News item | 13-02-2023 | 5:00 PM
To be climate neutral by 2050, our energy system must change. But that transition to a new energy system always leads to new choices and dilemmas. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy is organizing a national consultation to give all Dutch people the opportunity to advise the cabinet and to hear what they consider important. Anyone can participate in the energy consultation until 24 February. In this way, the government hopes that the decisions in the energy transition will match the preferences of the Dutch as closely as possible.
The energy system in the Netherlands must switch to sustainable forms of energy such as renewable electricity, green gases, renewable heat and green fuels. The choices made by the government in the energy transition have consequences for everyone who lives and works in the Netherlands. But that transition always leads to new choices and dilemmas. For example, due to developments such as the war in Ukraine, high energy prices and limited space on the energy grid. It creates dilemmas for which there is no single perfect answer. That is why the government would like advice and ideas from many different people through this national plebiscite.
In the Energy Consultation of 2023, the Dutch will be shown ten values in a survey that the government can take into account in the energy transition, and then make a choice between them. Should the Netherlands depend as little as possible on other countries for its energy supply? Or should we prevent our living environment from changing? And which elements are most important in the arrival of new nuclear power plants? Participants can extensively motivate and nuance their choices. Until February 24, all Dutch people can participate and advise politicians on the future energy system. The consultation is here to find.
Rob Jetten (Minister for Climate and Energy): “We are organizing the consultation because we want to give the Dutch the opportunity to share their preferences and concerns about the energy system of the future with the government. We take the lessons and conclusions about dilemmas we face into account in our decisions. That increases the chance of success of the energy transition.”
The ministry is organizing the consultation together with Populytics. The consultation is carried out on the basis of the scientific method Participatory Value Evaluation (PWE). This method was developed by scientists from TU Delft, among others. The results will be available at the beginning of April and will be used in developing policy for the energy system in 2050.