Revolution in the Chamber: It’s Time for Local Authorities to Think Globally

By Graham Meeks

Powerful new planning guidance and the push for low-carbon development is starting to change the scene in local government towards more sustainable energy, but is it enough?

We aren’t building enough wind energy schemes. We don’t have district heating systems in all our neighbourhoods. We don’t all have solar panels at home. We haven’t really scratched the surface with hydro, tidal, and wave power. And we aren’t making the right decisions overall to get the emission reductions we need to really tackle climate change in the council chamber.

The New Local Government Network estimates that councils could reduce the production of carbon dioxide emissions by 60 per cent by 2025.

The Government’s planning policy statement on climate change states that the planning system can fight climate change by shaping communities that can take advantage of low and zero-carbon technologies. It’s clear that councils, construction and property developers, energy and planning consultants, legal and financial service providers, low carbon technology manufacturers, energy service companies and the so-called “big six” energy companies all need to work harder to reduce emissions from energy use.

There is a range of renewable energy options available to councils, such as retrofitting buildings with microgeneration technology such as solar panels and approving renewable energy schemes such as wind farms. But it is difficult to finance retrofit and there is often little political support for renewable energy schemes.

Councils need to consider how they can improve people’s access to energy, particularly heat. In Denmark, municipalities have to draw up heat strategies that identify the most appropriate heat technology for a given area.

A report by the Socialist Environment and Resources Association, a Labour environment think-tank, stated a large amount of heat was lost every day. If it could be captured and resold, power plant efficiency levels would rise from 40 to 90 per cent.

We need to approve more renewable energy schemes – Germany and Denmark have much better track records in microgeneration technology and in wind energy. And we need a wholesale change in local politics in terms of the type of policies and applications which are approved, so we can reduce overall carbon emissions from local authority areas.Now is the time to start addressing energy properly at local authority level.

Graham Meeks is the director of the Combined Heat and Power Association

(c) 2008 Independent, The; London (UK). Provided by ProQuest LLC. All rights Reserved.