Download or read book Meeting UK Energy and Climate Needs written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Science and Technology Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2006-02-09 with total page 92 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions around the world continue to grow. The UK is struggling to meet its targets of reducing CO2 emissions by 20 per cent below 1990 levels by 2010, and 60 per cent by 2050, while growing demand in countries such as India and China is expected to fuel a dramatic increase in global emissions in the future. Concern over security of energy supply is also a major feature of the current debate about energy policy. This reports finds significant scope for carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology to contribute to both reducing emissions and enhancing future security of energy supply. Costs of CCS are comparable to other low carbon approaches, with potential to reduce those costs substantially with technological development and economies of scale. Enhanced oil recovery, extending the life of the North Sea oil fields, could also offset the cost of CCS. Geological storage is relatively safe and secure, though the Government should clarify whether storage under the seabed is permissible under international law. Whilst UK industry is poised to make substantial investments in CCS and full scale demonstration projects, the Government needs to display much greater urgency and commitment, by increasing investment in research, development and demonstration, and by setting up a long-term incentive framework.

Download or read book Meeting the energy challenge written by Great Britain: Department of Trade and Industry and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2007-05-23 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: There are two main energy challenges: tackling climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions; and ensuring clean and affordable energy as the country becomes increasingly dependent on imported fuel. These challenges have to be met against the backdrop of rising fossil fuel prices; slower than anticipated liberalisation of the EU energy markets; heightened awareness of the risk arising from remaining oil and gas reserves being concentrated in a few geographical regions; and a need for substantial new investment in power stations, the electricity grid and gas infrastructure. This White Paper sets out the Governments international and domestic strategy to address these challenges and ways to implement the Energy Review of 2006 and the 2006 Pre-Budget Report. There is a separate consultation document on nuclear power.

Download or read book Meeting UK Energy and Climate Needs written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Science and Technology Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2006-02-09 with total page 220 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Meeting UK energy and climate Needs : The role of carbon capture and storage, first report of session 2005-06, Vol. 2: Oral and written Evidence

Download or read book Overarching national policy statement for energy EN 1 written by Great Britain: Department of Energy and Climate Change and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2011-07-19 with total page 124 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This national policy statement (NPS) sets out national policy for the energy infrastructure. A further five technology-specific NPSs for the energy sector cover: fossil fuel electricity generation (EN-2) (ISBN 9780108510786); renewable electricity generation (both onshore and offshore) (EN-3) (ISBN 9780108510793); gas supply infrastructure and gas and oil pipelines (EN-4) (ISBN 9780108510809); the electricity transmission and distribution network (EN-5) (ISBN 9780108510816); and nuclear power generation (EN-6) (ISBN 9780108510823). An Impact assessment is also available (ISBN 9780108510830). The NPSs have effect on the decisions by the Infrastructure Planning Commission on application for energy developments. This statement outlines the Government's objectives for the power sector in order to meet its energy and climate change strategy. It sets out the need for new energy infrastructure and the assessment principles and generic impacts.

Download or read book Energy Markets Outlook Report written by Great Britain. Department of Energy and Climate Change and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2009 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report presented by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, sets out the nature and potential available to the UK energy market, in meeting three long-term challenges: (i) ensuring affordable, secure and sustainable energy; (ii) bringing about the transition to a low-carbon Britain; (iii) achieving an international agreement at Copenhagen in December 2009. This is the third Energy Markets Outlook report and seeks to facilitate and inform debate and decision making by market participants and other energy market stakeholders with a factual background to the development of the Government's approach to the above challenges. The publication comprises 10 chapters, and looks at the following areas: the security of supply in a competitive energy market; electricity, gas, coal, oil, nuclear fuel, renewable energy and carbon.

Download or read book Climate Change the UK Programme 2006 written by Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Environmental Audit Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2006 with total page 176 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This publication contains oral and written evidence taken before the Committee in their inquiry into the Government's Climate Change Programme announced in March 2006 (in its White Paper 'Tomorrow's Climate, Today's Challenge' Cm. 6764, ISBN 0101676425). It includes contributions from officials from Defra, the Confederation of British Industry, the UK Sustainable Development Commission, Greater London Authority and local authorities.

