Not everything that works in Scotland will work in Wales and vice versa, but every now and then you can come across something that may work very well in Wales or at least provide a glimpse of what might be possible.
The creative and communal approach taken by villagers from Fintry, in Stirlingshire (in Scotland) towards the news that a commercial company was seeking to develop a wind farm, was certainly different and very beneficial towards their village – rather than adopting a not in my back yard approach villagers embraced the project and bought their own wind turbine.
Forming the Fintry Development Trust, villagers have used the income generated to benefit their community and community facilities and projects. Whether we are talking about wind, bio-mass energy generation or small scale hydro-electric projects; the idea that local communities can generate communally owned energy and revenue may provide a useful model for similar developments across Wales.
In the two years since the turbine began producing energy, it has generated more than £200,000 for the village of Fintry. The income generated has gone towards insulating 50% of the homes in the village, with further plans to insulate more and help households covert to greener energy.
Residents receiving new cavity wall and/or loft insulation will be on course to save on average £600 on their annual fuel bill. By not having to spend the money on heating this represents a total increase in annual disposable income for the community of £91,352. The measures also means carbon dioxide in the village will be cut by 464 tonnes each year.
This is creative use of communally owned sustainable energy which benefits the local community and the environment and may well prove a model for simular developments for our commubties across Wales.
The Fintry Development trust
In 2003, when a commercial developer unveiled plans for a wind farm near the village of Fintry (in Stirlingshire, in Scotland) – villagers embraced the proposals and created a renewable electricity supply for the village by buying a wind turbine at the wind farm and use the proceeds to fund a village-wide emission reduction programme.
The project aimed to reduce energy consumption and fuel poverty by funding projects that would cut dependence on fossil fuels. The initial scheme to buy the turbine was funded through bank loans and cash from the then Scottish Executive. By 2007 villagers had set up a charitable enterprise dedicated to cutting energy bills and consumption.
Surplus cash from the project was also used to conduct a village-wide survey to assess energy saving needs like insulation and advice. In 2008, the Fintry Development Trust had received its first income from the turbine and began insulating households.
Website: http://www.fintrydt.org.uk
Good post. I definitely agree with you on this, Jonathan, and I've mentioned community (or at least local) ownership in comments elsewhere. I read an article recently about Denmark requiring a percentage of any windfarm to be owned by the local community, and I think I remember a different article from a year or so ago where a town compensated those that lived closest to the turbines by paying them a bigger share of the profits.
ReplyDeleteIf memory serves, I also read a recent blog post about the rateable value of turbines, although it was from a negative rather than positive point of view. But it got me thinking that this could be another way of encouraging local ownership as opposed to development by large energy firms, since businesses with assets of a low rateable value would qualify for Small Business Rates Relief in a way that companies with larger assets would not.
Have also read something recently about the rateable value of wind turbines. Community owned renewable energy plants, and they need not be wind, we have the potential for small hydro, biomass or Anaerobic Digestion could help to revitalise some of our communities. When spring arrives (and it feels a long way away at the moment) the Feed-in Tarriff scheme starts and premiums will be paid for schemes of up to 5MW - certainly something to think about.
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