23 April 2010 | Luca Del Buono
Carbon, Energy, Europe

 

The EU set a goal to source 20% of its energy from renewables by 2020. This is proving to be a daunting challenge.

Wind farms are expected to constitute a great deal of the European Union's electricity, and a variety off- and onshore wind farms are under construction.

Yet, what many turbine builders are finding is that throughout the EU, the process in obtaining a building permit varies drastically. While in the Finalnd, the UK, Italy and Belgium offer relatively fast procedures, Portugal's procedure requires over 58 months.

This means two things: wind energy manufacturers will have to plan far in advance in Europe and that many countries might seek to streamline their procedure.

2020 is not as far away is it appears in terms of renewable construction. What complicates the process is reportedly the multitude of bureaucratic institutions a company is required to contact. To exemplify, companies looking to build wind farms in Greece must contact 41 government agencies to begin a project.

This also does not take into account the possibility of the public objecting to wind farm projects due to noise or aesthetic inconveniences. Complaints over wind farms have recently increased. At the same time, solar panel construction is trying to overcome government regulation that prohibits the use of dangerous chemicals in manufacturing electronic products. Solar manufactures believe the prohibited substances are actually harmless and hindering renewable energy production.

The 20% reduction target looms.

Author: Michael Good | Climate Action

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