What renewables obligation?

According to the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, one of the main objectives of the Climate Change Bill - currently under review in the House of Commons - is “investment in low-carbon fuels and technologies, such as carbon capture and storage, wind, wave and solar power.”

So when I read the story in Saturday’s Guardian, Solar so good for our house, of how the Government cut the maximum grant for low-carbon microgeneration household schemes to £2,500 last year because of the popularity of the scheme, I was disappointed and believe this sends a worrying message about the Government’s commitment to low-carbon initiatives. Rather than decreasing the amount of money going to support low-carbon technologies, the government should be supporting such schemes as much as they can, certainly if they intend on meeting the 15% EU-set target of energy coming from renewable sources by 2020.

The Low Carbon Buildings Programme (LCBP), which is managed for the Department of Business, Enterprise, and Regulatory Reform by the Energy Saving Trust, provides grants for installing microgeneration schemes. These grants, aimed to encourage the use of solar, wind turbine and small hydro technologies, are made available to households, businesses, community organizations, public, private and the non-profit sectors.

All of this sounds promising on the surface, but what the Guardian article revealed is that the UK government has helped less than 300 households install such technologies. Furthermore, the effect of the grant cut has led to demand falling sharply and small companies supplying and installing the necessary equipment going out of business. Germany however has strongly supported low-carbon technologies by helping 130,000 homes get fitted with photovoltaic (PV) solar installations. The price of installing solar panels has now lowered there as a result of high demand. Why the discrepancy?

In the end the article showcased how one family has been able to produce 92% of their electricity usage through solar power. I think this is quite an impressive story and an example of how low-carbon technologies work. All we need now is for the Government to follow through on its renewables obligation.