The cost of cleaning up after the last generation of nuclear power plants could rise as high as £73bn. This has to be paid by the taxpayer. The next generation of nuclear power plants has already been approved. The government has decided our future is nuclear.
The cost of completing the national grid so it runs all the way from Scotland to Southern England and then onto France is about £4bn, which includes wind farms in Scotland. The idea is we could be a net exporter of energy within a generation. Britain is blessed with amazing wind and wave energy resources. We also have a commitment to cut our greenhouse gases and increase the proportion of our energy from renewable sources. That process has started but most serious proposals are stuck in the planning process and very few make it through.
Here is my plan;
1) Approve a mix of big and small projects
2) Streamline the planning process and be biased toward green energy schemes
3) Add incentives for communities that host wind farms
4) Allow any user to sell energy back to the grid at a fair price; feed in tariffs
Above all just do SOMETHING and do it NOW. The Germans are far in front of us
1 comment:
Wind is useful - particularly in Scotland which has the highest average windspeed of anywhere in Europe - but don't forget other renewables.
In Germany there has been legislation to force PV cells into new buildings - this has kick-started the PV business and helped to really drive down costs. At Easter time when I was in Bavaria I noticed a number of small villages with a FIELD of solar panels on the outskirts! Germany also has an enlightened tariff system, where you can sell energy back to the grid at a much better price than you pay for it.
This country has so much untapped potential - it just needs the political will to make things happen. But looking at the current crop in Westminster, I don't see that happening anytime soon...
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