Solar Power Vs Clean Coal In Australia

 

 
Another article from The Age's Royce Millar on the issue of gross feed in tariff incentives for solar power in Australia has revealed that such a scheme would have only cost Victorian households in the range of 35 to 70 cents per week - between an additional 2 and 4%, not the much higher figure of 10% stated by Victoria's Energy Minister Peter Batchelor.

The Victorian Government rejected calls for a gross feed in tariff from various departments including the Victorian Sustainability Commissioner, the CSIRO and Access Economics, opting instead for an alternative scheme offering far less incentive, one that industry experts believe will do little to encourage a increased uptake of solar panels.

The new system proposed for Victoria, further details of which will be presented to Parliament in the near future, will be a net feed in tariff. The net feed in tariff system only pays home owners for surplus power exported to the mains grid; that is, electricity generated over and above the amount consumed by the home where it is installed. 

A gross feed in tariff, such as the spectacularly successful program implemented by Germany, pays a premium rate to householders and business for all electricity generated by a grid connected solar power system.

The cost of a properly implemented gross feed in tariff also becomes increasingly attractive when compared to "clean coal", more accurately known as low emissions coal or "New Generation Coal". This form of coal sourced power utilises controversial technologies such as Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) to reduce emissions. 

According to a transcript of an interview with Dr.Chris Spero on the Australian Coal Association's NewGenCoal web site, "the expectation is that the cost increase for clean coal technology will be in the order of 50 to 75% of current power generation costs".

Low emissions coal also requires more energy, meaning more coal mining and additional environmental havoc. Waste from the processing and burning of coal also produces environmental threats, such as the recent massive toxic coal sludge spill in Tennessee that some are calling the "Exxon Valdez of coal ash."

Victoria faces particularly ominous challenges when it comes to power generation, given that most of its coal-fired sourced electricity comes from brown coal, a fossil fuel that generates even more emissions than black coal. According to the Greenhouse Indicator Report released last month, Victoria's power related emission increases were the highest of all Australia's eastern states during 2008.

Victoria based Energy Matters, a national supplier and installer of renewable energy equipment, is inviting Victorians and all Australians who are concerned about emissions and the future of renewable energy in the country to register their signatures at FeedInTariff.com.au. The FeedInTariff.com.au petition is an initiative to appeal to the Australian government to do away with fractured state tariff systems and implement a national, uniform gross feed in tariff  system, similar to the successful program established in Germany.

 

 

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Students Switching Schools Onto Solar Energy

 

Australian students concerned about energy related carbon dioxide emissions might want to pay a visit to the web site of Students For Solar Schools for a bit of inspiration. 

Based in the USA, Students For Solar Schools (SSS) is, as the name suggests, a student-run campaign to engage schools in the uptake of renewable energy. SSS aims to see solar panels installed on school campuses for environmental, economic, and educational benefits.

The group sees solar panels not so much as the end goal of their efforts, but as a symbol for environmental conservation, the beginning of a greater focus on  efficiency improvements at schools and to generate publicity regarding the importance of school sustainability.

Students For Solar Schools offers tools such as a petition template and some basic information for "making the pitch" to school administrators about the importance and benefits of solar power. SSS currently has 4 schools listed where students are petitioning their fellow classmates, administration, and district leadership for the installation of solar energy systems.

In Australia, students have an extra advantage of an even more powerful tool for convincing schools to add solar power into their energy mix - the Australian Federal Government's generous grant of up to $50,000  under the National Solar Schools Program. To date, 3200 schools around Australia have registered for the NSSP.

Under the National Solar Schools Program,  most Australian schools delivering education at a primary and/or secondary level have the opportunity to not only reduce their mains grid electricity usage; saving power, money and greenhouse gas emissions in the process, but to also provide a rich hands-on learning experience for students regarding renewable energy.

 

 

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News for Wednesday 28 January, 2009

 

• Australia Scaring Off Overseas Solar Power Investment?
  


• Suntech Scores Solar Panel Supply Scoop
  

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