Extract from The Guardian
South Australia now the most favourable state for solar and wind investment, reveals new Climate Council report
Victoria and New South Wales have moved from “leaders to
laggards” on renewable energy, with South Australia now the most
favourable state for solar and wind investment, according to a new
report.
An analysis of how each state is faring on renewable energy, compiled by the Climate Council, shows that $5.5bn has been invested in renewable energy in South Australia since 2003, with the state now sourcing 36% of its electricity from clean sources.
A quarter of South Australian homes now have solar PV panels, with the state recently announcing plans to lift its renewable energy target to 50% by 2025.
No other state has expanded its renewable energy targets, with NSW removing a previous goal to limit greenhouse gas emissions and Victoria scrapping its own renewable energy target.
NSW, which has the largest emissions of any state or territory at 148.9m tonnes a year, has the lowest per capita investment in renewables of any state. Only 599 megawatts of new large-scale renewable energy has been installed in NSW since 2001.
Victoria, responsible for 23.8% of Australia’s emissions, sources more than 90% of its energy from coal-fired power, including highly polluting brown coal.
While Victoria has the largest windfarm in the country – the Macarthur windfarm – the state Coalition government has imposed highly restrictive rules that stipulate that no wind turbines can be placed within 2km of a dwelling without written consent. Turbines are also banned from particular regions, such as the Yarra valley, Mornington peninsula and the Bellarine peninsula.
According to the Climate Council report, this stance has cost Victoria an estimated $4bn in lost investment, as well as 3,000 jobs. The Labor opposition, which is looking to gain power in the 29 November state election, has pledged to ease some of the windfarm restrictions.
The Climate Council’s analysis states that NSW and Victoria are going backwards on renewable energy, accounting for just 40% of the 21,000 jobs in the sector despite having 57% of the country’s population.
South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia are the three leading states in terms of installed renewable energy since 2001, on a per capita basis.
The federal government is currently attempting to downscale the national renewable energy target from its current goal of 41,000 gigawatt hours by 2020. Labor has walked away from negotiations to cut the target, with the Greens and the Palmer United party also pledging to protect the status quo position.
New renewable energy projects have seized up due to the uncertainty over the future of the RET, with investment in the sector plummeting by around 70% over the past year.
Prof Tim Flannery of the Climate Council, who authored the report, said there was “no excuse” for states to not follow the example of South Australia.
“Victoria has lost $4bn in renewable energy investment and you can now build a coalmine closer to a house than a wind turbine,” he told Guardian Australia. “Every government in Victoria has seen brown coal as the future energy for the state, no one can see beyond that. There’s a protectionist feeling around coal and there’s a campaign around wind being a health risk, which clearly isn’t the case.
“NSW has protected its black coal industry, but I think that things are set to improve there with the change of government. The standout for me is Victoria, which has world class wind and solar resources.”
Flannery said regardless of the future of the national RET, state governments need to do more to encourage renewables.
“Some states have sat on their hands while others have actively obstructed renewables,” he said. “The RET situation makes things harder but it puts more onus on the states. They are the ones who make the local rules, they interface with the companies. They need to look at South Australia and create a regulatory framework that shifts to a cleaner energy base. We can see from South Australia that it can be done.”
An analysis of how each state is faring on renewable energy, compiled by the Climate Council, shows that $5.5bn has been invested in renewable energy in South Australia since 2003, with the state now sourcing 36% of its electricity from clean sources.
A quarter of South Australian homes now have solar PV panels, with the state recently announcing plans to lift its renewable energy target to 50% by 2025.
No other state has expanded its renewable energy targets, with NSW removing a previous goal to limit greenhouse gas emissions and Victoria scrapping its own renewable energy target.
NSW, which has the largest emissions of any state or territory at 148.9m tonnes a year, has the lowest per capita investment in renewables of any state. Only 599 megawatts of new large-scale renewable energy has been installed in NSW since 2001.
Victoria, responsible for 23.8% of Australia’s emissions, sources more than 90% of its energy from coal-fired power, including highly polluting brown coal.
While Victoria has the largest windfarm in the country – the Macarthur windfarm – the state Coalition government has imposed highly restrictive rules that stipulate that no wind turbines can be placed within 2km of a dwelling without written consent. Turbines are also banned from particular regions, such as the Yarra valley, Mornington peninsula and the Bellarine peninsula.
According to the Climate Council report, this stance has cost Victoria an estimated $4bn in lost investment, as well as 3,000 jobs. The Labor opposition, which is looking to gain power in the 29 November state election, has pledged to ease some of the windfarm restrictions.
The Climate Council’s analysis states that NSW and Victoria are going backwards on renewable energy, accounting for just 40% of the 21,000 jobs in the sector despite having 57% of the country’s population.
South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia are the three leading states in terms of installed renewable energy since 2001, on a per capita basis.
The federal government is currently attempting to downscale the national renewable energy target from its current goal of 41,000 gigawatt hours by 2020. Labor has walked away from negotiations to cut the target, with the Greens and the Palmer United party also pledging to protect the status quo position.
New renewable energy projects have seized up due to the uncertainty over the future of the RET, with investment in the sector plummeting by around 70% over the past year.
Prof Tim Flannery of the Climate Council, who authored the report, said there was “no excuse” for states to not follow the example of South Australia.
“Victoria has lost $4bn in renewable energy investment and you can now build a coalmine closer to a house than a wind turbine,” he told Guardian Australia. “Every government in Victoria has seen brown coal as the future energy for the state, no one can see beyond that. There’s a protectionist feeling around coal and there’s a campaign around wind being a health risk, which clearly isn’t the case.
“NSW has protected its black coal industry, but I think that things are set to improve there with the change of government. The standout for me is Victoria, which has world class wind and solar resources.”
Flannery said regardless of the future of the national RET, state governments need to do more to encourage renewables.
“Some states have sat on their hands while others have actively obstructed renewables,” he said. “The RET situation makes things harder but it puts more onus on the states. They are the ones who make the local rules, they interface with the companies. They need to look at South Australia and create a regulatory framework that shifts to a cleaner energy base. We can see from South Australia that it can be done.”
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