[The Hwankyung Ilbo] Modern cities are like black holes that suck in energy and other resources. As demand for carbon neutrality grows, concerns are growing that farming and mountain villages take responsibility, rather than the cities that consume most of their energy, in the process of converting to renewable energy.

The organisation Green Korea held a debate on urban energy conversion at the Green Education Center in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on July 1.

Amid the urgent need to shift from the climate crisis, air pollution, and nuclear power to safe renewable energy, the problem of location continues due to large-scale development centered on mountains and farmlands.

Energy conversion is not a matter to be left to agriculture and mountain villages, but a task to be dealt with responsibility in cities where energy is consumed, and this forum seeks ways to convert energy and make cities stand on its own feet. 

Lim Sung-hee, the first topic speaker, introduced the current status and conflicts of solar energy in mountain and farmland, pointing out that cities have abandoned the principles of justified conversion, self-reliance and dispersion that should be maintained in the process of energy conversion.

He stressed that energy conversion cannot be achieved through energy independence in rural areas, and that cities, which are energy-dispensing regions, should be responsible for energy conversion.

In the era of climate crisis, the government is scrambling to declare carbon neutrality and energy conversion cities, but the ratio of energy independence and renewable energy generation is significantly low, with energy conversion goals being also insufficient. There are 95 municipalities with less than 1% of solar power.

The structure of passing on the sacrifice and conflict of agricultural villages for urban energy demand should not be repeated, and it is urgent to establish an institutional foundation to increase energy independence by utilizing the city's potential for development more actively.

Choi Seung-guk, chairman of the Solar and Wind Energy Cooperative, made it clear that energy conversion is not just about solar and wind energy, but it also includes a small regional decentralized energy system, with reduced consumption through demand management and efficiency improvement.

They say that the energy policy shift is needed to spread a small distributed power system led by citizens, not a large-scale renewable energy project led by the central government.

He stressed that in order to implement energy-independent cities, the role of local governments to organize, establish, and enforce governance is important, and that measures to improve energy independence rates and dedicated organizations for energy conversion should be operated. In addition, support is needed to revitalize cooperative activities in village units that can act as a key player in urban energy conversion.

"As solar power is a key driver of urban energy independence, institutional support is essential to secure the site," he stressed.

In addition, he added, "In addition to solar energy, it is necessary to create a foundation for the supply of small urban wind power to secure various energy sources." 

After the presentation, discussions on designation continued. Lee Geun-haeng, head of the Korea Institute for Agricultural and Fishing Community Studies, said, "We need to stop colonizing agriculture in the name of transition."

"Mountain and farmland are spaces where carbon can be absorbed and stored, and damaging them results in retrogating the face of carbon neutrality," he said.

The government also said, "The government claims that farming-type farming is a profitable business in which farmers participate in energy conversion on their own, but the transition in which farmers become the real subjects begins with food conversion and rural regeneration."

Director Lee pointed out, "Energy conversion should not be carried out in a way that pushes someone away again and achieves only numerical goals." 

Lee Jong-hyung, director of the Environmental Policy Division of Dobong-gu Sustainable Development Bureau, introduced the Dobong Green Energy Strategy to achieve 60% of power independence by supplying 300MW of renewable energy generation facilities to Dobong-gu by 2050.

"In order to revitalize the local government's energy conversion policy, it is necessary to establish a system that can evaluate the performance of carbon neutrality and budget support for each region, not the central government's public project-type budget support," said Lee Jong-hyung.

For example, it suggested that solar power should be installed on the rooftop more easily through the revision of the Enforcement Decree of the Residential Agreement of the Apartment Housing Management Act. 

Yoo Jung-min, a deputy researcher at the Seoul Institute's Safety and Environment Research Institute, said that an active system is needed to expand solar power facilities in Seoul.

It proposed introducing a shared solar model to increase citizens' participation in power generation projects, education on renewable energy for autonomous district officials with solar licensing authority, reduction of taxes to attract solar businesses for private building owners, and BIPV (Building Integrated Solar Power System). Yoon Jeon-woo, head of the governance promotion team at the Seoul Urban Regeneration Support Center, proposed eight specific measures and evaluation standards, including energy conversion, green transportation, and green remodeling to implement carbon-neutral transition cities through urban regeneration projects.

In particular, the energy conversion model suggested that villagers could become investors to operate small-scale solar power projects and utilize SOC-linked village management projects that invest in common residential facilities and housing management with power generation profits. 

Park Jin-hee, chairman of the Energy Climate Policy Institute, said, "This debate has served as an opportunity to reflect on the city's leading role in the energy conversion process. When the city takes responsibility for energy conversion, it will be able to reduce conflicts and draw its main track."