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July 1st, 2013 
Peter Nolan
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Australia should develop a national strategy to guide the transition of its energy sector to a cleaner future, the Chancellor of Melbourne’s Monash University has said.
Dr Alan Finkel believes that to effectively address climate change, Australia must derive its electricity from renewable sources, such as wind and solar.
But he says natural gas will also need to play a prominent role due to the intermittent nature of wind and solar energy.
“Whether it is conventional, shale or coal seam, natural gas is, of course, a carbon-emitting fossil fuel,” he wrote in an opinion piece for ABC Environment.
“But it has far lower emissions than its relatives.
“In the United States, annual carbon dioxide emissions have fallen 12 per cent in the last seven years. The widespread opinion of energy experts is that the biggest factor is the switch from coal to natural gas to generate electricity.”
Further, Dr Finkel, who trained as an electrical engineer, said he believed electricity supply should be increased and cars and light vehicles should be progressively converted to electric vehicles (EVs). He estimates Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions could be reduced by 70 per cent using such measures.
Andrew Dillon, general manager of corporate affairs for the Energy Supply Association of Australia, welcomed Dr Finkel’s ideas.
“This is a useful contribution to the current debate about Australia’s energy future. Chancellor Finkel’s proposal to greatly increase the use of electric vehicles over time makes sense. EVs will be a better ride for both consumers and the environment,” he said.
However, Leigh Ewbank, spokesman for environmental group Yes 2 Renewables, said that talk of gas was a distraction.
“The fugitive emissions of methane from unconventional gas production vary from 1 to 8 per cent of production. If fugitive methane emissions are above 2 per cent then that would make the climate impact of gas worse than coal.”
While he supported Dr Finkel’s calls for a national strategy, Mr Ewbank urged a vision that skipped past a reliance on any fossil fuel.
“Today, wind energy is the cheapest new-build electricity source in Australia, and solar is getting cheaper each year.
“Gas, on the other hand, will get more expensive over time. Australia can leap frog increasingly expensive fossil fuels by switching straight to renewables.”
Topics:
energy,
oil-and-gas,
mining-industry,
mining-environmental-issues,
alternative-energy,
environment,
australia
Source Article from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-07-01/gas-can-help-deliver-cleaner-energy-sector/4792244
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