Wind Power in Australia - Politics of Wind Power

Politics of Wind Power

From 2001 to early 2006, the main driving force for the establishment of wind farms in Australia was the Government's Mandatory Renewable Energy Target (MRET). However, by mid-2006, sufficient renewable energy had been installed or was under construction to meet the small MRET target for 2010. Also, in 2006, several Federal Government Ministers spoke out against a number of wind farm proposals.

Dr Mark Diesendorf has suggested that the Australian Government has tried to stop the development of wind power, the lowest-cost, new, renewable electricity source, until such time as coal-fired power stations with CO₂ capture and sequestration and possibly nuclear power stations are available. However, "clean coal" technologies may not be commercially available for at least 20 years. Furthermore, to bring down the high cost of nuclear power to a level where it could compete with wind power would require a new generation of nuclear power stations that is still on the drawing board, which could take at least 15 years.

In November 2007 the Rudd (Labor) government was elected in Australia, replacing the Howard (Liberal/National Coalition) government. The new government ratified Australia's commitment to the Kyoto Protocol, promised a target of 20% renewable power by 2020 and to do more to reduce Australia's greenhouse gas emissions. As a result, several new wind power projects have been proposed in anticipation of an expanded MRET.

In July 2011 the Australian Broadcasting Corporation 4 Corners program explored health concerns connected with Australian wind farms in its "Against the Wind" report.