‘If a man does not know what port he is steering for,no wind is favourable to him”
September 4th 2009 The first chance that the Government has had to prove its rhetoric about green collar jobs revitalising the UK economy was a failure.The UK's only manufacturer of wind turbine blades,Vestas UK closed its plant on the Isle of Wight after an 18 day sit in protest by the workers.The reason for not offering financial support for the factory was that the Danish owners said that the UK was not the right place at the moment for onshore wind due to planning fiascos.However,we read at he same time that there is shortage of skilled labour for the so-called green revolution. Surely keeping this skill base even if it shifted production to the Government's preferred offshore turbines would make sense even if it were not to remain owned by Vestas? Vestas has said that nimbys in the UK are to blame for planing failures and that it is not the Government’s fault. It is not usually nimbys that prevent offshore wind though and the Government will lose the battle for UK jobs if it doesn’t act quickly.There will be a green manufacturing revolution with the amount of projects planned,both in the UK and around the globe, in the next decade or so, however, it looks like being a stimulus for non-UK economies.
Renewables will be part of the mix but the truth is that when it comes to low cost carbon savings you cannot beat energy efficiency.Malcolm Wicks, the PM’s Special Representative on International Energy Issues said this in his independent review of international energy security and how it affects the UK.“This must not be regarded as some kind of soft option or ‘nice-to-have’.”This is true but when does the Government lead by example and cut its own buildings emissions? Talk of renewable energy is a convenient way to avoid talking about the mundane but hugely important everyday measures that will prevent the lights going out. Jonathon Porritt calls the UK’s performance with regard to energy efficiency ‘ineffable mediocrity’ (see his full attack on the Government’s energy policy on page 8).
Target after target is launched yet when we fail, as we certainly will, for instance, to hit our domestic 20% CO2 reduction target by 2010, the sound bites go silent.We have to define where we are going with energy policy and actually start to go there.Yes more renewables, yes more nuclear, and yes lots of energy efficiency. Embark on large scale achieveable projects like the Severn barrage and do them. Start new nuclear build now. And most importantly offer incentives and reward energy efficiency and not just in the industrial sector. For energy saving ideas, aside from reading the magazine,make a visit to The Energy Event 9/10 September at the National Motorcycle Museum.
Tim McManan-Smith
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