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WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENT BY THE DEPUTY OF ST. MARY
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 6th JULY 2010
Question
"Given that following the Strategic Plan debate in 2009, the Council of Ministers undertook to report on peak oil and climate change once a year, will Minister advise when the first such report will be published and advise whether it will include the latest research/findings/consensus on peak oil and its likely social and economic effects and will it give references to the documents and reports it cites?"
Answer
The Deputy of St Mary lodged a successful amendment (P.52/2009) to Priority 1 of the States Strategic Plan 2009 – 2014 which asked the Council of Ministers to evaluate on an ongoing basis Peak Oil and Climate Change and report to the States once a year on their impacts on policy for Jersey.' The first of these annual reports was due in June 2010.
Elsewhere in the Strategic plan there is a commitment to provide an annual Report to the States by the Director of the Environment (Priority 13). It has always been my intention to bring these two commitments together as the issues for peak oil and climate change will be included in what I intend to be a state of the environment report. However there has been some delay in providing this report for two related reasons.
Firstly there have been resource issues, not least of which was the vacant Director of Environment post which has only recently been filled with the duties commencing on 1 July. The second reason for delay has been the delays in progressing the Energy White Paper which is at the heart of the State's intentions on addressing energy and climate change concerns. The Energy White Paper will provide a vehicle for setting carbon reduction targets and providing a policy framework and timescales within which to deliver the reductions. Part of this delay is a result of the vacant Director of Environment post but also the ongoing discussions with the energy providers on the Island over the issue of Carbon Intensity calculations. The targets for carbon reductions are expected to be in line with European Union targets of an 80% reduction on 1990 baseline levels by 2050. The draft White Paper is now expected to be out for consultation in Q3 2010.
Whilst I acknowledge my commitment to the States regarding the annual report I feel that at the moment it is best to concentrate resources in producing the framework and solutions required to address the issues of peak oil and climate change. I do however intend to report later this year on the tangible progress that I anticipate will be made.
When the report is produced it will be fit for purpose and include only information that can be supported by appropriate evidence. Through the Kyoto Protocol Jersey is expected to introduce, where possible, and having taken into account local circumstances, policies in line with the objectives of the UK Climate Change Programme. As such the guiding information from the UK Climate Change Programme will be that which informs any report. The report will not be an academic study of the issues as it is not the position of my Department to undertake such studies but it is my responsibility to ensure all the latest relevant and applicable information feeds any of our actions.
In the meantime progress is being made in relation to the extremely successful ECO-ACTIVE Energy Efficiency Service which provides grants to improve the energy efficiency of low-income and vulnerable islanders and work led by my esteemed colleague the Connetable of Grouville 's Tidal Power Commission. I believe these potential long term projects will make a major contribution to a low-carbon future and be a major plank of the Climate Change Adaptation Strategy that will begin to be developed later this year.