Ten year plan for renewable energy
THE Government will today outline plans for a major expansion in renewable energy as part of the strategy to slash the UK’s carbon emissions in the coming decade.
Ministers will also set out measures on low-carbon transport and for ensuring the UK benefits from thousands of potential “green jobs” as they publish the UK Low Carbon Transition Plan White Paper.
However the Government has come under fire for the impact increasing the proportion of renewables in the energy mix could have on people’s fuel bills in the future.
The UK has a series of challenging legally-binding “carbon budgets”, which require a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of 34% by 2020 and at least 80% by 2050, and a EU target of meeting 15% of all energy needs from renewables by 2020.
Measures to meet the goals will cover a wide range of sectors including power, transport, homes, workplaces and agriculture.
Among the schemes to reduce climate emissions to be launched today will be a “pay as you save” programme for homeowners to receive loans to insulate their homes, with the money repaid from savings on energy bills.
People who install small-scale renewables such as solar panels or wind turbines will be paid, through a “feed-in tariffs” programme, for the electricity they generate.
There are also plans to increase large-scale renewable energy and in particular wind - with proposals for some 4,000 new onshore turbines and a further 3,000 offshore.
