Assembly Governments energy policy raises doubts
Apr 10 2010 by Chris Kelsey, Western Mail
AS we struggle to move towards a low-carbon economy, nothing is more important than the way we produce energy. To achieve the UK Government’s target of reducing carbon-dioxide emissions by 80% on 1990 levels by 2050 will require a massive change in the way we source energy, particularly electricity.
So there was excitement last month when the Welsh Assembly Government issued its Energy Policy Statement, particularly among environmentalists and the renewable energy industry.
The statement drew on a series of strategy documents and action plans over recent years, on renewable energy, energy efficiency, green jobs and bio-energy.
At its heart was a three-tier proposal to maximise energy savings, switch to renewable energy production and maximise the opportunity for green jobs.
Energy efficiency was highlighted as of critical importance, because of the large number of hard-to-heat, solid-walled and rural properties in Wales.
But the statement assumed that far more of our energy needs in the future will be met from electricity, particularly in transport and heating. And it claimed that by 2025 Wales would produce twice as much electricity from renewable sources as it currently consumes.
One problem is that large elements of energy generation policy in Wales remain out of the Assembly Government’s control.
In particular, this means that planning consent for onshore electricity generating stations larger than 50MW lies with the Infrastructure Planning Commission, and for offshore ones greater than 1MW it is shared with the IPC and the Marine Management Organisation.
The most obvious area where this conflicts with the Assembly Government’s energy policy aspirations is in nuclear power, where the launch of the Energy Policy Statement was swiftly followed by the announcement of Horizon’s plans to build a 3GW nuclear power station next to the Wylfa plant on Anglesey.
The Assembly Government reacted swiftly to Horizon’s announcement by saying it would push for a public inquiry.
In the Energy Policy Statement the Assembly Government said: “the high level of interest in exploiting the huge potential for renewable energy reduces the need for other, more hazardous, forms of low-carbon energy.”
It also supported the call for a public inquiry into dealing with the waste from new nuclear power stations, saying: “We have a way to go in justifying to the public what must be done in dealing with future nuclear waste.”
In its preference for a future without nuclear power, the Assembly Government is supported by most environmentalists.
Gordon James, director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, said: “Building a large nuclear power station at Wylfa on Anglesey would do nothing to address the challenge of climate change.
“It would be a dangerous distraction, diverting political attention and scarce resources.”
Mr James cited the Energy Policy Statement as showing that there was no need for new nuclear build in Wales.
“We have an abundance of renewable energy resources that, along with improved energy efficiency, can easily provide our energy needs.”
Others disagree. Leighton Jenk- ins, CBI Wales head of policy, said his organisation agreed the best way of delivering Wales’ energy security and climate change targets is by developing a balanced and cost-effective mix of energy sources.
“This must, however, include other renewable sources like nuclear power, which should be incorporated into the Assembly Government’s renewable energy plans,” he said.
It’s not just in nuclear policy that the Assembly Government’s plans could come into conflict with Westminster.
Exploiting the tidal range in the Severn estuary could make up a substantial part of the renewable energy programme, but not if the UK Government decides not to go ahead with a Cardiff-Weston barrage, for environmental or financial reasons.
Add to that the poor record in getting onshore wind farms through the planning process in Wales, and the difficulties the Assembly Government will face in achieving its aim of a fully renewable electricity generation sector by 2025 mount up.
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