U.K. Feed in tarriffs for renewable energy?

Question

i was researching this after answering a question that got me thinking about why have we not got more home generation like in Germany where they have a feed in tariff for new renewable technology to offset the extra cost, and i came across this petition;

http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Feed-In-Tarrifs/

U.K.people please sign if you want to see us anywhere near close the gap on renewables with Germany, they are miles ahead at the moment.

Answer 1

Yes. I also signed it. :)

Answer 2

All in all, I think that feed-in tarriffs are plausible way to accelerate the adoption of "green" energy sources.  My main concern is that it could cause people to adopt more expensive technology before more efficient means of production are adopted.  While there is no time like the present, there may be room for substantial improvement before capital is expended.  One example is the "spray on" solar cell recently developed.  Rather that using silicon, which generates tremendous amounts of toxic materials and CO2 to make correctly, this new technology can be applied to plastic for a fraction of the cost.

While it is important to move the switch to more green energy forward, I think that a conserted effort to improve on the technologies that are available should also be a key goal.