재생에너지의 국제적 규제 및 관리체제

International System for Regulation and Management of Renewable Energy

Humans now depend on energy for their survival, so the stable supply of energy is crucial. Also, it is important that the use of renewable energy replacing traditional fossil fuels which are fingered as the main cause of climate change be increased rapidly. As international society recognized the importance of renewable energy, the international regulation and management system of renewable energy has been developed to address problems that can arise from increased use of renewable energy. There are two kinds of international regulatory documents: soft law documents which were adopted by energy-related international organizations or international conferences and international hard laws such as United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Along with these normative frameworks, various forms of international organizations that manage the development and use of renewable energy have been established. This paper is 1) to figure out the present situation of international regulatory and management system of renewable energy that have been developed by the international community so far, 2) to determine if there are problems in the international regulatory framework and management systems for the efficient regulations and management of renewable energy, and 3) to examine whether there are appropriate response to the problems. The international regulatory framework and management system for renewable energy are in poor condition. Soft law documents adopted in the form of resolutions of international bodies or decisions of international conferences have yet to be crystallized sufficiently to confer a specific obligation on renewable energy to states. Nevertheless, they continuously emphasized the need to increase the share of renewable energy among total energy uses by increasing the use of renewable energy and to provide everyone with possible access to modern style of energy. Energy-related treaties do not include explicit regulations on renewable energy or deal with only traditional fossil fuels. International organizations have become too fragmented and existing traditional energy related international organizations did not adequately allocate their attention and budget to renewable energy because they focused on conventional fuels. Moreover, the International Renewable Energy Agency, which is tasked with focusing on renewable energy issues, had problems such as the lack of funding and cooperative relationship with other related international organizations. To deal with renewable energy issues efficiently and comprehensively, it would be ideal to establish an integrated energy apparatus called the International Energy Agency under a single energy convention. However, it is difficult to expect that the Organization come into presence in a short period of time in the era when the energy problem is considered to be one of the biggest problems facing the world. Thus, in the regulatory framework, at first, the World Renewable Energy Charter, which has not binding force but includes the terms and formats of the international legal norms and then concluded a separate protocol for renewable energy under the system of the United National Framework Convention on Climate Change. It seems practical approach that the International Renewable Energy Agency, which is currently the sole universal international organization in the area of renewable energy, is encouraged to play a more proactive and leading role in the management of renewable energy.