshore windfarms, as they are lagging behind onshore wind in development, and also to wave and tidal power.

A Severn barrage?

A study undertaken into the potential of tidal power for Britain will examine the possibility of a 10-mile barrage across the Severn estuary, which the White Paper said could by itself "potentially supply up to 5 per cent of the UK’s electricity demand". The Government ruled the idea out in 2003 but now seems keen on it. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds said yesterday that such a barrage would cause "untold damage to the environment" because the estuary is home to huge numbers of wading birds and waterfowl.

Energy companies – or energy-saving companies?

The utility firms which have supplied households in the past with electricity, gas and oil will in future be expected to put just as much emphasis on supplying them with energy-saving measures. From 2011, other than marketing "units of energy", companies will have to market "energy services", in accord with a new Carbon Emissions Reduction Target. This is expected to rea-lise substantial CO2 savings.

New meters and "smart" meters

Next year and in 2009 the Government is offering the free provision of visual display electricity meters for homes – which can show you exactly how much energy you are using at 8am when the kettle is boiling, the water is heating, the toaster is in use and the radio is switched on. Over the next 10 years the Government will work with the electricity suppliers to bring in "smart" meters which will display even more detail and perhaps could be read remotely, via the internet.

Community energy

Some of the biggest carbon savings can be secured by generating energy locally rather than have it supplied from distant large- scale power stations, which lose much of their efficiency in transmission. Energy de-centralisation, or micro-generation, has dramatically shrunk the carbon footprint of some local authorities. The Government is to make licensing arrangements for this simpler and provide more opportunities for local generators to sell their surplus energy back to the National Grid.

Reducing standby

Electrical appliances left on standby use about 7 per cent of all the electricity used in UK homes, Mr Darling said, which is the equivalent of the output of two 600 megawatt gas-fired power stations or more than 1,500 2MW wind turbines. So the Government will be making a series of proposals about improving the energy efficiency of consumer electronics.

(c) 2007 Independent, The; London (UK). Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.