Friday, December 30, 2011

Victoria's Green Matters 29th December 2011


Deal With IT's Secretary Victoria Nicholls writes a regular column in the East Kent Mercury:
There has been some good news from the law this week in two cases. Firstly, the courts upheld a challenge from Friends of the Earth to the government’s decision to reduce the feed-in-tariffs for electricity generated by solar photovoltaic (PV) cells. Reduced feed-in-tariffs were due to come into force on 12 December 2011 rather than the original April date, before the consultation process had come to an end and forcing many intended installations of PV cells to be abandoned.

This was not only bad news for individual householders and community groups who wanted to reduce their carbon footprint and invest in the future but for those new businesses that had trained personnel ready to install PVs. To lose these jobs at this time was clearly devastating.

The European Union (EU) has ruled that airlines based outside the EU should pay for their carbon emissions when they fly to or from an EU country. This is a crucial test for climate change regulation. It is being resisted in particular by the US and Chinese governments but numerous other international airlines are also fighting this ruling. Airlines have little incentive to cut their carbon emissions and pay no tax on aviation fuel.

Airlines have protested that this new regulation will cost them billions of euros over the coming years. Research puts the cost to all airlines at about €1.1billion next year.

A Very Merry and Green Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

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