The United Kingdom has the capability of reducing its current carbon emission by three-quarters without necessarily incurring high costs for electricity use; the trick lies in deploying more clean-energy technologies, says the climate change adviser to the government.
Power experts disclosed that the government investments billed for the power industry over the following five years is enough to cut down carbon intensity of electricity to nearly 200-250 grams of carbon dioxide per kilowatt-hour - from the 450 grams used as at the present. The Committee on Climate Change in a Thursday report noted that emissions below 100 grams are okay to be aimed for by 2030.
This report will be considered when the committee meets next month to advise the government on its fifth carbon budget, which is largely to place a limit on UK's carbon-dioxide emission for five years - between 2028 and 2032. Through its fourth carbon budget, the country in 1990 took steps to drop emissions to half from 2023 to 2027; and it continues to aim to cut it by 80% by 2050.
"The 2020s are crucial in setting the direction for U.K. power generation, and to ensure the U.K. can meet its 2050 climate change commitments cost-effectively," said John Gummer, a member of the House of Lords who leads the panel. "The government must now urgently clarify the direction of future policy to ensure the power sector can decarbonize at lowest cost to businesses and households."
The government of Prime Minister David Cameron had pledged to drop subsidies for wind, solar, and biomass plants when he came to power in May, making investors to doubt the profitability of renewable and then prompting employers to cut jobs within the solar industry. Energy Secretary Amber Rudd said the reductions are necessary to cut costs to consumers, whose energy bills are used to fund the assistance subsidies.
The panel on climate change noted that mounted solar panels and onshore wind panels would turn out to be great investments by half of the 2020s; while these together with coal plants having carbon capture and storage units might become competitive in the second half of the 2020s.
Without subsidies, carbon power would compete if power plants using gas are asked to fully bear the cost of pollution and that of carbon emission increases to 78 pounds a ton by 2030, the panel submitted.