Publication Laka-library:
Getting out of the Greenhouse. Agenda for UK Energy Policy (1989)
| Author | T.Jackson, S.Roberts, FOE |
| Date | December 1989 |
| Classification | 6.01.2.15/03 (NP & GREENHOUSE EFFECT - CO2 REDUCTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE) |
| Front | 
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From the publication:
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Establishing effective policies to tackle the Greenhouse Effect and reduce the threat of global warming is now at the top of the international agenda. It is recognised that substantial new investments will be needed to prevent an environmental crisis of unprecedented proportions. Energy policy is central to the causes of the Greenhouse Effect and, therefore, to its solutions. There has been much discussion around which particular "solutions" to choose- nuclear power, energy efficiency, renewables etc.. However, to date there has been no attempt to develop coherent criteria to judge between options and to ensure the careful and effective allocation of resources to achieve maximum environmental improvements. Without such criteria we are left in a mire of vested interest, prejudice and preconception. Yet, every £ spent on one option is a £ that cannot be spent on another. We cannot afford to waste time, effort, and, above all, money on inappropriate measures that result in little benefit. "Getting Out of The Greenhouse" provides the first coherent economic analysis of the energy policy options in the UK for action on the Greenhouse Effect. It examines the costs and potentials of measures to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, based almost entirely on Government reports and studies, and argues that cost-effectiveness is a crucial criterion to adopt to inform energy policy development. The key findings of the analysis are: • Making no policy changes and carrying on "business as usual" will result in a 25% increase in CO2 emission levels by the year 2005. • Nuclear power is one of the most expensive options for reducing CO2 emissions (see Table below). • Leaving aside the transport sector, adoption of the most cost-effective measures would produce a 46.5% cot in CO2 emissions from 1987 levels by the year 2005, whilst meeting predicted energy demand increases and with no need to build nuclear power stations.
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