Download or read book The UK low carbon transition plan written by Great Britain: Department of Energy and Climate Change and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2009-07-15 with total page 228 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This White Paper sets out the UK's transition plan to 2020 for becoming a low carbon country: cutting emissions, maintaining secure energy supply, maximising economic opportunities and protecting the most vulnerable. The plan will deliver emission cuts of 18 per cent on 2008 levels. Key steps include: all government departments to have carbon budgets; 40 per cent of energy from low carbon sources including 30 per cent of energy from renewables; funding of four demonstrations of capturing and storing emissions from coal power stations; new nuclear power stations. Home will be made greener by: £3.2 billion to help households become more energy efficient; rolling out smart meters to all homes by 2020; piloting "pay as you save" schemes; introducing clean energy cash-back schemes; a competition for 15 towns and villages to be pioneers in green innovation. Vulnerable sections of society will be helped by: mandated social price support; piloting a community-based approach to delivering green homes in low income areas, helping around 90,000 homes; increasing Warm Front grants. The greening of industry will be addressed through support for development and use of clean technologies, including £120 million in offshore wind and £60 million towards marine energy. Transport will be transformed: carbon dioxide emissions from new cars to be cut across the EU by 40 per cent on 2007 levels and increased support for electric cars; sourcing 10 per cent of UK transport energy from renewable sources. A framework for emissions from farming will be developed. Also published are "The UK renewable energy strategy" (Cm. 7686, ISBN 9780101768627) and "Low carbon transport" (Cm. 7682, ISBN 9780101768221).

Download or read book The last report written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Science and Technology Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2007-11-07 with total page 74 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: On 28 June 2007, the Prime Minister announced changes to the machinery of Government that had an impact upon the select committee system within the House of Commons. As a result, the Science and Technology Select Committee will be dissolved and replaced by a new Innovation, Universities and Skills Select Committee at the beginning of the next session of Parliament. This Report explains the role that the Science and Technology Committee has played within Parliament and the science community. It outlines the Committee's innovations, its impact and concerns regarding future science scrutiny in the House of Commons. It concludes that, in the long term, a separate Science and Technology Committee is the only way to guarantee a permanent focus on science across Government within the select committee system and recommends that the House be given an opportunity to revisit this issue.

Download or read book Oil Water and Climate written by Catherine Gautier and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2008-04-07 with total page 334 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Today's oil and gas are at record prices, whilst global energy demand is increasing from population and economic development pressures. Climate change, resulting in large part from the burning of fossil fuels, is exacerbating the impacts of the excelerated exploitation of our natural resources. Therefore, anxieties over energy, water, and climate security are at an all-time high. Global action is needed now in order to address this set of urgent challenges and to avoid putting the future of our civilization at risk. This book examines the powerful interconnections that link energy, water, climate and population, exploring viable options in addressing these issues collectively. Difficult political decisions and major reforms in resource governance, policies, market forces, and use are needed and this book provides excellent introductory material to begin to understand and to address these problems.

Download or read book Research Handbook on Intellectual Property and Climate Change written by Joshua D. Sarnoff and published by Edward Elgar Publishing. This book was released on 2016-04-29 with total page 559 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written by a global group of leading scholars, this wide-ranging Research Handbook provides insightful analysis, useful historical perspective, and a point of reference on the controversial nexus of climate change law and policy, intellectual property law and policy, innovation policy, technology transfer, and trade. The contributors provide a unique review of the scientific background, international treaties, and political and institutional contexts of climate change and intellectual property law. They further identify critical conflicts and differences of approach between developed and developing countries. Finally they put forward and analyse the relevant intellectual property law doctrines and policy options for funding, developing, disseminating, and regulating the required technologies and their associated activities and business practices. The book will serve as a resource and reference tool for scholars, policymakers and practitioners looking to understand the issues at the interface of intellectual property and climate change.

