Long-Term Renewable Energy Targets Must Be Set Now, Experts Say

A recent debate on EU energy policy for post-2020 concluded that a 45% renewable energy target for 2030 would create the future policy-stability that is necessary for the alternative energy sector.

According to a post on European Wind Energy Association’s blog, these new energy policies must be drawn-up today and not in 2020 when current targets expire.

The post calls attention to two key facts: the Fukushima nuclear disaster and the record emissions in 2010, which reached the highest level in history. As Guardian journalist Fiona Harvey noted, recessions do not necessarily mean fewer emissions.

Renewable energy can fill the gap left by the retirement of nuclear, and there is more than enough of it, according to the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

There are threats to the transition to alternative energy, though. Cheap gas supply is one of them and, to counter that, policy makers need to fix renewable energy targets beyond 2020. There is a large enough fossil fuel supply to alter the climate beyond sustainable levels, Niels Ladefoged, a member of Connie Hedegaard’s European Commission for Climate Action cabinet, warned.

Another topic discussed during the debate was the necessary modernization of the grid to meet future energy demand. Grids need to be extended, upgraded and better connected, it was said, although there is no agreement as to how it can be done since new grid design depends on a future energy system.

Article by Antonio Pasolini, a Brazilian writer and video art curator based in London, UK. He holds a BA in journalism and an MA in film and television.