Significance of planning for renewable and low carbon energy:

Increasing the amount of energy from renewable and low carbon

technologies will help to make sure we have a secure energy supply,
reduce greenhouse gas emissions to slow down climate change and
stimulate investment in new jobs and businesses.
The National Planning Policy Framework :
Local and neighbourhood plans are the key to delivering development that
has the backing of local communities. When drawing up a Local Plan local
planning authorities should first consider what the local potential is for
renewable and low carbon energy generation.
In considering that potential, the matters local planning authorities
should think about include:the range of technologies that could be
accommodated and the policies needed to encourage their
development in the right places;
the costs of many renewable energy technologies are falling, potentially
increasing their attractiveness and the number of proposals;
different technologies have different impacts and the impacts can vary
by place;
legal commitments to cut greenhouse gases and meet increased
energy demand from renewable sources.
Whilst local authorities should design their policies to maximise
renewable and low carbon energy development,

role for community led renewable energy initiatives:

Community initiatives are likely to play an increasingly important role and should be
encouraged as a way of providing positive local benefit from renewable energy
development
Neighbourhood plans are an opportunity for communities to plan for community led
renewable energy developments. Neighbourhood Development Orders and
The
variousRight
specific
renewable
energy
technologies?
Community
to Build
Orders can
be used
to grant planning permission for
Renewable
energy development.
technologies
renewable energy
hydropower,
active solar technology (photovoltaics and solar water heating),
solar farmsand
wind turbines.

 The Renewable Energy Community, as conceptually defined by NREL, is a state-of-the- art

community in which integrated, renewable energy technologies play the primary role in meeting
the energy supply and demand needs of its residents, with the possibility of providing excess
energy back to the grid or other communities.

At a minimum, this community will have near-zero or zero-energy homes (ZEHs), integrated
transportation modes with advanced vehicles, local renewable energy generation, and
incorporate sustainable living practices.

The community will provide economic benefits and a positive impact on quality of life.

A Renewable Energy Community places added emphasis on the energy element of a

sustainable community by being powered largely from renewable energy and by integrating
power systems for homes and vehicles

 Integrating the Renewable Energy Community as a whole system can accrue significant
benefits. Cost advantages from the systems approachlinking homes with vehicles and
addressing energy issues on a community level rather than on individual households can be
gained compared to the costs of each individual part. Some financial benefits are reduced
monthly expenditures with more renewable/energy efficient equipment;
tax advantages
financial incentives (ex. green bonds7);
Green Bonds are an innovative initiative to generate sustainable income for
a variety of environmental conscious projects
green mortgages that incorporate advanced vehicles along with
renewable technology.

Key Elements for a Renewable Energy Community

NREL has outlined five elements needed to become a Renewable Energy Community:
1. Sustainable Design Approach
2. Solar/Zero Energy Buildings and/or Micro-Grids
3. Advanced and Energy Efficient Transportation
4. Utility Role ExpansionPower Generation and Load Management
5. Putting it All Together for a Renewable Energy Community
These are all elements that can contribute significantly to decreasing the conventional energy
requirements of a home or building. In general, these communities aim to include attributes
such as:
Energy efficient construction (i.e. building envelope, HVAC systems, and appliances)
Passive solar design and lot positioning
Community layout to reduce vehicle use, increase walkability, and provide access to
mass transit
Recycling and water conservation
Ecological integrity Social equity Cultural and historical vitality.

The U.S. Green Buildings Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental

Design- Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND)13 certification program
recognizes these green neighborhoods.

The objective of these approaches is to design communities that make a

concerted effort to build environmentally compatible,

less automobile-dependent developments;

integrate living, working, shopping, and socializing; and

attract diverse and heterogeneous residents in terms of age, culture,

family type, income levels, and other factors.

These types of neighborhoods are described as sustainable in the sense of

placemaking.

 Technologies include:

photovoltaics (PV);

Wind
; solar thermal heat and electric;

solar ventilation air preheating;

solar water heating;

biomass heat and electric (combusti

gasification, pyrolysis, anaerobic di

daylighting.

Location: Weardale, County Durham

Eastgate Renewable Energy Village has been dubbed one o

ncentives .
the most imaginative rural regeneration projects to be
1. Investment Tax
granted planning permission in the UK in recent times.
2. Production Tax Credit
The new village, on the site of the former Weardale cement
3. Clean Renewable Energy Bonds
4. Accelerated Depreciation works, will demonstrate the use of all five forms of land5. Capacity Payment Tariff based renewable energy wind, solar, biomass, hydro and
geothermal in a living and working environment.
6. Demand Credit
With a hot springs spa at its heart utilising natural hot
7. Buy Down Capital Cost
water from underground the existence of which was
8. Carbon Credits
9. Property Tax Incentives confirmed by test drilling in 2004 the village will serve as
an education resource and a tourist attraction. Sufficient
10. Other Incentives
electricity will be generated on-site not only for the new
village but all 3,000 homes in Weardale, located high up in
the North Pennines.
David Lock Associates has been centrally involved in the
preparation and evolution of the plans since the closure of
the cement works was announced in 2002, this including
four rounds of public consultation. The company continues
to be active on the project, currently acting as lead
consultant in its implementation

Neighbourhood plan policy: renewable energy

Having a renewable energy policy is a great way of communicating to
communitys ambitions for renewable energy in the neighbourhood plan. Policies
can add detail to policy that is within local councils local plan (all local plans will
have renewable energy policy). This could include detail on:
Community energy: the NPPF states that local planning authorities should
recognise the responsibility on all communities to contribute to energy generation
from renewable or low carbon sourcesThey should support community-led
initiatives for renewable and low carbon energy. Very few local plans have policy
to reflect this national objective (many local plans were adopted before the NPPF
was published) your neighbourhood plan is a great opportunity to create this
local policy!
Local resource: if you live in an area that has good potential for particular kinds
of renewable energy (e.g.energy from waste in a neighbourhood that is very
agricultural), and your community is theoretically supportive of these, could you
include policy detail that stresses this? Some local planning authorities have
adopted a Merton Rule type policy, requiring a minimum proportion of new
developments energy demand to be met by on-site renewable energy. If your
local council doesnt have such a policy, you