Power to the People
Author: ABC Date Posted:8 July 2014
"All of us should want to see lower prices and plainly at the moment the renewable energy target is a very significant impact on higher power prices."
Monday 7th July 2014
Newspapers, telecommunications and the entertainment industry have all felt the chill winds of change brought on by new technology. Now science is revolutionising power generation. Technology is making alternative sources of energy cheaper, more user-friendly and, crucially, it's decentralising production to the rooftops of homes and commercial buildings across Australia.
So why is the Federal Government moving away from its commitment to renewable sources of energy? Why would it consider reducing renewable energy targets, favouring greenhouse-gas emitting coal and gas?
In part the answer is simple. Price. As the Prime Minister explained recently:
"All of us should want to see lower prices and plainly at the moment the renewable energy target is a very significant impact on higher power prices."
But the renewable energy industry warns that while coal and gas might enjoy a price advantage now, renewables are the future:
"The Government has an ideological agenda. They want to carve out the impact of renewable energy on the network and they want to stop renewable in their tracks." John Grimes, Australian Solar Council
http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/stories/2014/07/07/4038488.htm