Download or read book Meeting the energy challenge written by Great Britain: Department for Business, Enterprise & Regulatory Reform and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2008-01-10 with total page 192 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The May 2007 White Paper "Meeting the energy challenge: a white paper on energy" (Cm. 7124, ISBN 9780101712422) set out the Government's international and domestic strategy to address the two main challenges: tackling climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions; and ensuring clean and affordable energy as the country becomes increasingly dependent on imported fuel. An online consultation on nuclear power and the role of the private sector: www.direct.gov.uk/nuclearpower2007 was produced at the same time. This White Paper sets out the Government's decision taken in response to the consultation. The Government believes it is in the public interest that new nuclear power stations should have a role to play in the country's future energy mix alongside other low-carbon sources; that energy companies should have the option of investing in them; and that the Government should take active steps to open up the way to the construction of new nuclear power stations. It will be for the energy companies to fund, develop and build the new stations, including meeting the full costs of decommissioning and their full share of waste management costs. Section 1 summarises the consultation process. Section 2 addresses the key issues that arose from the consultation and how they have been taken into account in shaping policy and reaching conclusions. Section 3 outlines the facilitative actions the Government will take to reduce the regulatory and planning risks associated with investing in new nuclear power stations. Finally there are three annexes: alternatives to nuclear power; justification and strategic siting assessment processes; regulatory and advisory structure for nuclear power.

Download or read book The UK s energy supply written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Energy and Climate Change Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2011-10-25 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Government must start thinking strategically about energy security to protect the UK's energy supply against short-term shocks and rising global energy prices, according to a report by MPs on the Energy and Climate Change Committee. Gas storage capacity needs to be increased in the UK to minimise the potential damage from supply interruptions or price spikes, the report argues. It reveals that the UK's current storage capacity amounts to only 14 days worth of gas supply - a dangerously low level compared with France which has 87 days worth of gas storage, Germany 69 and Italy 59. 19 gigawatts (GW) of ageing electricity plant will close by 2018 and the UK will become increasingly reliant on energy imports as North Sea oil and gas reserves decline. The report concludes that new electricity generation currently being built or planned will fill this "gap". But it urges the Government to ensure security of supply by delivering on its energy efficiency targets, rolling out smart meters - that can balance demand - and maintaining a diverse energy mix.

Download or read book Watching the Directives written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Science and Technology Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2006-06-29 with total page 144 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The EU Physical Agents (Electromagnetic Fields) Directive (which was adopted in April 2004 and must be enshrined in law in EU member states by April 2008) sets out exposure limits designed to provide a minimum standard of protection from occupational exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF). The Committee's report focuses on the impact of this Directive on the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment for diagnosis, treatment and research use. This is the first of three case studies under the Committee's over-arching inquiry into the way scientific evidence and advice is used by the UK Government to influence policy at EU level. It finds that there were failings in the way scientific advice was used to inform the Directive, both in Brussels and in the UK. The European Commission relied too heavily on one source of advice and was not sufficiently responsive to concerns raised by the magnetic resonance community, whilst there was serious failings in the consultation process in the UK, particular by the Health and Safety Executive and by the Health Protection Agency.

