Please see below conversation regarding CRC raised following SNAG notes from the last ESPB.
FAO Nick Skates,
Can you please tell me whether under the Carbon Reduction Commitment scheme, organisations who use above 6,000MWh of energy but procure this from 100% renewable suppliers such as Good Energy are still required to enter the scheme.
I would also like to draw your attention to http://www.cheatneutral.com/
Best Wishes, Tim
Dear Tim
Thanks for your email regarding electricity procured from “renewable suppliers”. The short answer to your question is that switching to a green tariff won’t exempt any organisations from participation in CRC.
Electricity supplied to participants via the grid will be treated equally using the grid average conversion factor, irrespective of the tariff structure adopted by the customer, meaning that green tariff electricity sourced via the national grid will not be treated differently from standard tariffs.
This is because all licensed electricity suppliers are obliged under the Renewables Obligation to source a specific and annually increasing percentage of the electricity they supply from renewable sources anyway.
This approach is consistent with that taken under the UK Emissions Trading Scheme and Climate Change Agreements.
I trust this information will be useful.
(PS: I enjoyed the satirical link, many thanks for that)
Regards
Stewart Riley
CRC Team
Environment Agency
National Customer Contact Centre
Dear Stuart,
Enormous thanks for responding so promptly. I thought as much.
It is such a shame that Government refuses to support 100% renewable energy production in this way. It is also shameful that Government allows energy suppliers to profiteer from their packaging of “green tariffs” (a treacherous term which should be abolished) as the supply of green energy. It is a rather dangerous state of affairs when consumers are duped into believing that they’ve already made the switch to a lower carbon lifestyle; the reality is that they continue to fund and provide backing/consent to carbon intensive energy supply. Madness.
If CRC took into account sustainable energy procurement (i.e. 100% renewable) high level energy consumers could begin funding a formidable renewable energy infrastructure programme – simply by continuing to buy energy – with astronomical knock-on effects for the green economy and effectual employment for our engineers and scientists, not to mention climate change mitigation. This would be real carbon reduction commitment. The UK is rather uniquely placed geographically speaking, a position which has allowed to thrive agriculturally, socially and economically for thousands of years. I’m not sure why we fail to maximise this fortunate position now.
CRC as it stands seems scarily similar to short term economic gain at the expense of the environment – on a continental scale. However, I note with pleasure the crchelp@environment-agency.gov.uk address which I shall dredge for further info. Thank you for your help and time.
Best Wishes, Tim.
Watch this space….
