Priority 1 for Energy Change, The Sustainable Cities Round Table, 20 May 2009
Posted in Sustainable Cities Round Tables by Ferne Edwards on June 10th, 2009
‘Priority 1 for Energy Change‘ is an outcome from the recent Sustainable Cities Round Table – The Energy to Change, 20 May 2009. Audience members were asked: “In your perspective, what are the three things that need to happen for energy?” Ie. if were going to address climate change what are the most important things that we and others around us can do? This is their response for Priority 1. The data is shown as it was collected – there has been no analysis at this stage at all.
Priority 1
Build a systems of clean, renewable energy straight away so we have zero carbon environment
Mass reforestation campaigns and programs ie 1 million ha planted per yr now in Victoria
Cut government ties to the coal industry
A clear vision of a 100% renewable energy future
Proper pricing of carbon
Stop using coal
Stop exporting coal
Tackle influence of fossil fuel and coal industry
Eliminate electric storage of hot water
Political will and leadership from government to make decisions that are long term focused
Work with communities to empower them to change-transforming this difficult and often disempowering situation into one that reunites people in a local and positive way
Generating clean technology alongside behavioural change to wanting to be energy efficient
A CPRS with a serious, challenging target
Immediate move away from coal and oil based energy sources
Massive funding boost for R & D into renewables
Make renewables more affordable
Individuals, industry and government co-operating
Include negative externalities in the price of polluting energy sources ie culture cost is too low- need to represent true cost
NEM-change policy. Decentralised resource structure. Demand side
Implement a Carbon tax- lobby governments
Upgrade the local power grid infrastructure
Reduce consumption
Government legislation
Focus on renewables
Pricing- price carbon and create ‘level playing field market conditions
Sustainable households
Water conservation
Real price for energy that includes the environmental costs
Gross feed in tariff with high cap
Immediate intro of CPRS without free permits and 25% reduction input
Public transport and cycling investment
Individual carbon budgets
Decouple economic worth from consumption
Renewable energy sources need to be cheaper for consumers
Regulating incentives for electricity distribution companies
National carbon rationing scheme
Incentives to reduce energy consumption eg more bike paths
Increase possibilities for research and investment in Australia for energy efficient ideas
Retrofitting of existing buildings with energy efficiency measures
Regulation/enforcement
Decentralise and community owned infrastructure
Make it affordable-solar, double glazing, building material
Town planners- crucify the weak link
A belief that there a need to change to low carbon energy sources supported by all the in the community and levels of government
Build solar thermal power plants
We need to harness wave energy- oceans being 2/3 of worlds surface
Build infrastructure for co-generation in localised areas
Open market for existing technologies
Alternate sources- solar, wind, tide/wave
Wiser use of energy together with smart designs. Education will be a part of it.
Easy access to real up to date information that you can trust
Use solar power/renewable energy
Behaviour change eg education compromise
Relax planning controls for residential solar while providing a gross feed-in tariff
Government leading the way. Includes possible nationalization
Make it so easy that people dont have to think about it
Help developing countries leapfrog to renewables
Learn from nature
Make energy saving/zero emissions target the top political imperative
Enact/enforce national carbon trading scheme
Energy efficiency
Use less energy
Education of future generation-make them aware of their footprint
People need to be more aware of how they are in the world. Increase self-awareness. Question their patters of thinking and behaviour
Distributed energy supply
Planning regulations need to specify low energy design
Change the electricity regulation to remove the barriers for implementing distributed renewable energy generation
Real government leadership-not a measly 5% target
Invest in public transport sector
With support, regulation of energy consumption.
More renewables
Carbon tax energy audits
Mandatory targets
CCS need to move forward
Dismantle the fossil fuel lobby
Leadership from those in public positions
Government infrastructure spending should be directed to projects that facilitate renewable energy innovations
Energy efficiency
Remove all incentives- support preferential treatment etc of big industry particularly coal industry
Update buildings to save energy-everybody needs less energy
Cultural change so that we have a different view about using resources
Transition to concentrated solar, thermal and photovoltaic asap
Address dominant economic ideology. Economic policy needs to be informed by science/engineering and other disciplines-not economists
Gross feed in tariffs which reward all renewable energy generation
Dealing with the high % of existing buildings that are not energy efficient plus keep educating on how to occupy homes in an energy efficient way
Using the roof spaces of industrial/factories (usually large) to accommodate solar power arrays- could be joint venture with power companies. This is an untapped resource.
Convince the deniers that its urgent
Broad scale implementation of solar passive technology building
Energy rationing of TV and computers
Further debate on the role of nuclear power stations
Governments stop being influenced by fossil fuel secotrs