Britain to Start National Carbon Cut Consultations
Date: 08-Nov-06
Country: UK
Author: Jeremy Lovell
The aim is to get supermarkets, hotels and government departments with electricity bills of more than 250,000 pounds (US$476,300) a year to join the global fight to save the planet from global warming.
"The consultations will cover how to save the 1.2 megatonnes (of carbon emissions) by 2020 that was laid out in the Energy Review," a spokeswoman for the Department of the Environment told Reuters.
Scientists say global average temperatures could rise by between two and six degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels over the coming century due mainly to so-called greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels for power and transport.
Not only will this cause more extreme weather events like storms and droughts, but it will also start to melt the giant polar ice caps and put millions more people at risk in coastal areas from rising sea levels.
Among the options being considered are the creation of a UK-only carbon trading scheme to work alongside the existing European Trading Scheme.
"That is one thing we are looking at. But we are looking at a number of options," the spokeswoman said. "Such as whether a voluntary scheme is better, do we need longer-term building targets to be better. It is not an either-or."
"It is going to go into details on several areas," she added, noting that about 5,000 businesses and government departments in Britain would be in the net.
Britain has pledged to cut its carbon emissions by 20 percent by 2010 and 60 percent by 2050, but has already admitted that extra efforts will be needed.
The Energy Review published in July gave the green light to new nuclear power stations to replace the country's ageing stock, as well as renewable energy like wind and waves, more energy efficiency, micro-generation and clean coal technology.
However, most environmentalists rejected new nuclear power plants as the wrong answer and they are suspicious that a UK-only carbon trading scheme might be used to artificially raise carbon prices to make nuclear appear viable.
"Despite the government's go-ahead no one has made a move on nuclear because they want price guarantees," Friends of the Earth head Tony Juniper told Reuters.
"A UK-only carbon market is a back-door way of promoting nuclear by artificially manipulating the price of carbon," he said.
