8 BETWEEN THE RHETORIC AND THE REALITY: RENEWABLE ENERGY …
195
Citizen participation in renewable energy policies has also been both a
difficult and ambivalent task for the new administration. Although President Moon made a public pledge to terminate all new constructions of
nuclear plants, the government instead decided to let the people make
the decisions on the construction of the Shin Gori Units 5 and 6, eventually leading to two more nuclear plants in Korea. Moreover, there
remains controversy about the land uses of renewable energy generators,
including solar panels and wind turbines. Although the government seems
to promote a more participatory environment constructing renewable
energy facilities, recent cases in local areas in Korea suggest that site selection processes for large-scale renewable energy is not always democratic
or transparent.
Conclusion
Examining why South Korea has been so slow in adopting renewable
energy despite the proactive measures and funding to develop renewable energy technologies, this study looked into political and economic
factors that have made it hard to spread renewable energy. Politically, the
terminology of renewable energy has been very vague and confusing in
government policymaking documents and practices for renewable energy,
often yielding the illusion of the better-than-real performances of renewables. In addition, South Korea’s reliance on nuclear power as cheap
energy is historically deep-rooted in its so-called sociotechnical imaginary
of “atom for development.” What is worse is that South Koreans’ WTP
for renewables is significantly low in light of its level of development.
South Koreans’ WTP turns out to be only one-tenth of the WTP levels
of advanced countries.
How can this gap between the governmental promotion of renewable
energy and the actual level of renewable energy adoption be filled? With
the new energy policy shift, the fundamental transition away from nuclear
energy to renewable energy seems to have just begun. Yet the process of
this transition appears to be quite troubled given the generally low levels
of WTP, or even acceptance renewable energy coupled with insufficient
incentives for local residents. One thing that is very clear from this study is
that the journey to renewable energy for South Korea would require more
than just rhetorical appeals about the necessity or environmental value of
renewable energy, especially given its political and economic hurdles as
discussed here.
195
Citizen participation in renewable energy policies has also been both a
difficult and ambivalent task for the new administration. Although President Moon made a public pledge to terminate all new constructions of
nuclear plants, the government instead decided to let the people make
the decisions on the construction of the Shin Gori Units 5 and 6, eventually leading to two more nuclear plants in Korea. Moreover, there
remains controversy about the land uses of renewable energy generators,
including solar panels and wind turbines. Although the government seems
to promote a more participatory environment constructing renewable
energy facilities, recent cases in local areas in Korea suggest that site selection processes for large-scale renewable energy is not always democratic
or transparent.
Conclusion
Examining why South Korea has been so slow in adopting renewable
energy despite the proactive measures and funding to develop renewable energy technologies, this study looked into political and economic
factors that have made it hard to spread renewable energy. Politically, the
terminology of renewable energy has been very vague and confusing in
government policymaking documents and practices for renewable energy,
often yielding the illusion of the better-than-real performances of renewables. In addition, South Korea’s reliance on nuclear power as cheap
energy is historically deep-rooted in its so-called sociotechnical imaginary
of “atom for development.” What is worse is that South Koreans’ WTP
for renewables is significantly low in light of its level of development.
South Koreans’ WTP turns out to be only one-tenth of the WTP levels
of advanced countries.
How can this gap between the governmental promotion of renewable
energy and the actual level of renewable energy adoption be filled? With
the new energy policy shift, the fundamental transition away from nuclear
energy to renewable energy seems to have just begun. Yet the process of
this transition appears to be quite troubled given the generally low levels
of WTP, or even acceptance renewable energy coupled with insufficient
incentives for local residents. One thing that is very clear from this study is
that the journey to renewable energy for South Korea would require more
than just rhetorical appeals about the necessity or environmental value of
renewable energy, especially given its political and economic hurdles as
discussed here.