TheBioenergySite Latest News
Wind Power Could Be a Poverty Trap
UK - Half a million people could be pushed into fuel poverty by the UK's drive for wind power according to the government's former chief scientific adviser.In a report on BBC radio, Sir David King said: "If we overdo wind we are going to put up the price of electricity and that means more people will fall into the fuel poverty trap."
The UK is committed to find 20 per cent of its power from renewable sources by 2020, following an EU agreement.
But Professor King told the BBC EU leaders did not understand their own targets.
The UK currently generates around two per cent of its electricity from wind power but to meet the EU's target the government estimates this will have to increase to around 5 per cent by the end of the next decade, according to the BBC report.
It will also lead to price rises which the government estimates at about 10 per cent for electricity and 20 per cent for gas.
Professor King who served as chief scientific adviser from 2000 to 2007, told BBC Radio 4's The Investigation that the government is placing too much emphasis on wind power to reach the target and this would mean more people suffering from fuel poverty.
TheBioenergySite News Desk
Latest Bioenergy Industry News
Schafer Leads US Delegation to Brazil Conference
USDA Invites Applications for Biorefinery Loans- Biofuels Not to Blame for Food Price Rises
CAP Health Check Will Help Farmers- Energy Diversification and Climate Change
Immediate Reform of UN Body Urged- Project Breaks Solar Efficiency Record
- Ethanol Agreement Between China and Brazil
Ethanol from Sugar for Angola- Biodiesel Plant Opens in Danville
