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Green Light Distrikt
Green Light Distrikt is about entrepreneurship focused on the cleantech sector. Edited by Chris Williams with frequent guest posts from friends, experts and industry insiders from clusters across the globe. Our goal is to provide a place where cleantech entrepreneurs in various clusters across the globe can learn from one another. Green Light Distrikt is creating the "Hitchikers Guide to Clentech" to provide a resource for cleantech entrepreneurs. Read more
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Tag Archives: government incentives
April 27th, 2010
No More Renewable Energy Incentives
TOPICS: BOSTON, Government Policy, Renewable Energy
First, don’t get all upset! I admit, I just wrote this title to rope you in and peak your interest because I’m assuming you think that renewable energy is awesome and needs some incentives to get the industry kick started and to decrease the learning curve, test out new technologies yadda yadda yadda. I agree with you.
Here’s the thing, I really don’t think we need more incentives for renewables, I think we need to start removing subsidies for traditional fuel sources. The reality is that with full cost accounting and taking into account the price of carbon, renewable sources at the current level of technology instantly become competitive with fossil fuels. Renewable Energy World recently wrote that from 2002 – 2008 there were more then 500% more subsidies for fossil fuels than for traditional renewables. Granted, these numbers have changed for the better with the passing of the stimulus bill in 2009. However, although this has been good news for the industry is also symbolizes a very inefficient approach to creating the renewable industry.
We all should be concerned about government waste, regardless of your political affiliation. If people are concerned about government waste, subsidizing an industry to compete with an already heavily subsidies industry is very, very, very, I’ll say it again, very wasteful.
Now, I completely agree with Ice T when he said “don’t hate the playa’, hate the game”. Its true that the renewable industry was probably too small to go up against the large and full pocketed lobbyists from the fossil fuel industry and that the only thing they could do is get some incentives for themselves.
However, the next step for the industry must to be reduce and then remove subsidies for the traditional fossil fuels.
What do you think will be the most effective way to do this? I know that most fossil fuel subsidizes are national while a lot of renewable policies are driven at a state level, which makes it a more interesting problem.
Tagged government incentives
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