Download or read book Research Council Support for Knowledge Transfer written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Science and Technology Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2006 with total page 56 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Knowledge transfer is an essential component of innovation. It is defined as "about transferring good ideas, research results and skills between universities, other research organisations, business and the wider community to enable innovative new products and services to be developed". This inquiry focused on the effectiveness of the research councils' knowledge transfer activities with particular respect to: promotion of collaborative working between researchers and partners in industry, including in the creative industries and in Small and Medium size Enterprises (SMEs); stakeholder engagement and communication; results and performance management and; co-ordination between the councils and the role of Research Councils UK (RCUK). The Committee found weaknesses in strategies for promotion of knowledge transfer. Some Councils focus too narrowly on technology transfer with little attention paid to the wider issues, such as policy development. The councils also focus their attention on informing stakeholders rather than consulting on stakeholder needs. In addition, there is a particular need for the research councils to enhance communication and engagement with the Regional Development Agencies and SMEs. There is little evidence of research council co-ordination or sharing of best practice in knowledge transfer. Also, despite their clear remit to co-ordinate and harmonise, there appears to have been no added value from RCUK in this area. Whilst some councils have a simple funding structure for knowledge transfer, in other cases, a high level of confusion has been created since there are so many schemes in operation. Since the councils conduct little internal impact analysis of their knowledge transfer schemes, it is difficult to see how they can effectively allocate funding to different knowledge transfer activities.

Download or read book Research council institutes written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Science and Technology Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2007-03-22 with total page 98 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The eight UK Research Councils are the largest public investors in the UK scientific research and skills base, investing their annual budget of £2.8 billion in their own institutes and centres (collectively known as Research Council Institutes or RCIs) as well as awarding grants to universities. RCIs make a unique contribution in terms of providing national capacity and access to facilities and in developing multidisciplinary science driven by a clearly-defined mission, and vary widely in their structure, governance, facilities, size and objectives. The Committee's report focuses on the Research Councils' strategies for providing support to their RCIs, including the case for greater harmonisation of policy and practice, the role of Research Council UK in monitoring and improving the effectiveness of support for RCIs, the role of the Office of Science and Innovation (OSI), and a review of progress in three current restructuring projects involving the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, the Roslin Institute, and the National Institute for Medical Research. The report's overall conclusion is that the OSI needs to take on greater responsibility in this area, in order to monitor the state of the research base, to improve mechanisms for guaranteed funding, and to improve dialogue between government, Research Councils and the RCI sector.

Download or read book The Social Dynamics of Carbon Capture and Storage written by Nils Markusson and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-05-04 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Carbon capture and storage (CCS) has emerged rapidly as a crucial technological option for decarbonising electricity supply and mitigating climate change. Great hopes are being pinned on this new technology but it is also facing growing scepticism and criticism. This book is the first to bring together the full range of social and policy issues surrounding CCS shedding new light on this potentially vital technology and its future. The book covers many crucial topics including the roles and positions that different publics, NGOs, industry, political parties and media are taking up; the way CCS is organised, supported and regulated; how CCS is being debated and judged; how innovation, demonstration and learning are occurring and being conceptualised and promoted; and the role of CCS in the transition to a low carbon energy future. The authors draw on a variety of approaches, concepts, methods and themes and provide a new understanding of innovation in the energy and climate change fields. It tackles the many issues in a way that speaks to those concerned not only to understand these developments, but to those who are involved in the scientific and technological work itself, as well as those charged with evaluating and making decisions relevant to the future of the technology.

Download or read book Draft Climate Change Bill written by Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee and published by The Stationery Office. This book was released on 2007-07-05 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report examines the draft Climate Change Bill, which published in March 2007 as Command paper Cm 7040 (ISBN 9780101704021). Target setting alone cannot deliver policy objectives, but enshrining one in law will strengthen the Government's resolve to achieve it, ensure greater public accountability, and give confidence to the business community whose investment decisions are central to meeting the target. The Committee recommends a number of changes to the bill. Inconsistency in language, with "UK carbon account" and "UK carbon dioxide emissions" seemingly used interchangeably, should be addressed. There should not be an upper limit on the 2020 target (26-32 per cent reduction in carbon dioxide emission), and the Bill should make provision for both the 2020 and 2050 targets to be revised, though only in an upwards direction. The provision to amend a budget more than a year after the end of a budgetary period is seen as making a nonsense of the concept of budgetary periods, and should be removed completely. The proposed Committee on Climate Change, rightly composed of experts, should not appear to give more representation to economic interests over environmental ones. The resources proposed for the Committee may prove inadequate. The Committee recommends that the impact of climate change on biodiversity should be added to the Bill.