Rural Victoria's power networks set to buckle under weight of wind energy.

Authorities say two coal-fired power stations' worth of renewable energy won't be able to reach the grid without major upgrades to networks in Victoria's west.

Wind turbines are set to dot the landscape in Victoria's
west but the extra power will be wasted without transmission
 upgrades.

Developers are lining up to build wind and solar projects in towns to the west and north of Ballarat, in what is being hailed as another gold rush.

"We've got $3 billion worth of projects currently underway," said Stuart Benjamin, the chairman of a Victorian Government-commissioned taskforce that is overseeing the boom in the Grampians.

"And if some of the limitations that we're seeing in terms of infrastructure are addressed, we could possibly double or even triple that number.”

Read the story from ABC News by Charlotte King - “Rural Victoria's power networks set to buckle under weight of wind energy.”

(Listen to the podcast from “Climate Conversations” featuring Charlie Prell, the New South Wales organiser for the Australian Wind Alliance) 

Carbon Market Institute conference starts tomorrow in Melbourne

T

he Carbon Market Institute is a national, independent, not-for-profit, membership-based organisation headquartered in Melbourne.

Coinciding with unprecedented debate on climate change policy in Australia and at a critical juncture in the development of international climate policy and carbon markets, CMI was established with support from the Victorian Government.

CMI incorporates and builds on the networks, partnerships and services developed by the former Asia-Pacific Emissions Trading Forum (AETF) which began operations in 1998.

The Institute commenced operations on January 1, 2011, with a mandate to assist Australian business with the implementation of climate-related markets, both in terms of managing risk and realising business opportunities.

The “Second Australian Emissions Reduction Summit” starts tomorrow (May 5) in Melbourne tomorrow.