A renewed belief in a green economy

Age
Saturday 20/10/2007 Page: 2

DAVID Shapero remembers a time in the 1990s when businesses that focused on sustainable environmental practices were viewed as the "poor cousins" of the investment world. "It was always seen that those investments would suffer on account of having an eye on sustainability," says Mr Shapero, who was a financial adviser at the time.

"So they were always seen as the poor cousins, they were always seen as boutique. Now it seems to be quite clear that in fact it's the opposite way. Now it seems that any company that doesn't take into account their greenhouse footprint is actually going to be worse off than a company that does." It is that shift in attitudes that convinced Mr Shapero to make the leap into the renewable energy industry himself with the establishment of his company Future Energy Limited in 2003.

Future Energy develops and manages renewable energy projects, with a focus on those that are community-owned and instigated. A long-standing concern about the effects of climate change led Mr Shapero to consider how he could get involved in an industry that would contribute towards environmental sustainability.

"I'm from probably the first generation that really got taught about the environment at school," he says. "It was around the time of the oil shock, and when the oil shock came all of a sudden different energy sources were looked at closely and that was a really big leap in Australia for solar power." In Future Energy, Mr Shapero says he has found a way to combine the legacy of that education with his financial knowhow and his passion for community involvement.

Mr Shapero spends a lot of his time exploring options for the development of renewable energy projects with individuals and communities in many parts of the state. In his travels, Mr Shapero says he has encountered an overwhelming enthusiasm for community-driven renewable energy, a significant contrast to the negative reactions some Victorian wind farm projects have received in the past. That enthusiasm has culminated in Future Energy's first community project, which is set to be built just outside of Daylesford in central Victoria.

The Hepburn Renewable Energy Project has recently been granted planning approval by VCAT, and Mr Shapero is preparing to begin raising capital. The Hepburn project has also been a source of reassurance that people would embrace these kinds of projects in their local areas, Mr Shapero says. While the recent progress of the Hepburn project, as well as a handful of other projects that are in their early stages, have given Mr Shapero cause to feel confident about his business, he remembers a time not so long ago when the future did not look so bright.

In 2005, the Federal Government refused to raise Australia's Mandatory Renewable Energy Target from it's current 2 per cent, destroying many businesses' faith in Australia's until then burgeoning renewable energy industry. That was a really difficult time," he says.

Mr Shapero says the Victorian Government's policies on renewables, coupled with his own determination to make his business work, saw him through. But, he says the Federal Government's reluctance to tackle climate change with policies on renewable energy amounts to a huge missed opportunity for the Australian economy. "It seems to me that in business, whether it be small or large business, and in government, that if something's inevitable then the best strategic position you can take is to get on and organise yourself," he says.

"Unfortunately the Government just hasn't and has let it fall behind and at the same time let some fantastic opportunities, particularly in the solar industry, pass us by." However, he is optimistic that the next few years will bring significant developments as the Federal Government, whether it be the Coalition or Labor, introduces policies to deal with climate change.

"I think basically it will be a feeling of 'at last'," he says. 'And what we've got to do is to make sure we're as well positioned as we can be to take advantage of those changes and to be one active player in a growing market."