Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

OKIsItJustMe

(19,933 posts)
Mon Jun 27, 2016, 02:00 PM Jun 2016

Brexit Brings Chaos to Europe’s Clean-Energy Goals

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/601776/brexit-brings-chaos-to-europes-clean-energy-goals/
[font face=Serif][font size=5]Brexit Brings Chaos to Europe’s Clean-Energy Goals[/font]

[font size=4]The departure of the EU’s second-largest economy could have unsettling implications for the Paris climate accord.[/font]

by Richard Martin | June 24, 2016

[font size=3]U.K. voters’ decision to exit the European Union sent shock waves through world markets today, including the energy sector. The consensus from policymakers, clean-energy advocates, and analysts was that while “Brexit” will not completely derail the EU’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions under the Paris climate accord, it will certainly throw a spanner in the works.

Under Prime Minister David Cameron and his predecessors, Britain has been a leader on energy policy and support for renewable energy. Several features of EU-wide energy policy in the last decade—including breaking up power monopolies that controlled generation, transmission, and distribution—have been modeled in part on U.K. legislation.

More recently, though, the U.K. government has retreated from its support of clean energy, with severe cuts in subsidies for both rooftop and large-scale solar installations. A report released earlier this year by the U.K. Renewable Energy Association found that “repeated policy interventions of the Government are harming the UK’s position as a global leader, slowing growth rates, and are increasing the likelihood that legally binding 2020 renewable energy targets … will not be achieved.” Freed from its obligations under EU treaties and agreements, a new U.K. government could continue that about-face. The country’s renewable-energy targets for 2020 were in doubt even before Thursday’s vote, many believe, and departing the EU could make them unreachable.

A March report by Vivid Economics, commissioned by the British grid operator National Grid, found that leaving the EU could cost the U.K. half a billion pounds (nearly $700 million) a year in the 2020s as a result of uncertainty over energy and climate investments.

…[/font][/font]
Latest Discussions»Issue Forums»Environment & Energy»Brexit Brings Chaos to Eu...