Climate Action 2016-2017

ENERGY
"Major obstacles to the
uptake of renewables
in developing and
emerging markets
include a general lack of
awareness of alternative
energy options."
government officials and developing country
energy law draftsmen are already using it.
From buildings, appliances, industrial
and transport efficiency, to energy options,
financing and rural applications, the Guide
covers an impressive depth and breadth of
issues affecting the adoption of renewables
worldwide. One of the most important
conclusions from the study is the importance
of political will in spurring widespread initiation
and implementation of renewable energy in
developing countries in particular. While there
are no hard and fast rules regarding whether
law or policy comes first, what is important is
the sincerity and determination of government
to implement its policies.
In China and India, for example, the central
governments take the lead in the initiation of
policies on efficiency and renewable energy,
but regional and local governments then
initiate those policies at the regional and local
government levels. On the other hand, in Nigeria
and Ghana, there is a dearth of regional, state,
and local government initiatives despite the fact
that central governments have formulated energy
efficiency and renewable energy policies.
SPECIFIC ISSUES
Major obstacles to the uptake of renewables
in developing and emerging markets include
a general lack of awareness of alternative
energy options, as well as a lack of reliable
data to undertake specific projects. These
considerations, along with limited financial
resources, competition from other energy
sources, a lack of supportive policies, and
inefficient infrastructure and equipment,
contribute to the difficulty of accessing the latest
renewable energy technology. An adequate
regulatory framework must, therefore, specifically
address these issues in order to put renewable
energy squarely on national agendas.
Renewable energy laws should, among
other things, address incentives to harness
any form of renewable energy including
procedures for facilitating renewable energy
technologies through effective implementing
institutions. Such laws must provide for the
rights and obligations of the host country, its
rural communities, and private investors. And
they must impose standards. The vagueness
of statutory language, weak judiciaries, and
poorly trained and ill-equipped workforces
in implementing institutions, all combine in
varying degrees to deflect regulatory will.
Countries with developing and emerging
markets must guard against these deficiencies
in regulating the renewable energy sector.
Energy efficiency and renewable energy
hold great promise for a more secure, safer,
cleaner and more economic future for the
world. For developing countries, efficiency
and renewables present the opportunity for
leapfrogging over traditional energy resources
and avoiding the myriad of environmental
problems that accompany them. Some of the
renewable technologies, however, are not yet
cost-competitive. There are still many barriers
to technology transfer, including financing,
pricing, infrastructure and education and
training. These must be dealt with before
clean resources become universally available.
Nevertheless, renewables are the fastest
growing of the energy media. It is therefore
critical that the countries, states, and
cities, and their responsible officials, and
implementers, contemplating large clean
energy investments and deployment, have the
legal tools to do it right.
The Marrakech ‘COP of Action’ is an
opportunity to celebrate the early entry into force
of the Paris Agreement and to focus in earnest
on implementation mechanisms. Laws for the
promotion of renewable energy efficiency have a
key role to play in supporting technology transfer,
mitigation, adaptation and capacity building. This
event is an opportunity to ensure that such laws
are recognised as an important resource in the
quest for a sustainable clean energy future.
Please visit http://www.unep.org/
publications/ to download 'A Guide to Energy
Efficiency and Renewable Energy Laws'.
Elizabeth Maruma Mrema is the Director of
the Law Division of UN Environment (since
June 2014). Elizabeth has worked with UN
Environment for almost two decades. Until
June 2014, she was the Deputy Director and
Coordinator, Operations and Programme
HYDRO AND THE LAW
An example of the regulatory need to promote
renewable energy may be found in the
treatment of small hydro projects. Hydropower
for rural electrification can help minimise
local, regional and global environmental
impacts in the long run, while ensuring
people’s livelihoods. It is an important pillar
of economic development in hilly areas,
an important source of a country’s fiscal
revenues, and an important way for local
people to shake off poverty and set out on a
road to prosperity. It improves agriculture and
rural production conditions and brings about
advances in agriculture. And it promotes
the comprehensive utilisation of renewable
energy resources – wind, water, solar,
geothermal and biomass energy.
These benefits, which apply to all
renewable energy resources, cannot be
realised without a coherent legislative and
regulatory framework that sets out the policy,
laws and institutional mechanisms that must
be in place for the successful application
of renewable energy. The problems that
permeate efforts to adopt effective laws for
promotion of energy efficiency and renewable
energy are evident in all countries, but they
are particularly prominent in those countries
where the need for energy is greatest.
Delivery Branch in the Policy Division.
Previously, her work had focused on
environmental law both at national, regional
and international level. Before joining UN
Environment, Elizabeth worked with the
Tanzania Ministry of Foreign Affairs and
International Cooperation. A lawyer and
career diplomat, she has published several
articles related to international environmental
law, compliance and enforcement of
conventions and developed, among others,
a number of multilateral environmental
agreement negotiation tools, handbooks and
guidelines currently used by UN Environment
in its capacity building programmes. She
is a member of the World Commission on
Environmental Law.
UN Environment (www.unep.org) is the
leading global environmental authority
that sets the global environmental agenda,
promotes the coherent implementation of
the environmental dimension of sustainable
development within the United Nations
system and serves as an authoritative
advocate for the global environment.
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