Articles About Renewable Energy

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UK Renewable Energy - The Rise of Alternative Energy Generation

By: Howard Puddy

Background The Kyoto Protocol (from wikipedia) was agreed in 1997. In this agreement industrialised nations committed to reducing their combined greenhouse gas emissions to a level that was 5.2%25 lower than it was in 1990. This reduction was to be measured as an average of their emissions over the 5 year period from 2008 to 2012. So what are greenhouse gases? Very simply, they are gases, both man made and naturally occurring that remain in the upper atmosphere and stop heat from escaping out into space. The impact of increased levels of greenhouse gas will be the gradual increase in temperature because more heat gets into the planet's atmosphere than escapes it. Which Greenhouse gases were they talking about? There are 6 greenhouse gases targeted by the Kyoto agreement, these are: Carbon Dioxide Methane Nitrous Oxide Sulphur Hexafluoride/li> Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) Perfluorocarbon (PFCs) A renewable target is set During 2000 the Government announced its 'Ten' Target - eg in 10 years time, by the year 2010, 10%25 of electricity generation would be from renewable sources. They also later exempted renewable electricity generation from the Climate Change Levy, thus offering financial incentives to renewable generation. The 2003 Energy White Paper In the 2003 Energy White Paper, 'Our energy future - creating a low carbon economy' the government set itself additional targets and aspirations over and above the Kyoto agreement. It re-iterated its commitment to 10%25 of electricity generated from renewable means from 2010. To meet the its 10 per cent target, the white paper identified that approximately 10,000 megawatts of renewable energy would need to be generated. Not content with this target, the white paper identified an aspiration to have reduced greenhouse emissions by 60%25 by the year 2050. This would require that between 30%25 and 40%25 of electricity would need to be generated by renewables to achieve this target. The 2006 Energy Review The 2006 energy review identified that electricity generation came from the following sources: 37%25 Gas Fired Generation 34%25 Coal Fired Generation 20%25 Nuclear Generation 5%25 Renewable Generation 4%25 Other Over the next 20 years, decommissioning of old nuclear power stations and of coal fired power stations (due to EU environmental regulations) will leave the UK with a shortfall of 25 Gigawatts of electricity supply. 2020 Target In its drive to fill this projected shortfall of supply, government has increased its 10%25 target to 20%25. Not only will the UK produce 10%25 of electricity by renewables by 2010, it will now target to generate 20%25 by 2020. To aid this extension and enhancement of renewable energy, the government has offered funding to the tune of £500 million. It has clearly identified the key renewable sources it expects to play a signficant role in helping to plug the anticipated 25 Gigawatts shortfall, these are: Onshore and Offshore wind generation Hydroelectic power Wave and Tidal Stream Energy from Waste Biomass Each of these methods have their supporters and protaganists, but each offer real opportunities for renewable energy generation. The pros and cons of each of these methods will be discussed in future articles. for further information on alternative energy, please visit my site at www.altenergy.puddyshop.co.uk , you can also find the government's energy review at DTI ENERGY REVIEW 2006 Author - Howard Puddy copyright 2006