Renewable target lag

The Land
27/09/2007 Page: 9

AUSTRALIA is being left behind in the world's race to create new industries in response to perceptions about climate change, fears wind farmer in waiting, Charlie Prell. Mr Prell cites "lack of empowerment through not ratifying Kyoto, Mandatory Renewable Energy Target (MRETs) set too low, and delays in setting the price of carbon". "It's superfluous that Australia has already achieved its MRET target, first set for 2010 of only two per cent of the 2001 energy market," Mr Prell said.

"Despite an independent review, tabled in Federal Parliament in January 2004, which recommended increasing the national renewable energy target to approximately four per cent of the energy market by 2020 with possible further extensions before then, this has not occurred," he said. China's target is to generate 20pc of its power through renewable energy by 2020. The NSW target, still to be legislated, is for 10pc of purchasable electricity to come from renewable sources by 2010, then 15pc by 2020.