The impending winter gasoline disaster should be solved by serving to households save vitality, not by fracking and sourcing new fuel fields, consultants have urged the brand new prime minister.
UK fuel reserves are “too small” to curb client payments and Liz Truss is being inspired to drive ahead efforts to enhance insulation for households and supply recommendation to the general public on low or no-cost methods to save lots of vitality.
A letter to the brand new prime minister asks her to again low-cost onshore wind and photo voltaic farms, which she criticised in her management marketing campaign, in addition to electrical warmth pumps, to cut back the UK’s reliance on pure fuel.
Its authors, Climate Change Committee (CCC) chairman Lord Deben and Sir John Armitt, chairman of the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), say addressing the UK’s dependency on fossil fuels is the easiest way out of the vitality and local weather crises.
“By doubling down on efforts to end our dependence on gas, we can lower consumer energy costs and make meaningful contributions towards combatting climate change,” they are saying.
They write that the UK is dealing with a “set of grim records” of excessive vitality costs, excessive summer time temperatures and surging inflation, as a result of local weather change and financial challenges which threaten three-quarters of households with gasoline poverty.
Their letter comes at a time when a brand new survey exhibits greater than three-quarters of British individuals suppose the federal government ought to use new wind and photo voltaic farms to cut back vitality payments.
Some 77% of the 6,114 individuals polled by Survation for trade physique RenewableUK backed the usage of wind and photo voltaic farms – which generate electrical energy way more cheaply than at the moment high-priced fuel – to sort out the payments disaster.
‘Wake-up name’
That contains greater than four-fifths (82%) of these planning to vote Conservative within the subsequent election and 84% who voted Tory in 2019, regardless of Ms Truss’s photo voltaic farms’ opposition.
RenewableUK’s chief government Dan McGrail stated the findings have been a “wake-up call to every politician, including the new Prime Minister, that the overwhelming majority of people want to see new investment in renewables and are happy to see new wind and solar farms built in their local area to drive energy bills down”.
He added: “At a time when we need to shift from expensive gas to low-cost renewables as rapidly as possible, most people agree that if local communities support having a wind farm nearby, the government shouldn’t stand in their way.”
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The CCC and NIC chairmen warn fuel is predicted to remain costly till 2027, with 90% of the current enhance within the vitality worth cap pushed by fuel worth rises.
But whereas Ms Truss has signalled her help for brand new offshore fuel fields and fracking within the UK, the 2 senior advisers say the UK can’t tackle the disaster solely by growing manufacturing of pure fuel.
“Greater domestic production of fossil fuels may improve energy security, particularly this winter, but our gas reserves – offshore or from shale – are too small to impact meaningfully the prices faced by UK consumers,” they are saying.
“Energy security and reducing the UK’s exposure to volatile fossil fuel prices requires strong policies that reduce energy waste across the economy and boost domestic production of secure low carbon energy.”
Analysis: How would transferring to renewables save us cash on gasoline payments?
Fracking plans
The RenewableUK survey additionally had a robust message for Ms Truss and her fracking plans – solely 34% of total responders supported it in addition to 51% of those that voted Tory.
The ballot additionally highlighted excessive ranges of help from individuals throughout the nation for having a renewable challenge of their space, with 76% of these quizzed saying they might again a inexperienced scheme close by – together with 81% of Tory voters.
Meeting the UK’s authorized goal to chop local weather emissions to zero total – referred to as net-zero – by 2050 by way of measures corresponding to vitality effectivity and renewables will help safe the UK’s vitality sovereignty and defend it from fossil gasoline costs, Lord Deben and Sir John say.
But they warn 15 million properties within the UK are in want some type of vitality effectivity enhancements, and there’s a lack of credible long-lasting insurance policies to ship it.
The variety of insulation measures put in with authorities help has tumbled from 2.3 million in 2012 to simply 93,500 in 2021.
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They urge Ms Truss and her administration to develop new insurance policies that may guarantee all owners enhance their residence’s vitality effectivity to a good customary by 2035, and that each one rental properties are improved to the usual of vitality efficiency certificates (EPC) C by 2028.
Government motion can also be wanted to drive ahead low carbon heating programs, corresponding to electrical warmth pumps, together with tackling the comparatively larger worth of electrical energy than fuel, they are saying.
They additional warn gradual progress on enhancing the vitality effectivity of hospitals, colleges and different public buildings imply they face “extraordinary bills this winter”, with NHS England dealing with an increase in vitality prices from £600 million to £2 billion this 12 months.
Source: information.sky.com”