Fwd: Survey: Americans support renewable energy despite higher bills

http://www.pennenergy.com/index/power/display/7363609495/articles/pennenergy/power/renewable/2012/may/survey_-americans.html%20?cmpid=EnlWeeklyPowerMay182012

Survey: Americans support renewable energy despite higher bills


May 15, 2012
A recent survey suggests that residents in the U.S. would be willing to pay slightly higher electricity rates in order to support renewable energy, according to a report from The New York Times.

The survey was conducted by researchers at Harvard and Yale Universities and published in the scientific journal Nature Climate Change.

The researchers investigated support for a so-called National Clean Energy Standard (NCES) that would set a requirement for U.S. utilities and electricity providers to use at least 80 percent renewable energy by 2035.

While support for this policy varied based on political party, location and other factors, on average Americans were willing to pay an additional $162 per year in electricity bills, a 13 percent increase.

Notably, this support dropped significantly if nuclear power or gas-fired generation were included as clean energy sources, potentially in part due to recent controversies such as last year's Fukushima Daiichi disaster in Japan and ongoing concerns about hydraulic fracturing.

However, the researchers suggested an 80 percent renewables mandate would only gain political support if it would raise electricity bills by no more than 5 percent.

As a different approach, Reuters reports the U.K. has suggested shifting EU policies to emphasize carbon emissions reductions over the use of renewable energy.

Renewable energy policy in North and South America can be found in PennEnergy's Research area.

People who rea
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile