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Acknowledgements Urban Forum would like to thank the following organisations and people for making this research possible. The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust; Mauro Alberti, Professor Giovanni Riva and Michele Balzarini – Aspire Communities, Val Di Scalve, Italy; Thomas Dresel - City of Freiburg Environmental Protection Agency, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany; Dr Burghard Flieger - innova eG, Projektbüro Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany; Jörg Dahlke and Michael Schmidt - Nature Power GmbH, Magdeburg, Germany; Henrik Flyver Christiansen - Danish Energy Agency, Denmark; Hans Christian Sørensen - SPOK Consulting, Denmark; Lennart Erfors - Kristianstad Municipality, Sweden; Bertil Klintbom - Municipality of Gotland; Sweden Anne Kivinukk - CO REC Estonia; Mirja Alder – Kred Ex, Tallinn, Estonia Jann Tepp – Estonian Wind Power Association; Keith Boxer - Director, Innovation & Sustainability, White Arkitekter, UK

About the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust are a grant making Trust established in 1965 as the living memorial to Sir Winston Churchill. The Trust‟s purpose is to give grants to British citizens, resident in the UK an opportunity to travel overseas to study areas of topical and personal interest, to gain knowledge and to enlarge their experience for the benefit of their profession, community and the UK as a whole. More information at: Winston Churchill Memorial Trust 29 Great Smith Street London SW1P 3AZ Web: www.wcmt.org.uk About Urban Forum Urban Forum exists to influence national urban policy to bring about effective change for local communities, by acting as bridge between policymakers and the community sector. Urban Forum undertakes research and policy development, produces information and runs events, all designed to inform policy-making and to support community groups to influence decision-making.

More information: Urban Forum 33 Corsham Street London N1 6DR Web: www.urbanforum.org.uk

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COMMUNITY POWER EMPOWERS

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS 4

INTRODUCTION 5

RESEARCH AIMS 5

BACKGROUND 7

RESEARCH FINDINGS 16

BOLD VISION AND LEADERSHIP 18

MEANINGFUL PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT AND ENGAGEMENT 19

A FOCUS ON EDUCATION 20

CREATING A CULTURE FOR COMMUNITY OWNERSHIP AND CO-OPERATIVES 22

A SUPPORTIVE POLICY ENVIRONMENT 27

APPROPRIATE USE OF RESOURCES 30

A DECENTRALISED ENERGY MARKET 32

FACILITATING EFFECTIVE PARTNERSHIPS – „THE TYPICAL MIX‟ 33

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 36

GLOSSARY OF TERMS 44

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SUMMARY “The security of people and nations rests on four pillars - food, energy, water and climate. They are all closely related, and all under increasing stress” - Tom Burke, The ENDS Report (May 2008) Today we find ourselves faced with the imminent end to the era of cheap oil, the degradation of our natural environment and the huge challenge of stabilising concentrations of carbon in the atmosphere - where a return to business as usual is not an option. We are currently facing an energy crisis and escaping this cycle of dependence is very difficult, following decades of fossil fuel powered industry, business and domestic use. Recent policy statements have placed growing importance on the use of renewable energy in the UK. As part of this, there has been increased interest in the potential for community-led and co-operative energy projects from the public, private and voluntary sectors alike. It is possible that through such community-led or co-operative partnerships, new technologies and developments will be more readily accepted and offer more social equity as well as bring communities a range of economic and social, as well as environmental benefits. Lessons learnt from parts of Europe show that City and local authorities (with National and Regional backing) play a key role in encouraging renewable energy at the local level. Authorities‟ multiple roles as decision-makers, planners, managers of government infrastructure, and role models for businesses and individuals alike are crucial in the transition to a low carbon society.

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS In looking at successful community-led and municipal-led renewable energy projects, a number of common characteristics were identified as drivers to making the projects happen or creating the necessary culture change to enable innovation to thrive. The characteristics were:

1) Bold vision and leadership 2) Meaningful public involvement and engagement 3) A focus on education 4) Creating a culture for community ownership and co-operatives 5) A supportive policy environment 6) Appropriate use of resources 7) A decentralised energy market 8) Facilitating effective partnerships – ‘the typical mix’

The combination of these eight different factors resulted in an environment that enabled local community-based energy production to flourish, helping to support more resilient and sustainable communities.

INTRODUCTION The UK has much to learn from other parts of Europe when it comes to approaches to living more sustainably. Increasingly, some European countries are adopting a low carbon lifestyle as part of the „norm‟ and climate protection and environmental policy have been integrated for some time now. In making this step-change to embrace a low carbon lifestyle, the community, the public and private sectors are working better together to develop energy systems which have maximum efficiency at their core. This „whole approach‟ along with a supportive policy

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framework incorporates appropriate and local renewable energy sources; low or zero energy housing; and a good mix of public transport options. Nothing is difficult about the „green agenda‟ for these communities and they‟re certainly not deprived of the „good life‟ or have had to make massive sacrifices in working towards their utopia. On the contrary, there is clean air, thriving local businesses and the impression that there is absolute local control of surroundings and the developments which go on around them. Homes, community centres, and public buildings are already, or have the potential to become, literally „power houses‟ whilst benefiting economically. This is also a necessary part of progress in the 21st century. The attitudes and actions of the people and projects visited as part of this study realise that the creation of a sustainable energy system which addresses the twin issues of climate change and global energy security is one of the most important and urgent challenges we face and they are working hard to achieve this. RESEARCH AIMS „Community Power Empowers‟ was an International comparative study conducted throughout September 2009 supported by the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust and Urban Forum to explore the sorts of common characteristics which exist throughout Europe to enable the development of a wide range of successful community-owned, co-operative and innovative municipal-led, renewable energy projects which create long-term cultural change. Examples of visionary and bold leadership coupled with strong partnerships between the voluntary and community, public and private sectors were seen as being instrumental in setting up of such projects in both rural and urban areas. ‘Community Power Empowers’ aimed specifically to:

1) Investigate different cultures and approaches to community-owned renewable energy projects and what policy frameworks are in place to support these, as well as innovative municipal energy projects.

2) Identify the critical non technical barriers which are overcome to enable community-owned projects to flourish in both rural and urban areas and to what extent the third sector and government facilitate the process.

3) Explore various energy awareness, information and education campaigns which exist and if and how and on whom they make an impact.

For the Voluntary and Community Sector the report aimed:

To increase knowledge about what works, and what doesn‟t, across Europe around community-owned energy.

To increase knowledge about good practice throughout Europe in working with municipal agencies.

To increase knowledge of how effective educational campaigns work

To increase awareness of how successful initiatives can be adapted and adopted in the UK.

For Policy makers the report aimed:

To increase awareness about good practice and innovation throughout Europe in energy policy at regional and local levels.

To increase knowledge about good practice in municipal leadership throughout Europe around integrated renewable energy planning.

To increase awareness about good practice in partnership work with the third sector in renewable energy planning.

Methodology The research was conducted in two stages:

1) Desk based research in the UK to locate potential study visit partners throughout Europe (assisted by the „Manage Energy‟ best practice project finder which is part of the European Commission Directorate General for Energy).

2) Field based research in the form of study visits to a number of European countries. The projects visited were chosen as exemplars based on several factors:

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That they were national, European (and sometimes globally) renowned renewable energy projects and demonstrated good practice around community and/or co-operative involvement (e.g. Freiburg, Germany and Copenhagen, Denmark);

They had highly innovative „whole approach‟ sustainable development strategies (e.g. Freiburg, Germany, Gotland, Sweden and Kristianstad, Sweden);

The public sector demonstrated a serious commitment towards working in partnership between both the community and private sectors (e.g. all projects);

Education and public awareness surrounding energy efficiency and the environment were regarded as a core part of achieving sustainability (e.g. Sweden, Estonia, Germany).

5 countries and 13 energy projects (municipal, community and co-operative) were visited in total and these are outlined in Map and Table 1 below): Map 1 and Table 1 – projects visited.

Location Project visits Municipal, community-led, or social enterprise

Italy, Val Di Scalve

Sustainable Community Energy Planning, (part of the EU „Aspire projects).

Community in partnership with the municipality (academic advisory and technical support)

Germany, Freiburg, Magdeburg

Solar City Freiburg im Breisgau - overview; Municipality Vauban District Municipality and community-

led in partnership Solar project innova eG, Projektbüro Freiburg

Community-led co-operative

Solar project, Nature Power GmbH, Magdeburg

Social enterprise led co-operative

Denmark Middelgrunden,

Danish Energy Agency - overview Municipal Middelgrunden 40 MW Offshore Wind farm Community–led co-operative SPOK, Hans Christian Sørensen Social enterprise and co-

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(coordinator of Middelgrunden, a new offshore wind development and project „Wave dragon‟).

operative

Sweden, Kristianstad, Gotland

Fossil Fuel Free Kristianstad Municipal led 100% Renewable, Gotland Municipal, co-operative,

community partnerships Estonia, Tallin „Kyoto in my Home‟ and Change Lab,

education programmes, REC Estonia Municipal

Estonian Wind Power Association Municipal KredEx, financial models for housing and district heating

Municipal/community partnership

Table 1) Countries and projects visited.

As part of the study visit, background information about each particular project visit was gathered and followed with an in-depth interview to gain insight into each of the research aims. The report sets out:

1) The background to the study, including the rationale for carrying out a comparative study and the UK energy and community ownership of energy policy context.

2) The findings from the study visits. 3) How lessons learnt from the approaches employed in other countries could be applied

in the UK.

BACKGROUND The energy challenges we face For some time now the UK government has widely acknowledged that we face two-long term energy challenges:

1. The need to tackle climate change by reducing carbon dioxide emissions, and 2. Ensuring secure, clean and affordable energy and subsequently becoming less

dependent on imported fossil fuels. Climate Change and perception Warming of our climate system is now widely accepted and is evident from observations of increases in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice and rising global average sea levels1. This is against a backdrop of contention by some scientists and members of the public who dispute the global and UK predictions for climate change, mainly because the climate has changed naturally in the past and continues to do so. Whilst there is natural variability, there is widespread agreement2 that the current climate change is very unusual as it‟s not exclusively part of a natural cycle. There is also an agreed 90% certainty3 that the high rate of change is a consequence of human activity such as burning coal, oil and gas. This activity has led to an increase in greenhouse4 gases in the atmosphere, warming the planet. A great deal of awareness raising work still needs to be done in demystifying the subject area itself for members of the public and policy makers alike and the majority of governmental focus is now on mitigation and adaption strategies around the predicted effects of climate change.

Numerous studies have examined public perceptions of climate change and in the majority of cases they have found that climate change cannot be perceived directly or easily by individuals. This is mainly due to its sheer complexity and enormity of the associated timescales which may bear little relationship to day to day weather patterns. Aysel Tutken‟s study “Explaining public

1 Met Office Climate Change Guide 2010

2 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPPG), 2010

3 Ibid. (IPPG, 2010)

4The greenhouse effect is the natural process of the atmosphere letting in some of the energy we receive from the

Sun (ultraviolet and visible light) and stopping it being transmitted back out into space (infrared radiation or heat).

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perception of climate change and mitigation of behaviour in Switzerland”5 found that mitigating behaviours carried out by individuals to prevent climate change such as using less electricity and reduced car usage are actually highly dependent on factors such as age, background, beliefs, culture, gender, and information. These sorts of studies illustrate the complexities of measuring attitudes but also raise questions around how attitudes can be changed and how consensus towards tackling climate change can be achieved. Whether one is a climate sceptic or not, the various climate scenarios are still fairly daunting – extreme weather events and rising temperatures; damage to homes, infrastructure, habitats, crops and water resources. The majority of climatologists now suggest that action taken over the next 8-10 years will count most in the battle to prevent climate change and that levels of CO² in the atmosphere should not exceed 350 „parts per million‟6. The wind, the sun, and the waves represent a near inexhaustible supply of 'free' energy. Renewable energy will not run out, and with the exception of development and construction phases of the technology, produces zero or minute levels of carbon dioxide and is universally available regardless of their location. Renewable sources of energy from natural sources such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides and geothermal heat are therefore seen as the future of heat and power generation. Whilst a range of renewable energy sources are available, the end product is usually for one of the following three needs:

Production of electricity.

Generation of heat.

Energy for transport.

Different types of renewable energy and common technology available

Renewable Energy Source

Technology Application

Solar Photovoltaic (PV) cells to produce electricity

Solar thermal system for heating water

Wind Wind turbine: single turbines or a number of turbines in a wind farm;

Conventional windmill to pump water

Water Water Hydro electric;

wave and tidal systems

to produce electricity

Biomass from biomass, or biogas, to generate electricity and/or heat, e.g.

wood stoves or larger commercial operations

Geothermal Using the temperature of the earth to produce electricity and/or heat,

e.g. ground source heat pumps

Table 2) various common renewable energy sources and their uses. The UK Policy Framework for Tackling Climate Change To strengthen the long-term policy framework and give UK industry the confidence to invest in low carbon technologies, the 2009 Budget7 set the world‟s first carbon budget8, as part of the

5 Tutken, A et al, Climate change: Global Risks, Challenges and Decisions, IOP Conf. Series : Earth and

Environmental Science 6 (2009) 6 Op. Cit. (IPPG), 2010

7 DECC's web page on: Carbon Budgets: www.decc.org.uk

8 A „Carbon budget‟ is a cap on the total quantity of greenhouse gas emitted in the UK over a specified time. Under a

system of carbon budgets, every tone of greenhouse gas emitted between now and 2050 will count.

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Climate Change Act of 2008. This set a legally binding 34% reduction in emissions by 2020 - a new level of ambition for UK climate policy. The Climate Change Act aimed to:

1. Improve carbon management and help the transition towards a low-carbon economy in the UK, &

2. Demonstrate UK leadership internationally, signalling that the UK is committed to taking a share of responsibility for reducing global emissions in the context of developing negotiations on a post-2012 global agreement (originally intended to be agreed at Copenhagen in December 2009).

As part of the commitment to address these issues, the UK has also signed up to the EU target of producing 15% of all energy from renewable sources by 2020. The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan9 pulls together information from various policies and sets out the relevant targets and possible scenarios for achieving them. Some of the headline targets from the plan are set out below. For example by 2020 it is aimed that:

More than 1.2 million people will be in green jobs.

7 million homes will have benefited from whole house makeovers, and more than 1.5

million households will be supported to produce their own clean energy.

Around 40 percent of electricity will be from low-carbon sources, from renewables, nuclear

and clean coal.

The UK will be importing half the amount of gas than it otherwise would.

The average new car will emit 40 percent less carbon than it does now.

9 The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan plots how the UK will meet the 34 percent cut in emissions on 1990 levels by

2020, set out in the 2009 budget.

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UK Climate Change Policy

Legislation

March 2005: the UK Government launched both their strategy for Sustainable Development “Securing the Future” alongside their Strategic Framework, “One future - different paths”.

November 2008: the Government introduced the Planning Act 2008 which is of great importance for energy infrastructure projects (See Communities and Local Government Planning Act 2008).

November 2008: the Planning and Energy Act 2008, a Private Member's Act, was introduced.

November 2008: the UK was the first country in the world to legislate, through the Climate Change Act for carbon budgets for each UK Government Department.

April 2009: Government produces the „UK Renewable Energy Strategy‟.

June 2009: The UK signs up to the EU Renewable Energy Directive.

July 2009: the Low Carbon Transition Plan was launched outlining how the UK will meet the challenges and opportunities of climate change.

The establishment of an emissions performance standard that will prevent coal fired power stations being built unless they are equipped with sufficient Carbon Capture and Storage to meet the emissions performance standard*

Targets (carbon budgets)

Cut UK emissions by 18 per cent below 2008 levels – (over one third below 1990 levels) - and will go further if other countries agree to take action. This equates to a legally binding 34% reduction in emissions by 2020 and 80% by 2050.

Produce 15% of all energy from renewable sources by 2020 (as stated in the EU Renewable Energy Directive).

Action

The Low Carbon Transition Plan contains a comprehensive set of actions to reduce emissions, maintain energy security, and maximise economic opportunities, growth and jobs.

The Low Carbon Transition Plan talks about the „trinity‟ of clean coal, nuclear power and renewables, without which we cannot succeed in becoming a low carbon society.

Funding (for key technologies and domestic markets)

Up to £120million from the Low Carbon Investment Fund to significantly expand the offshore wind industry in the UK.

Up to £6million to explore areas of potential „hot rocks‟ to be used for geothermal energy.

Up to an additional £60million for the marine sector for a suite of measures.

Domestic boiler scrappage scheme for homes.

Venture Capital funds through the Carbon Trust and the UK Innovation Investment Fund to finance innovative low carbon businesses while markets remain fragile.

Feed in Tariffs for people to invest in small scale low carbon electricity, in return for a guaranteed payment for the power they generate.

Consultations on a Renewable Heat Incentive scheme, to provide financial support for those who install qualifying renewable heating.

Announcement of a „Green Investment Bank‟, with a mandate to reduce the cost of capital for private investment into low carbon infrastructure (to be running by Autumn 2011)*.

The establishment of a „Pay as You Save‟ (PAYS) system to fund/reward home improvement*

Innovation

The UK holds a 3.5% share of the global market for low carbon and environmental goods and services, worth around £107 billion and employing 880,000 people in this country. By 2015 it‟s estimated that this sector in the UK alone could be worth as much as £150 billion.

The development of smart grid and roll out of smart meters*

Establishments of high speed rail network*

Promotion and development of energy from waste through anaerobic digestion (biogas)*

* Policy agreements to be further developed by the Con-Lib Coalition

Figure 1) Recent Environmental and Energy Policy Developments

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Despite the national commitment to reduce CO², reductions have been slow and scepticism remains high over the calculations - with many citing “creative accounting” as the reason for record reductions in addition to disingenuous and opportunistic carbon trading practices. More recently, claims made state that nearly one-third of the UK‟s “reductions” in greenhouse gas emissions since 1990 were the result of carbon credits purchases rather than actual cuts10. Security of energy supply The UK government classifies energy security in 3 ways:

1) Physical security: avoiding involuntary physical interruptions to consumption of energy. 2) Price security: avoiding unnecessary price spikes due to supply/demand imbalances or

poor market operations and maintaining competitive prices relative to other countries. 3) Geopolitical security: avoiding over reliance on specific nations as sources of energy

so as to maintain maximum degrees of freedom in foreign policy. Global oil and gas supplies are depleting and this resource decline has been more recently known as „Peak Oil‟11. In the UK, the peaking of oil, gas and coal is not a theory, it's a reality – and many of our recent and future economic problems will derive from the peaking of UK oil and gas production. There is much controversy around specific oil reserve figures and up until 2007; both the UK government and the IEA (International Energy Agency) stated that “Global oil reserves are adequate for the foreseeable future”. The „foreseeable future‟ being until 2030 (where projected „growth in demand‟ is currently measured up until12). In the 2008 IEA „World Energy Outlook‟ report however stated: “although global oil production in total is not expected to peak before 2030, production of conventional oils is projected to level off towards the end of the projection period”. These words certainly mark a fundamental shift compared with the IEA‟s previous energy outlook as the projections were based on a recent major study of the decline rates in the world‟s 800 largest oilfields. The „levelling off‟ or „plateau‟ is actually expected in OPEC13 countries by around 2020. Furthermore, the second report14 for the UK Industry Task Force on Peak Oil and Energy Security (ITPOES) warns that the UK must not be caught out by the oil crunch in the same way it was with the credit crunch and states that policies to address Peak Oil must be a priority for the Coalition government. The US Department of Energy, Oil Analyst, Robert L Hirsch states in a report on „Peak Oil‟ that “without timely mitigation, the economic, social and political costs of peaking oil supplies will be unprecedented”. To avoid global economic collapse, we need to begin a “mitigation crash programme 20 years before peaking”. If Hirsch‟s conclusions are accurate - that gives us a lot less than the recommended 20 years to begin a contingency programme! Taking a more optimistic view, a recent report15 by the trade body „Oil and Gas‟ stated that 11bn barrels of oil could now be extracted from the UK continental shelf – which would mean doubling if the current reserves and a result of the UK still producing half its own supplies in 2020. Whilst, not only should we be cautious of information supplied by trade associations, in terms of actual total global supply - the trade body‟s projections make little difference. Peak oil is viewed by some as a good thing and perhaps the only threat which may prompt governments to reduce fossil fuel dependence. Either this or they will invest in even dirtier sources of energy such as tar sands, oil shales and turning oil into synthetic petroleum. The

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Claim made by Chair of the UK National Statistics Board, Sir Michael Scholar In a letter to Tim Yeo, Chair of the

Environmental Audit Committee of the House of Commons. 11

Peak oil is the point in time when the maximum rate of global petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production enters terminal decline. 12

The UK Energy Research Centre now investigates UK energy supply to 2050, taking into account radical

developments towards long-term decarbonisation which are being put in place from 2020 onwards. 13

The Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries 14

The Oil Crunch: a wakeup call for the UK economy, ITPOES, 2010 15

2010 Oil and Gas UK Activity Survey

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point is whether we burn really filthy or slightly less filthy oil and gas, beyond a certain point; they will tip us beyond a critical level of global warming. Most governments identify this as 2C. Between 2003 and the end of 2008, energy prices rose in the UK by approximately 50% for gas and 28% for electricity16. The volatility of the wholesale energy market and the UK‟s exposure to the global price of fossil fuels means that price rises in the future are inevitable. The UK’s Primary Energy Supply

Figure 2, above) UK Primary sources of energy supply, 1970-2009 (Source, Digest of Energy Statistics, 2008/9).

The graph above (figure 2) shows the change in energy sources for the UK economy from 1970 through to 2008/ 2009 and there are various trends that have emerged over this period:

Coal (black) steadily decreased in its significance to the economy during the 1970s, 80s and 90s, but since 2000 coal has once again begun to grow as a source of energy.

Oil (red) has hardly changed in volume over 37 years, which means its significance has fallen as energy consumption in general has grown. This is because during the period the amount of oil used by industry fell as they switched to natural gas, but at the same time car use increased, and the two trends balanced each other out.

Gas (blue) was made mostly from coal ('town gas') in 1970, and during the 1970s and early 80s we gradually switched over to natural gas. There was a restriction on burning gas to make electricity because it's about twice as efficient to put gas directly into boilers for space heat, but that restriction was removed in 1986 and the large increase in gas usage after 1990 was driven by the opening of new gas-fired power stations.

Nuclear (pink) reached a peak of production in 1998, and a new generation of nuclear is planned to be functional from 2017.

Renewable energy sources (green) begin to show-up on the graph in the late 80s. They are still a very small part of our energy supply, and are not displacing the overall increase in the use of fossil fuels.

Energy economists use two definitions of energy when describing energy use in a country: Primary energy - is the total amount of energy, as fuel, heat (e.g. nuclear) or renewable energy, that enters a country.

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Fuel Poverty Advisory Group, Energy Action.

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Secondary energy - (or „final consumption‟ in the government's statistics), is the amount of energy consumed by society once it has been transformed in power stations, oil refineries and fuel processing plants. Due to the inherent inefficiency of the conversion, this figure is less than the primary figure. In the UK, because of the dominance of large inefficient power stations in the transformation process, the secondary figure is about 30% less than the primary energy supply figure. According to past practice, the government keeps the energy used by heavy industries such as iron and steel smelting and cement making outside the secondary/consumption figure. But it does represent a large quantity of energy, and if one looks at the global production of raw materials it's arguable that some of this processing could more efficiently be carried out in other countries (e.g. Norway or Brazil, where the easy availability of hydro electricity allows manufacturing to take place in a far more carbon-efficient way). After spending most of the last 30 years as a net exporter of energy the UK became a net importer in 2004 and imports look set to increase in the future17. Quite apart from the implication of importing energy in a world where oil production will have peaked, and natural gas might be about to peak, a number of economists question whether the UK‟s situation is financially viable. In the UK, our manufacturing export economy is insufficient to pay the full cost of importing this energy and greater levels of energy importation will simply result in a higher trade imbalance and consequentially higher levels of foreign debt. Sources of UK energy imports

Figure 3) European Gas Networks (Source: Joint Energy Security of Supply Committee)

Figure 3 above shows the European Gas network (the picture is similar for oil pipelines). In 2003 the solid red lines were in operation and the dashed red lines were under construction. The blue lines represent future 'priority interest' corridors for the development of new pipelines. Within Europe, the western half used to source most of their natural gas from the North Sea and the eastern half (especially the former Eastern Bloc states) sourced their gas from the Soviet Union. As North Sea production depletes there is a west–east shift under way as more gas is

17

Department of Energy and Climate Change, UK Energy in brief

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imported from the Soviet Union, Central Asia and the Caspian Sea. This is why new capacity (the blue pipelines) is required. However, the Soviet Union‟s tendency to use gas as an 'economic weapon' restricts options for developing new capacity. The top blue line, under the Baltic Sea brings gas to Britain, via Germany. The central three lines have experienced problems as the Soviet Union has cut supplies to these countries following disputes over supply agreements that date from the Eastern Bloc era (when these states favoured Russia and in return received subsidised gas). The bottom blue line runs to the country with the largest gas resources in the world, Iran but the current problematic relations between western states and Iran mean that this potential supply route is also stalled due to political differences. In order to avoid gas shortages provoked by political insecurity, western European states are building liquefied natural gas (LNG) importation terminals. The problem with this option is that as the gas resources of most developed states are now depleting, today there is greater pressure on the global LNG market. As time passes the USA, Japan and eventually China will become more reliant on LNG – making it more difficult for Europe to pay the high prices for LNG cargoes. Unlike pipelines, LNG ships can easily be redirected to the terminal of the highest bidder, and so the future price for LNG will be more volatile. Ultimately it is not as secure an alternative as a fixed pipeline network. The Soviet Union‟s gas production may peak within the decade, and the global gas resource will peak and enter a steep decline within two decades. The pan-European gas network represents a large inertia against changing energy and economic policy. It took billions to build, it costs billions to run, and it makes billions in profit for those involved. This acts as a disincentive to European nations addressing the fundamental need to reduce reliance on gas and overall energy consumption. Using energy sources that do not rely on expensive, volatile imports, do not produce radioactive waste and release no greenhouse gases are the most logical alternative to our current generation mix. Renewables offer the opportunity to decrease dependence on polluting fossil fuels and nuclear energy whilst creating significant social and economic benefits for communities and the country as a whole. The Current UK Energy Flow Chart

Figure 4), UK Energy usage by Sector, (Source, Digest of UK Energy Statistics)

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Figure 4 shows UK energy usage as a series of energy/fuel flows through the economy. Primary energy enters on the left, and after removing exports, the first dashed line shows the primary energy supply (07/08). The energy then flows through transformation processes (where the yellow line of electricity emerges) and where the losses due to transformation leave at the bottom and energy used by the 'energy industries' is taken out. Finally, the second dashed line represents secondary or final energy consumption in the UK in 2007/08. Energy consumption leaves on the right and carbon emissions (the grey line) from each sector leave from the top. As can been seen from the flowchart, transport is the highest consumer of energy with, domestic, business and public energy usage following behind. If we are to meet the problems of energy depletion we require a plan that addresses all sectors. Electricity accounts for about a 5th of all energy that we use18 and whilst it‟s important, we have to concentrate on all forms of energy. A real problem for the UK also is peak gas (as mentioned in the previous section), likely to arrive between 2015 and 2025 (depending upon the level of the current economic downturn). That would precipitate an insoluble crisis unless the UK undergoes a complete process of economic transition in order to allow people to live at far lower levels of overall energy consumption. Currently then:

The UK‟s power generation capacity is due to drop substantially by 2015 as old stations are decommissioned and rebuilt.

The UK‟s power needs are expected to increase sharply with population growth.

The UK has 19 nuclear reactors generating up to one fifth of its electricity and all but one of these will be retired by 2023. The first of some 16 GWe19 of new-generation plants are expected to be on line about 2017.

It is evident that there will be a major reduction in UK energy production from 2015 and extending beyond 2017. To achieve secure, affordable and low-carbon energy in the future therefore, we need an energy mix which is both technologically and geographically diverse, within a market framework that offers competitive and affordable prices and meets the energy requirements for all sectors of the economy. Whilst the integration of a low-carbon energy system has a central role in lowering CO2

emissions, there have also been massive increases in emissions since 2001 from air, road

transport and residential emissions. It follows then that energy conservation, efficiency and low carbon fuels are a first step of the solution.

Nuclear or carbon capture solutions to future energy needs There are widely differing views across Europe about whether nuclear power has a role to play in a future sustainable energy system - the security of supply and the ongoing difficulties in disposing of radioactive waste being two of the most obvious issues. In the UK, nuclear power is firmly back at the top of the political agenda with government approval for a new generation of power stations. Clean Coal Technologies (CCT) and other forms of carbon capture are also currently being developed as part of the „new generation‟ energy mix. Other processes such as coal washing, gasification and removing the main pollutants from coal (such as sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and particulates) are being explored and substantial investment is going in to developing these technologies. Fuel Poverty and affordable housing National Energy Action (NEA) now estimates that currently close to 5.4 million people (or 1 in 5 households) in the UK are classed as „fuel poor‟. The government classifies people as „fuel poor‟ if they are spending over 10% of their annual income to heat their homes. This figure is also

18

Digest of UK Energy Statistics (DUKES) 19

Gigawatt - Electricity

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much higher in the UK than in countries like Sweden, Denmark and Germany where the winters are generally much harsher. The energy system as a whole must be looked at, bringing in the infrastructure for heat, gas and electricity, and only then will a „whole system‟ approach like this allow for the emergence of a variety of community based responses to the challenges faced20. The case for community level solutions In recent years, UK government policy initiatives have increasingly promoted and supported community renewable projects, recognising that communities can play a major part to play in „waging the energy revolution‟. One of the ways that this could be achieved is through a more localised pattern of energy generation which emerged as an idea around the late 1990s. By 2003/4, there were a series of initiatives to subsidise and support the developments of community renewables, which led to a surge of local project development. The benefits of community-ownership include21:

A direct stake in a local project Attractive financial return to members Improved infrastructure for communities Extended economic benefits for the local area Delivery of local energy conservation projects Educational support on environmental issues Individual commitment to low carbon initiatives Being part of a mutual support network of other green co-operatives

Energy co-operatives can conduct research into energy market trends and develop a framework of energy options for their members, thereby providing the membership with useful information that allows them to make strategic energy choices. Gaining access to competitively priced electricity is not the only benefit for co-operative members. By organising together, co-operative members can explore energy management services, employment, training and regeneration, as well as energy conservation programmes. Also importantly is the ability to work within a social enterprise framework and select the most appropriate energy technology.

Centralised energy systems In the UK, one power station will provide thousands of paying customers with electricity whilst wasting over a third of its fuel by simply heating up the atmosphere. A further 10% of this is wasted in transmission and distribution, meaning that a great deal of energy isn‟t used productively by consumers. The company (or utility) makes a profit and the highly centralised system is dependent on the availability and price of coal or uranium. If we are to meet our future energy needs and achieve our climate targets then the market has to be opened up even more to support the myriad of possible independent project developers. Smaller micro and independent developers have lower risks, usually less problems with the planning system and the aggregate results could help to plug a vital gap in our energy supplies.

RESEARCH FINDINGS Solutions around climate change, energy security, fuel poverty and decentralised energy production have historically been viewed as conflicting or irresolvable. However in practice, countries with pioneering energy markets such as Germany, Sweden, and Denmark have been

20

See „Collective Power‟, changing the way we consume energy. The Co-operative Party. 21

See Energy4all

17

able to meet these challenges by enabling communities to own or collectively purchase energy and/or work in partnership with municipalities22 or the private sector. In looking at successful community-led and municipal-led renewable energy projects, a number of common characteristics were identified as drivers to making the projects happen or creating the necessary culture change to enable innovation to thrive. The characteristics were: 1. Bold vision and leadership

2. Meaningful public involvement and engagement

3. A focus on education

4. Creating a culture for community ownership and co-operatives

5. A supportive policy environment

6. Appropriate use of resources

7. A decentralised energy market

8. Facilitating effective partnerships – ‘the typical mix’

22

A municipality is an administrative entity composed of a clearly defined territory and its population and commonly denotes a city, town, or village, (or a small grouping of them). A municipality is typically governed by a mayor and a city council or municipal council.

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Visionary Municipal Leadership – Fossil Fuel Free Kristianstad Kristianstad in the Region of Skäne, in Southern Sweden, has a population of approximately 77,000 and is working towards becoming a fossil fuel free municipality. The region has some of the best agricultural land in Europe and so it's little surprise that they've honed in on bio-energy production. So much so that they've won 6 national and European awards in the last few years for their commitment to developing their renewables industry. In 1999, bold vision and leadership were evident when the executive committee of Kristianstad municipality unanimously declared its will to become a „Fossil Fuel Free Municipality‟. The appropriate use of local resources is part of the reasoning behind why the reduction of fossil fuels will be mainly achieved by the use of bio-fuels (both biomass as fuel for heating and production of electricity and biogas as fuel for local buses and other vehicles). Hand in hand with this vision are energy efficiency incentives around business and domestic use and encouraging behaviour change through leading by example. Participative community planning has been consistently used as a tool to promote the Fossil Fuel Free municipality. Similarly to Freiburg and Copenhagen, assistance is available for car-pooling and car-share projects whilst extensive changes have been made to the city centre to encourage cyclists and pedestrians. So far, yearly CO² emissions have been reduced by around 123,000 tonnes. Project Coordinator - Lennart Erfors‟ key piece of advice was that it‟s easier to reduce the emissions from the heating sector than from the transport sector and that their municipality would always prioritise efficiency over renewable investment. Below are some of Kristianstad‟s impressive Fossil Fuel Free Programme‟s achievements:

Combined power and heating plant fuelled by biomass established in 1994

Biogas production plant using organic wastes from households, food industry, and manure established in 1997

Biogas production from the sewage plant to be used as fuel for buses and other vehicles and in district heating established as a joint venture with E.ON in 1999

Heating fuelled by pellets in 43 public buildings

Heating fuelled by straw in 1 public building

Local heating system with bio-fuel

Energy saving using window efficiency In progress

Conversion of small houses to district heating

Conversion of small houses to bio-pellets

Energy Performance Contracting for municipal buildings Transport

Bicycle lanes built along with cycle campaign

Introduction of biogas as a vehicle fuel

Car-pool with biogas vehicles for council employees

An internet forum for car pooling In progress

Biogas Kristianstad: aiming to increase the number of vehicles fuelled by biogas

Extensive bicycle lane development

1) BOLD VISION & LEADERSHIP

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Kristianstad‟s approach to sustainability is sensible, innovative, economically successful,

ecologically exemplary and socially balanced. To become a role model for the community,

region and country requires strong, focused and unwavering leadership – regardless of the

political persuasion. In fact, Kristianstad doesn‟t allow politics to get in the way and certainly

doesn‟t put the environment second to concerns about economic growth and energy security.

Economic opportunities have been seized upon because those in government responsible for

economic and industrial policy have also had a leadership role in climate change policy and this

is crucial.

The cases studies throughout the report demonstrate that political and civil leaders in these

places understand the importance of thinking big, and a great deal further than short three year

political cycles. It is recognised that long term solutions, cultural and attitudinal changes are

needed and that they are the ones to make this happen in the first instance – as role models.

These forward thinking authorities are not interested in wielding a big stick and shouting “are you

doing your bit?” Instead they are publicising action and communicating the core message that

“we‟re doing our bit”, crucially showing real and visible action. To venture out of one‟s comfort

zone and „feel the fear‟ is almost the norm in these places. It‟s not about waiting to see who will

do it first and then “dip a toe in”, the politicians in places like Kristianstad make bold decisions

and deal with any aftermath as required. Early innovators can produce a “snowball effect” and

pioneering local governments have taken initiative and then other local governments have

followed. This is why “model/exemplar cities” are so relevant and why city-to-city transfer of

information and motivation are key.

2) MEANINGFUL PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT AND ENGAGEMENT

Throughout parts of Scandinavia and Germany it is clear that the public are well informed and frequently involved in what happens in their environment and are engaged in the wider national energy debate. There has been little resistance to renewable energy projects as a result - mainly because at best, there are options for involvement and control, or at worst an educational opportunity to understand more about the technology or benefits surrounding it. Why involve the community in the energy debate? As the Swedish example illustrates, the course of action taken by the country back in 1980 has had a profound effect on society‟s views of energy. By opening up a debate, and hence, awareness raising around the most suitable sustainable energy system for the future, public acceptance is also being gained for the use of new low carbon technologies. Throughout Sweden, the regional municipalities work closely with farmer co-operatives and biomass projects and realise that by their very nature, the engagement process itself creates a community dividend. By bringing together the financial and social dimensions of the wider community (the agricultural community in this example), their purchasing and selling power is boosted enormously. The co-operative can reduce financial risk whilst optimising the efficiency of their chosen energy technology options.

In Sweden, a country that has made great leaps along the path to environmental sustainability, a referendum was held in 1980 to determine the future of nuclear power. The widespread public debate that took place dramatically increased awareness of energy issues across the whole country. The impact of this debate is still having an effect today and it is one of the key reasons why the Swedish population today is highly aware of the environmental impacts of energy production and use.

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Community Engagement in the Planning System

Community Involvement in shaping the built environment is recognised as an essential part of the planning agenda throughout parts of Germany as the above example illustrates. Freiburg‟s recognition for being a „green city‟ has come only after years of effective citizen engagement and involvement in land use planning. The city is located in a green belt with 500 hectares of green space stretching from the periphery right into the centre of the city and extensive community consultations have taken place to develop the numerous parks, landscape conservation reserves, nature reserves, garden plots and playgrounds throughout. Part of Freiburg‟s community engagement approach can be attributed to a series of policy commitments following on from „Agenda 21‟ as part of the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio. The „Aalborg Commitment‟ in 2004 then refreshed the municipal and citizen commitment by signing up to:

1. Give aspects of sustainability more consideration in urban planning, and 2. Promote public awareness on the reasons for, and consequences of, climate change.

Several other factors have also led to the increased citizen involvement such as:

• A scarcity of land for development and the municipality realises the importance of citizens in understanding this. It is one of the few cities in Germany with a growing population, and has to build 850-1,200 homes a year to keep pace.

• Freiburg was rebuilt almost completely after the Second World War on the principles of good urban design and landscaping, with a large traffic free centre and a 3,000 km network of light rail, buses and urban railways.

• The city government has been controlled by the Green Party for several decades, and

has a history of environmental innovation dating from the mid-70s

• In June 1992, the Freiburg city council adopted a resolution that it would only permit construction of "low-energy buildings" on municipal land, and all new buildings must comply with certain "low energy" specifications. Low energy housing uses solar power passively as well as actively. In addition to solar panels and collectors on the roof, providing electricity and hot water, many passive features use the sun‟s energy to regulate the temperature of the rooms.

However the challenges remain for Freiburg (as with many other cities), as they continue to balance the use and development of ever decreasing space with environmental and social needs.

3) A FOCUS ON EDUCATION

The „Land Use Plan 2020‟ for the town of Freiburg, in Southern Germany, with a population of around 200,000 is regarded as a highly successful example of civic participation in municipal processes. In 2003, community groups defined their own vision for Freiberg, which one year later, was included by the municipal Council as part of the framework conditions of the Land Use Plan 2020 - addressing ecological compatibility, social justice and economic viability. In 2005, citizens formed 19 working groups to discuss every potential construction area of the Land Use Plan 2020. Upon defining key points of the plan, the Municipal Council re-oriented its plans, based on the outcome of these discussions.

Freiburg‟s answer to „Weight Watchers‟! The citizens of Freiburg are targeted by the city‟s „CO² Diet‟ and everyone is given an easy to use tool to calculate their own „climate balance‟. This enables them to determine their share in CO² emissions, through an interactive website and compare their values with those of others -receiving „diet‟ tips, advice and one-to-one guidance in return.

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Not many of us are lucky enough to have access to the sort of support and „eco-coaching‟ which seems to be available in the City of Freiburg. A focus on meaningful education around energy efficiency could be the key to changing attitudes when it comes to making a step-change towards sustainability. “You see only what you know, and you protect only what you‟re familiar with” is Freiburg‟s nature adventure trail motto. Environmental education begins as early as kindergarten in countries like Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Estonia - developing well in to secondary school, with an ethos that conservation can only really happen if it‟s part of a tangible and understandable experience. For example, Freiburg schools offer demonstrations such as solar, waste prevention and energy saving projects and run annual competitions aimed at innovative technological ideas - like solar model car races. They also work in partnership with the municipality to host a great number of extracurricular environmental opportunities such as the WaldHaues „forest sustainability‟ project and the „Freiburg Eco-station‟. When it comes to tertiary education too, Freiburg municipality, city universities and the private sector have teamed up to create a springboard and knowledge-base for the development of the economy, education and science. Innovative and scientific excellence are the aim for leading regional renewable energy companies working together with universities and offering an abundance of apprenticeships and jobs to both attract and retain students and young professionals. The importance of teaching people about savings The Head of Bio Energy, at the Danish Energy Agency, Henrik Christiansen, explained some of Denmark‟s renewable energy plans for the next 10 years. In Henrik's mind, no matter how sophisticated the research and technology becomes, energy and sustainability education must be based on "savings, savings, savings" and he never grows tired of telling the thousands of delegations which come through the Agency's doors year.

Figure 5, above) Sustainability in Art. Public education around sustainability issues are part of the norm in Denmark and appear frequently in art exhibitions.

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4) CREATING A CULTURE FOR COMMUNITY OWNERSHIP AND CO-OPERATIVES “By keeping money circulating in local economies, we can create more jobs, support community cohesion and have a smaller ecological footprint” Plugging the Leaks, New Economics Foundation. In Denmark and Sweden it has been long recognised that as the numbers of dispersed, renewable energy schemes increase then it is essential to engage the general public so that they can feel involved, consulted and supportive of the transition away from centralised fossil fuels. Not everyone is aware of the benefits of renewable energy and quite often there is public resentment towards the changes that take place on the landscape. What better way to handle any concern than offering ownership opportunities to individuals and communities where the benefits are real and tangible? Community involvement schemes can be less contentious but are as beneficial as ownership schemes, providing a steady stream of income and allowing people to be members of a co-operative. Part or full ownership of energy projects (like the Middelgrunden example on the next page), are the most effective way to maintain profits in the local economy, provide a sense of involvement and thus increase the grass roots support for renewable energy and additional climate change mitigation measures23. Community ownership of turbines also reduces the profits that are paid to shareholders overseas and thus maximises local wealth retention. Revenue can be distributed locally and is then available for reinvestment elsewhere rather than servicing loans from city banks and overseas firms.

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See Energy4all

Samsø – co-operative energy island exemplar. It‟s almost impossible to discuss visionary community based energy projects in Denmark without mentioning the island of Samsø. In 1997, the island won a government competition to become a „model renewable energy community‟. Samsø began engaging the island‟s community about the potential and perspectives in the Energy Island project in 1998. There was a ten tier action plan put in place and now 100% of its electricity comes from wind power and 75% of its heat comes from solar power and biomass energy. Ownership spans from municipally owned wind turbines and commercially run district heating plants, to privately owned wind turbines and co-operative district heating systems. Local public meetings and citizens groups worked to generate the broadest possible base of public support for these initiatives.

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Figure 6, left) Middelgrunden co-operative offshore Wind farm, Denmark

Middelgrunden Offshore Wind farm – Denmark Denmark has a long history of co-operatives and community investment which has helped the country to become one of the most successful nations for wind power in Europe. During the 90‟s, families were offered a tax exemption for generating their own electricity within their own or an adjoining community and by 2001, over 100,000 families belonged to wind turbine co-operatives. Such co-operatives had installed 86% of all the wind turbines throughout the country. Wind power has gained very high social acceptance in Denmark, due to both the tax incentives and early involvement in project developments. One such project which acts as an exemplar of good public involvement techniques is „Middelgrunden‟ - a 40 Mega Watt (MW) Offshore Wind farm which supplies approximately 3% of Copenhagen‟s energy. Middelgrunden is probably one of the most famous and largest offshore wind co-operatives in the world. Thousands of Individuals have taken a share in their local wind farm and watched the turbines being constructed for the benefit of the neighbourhood. A change of Government in 2001 put a stop on the development of further wind parks, Hans Christian Sorensen, Vice-President of European Ocean Energy and a Director on the board of the Wind Turbine Owners‟ Association explained that after 8 years, there are again incentives via the new Renewable Energy Law. This states that all new wind energy projects must allow 20% of shares to communities and individuals. As a result, Hans is currently in talks around developing a new offshore wind co-operative (near Copenhagen airport). The development of Middelgrunden Wind Park The new era of wind power in Denmark started over 20 years ago and what was then a cottage industry, producing small turbines (around 22kW and 55kW) that were mostly bought by grass-roots co-operatives. Production of wind turbines has since become one of Denmark's largest industries with considerable experience and exports. The Copenhagen Environment and Energy Office (KMEK) took the initiative to organise the Middelgrunden project after the site had been spotted as a potential development area. Along with a group of local people, KMEK formed the Middelgrunden Wind Turbine Co-operative in partnership with Copenhagen Energy (owned by the City Council). A close link to politicians was also established as part of this process. Despite the relatively long hearings which followed and a change of the original specification and layout of the wind farm, the intense public engagement was well worth its time and investment. Locals who were worried about the potential noise pollution were taken on demonstration tours to hear other wind turbines and the pre-subscription to shares resulted in an interest of more than 10,000 local people. The dual ownership between the utility and the co-operative which sold shares upfront all helped to finance the construction of the project. Lessons learnt from the Middelgrunden experience highlight the need for a great deal of dialogue with many kinds of interest groups to generate understanding and acceptance of the project. Building on this acceptance was followed by locally based commitment and a strong partnership between the co-operative, the local utility, and the Municipality of Copenhagen. There was no room for short cuts whilst informing the public and there is no doubt that direct involvement of the public via co-operative ownership was an important means for social and political acceptance. This reason alone was quite possibly the difference between the project taking place or not.

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Ownership and accountability Germany has been at the forefront of movements to encourage the wider public to participate in developing both large and small photovoltaic (PV) and wind-parks through share schemes for some time. There are good networks of highly professional community activists and enthusiasts, determined to help the people in their communities to have a share (and a say) in the renewables sector at an affordable price. Dr Burghard Flieger who has over 30 years experience in the social, co-operative and renewables sector makes a point of representing the voice of the people when it comes to energy development by setting up an “Investment Club” or “Collective Purchasing Model” (see figure 7 below) Co-operative laws in Germany have changed more recently and Dr Flieger has ambitions to raise 100,000,000 Euros worth of community shares in order to buy into the State energy company (owned by E:on). If the campaign and financial model is successful, then the people of Freiburg in Southern Germany would start to have a democratic say as well as a financial stake in energy production throughout the region.

Financing energy co-operatives

Figure 7 above) Relationship of collective purchasing/consumer ownership to the energy supply chain

What became very clear whilst learning about the various co-operative investment models in other European countries was that they were quite specific to the needs of the particular project and in most cases, recognised as structures for an energy business. The majority of models ran on a non-profit or „more-than-just-profit‟ basis, aiming to deliver direct benefits to members.

Community-led investment - such as „Middelgrunden wind farm‟, established by mobilising people‟s time and money;

New Ventures /consumer-owned utility shares or collective purchasing – in the case of Dr Flieger‟s „Investment Club‟;

Farmer Co-operatives – Biomass projects in Sweden (e.g. Kristianstad), enabling members to respond to changing market conditions whilst being able to deliver wider community benefits;

Trade associations - such as the Danish Association of Wind power Guilds (DV) which could broker cooperation in setting up projects such as „Middelgrunden‟.

Electricity generation companies

Transmission companies (running electricity infrastructure, e.g. high voltage cables)

Distribution companies (transfer electricity from high voltage systems to low voltage regional distribution systems)

Energy suppliers (purchase electricity in bulk and sell to consumers)

Further down chain the more expensive e.g. an average customer bills equals approx (75% of generation, 5% transmission, 13% distribution)

‘Consumer ownership’ means being able to go directly to wholesale energy market (and can enable up to 75% savings).

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Betting one‟s home on green energy Estonia has set itself above average targets for renewable energy production by 2020 (25% of overall energy - currently around 1.5%). Although there's optimism that the targets can be met, there are also huge concerns around finance to deliver and the overall public acceptance of wind turbines (which they hope will deliver approx 25% of overall demands) is still fairly low. There are a number of organisations based in Tallinn that are paving the way towards a sustainable future. Jann Tepp of the Estonian Wind Power Association explained that there were a number municipalities who were keen to work with communities in developing joint wind projects. Mr Tepp went on to discuss a possible model by which the communities could finance their shares in the developments by offsetting financial guarantees against their mortgages. Possibly a big risk to take but maybe worth it in the long run for more sustainable energy independence?

A number of the co-operative models, similar to the ones mentioned above have been tried and tested in the UK through Coops UK and organisations such as the Development Trusts Association, however, more work needs to be done to highlight the opportunities of using them to deliver energy projects24.

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„Co-operative Energy – lessons from Denmark and Sweden, URBED, DTI

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Using a more traditional model of attracting shareholders in Magdeburg, Jorg Dalke, the founder of "Nature Power" and "Solar-MD", and his colleague Michael Schmidt explained the setting up their first solar co-operative, working with a school, local investors, and people as far away as the Czech Republic. Wind power in Northern Germany over the last 15 years had really saturated and dominated the market and now there was a desperate need to get the solar developments out of the factories and on to roof tops. Whilst the investment in solar technology had been plentiful as well as the political will (mostly), there was still a lack of understanding amongst public bodies as to the true ethos and function of co-operatives.

The principles for setting up the sorts of share schemes as mentioned above were:

1. An organisation sets up a plan to build a PV-plant and/or a wind farm. Some sort of succinct concept is created and then marketed through appropriate channels.

2. Individuals are then invited to contribute by purchasing a share of the plant equivalent to a specific wattage. The minimal order of a share is determined (e.g. 1 kW).

3. A leaflet/brochure containing important information about the construction and operation of the plants is created by the co-operative (acting as a trustee) and sent to interested individuals.

4. A sales contract between the trustee and a purchaser/shareholder may be signed - fixing the order of the share. (The trustee provides information and administrative support to the shareholder). The trustee also looks after financial support through the government and the responsible utility.

5. The co-operative negotiates the concept and aspects of costing with an engineering consultant.

6. The engineer signs a site-use contract with the owner of an estate and/or roof, and acquires a workshop to install the photovoltaic plant and/or the wind turbines.

7. The purchaser gets a financial return according to the generated electricity of his share. (This procedure is managed by the trustee).

Figure 8 above, model of a „standard‟ co-operative (adapted, courtesy of International Solar Energy Society e.V.)

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Figure 9, left) Jorg Dalke and Michael Schmidt in front of Magdeburg‟s first small scale photovoltaic co-operative on a local school.

5) A SUPPORTIVE POLICY ENVIRONMENT Energy Policy Drivers in Europe Local renewable energy targets, policies and energy markets across Europe vary extensively. One common theme for many communities, whether metropolitan regions, cities, towns, villages, or counties, is the importance of renewable energy in local climate action plans – from both mitigation and adaptation perspectives. Germany, Denmark and Sweden have all put in place long-term policy frameworks which have provided sustained support for efficient and renewable technologies. The two main drivers for these policies have been a reduction in reliance on fuel imports and sustainable planning and development. Over the last 25 years these favourable conditions have encouraged and enabled a large range of investors, including small-scale community owned and co-operatives, to make long term investments attractive. Feed-in tariffs and energy taxes have probably had the largest impact, allowing the revenue which is raised to support the development of a range of low carbon technologies. This, in addition to a flexible and enabling planning system, has been the key to supporting necessary infrastructure investment. Both Denmark and Sweden in particular, have directed investment into district heating, creating heat markets and enabling fuel flexibility, which in turn has lessened fuel poverty and enhanced the viability of combined heat and power (CHP).

Climate protection depends to a large extent on international and national agreements and goals, but cities and regions can also take the lead in this regard. Freiburg took climate protection seriously long before the issue was on the national political agenda and as a result, in matters related to climate protection, Freiburg is today considered a role model far beyond Europe. Types of local policies and activities to promote renewable energy Local policies and activities to promote renewable energy can be broadly grouped into five categories25.

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Ref: ICLEI–Local Governments for Sustainability, Global Status Report on Local Renewable Energy Policies

Germany at the forefront of renewable energy policy In Germany between 1998 and 2005 when the Alliance‟90/Green Party joined the Federal Government, the renewable energy sector had its first boost. A law was introduced that required businesses to buy energy generated from renewable sources before buying energy from non-renewable sources. In addition to this, people who produced energy in their own homes were given a guarantee that they could sell it at fixed prices for a period of 20 years. This created a surge in clean energy.

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These five categories are: 1. Target setting. The local government establishes a target for some future level of renewable energy. The target can be for government-only consumption or investment, or apply to all or some energy consumers within the locality. This is usually a voluntary activity that is often the starting point for adopting policies and actions. There are many different types of targets that municipalities can adopt. Many targets are for future emissions reductions of CO², to be met by a combination of energy conservation, energy efficiency, changes in energy demand patterns (such as transport), and investment in or purchase of renewable energy. 2. Regulation based on legal responsibilities. These policies and activities are based upon the legal responsibilities of the local government that are provided by charters and/or national laws. Examples could be urban planning, building codes, and local taxes. 3. Operation of municipal infrastructure. These policies and activities modify the ongoing operation of municipal infrastructure to incorporate renewable energy, for example government energy purchases or infrastructure investment, or policies or activities by public utility companies (particularly electric utilities) that can be controlled or regulated by the local government. This category also includes renewable energy policies by private local utilities that may be enacted independently of government control. 4. Voluntary actions and government serving as role model. These policies and activities go beyond legal responsibilities to take advantage of the various possible roles of a local government as market facilitator and role model. Many of these policies and activities may also contribute to raising general awareness. 5. Information, promotion and raising awareness. These policies and activities target the general public, specific stakeholders or groups and private businesses, with the aim of facilitating or enabling support for renewable energy. Activities may also include media campaigns, support for education and training programs, analysis of renewable energy potentials and building-specific audits. Policy/ Activity

Sub category

Descriptions of Policies/Activities by sub-category

1. Target setting

Target setting

CO² reduction targets

Future shares/amounts of renewable electricity or energy for all consumers in city

Future shares/amounts of renewable electricity or energy for government operations and/or buildings

Future shares or absolute numbers of buildings or homes with renewable energy installations

Future shares/amounts of bio fuels for the government vehicle fleet and/or for public transport

Other types of targets, for example to become fossil-fuel free or “carbon neutral”

2. Regulation based on legal responsibilities

Urban Urban planning and zoning that encourages and integrates the local generation, distribution and use of renewable sources of power - including planning and zoning for public transportation and electric vehicle infrastructure.

Building Building codes that applies to, or incorporates renewable energy in some way. E.g. mandates for solar hot water and solar PV installations, zero-net-energy homes, shading legislation, and design review/scoping of opportunities and potentials for renewable energy.

Taxes Tax credits and exemptions within tax systems: for example, sales, property and fuel taxes, permitting fees, and carbon taxes.

Other Other regulation, including municipal departments mandated to promote or plan for renewable energy, mandates for biofuel use in vehicles or

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biofuels blending, and mandatory carbon cap-and-trade.

3. Operation of municipal infrastructure

Purchase Local government purchasing (and joint-purchasing with other municipalities or with private sector) to integrate renewable energy into government operations. Includes renewable electricity, biofuels, and bulk purchasing for market transformation programs.

Invest Local government investment in renewable energy for government buildings, schools, vehicle fleets, and public transport.

Utility Public utility regulation, including tariff regulation, renewable energy targets, feed-in tariffs, interconnection standards, net metering, and portfolio standards; also designates private utility policies of these types.

4. Voluntary actions and government serving as a role model

Demo Demonstration projects, including participation in national pilot and demonstration projects. Often done with private sector.

Grants Grants, subsidies, and loans for investments in renewable energy by homeowners or businesses

Land Using local government land/property for renewable energy installations (leasing/selling/permitting). Can also include deals that require developer promises for renewables and efficiency.

Other Examples: joint ownership of private projects, city-financed investment funds, bond issues, and green certificates and trading.

5.Information promotion, and raising awareness

Includes public media campaigns and programs; recognition activities and awards; organisation of stakeholders; forums and working groups; training programs; enabling access to finance by local stakeholders; enabling stakeholder-owned projects; removing barriers to community participation; energy audits,; analysis of renewable energy potentials; information centres; and initiation and support for demonstration projects.

Table 3: Local Government Policies/Activities that can influence renewable energy (source: ICLEI–

Local Governments for Sustainability, Global Status Report on Local Renewable Energy Policies)

European Union action Sustainable energy is often best dealt with at a regional and local basis, as this is the level closest to the citizen. It is very important however to look at how solutions found can be replicated elsewhere and co-operation between local energy „actors‟ encouraged across Europe? A number of major policies and initiatives exist at the EU level to help these local energy „actors‟ make a difference; these include the „EU Energy and Climate Package‟, the „EU Economic Recovery Plan‟ and the „Covenant of Mayors‟. That package established an EU-wide target for 20% share of final energy consumption from renewables by 2020 and 10% share of transport energy, with individual national targets contributing to the EU-wide target. European-wide campaigns to tackle climate change have been also been launched in the last 12 months, including the „Sustainable Energy Europe campaign‟ and the „Climate Action/Energy for a Changing World campaign‟. A number of European countries also form part of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change26 which is which acts as the „one body for global legitimacy‟. More locally, initiatives such as „ManagEnergy‟ are able to reinforce the capacities of local and regional energy actors to assist in counteracting climate change. The „Covenant of Mayors‟ underlines the role of cities in tackling climate change and that of local actors such as regions, counties, provinces, agglomerations or „mentor cities‟ to support smaller municipalities with fewer resources in their efforts to reduce CO² emissions. There is difficulty in presenting a picture of a „policy landscape‟ across Europe because there are many different approaches to renewable energy policy and many factors influencing the approaches that local governments choose. Some of these include geographic resource availability, financing availability, planning legislation, social and cultural conditions, existence of stakeholder groups, local business interests, climate, type of building stock, and housing density and transport patterns.

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Over a decade ago, most countries joined an international treaty known as the „Kyoto Protocol‟ under a body known as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) -- to begin to consider what can be done to reduce global warming and to cope with whatever temperature increases are inevitable.

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6) APPROPRIATE USE OF LOCAL RESOURCES AND TECHNOLOGY In a number of the progressive cities visited, it is within the powers of regional and local governments to influence the energy choices of their residents and communities. It has been crucial that the government has been able to ensure there is independent advice and technology available in order to secure the most appropriate local renewable energy source. In addition to initiatives which encourage a reduction in energy demand through improved efficiency and conservation as well as reducing dependence on imported energy; Copenhagen, Freiburg and the town of Kristianstad all prioritise the deployment of local renewable energy sources. Whilst renewable energy sources have often been criticised for their variability or reliability (and are often regarded as „intermittent energy sources‟), there are now a great deal of technological solutions to deal with fluctuations (particularly with large distributed grids). And this is something that the proposed new „European Super Grid‟27 will be more capable of dealing with. Denmark has relatively moderate average wind speeds, both on and offshore and through strengthening their grid capacity it has plans to further increase their wind share. Denmark also has one of the world‟s best developed district heating grids.

As the Danish example shows, for them, the bottom line is zero waste. Why let potential energy generated locally escape if it can be sensibly used for heat, transport or electricity? The island of „Gotland‟ in the middle of the Baltic Sea is another good place to learn about making the best use of local resources. With a population of approximately 60,000 (which rises sharply in the summer months), Gotland has begun building an undersea pipe to export their excess renewables to mainland Sweden thanks to an innovative programme to make full and sustainable use of the environment.

27

The European super grid involves interconnecting Europe and regions around its borders – including North Africa,

Kazakhstan, Ukraine, etc. – with a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) power grid. The intention being to create more energy efficiency amongst participating countries; pool „load variability‟; allow for a much wider use of renewables based on the concept that “it‟s always windy somewhere in Europe”, and to allow Europe wide sharing of hydro power resources.

Danish District Heating Over half the homes in Denmark are heated by district heat, and the total grid is not less than 60,000km long. Most of the supply consists of cheap surplus heat, which reduces the need for fossil fuels. Whilst district heating isn‟t the be all and end all (it can cause problems with low-energy housing due to the district heating companies setting a fixed charge and therefore removing financial incentives to save for those who wish to invest in energy savings) – it has undoubtedly been one of the main contributors to Denmark as a strong energy nation. The Danish District Heating Association (DDHA) is a member organisation and represents approximately 400 district heating companies. The primary objective of DDHA is to safeguard the interests of the district heating sector in all aspects of energy policy, duties and taxation and environmental policyc. The member companies of the DDHA account for 98% of the district heating sold in Denmark and range from small co-operatively owned companies, supplying a few hundred households, to large municipal utilities, serving several hundred thousand consumers. Member companies distribute heat produced in generating plants owned by themselves or by others. The plants are fuelled with fossil fuels, biomass or refuse and heat can also come as waste heat from industry or from geothermic sources. District heating makes a significant contribution to the efficiency of the overall energy sector as it utilises the energy wasted in other sectors, for example waste heat from local electricity generation and industry. Furthermore, under environmentally controlled conditions, district heating makes use of the energy contained in complex or local fuels which others are unwilling or unable to use such as refuse, straw, wood chips and biogas.

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Figure 10, left) Gotland‟s public library is innovatively cooled using the Baltic Sea.

Gotland‟s municipal authority sees its responsibilities as an „arena‟ in which to take action very seriously. The results of local energy generation, innovation, incentives and education all contribute positively to the living environment, cleaner air, lower energy costs and improved economic performance.

Gotland: Towards a 100% Renewable Island Gotland is located in the middle of the Baltic Sea and is the largest of the Swedish Islands. The isolated location of the island has contributed to relatively low economic growth compared to other parts of Sweden. Costs are high for energy and goods and so the island has been forced to think about their renewable energy potential – particularly; wind, biomass and solar, in order to make full use of what exists in the surrounding environment. Cement production is the main industry on Gotland and this industry is the biggest consumer of fossil fuels, followed by transport. Gotland has pledged to reach a 100% renewable energy balance by 2025 through a partnership of municipality plans and an agreement with the European Commission. The action plans are made up of a series of 3 to 5 year targets which ensures that objectives can be reviewed and revised if needed. Gotland‟s Technical Director, Bertil Klintbom is determined to ensure the municipality reaches their goal. Wind power installations are being built both on and offshore. The sea is used for both heating and cooling. Nearly half the island is covered in bio-mass sources. Large parts of the medieval world heritage town of Visby are heated with district heating based on renewable energy, and local people are also getting involved. In a local school and community centre a public education experiment is taking place that aims to raise environmental awareness by demonstrating the use of solar power and wind energy. How will the people of Gotland achieve their goals?

More efficient use of energy overall;

New infrastructure for electricity, heating and transport;

Increased use of local renewable energy resources(from wind, solar, bio energy (forest fuel), bio energy (from fields), and biogas (from agriculture).

Financing of the required infrastructure is being achieved through:

Initial government grants to encourage the right economic conditions, such as „green

electricity certificates‟ to households and small companies;

Ownership: encouraging a high level of local ownership of renewable energy plants to

generate increased purchasing power and local jobs;

Incentives for local businesses to „go green‟ (as opposed to legal requirements).

Source: „Energy 2010‟, energy Plan for the Municipality of Gotland

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7) A DECENTRALISED ENERGY MARKET Decentralising means localising! In Sweden, Denmark, and to some extent Germany, there are a large number of smaller power stations. This distributed power generation means that projects are located in many „back yards‟ – both in rural and urban areas. Decentralised Energy Knowledge Base (DEKB) argue that the developed world‟s electricity is generated by an outdated, technologically obsolete, centralised system which wastes around 65% of the energy used to fuel it. If this can be replaced with systems which make use of the heat wasted by producing electricity, in tandem with locally generated renewable energy, it will be:

better for the climate

more secure

better value for money.

Local energy generation with decentralised energy (DE) promotes a cultural change in attitudes to the use of energy, which can be integrated into our communities and thereby stimulating improved energy-use and efficiency at a local level. The share of new generation taken by decentralised power globally is on the increase. The term “Micro-generation” is often associated with DE and refers to a range of technologies that small users, typically ranging from householders to communities, can use to produce heat or power from renewable or low carbon sources – the next step beyond energy efficiency measures such as insulation.

A Decentralised Energy system produces heat as well as electricity at or near the point of consumption. It includes high efficiency co-generation or combined heat and power (CHP); on-site renewable energy systems and energy recycling systems. CHP plants, although often fuelled by fossil fuels, are much more efficient than large centralised power stations, because the heat is used either as process heat in industry or distributed around buildings via a district heating system (see the Danish example in previous section). The availability of a local district energy network connected to the DE generation plant means the CHP plant can be integrated with other fuels and technologies such as biomass, geothermal energy, or solar collectors.

Once a DE scheme has been constructed with its associated district energy network, as new technologies mature, such as fuel cells for example, they can easily be integrated. This is not the case where a development has been constructed with many localised heat plants and grid electricity supplies.

Decentralising for Denmark During the 70‟s, the Danes were deeply affected by the oil crisis. For a country that was a 100% dependent on imports of oil to heat their homes they were hit by a big shock. All the excess heat being generated by the power stations was going straight back into the sea and so the Danes made three decisions to end this madness: 1) the government wouldn‟t allow any power station to be approved unless it had the capacity to recycle its heat; 2) municipalities had to have plans to distribute it, and; 3) building owners were required to connect to the city or area‟s district heating system. In addition, companies were given tax incentives of up to 50% if they used CHP (combined heat and power). Today, Copenhagen has one of the most extensive heating systems in the world, with 97% of the city connected up to 1,300km worth of pipes. Not only is the size of the system impressive, but the flexibility in the way that heat and waste is captured from municipal waste incinerators and the fact that combined heat and power plants are capable of being fuelled by everything from coal and natural gas, to wood pellets and straw. Consumers don‟t have to look far to see the benefits with annual costs being half the price of oil heated homes and bills decreasing on an annual basis.

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In addition to boosting power from wind to make up 50% of Denmark‟s renewable energy production, the Danes are forging ahead with developing and educating the public about Smartgrids28 to better regulate the fluctuations of renewable input into the grid system. A Smartgrid operates in a similar way to the European „Supergrid‟ mentioned earlier, but as a local version. The hope is that in the not too distant future, public demand for the development of electric cars for example will help contribute to the regulation of the Smartgrid and via their batteries, offer extra storage and charging capacity to the grid.

One of the main reasons that Denmark is having so much success on renewables is because there is cross-party consensus from all parties to develop renewable energy production.

8) FACILITATING EFFECTIVE PARTNERSHIPS – ‘THE TYPICAL MIX’ (PEOPLE, PRIVATE & PUBLIC)

So what‟s Freiburg‟s secret? No secret really, just big thinkers and big ambitions. The city governance structures pioneer innovative approaches to sustainable energy planning and possibly the key is strong and unique partnerships between individual home owners, co-operatives, the private sector, and municipal projects.

!

28

Smartgrids (similar to Supergrids) integrate all connected user actions (both suppliers and users) to provide a sustainable, competitive, and reliable electricity supply. For more information see: www.smartgrids.eu

Freiburg proves that it can be prosperous whilst having an absolute environmental bottom line (as opposed to an economic one) and has been labelled as a place of "green competence". With a history of anti-nuclear protests and innovative activists coupled with a governing Green Party for the city and a string of visionary Mayors, this small city of 220,000 people has led the way in solar development in the region.

By harnessing appropriate local technology, Freiburg is very well positioned for solar energy and with the backing of an excellent tariff for householders (fixed over 20 years), grants from the government, and bank loans. In 2007, a new climate protection action plan was created including energy saving, energy efficiency, and renewables. As part of the new plan, an on-line database has been established listing all building roofs in the city and their size and suitability for solar panels. By 2008, all public trams were running entirely on renewable energy, and there are five wind turbines, a biomass co-generation plant for one city district, 12.3 MW of solar PV and 15,000 m² of Solar Hot Water.

Bestowed with awards and prizes such as Germany‟s „Environmental Capital‟, the European Public Transport Award and the German Solar Award, Freiburg has plenty to boast about. The city doesn‟t sit around basking in its glory; it uses the solar panels on the roof of the local second division‟s football club to attract its visitors instead!

Explaining the „typical mix‟: Solar Region Freiburg Project Executive, Thomas Dresel

explained the unique relationship between the citizen, the State and the private sector which seems to be the main factor in Freiburg‟s success. Since 1986 this "political will formation" has been strong and long term and the city has supported the sustained development of solar energy through projects, funding programmes and spaces to develop. In partnership, the „Badenova‟ Power Company supports the development of renewables and water management through innovation fund programmes. The public have high levels of environmental awareness, and this combined with the „green‟ political priorities and targeted economic development has led to Freiburg‟s winning formula. It seems that the opportunities offered by solar energy, in terms of climate protection, the economy and urban development were recognised earlier than in many other places and success with renewable energy overall has been attributed to a shared vision of sustainable development, a multi-stakeholder network, participation and commitment of citizens, and political consensus across parties.

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A Live/Work model, figure 11. The „working and living‟ association in the Vauban district have managed to achieve a 79% reduction in the primary energy requirements for electricity and heating – for an additional investment of 7%.

The „work-live‟ model project has been occupied since 1999 and during the summer, the 46m² array of flat plate collectors supplies all the hot water. The ventilation system recovers around 80% of the heating energy from the used air. A small gas-fired co-generation plant produces the additional heat and electricity required. Together with the 50m² photovoltaic installation, this provides some 70% of their electricity. The sanitary areas are equipped with vacuum toilets and an experimental biogas reactor has recently been installed to provide gas for cooking.

Figure 11, below) the Öko-Institute is located within the "work-live" district of Vauban in Freiburg. The photovoltaic installation directly generates electricity for the offices.

Exemplars What are the sorts of exemplars one sees in a sustainable city such as Freiburg? The Vauban district is working its way towards being a truly sustainable neighbourhood, 10 minutes from the city centre, these old barracks were used to create a „model‟ and showcase residential area with almost all of the work heavily subsidised by the regional Energy Company „Badenova‟. One of the area‟s main features is a combined heat and power (wood chip) plant for district heating, numerous „passive' houses equipped with solar thermal or PV units and innovations, such as solar garages and solar community centres. It is an incredible showcase with people just going about their everyday lives whilst living and breathing sustainability.

Figure 12, below) "House 37", multi-purpose Community Centre in Vauban District, with PV and solar heating units.

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Figure 13, below) ISIS Passive Apartment Block

Figure 14, below) Freiburg´s "Heliotrope House" - Residential and business house built as a prototype in 1994 which follows the sun to maximise power input.

What is evident by these exemplars is that that the Municipality of Freiburg is highly instrumental in encouraging renewable energy at the local level. The multiple roles of both the city-wide and regional authorities as decision-makers, planners, managers of municipal infrastructure and role models for citizens and businesses are crucial in creating the transition to renewable energy. It is their political mandate that makes the public authorities the ideal drivers of change – to govern and guide their communities, provide services, and manage municipal assets.

600 students are housed in buildings similar to „House 37‟ (figure 12) and the buildings hold Freiburg‟s biggest thermal solar installation, supplying hot water to the whole building complex. Approximately 10,000 litres of hot water are consumed every day and the solar installation yields more than 80,000kWh of heat which gives gas savings of around 10,000m³.

In 2002, 14 families moved into the passive block (named after the sun goddess, Isis, figure 13).The block is connected up to the district heating system and a 25m² solar thermal installation provides additional hot water and any residual heating required. The building is also equipped with a photovoltaic installation with a peak rating of 5kW.

The Heliotrope, (figure 14)), designed by architect Rolf Disch, has revolutionised solar architecture and the cylindrical house rotates towards the current position of the sun, always achieving the best possible alignment to the sun, depending on the time of day and year. The residual heat is provided by 6.5kW vacuum tube collectors on the façade and on the balcony railings, a geothermal heat exchanger and ventilation with heat recovery. Due to this „sun sail‟, the building generates more energy than is consumed by the residents.

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CONCLUSIONS & RECOMMENDATIONS “The road to climate stability is straight and the solutions simple, and yet scientists, economists, industrialists and politicians are busy making them complicated” - Satish Kumar29

Bold vision and leadership Without stronger leadership throughout local authority leaders in the UK, we risk losing our best opportunity to reduce our pending energy crisis and the effects of dangerous climate change on current and future generations. The Third Sector has the opportunity to work with the public sector and business partners to demonstrate genuine leadership by maximising this opportunity to make the transformational change now urgently required.

Bold action itself is a vital communication tool showing commitment and reducing the confusing gap which arises between the catastrophe (which is so often talked about) and the modest actions so far. When people in communities see changes, then the story becomes real and low carbon living is then taken out of the speeches and into people‟s lives.

More and more cities and local governments are beginning to seriously address renewable energy in some way, and are also becoming more ambitious in their targets and in policies designed to meet these targets. Local leaders will increasingly be looking to renewable energy to produce energy locally; to secure the local energy supply and improve community resilience; to save energy and money; to create local jobs; to involve local stakeholders; to contribute to climate protection; to support national and international CO² reduction goals, and to promote sustainable urban and rural development.

Policy Recommendations

Politicians need to venture out of their comfort zone. Taking bold action so that

change is evident is a vital communication tool and shows commitment.

Local and regional authorities should play a much more active part in the UK of

identifying and enabling projects, as well as encouraging an “early adopter” approach

for emerging smaller, pioneering communities to support competition and innovation in

developing renewable energy projects. In contrast, larger towns and cities who begin by

targeting specific renewable energy opportunities, such as solar, wind, or bio-energy

should be encouraged and developed by local authorities into progressive „models‟ or

„exemplars‟ (for example, as a “solar city” like Freiburg) and to explore business ventures

that will benefit the city.

Meaningful public involvement and engagement No energy reviews conducted to date in the UK have fully engaged the population in a bid to win hearts and minds. If we really want to reduce energy demand in all sectors and to increase the widespread use of low carbon energy sources in the UK, engaging with the population is essential. Taking a leaf out of Sweden‟s book - an aware, motivated and engaged population will result in more CO² savings being made, at less cost, more quickly, and with more lasting benefits for society as a whole. Decisions about the UK‟s energy future will ultimately affect every man woman and child in the country and so this is a crucial issue. Community engagement in land use planning Community involvement in shaping the built environment has been on the planning agenda for over 40 years in the UK but despite this questions remain over how well policy makers understand the needs of the communities that these policies impact upon. In 2006, the Department of Communities and Local Government launched the Local Government White

29

ecological campaigner, writing in National Trust Magazine, Spring 2010

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Paper, “Strong and Prosperous Communities”. This focused on simplifying the structure and accountability of local government in order to bring it closer to the community. In 2008 the Community Empowerment White Paper “Communities in Control: Real People, Real Power” was published. This included measures to promote participatory budgeting, strengthen the role of local Councillors, empower young people, and foster action through petitions and other forms of participation. The 2007 Planning White Paper, “Planning for a Sustainable Future” focused on improving speed, responsiveness and efficiency in land use planning however, seeming to threaten genuine community involvement. Research published by Urban Forum in 2009 “Places, Bases and Spaces”, revealed that on the ground, local communities still struggle to get involved in decisions about their built environment. Community groups in the UK continue to engage with the planning system in a reactive way and at a late stage (most commonly by opposing planning applications) after many decisions have been taken. Given the importance of the “Local Development Framework”30 in determining the future plans of an area, increasing the number of people engaged and involved should be a high priority for the government. Plans by the Coalition government to „radically reform‟ the planning system31 will hopefully lead to more opportunities to influence at a local level.

The Third Sector invariably spends time filling the gaps in public service provision and has been required to come up with more solutions to societal problems, the looming energy gap and involvement in planning being two of them. With empowerment and engagement so high on the government agenda, there should be increasing opportunities for the sector to make a significant contribution in educating around our energy and planning issues.

Policy progress on energy planning There have been huge and positive policies steps in recent months as part of the Green Energy Act and are much welcomed by both the micro-generation industry as well as homeowners. The proposals within the Act clear away the most significant barriers in place and will allow most householders to choose from the full range of technologies without the need to apply for planning permission. Other micro-generation technologies have been free from such barriers since April 2008 but further work was needed to include micro-wind turbines and air source heat pumps within domestic Permitted Development Legislation. These proposals also outline how businesses and public buildings will be able to install sustainable technologies without costly and time-consuming planning hurdles. Policy recommendations

Encouraging Debate. There needs to be widespread debate about future energy supplies at national and local levels involving all sections of the community. This will create a well informed public who understand the full implications of different energy choices. This debate should include the future development and role of nuclear power in the UKs long term energy strategy.

Citing of controversial renewable technologies. Some parts of the country will be more suited to certain technologies such as wind and biomass. Whilst excellent resources exist to assist both communities to understand, and local authorities to work with those communities, help needs to be more readily accessible via a „planning portal‟ or similar one-stop shop for signposting around planning issues.

Working with the VCS. Planners and developers need to make full use of the wealth of knowledge, networks and outreach skills provided by Voluntary and Community Sector when engaging and involving the public.

30

A Local Development Framework is a series of local development documents that outlines how planning will be

managed in a given area. 31

The Coalition government has stated that it will „radically reform‟ the planning agenda giving new powers to local

councils, communities, neighbourhoods and individuals. The document “The Coalition: Our Programme for Government” sets out the planning policy initiatives that underpin the localism agenda and the government plans over the next five years.

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Policy to Practice. Despite the progress with the Green Energy Act and initiatives such as the „Clean Energy Cash back scheme‟32 a great deal more needs to be done in both bringing the act to life and working with local authorities who may continue to block or place barriers in the way for both generators and suppliers of renewable energy projects.

A Focus on Education “We need a new environmental consciousness on a global basis. To do this, we need to educate people” - Mikhail Gorbachev Embedded at the core of any strategy which requires a change in culture and mindset is the need for environmental education. Understanding what the climate change debate means for communities will be a first step in creating the change. Whilst environmental education is available and promoted via different age groups in the UK – it tends to be quite piecemeal and ad hoc. There is no real sense of seriousness or a dedicated curriculum in place from pre-school ages upwards. Building environmental awareness, innovation and understanding at this very young and crucial age can save millions in educational campaigns in later life. A culture of co-operation and community-ownership should also be fostered throughout the education system to develop a strong awareness of community energy equity and enabling wider understanding of the benefits. Policy recommendations

A „Low carbon‟ curriculum should be designed and integrated (both in theory and

practice as far as possible) in primary, secondary, tertiary, and adult education - formally

and informally.

Education and awareness-raising of co-operatives as viable business models.

More targeted information for households. Whilst there is a glut of information for

households on energy efficiency and generating one‟s own energy; there is a chasm of

difference between the two and so this information needs to be more targeted and

delivered on a street-by-street, house-by-house basis for individuals to understand and

take on responsibility in an appropriate manner.

Renewable energy demonstration centres to provide training and “critical mass.”

Come, see, touch and learn – this is the best way for people to acquaint themselves with

new technologies. Many “model/exemplar places” such as Copenhagen and Freiburg

have established information and demonstration centres for renewable energy and

energy efficiency to provide training and expertise, and to bring together a critical mass

of experts, small businesses, and stakeholders to innovate.

Creating a culture for community ownership and co-operatives Increasingly, policy statements in the UK are encouraging more community involvement in renewable energy projects, with more funding programmes and support networks being set up to promote this approach. The aim is that through a co-operative approach, there will be less NIMBYism (Not In My Back Yard) and greater support for newer technologies and developments. Whilst community involvement is only part of the jigsaw in meeting carbon reduction targets, it is nevertheless be a vital part.

32

The clean energy cash back system is designed as an incentive for energy producers to move away from conventional fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. Government guarantees a fixed, premium rate for renewable electricity fed into the national grid, that power companies are obliged to buy.

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What seems apparent is that further and much more integrated support and structures are needed for community-based approaches; otherwise the gap will increase - forcing issues such as fuel poverty to unprecedented levels. Energy usage, efficiency, and savings affect all sectors of society and if we are to reach the sort of targets which have been set, there needs to be more vehicles by which to do so. As the findings in the report reflect, consumer, community, and co-operatively owned are a few ways of achieving such ambitions in an equitable way. There are already a number of established and emerging co-operative and community owned schemes operating throughout the UK33

. The standard investment model however (usually minimum investment £250), means that a vast number of society are still excluded. Other finance models are beginning to be developed to assist a much greater number of people in the UK to reduce their energy costs as well as increase efficiency and the use of renewable technology. „Consumer ownership‟34 models work by collectively pooling the purchasing power of residents, local businesses and the public sector, as well as using monitoring tools such as „smart meters‟35 to work together to save money and tackle climate change36. There is a role for a specialist VCS body acting as an independent energy broker to partner co-operatives by both minimising risk and reducing technical work required by residents, activists, and volunteers. In addition to raising capital via the community, emerging co-operatives in the UK could also aim to fund appropriate distributed energy technology by approaching energy suppliers obligated to

provide finance via the Carbon Emissions Reduction Targets (CERT)37

as well as the

Community Energy Savings Programme (CESP)38

if rolled out further. The recent

announcement of a „Green Bank‟ too is very welcome news and has commitment by the three main political parties. Whilst the amount promised to kick start the Green Bank won‟t transform things entirely, it could certainly be used to create a base in the same way that European State Banks have been able to build up a balance sheet and invest in infrastructure programmes. The Think Tank, Green Alliance have calculated that an investment of up to £500 million per year would be needed from the public purse to lever in the necessary amount of private capital needed to deliver a low carbon transition. This sort of capital could be levered through green taxes. Lack of capacity is the biggest barrier to action and most local authorities and parish councils are still not well enough equipped to promote energy schemes. Individual households are the target of energy companies rather than communities and so mechanisms are required to help start-up energy co-operatives, including business planning; community engagement and legal support. Policy Recommendations

Joined-up action across Government. Central Government needs urgent joined-up action to support community driven energy projects. Co-operative energy is an ideal way to demonstrate the current talk of revitalisation of a co-operative and mutual movement by all government parties.

A supported co-operative movement. The co-operative movement is working hard to create partnerships with local authorities and energy agencies, as well as share good practice and learning with partners across Europe. There needs to be more pro-active

33

See www.energy4all.co.uk 34

Ref “Collective Power”, by the Co-operative Party 35

Smart Meters come with two-way communications that will enable meter readings to be taken at any time of the night or day without the need for a visit from a meter reader. Over the next 11 years every household in Britain will receive Smart Meters, one for gas and one for electricity. 36

See Figure 13. 37

The Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT) came into effect in April 2008 obliging electricity and gas suppliers in the UK to help reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from homes 38

CESP commenced on 1 September 2009. The first 10 CESP areas were announced by British Gas on 21 October 2009. They are working in the following local authority areas: Birmingham, Walsall, Dundee, Glasgow, Preston, Knowsle - Merseyside, Swansea, Blacon - Cheshire, and the London Boroughs of Haringey and Southwark

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support and reciprocity from both local authorities and energy agencies in allowing such partnerships to flourish39.

A supportive policy environment The UK Government‟s Renewable Energy Strategy 2009 profiles community owned and co-operative approaches to renewable energy production and supply. This is great news for energy efficiency, community empowerment, and proof that the policy makers also recognise the significance of public acceptability as a vital condition in meeting targets. Under the Climate Change Act, the UK has been set legally binding "carbon budgets", setting limits on how much carbon the UK can emit over five-year budget periods for the next 15 years. Some of the projects covered by the National Planning Policy Statements such as new coal and gas-fired power stations are likely to have a significant impact on UK emissions – but bizarrely the effect that these developments would have on UK carbon budgets is missing from the proposals, and this issue won't be considered by the current40Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC). This market-led approach is a huge flaw in the government's planning proposals, which threatens to undermine its low-carbon strategy. Wider afield and with the current Kyoto protocol due to expire in 2012 there was hope that the United Nations conference in Copenhagen in December 2009 would secure a meaningful global agreement on how to tackle climate change. Not only were weaknesses of the European Union‟s approach highlighted by the „toothless declaration‟ but also a failure to agree robust international climate finance or a willingness to make further reductions in carbon emissions41. All this, despite the rigorous analysis and recommendations of the highly acclaimed “Stern Review” – the economics of climate change conducted by the former Chief Economist of the World Bank, Sir Nicholas Stern. Stern concluded that that the benefits of strong, early action outweigh the costs and that the impacts of climate change are not evenly distributed insofar as the poorest countries and people will suffer earliest and most and when the damages appear it will be too late to reverse the process. The Green Alliance recommends that if Europe is to regain its crucial role as a catalyst for a global agreement then it needs to put in place the domestic political conditions that will allow it to move forward with confidence. The Lisbon Treaty and a new European Commission together with a president of the European Council and possible reform of the EU budget should be enough to ensure that a low carbon economy is at the core of the European project. Policy Recommendations

Strong, national and regional energy policies and mandates create enabling

(framework) conditions to which local governments react. In addition to recently

announced incentives like feed-in tariffs; further targets and incentives should be created

in each city, town, and parish area in the UK such as funds for demonstrations or funding

for development that explicitly incorporates renewable energy.

Currently, National policy statements for energy threaten the transition to a low

carbon economy by omitting national energy infrastructure (such as the next generation

of coal-fired power stations) from carbon budgets. Ministers need to urgently alter these

decisions to both engage the wider public and reduce the risk of potential legal action

threatened by environmental groups.

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See Co-operative Lessons from Denmark and Sweden, DTI 40

Under the Coalition agreement, the current Infrastructure Planning Committee is to be abolished and replaced with

the Infrastructure Planning Unit. The new body will continue a similar role to its predecessor of „fast-tracking of major infrastructure projects‟. National Policy Statements (NPS) - the government‟s infrastructure blueprints - will also be subject to Parliamentary approval as part of the Coalition‟s agreement. 41

See - Unlocking a Low Carbon Europe, Green Alliance, Winter 2010

41

Community size affects approaches and possibilities. Clear differences exist

between the policies enacted and implemented by smaller versus larger communities

and this must be accounted for as opposed to blanket solutions. For example, smaller

communities may enact targets of 100% renewable energy, whereas larger cities would

find this impossible in the short and medium term.

Appropriate use of resources It is clear that we are at a crossroads in terms of future energy use with the powerful pro-nuclear lobby insisting that nuclear is the only way forward in achieving our energy goals and the clean technology camp begging for more investment and changes in policy to favour research and development and an overhaul of the national grid to allow for a more efficient decentralised system. There seems to be unwavering support for nuclear by the current government coupled with less infrastructure work being done on the national grid. Both Sweden and Denmark‟s „no‟ to nuclear and „no‟ to further fuel crisis‟s have forced them in to looking closer to home for local renewable resources and the UK has no real reason not to do the same. The UK has an abundance of wind and the future large deployment of offshore wind farms in Europe will undoubtedly call for extensive work around various models of public acceptance – co-operative models and partnerships such as those used throughout Denmark offer one such way of success. Active public involvement is time and resource intensive but ultimately efficient due to the resulting lack of protests, blocking or delaying of projects. We already have many tools and approaches – economic, technological and behavioural - to deal effectively with the climate change challenge but they must be vigorously and widely implemented to achieve the societal transformation required to decarbonise economies. A breakthrough is at last being made in bringing green to the masses, and as „hippies rub shoulders with suits‟ 42 - it‟s no longer only pioneers out there. The government has a key role however in ensuring that there is independent advice for people who wish to understand more about how to invest in greener homes or communities. Many companies have an interest in promoting particular technologies and commercial interests can often get ahead of what‟s right and suitable. Policy recommendations

Upfront energy savings can‟t really be highlighted enough and housing built to high standards of sustainable construction, including energy efficiency and use of renewables will help reduce running costs and make warmth affordable for the long term.

Greater clarity is needed around which technologies require planning permission and those which are permitted development.

A decentralised energy market The shift to a much more decentralised energy system has happened in other countries such as Germany, Denmark and Sweden, with great success and allows many more smaller groups to generate their own energy and sell it for a profit; ultimately democratising the energy supply system. The community involvement successes in these European countries has been coupled with high quality innovation, strong leadership and partnership working, smart, joined-up, and many more sustainable planning initiatives by national, regional and local governments.

42

Green House Effects, Tony Juniper, writing for the Sunday Times

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To achieve these projects, a fundamental change seems to have taken place in people‟s perception at a local level. The key to this has been the recognition that the wider benefits through co-operative ownership and a planning system which supports the aim of sustainable development and municipalities playing a significant and supporting role.

The UK government‟s own figures suggest that up to 7 million homes could have some form of micro-generation installed by 2020, making it an important contributor to EU targets for renewable energy and reductions in CO² emissions. In the 2009 report43 commissioned by OFGEM h on the UK's National Grid however, it‟s stated that up to £4.7bn worth of investment is needed before 2020 if it is to be able to accommodate additional power generation from a mix of sources. To meet the current emission targets, work to prepare the grid for connecting the expected 35GW of renewables and 10GW of new nuclear power would need to begin immediately.

Allowing many smaller „hook ups‟ to the grid and essentially, moving away from a highly centralised model of energy distribution makes sense for efficiency reasons alone and is absolutely vital to meet rising energy demand. Whilst the government talks of providing policy incentives for more decentralised systems, in reality, policy and approach is still focused on the large utilities and centralised solutions, as the current push for nuclear shows. As the case studies in the report illustrate, diversity of the energy sector is the key. Small, medium and large energy developers have a place and like a fully functioning ecosystem, we need each player to understand each other‟s role and put the objectives and task in hand as opposed to the capital gain.

The National Grid. Whilst a great amount of research is currently taking place around upgrading and creating a „fit for purpose‟, sustainable, and „smart‟ grid system, these critical changes have to take place at a much faster pace if we are to meet emission targets. Policy and regulatory barriers must continue to be removed also to encourage the utilisation of decentralised energy44

Facilitating effective partnerships – ‘the typical mix’ The „typical mix‟ as illustrated in Freiburg is partly what ties all the steps together. Success in cultural change can only come about as a result of engaging every member of a community (no matter how big or small). Everyone has to get on board: companies, power suppliers, private households, and the media to name a few. Factors such as; high levels of environmental awareness, committed citizens and municipalities working together, political priorities and targeted economic development have enabled places like Freiburg to win it‟s „solar capital‟ status. Policy Recommendations

Awards and competitions motivate and create practitioner-communities. In some

countries, awards are given for “solar cities”, “solar towns” and “solar villages,” often on a

regular or annual basis. This creates communities of motivated and like-minded

individuals, local officials and public/private partnerships, who can then serve as mentors

and resources for those who wish to start similar activities in their own community.

43 Our Electricity Transmission Network – a vision for 2020 by the Electricity Networks Strategy Group (ESNG)

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Finally At long last the UK government are acknowledging the fact that even though they have their role to play in banding various policies around leading on the energy revolution; individual consumers and communities also have a major part to play, and therefore support and structures are needed for all. Developing decentralised and community based renewable energy sources will result in a much more secure and self sufficient energy supply. Developing local energy networks offers considerable opportunities for strengthening local economies, skills base and innovation programmes and we need to accelerate the decentralisation of ownership and generation to make this happen. Policy interventions need to be more coordinated and inclusive and provide a more concerted commitment to the benefits of community-based processes. Despite the wealth of evidence that the countries highlighted in this report are making very big steps towards becoming low carbon economies; there is still a great deal to achieve and no single model offers a complete solution. This is mainly because political and cultural changes are still to take full effect and fossil fuels continue in the short-term to be „alive and well‟. Also compounding the problem is that outsourcing emissions (which is done by the majority of developed countries) simply moves the problem elsewhere as opposed to solving it. If we are to really change things, a major international agreement is required to transcend the climate sceptics, big business interests, economic bottom lines and political apathy, as well as combating powerful countries “absolute rights to pollute”. It isn‟t a surprise that developing countries do as we do rather than as we say! It is critical that more effective ways are found to conduct negotiations such as those which take place at United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) if they are to remain „globally legitimate‟. Ultimately, concerted, collective and empathetic action in line with scientific evidence across a breadth of individuals, organisations and leaders will make all the difference to our long-term future.

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GLOSSARY OF TERMS Air source heat pump - A type of heat pump that transfers heat from outdoor air to indoor air during the heating season, and works in reverse during the cooling season. Anaerobic digester - A device for optimising the anaerobic digestion of biomass and/or animal manure, and possibly to recover biogas for energy production. Biofuel - are fuels devised from biological materials including crops (especially trees) and animal wastes. Biomass - Living materials (wood, vegetation, etc.) grown or produced expressly for use as fuel. Carbon budget - A „Carbon budget‟ is a cap on the total quantity of greenhouse gas emitted in the UK over a specified time. Under a system of carbon budgets, every tonne of greenhouse gas emitted between now and 2050 will count. Where emissions rise in one sector, we will have to achieve corresponding falls in another. Each carbon budget covers a five-year period, with three budgets set at a time. The first three carbon budgets run from 2008-2012, 2013-2017 and 2018-2022. Carbon dioxide or CO² - A colourless, odourless, non-poisonous gas which results from fossil fuel combustion and contributes to global warming. Carbon Footprint - is a measure of the impact that activities/people/businesses have on the environment in terms of the amount of green house gases produced and measured in units of carbon dioxide. Clean energy cash back – A system which is designed as an incentive for energy producers to move away from conventional fossil fuels to renewable energy sources. Government guarantees a fixed, premium rate for renewable electricity fed into the national grid, that power companies are obliged to buy. Climate change - The slow variations of climatic characteristics over time at a given place. Usually refers to the change of climate which is attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere and which is, in addition to natural climate variability, observed over comparable periods. Combined Heat Power (CHP) – Industrial and commercial plant machinery produce waste heat, this energy is then used to provide heat and generate electricity. Community-led energy projects - Community projects involve local groups developing low carbon energy solutions appropriate to local situations, and with community groups having ownership over outcomes. Examples include solar water heating clubs, or insulation clubs, which provide mutual support for system installation; energy awareness and behaviour networks, which provide guidance and reassurance to neighbours on energy matters relevant to them; and co-operatively-owned small-scale renewable energy systems, such as micro-hydro and wind. District heating – a scheme whereby a group of houses receive their domestic heating from a centrally located heating plant. The plant may be purpose built to the capacity required and may use any source of energy (geothermal, biomass, oil, gas, or coal). In some cases use is made of the excess hot water produced in the process of electricity generation in a combined heat and power scheme (CHP). Distributed Generation - Small, decentralised, generating systems located in or near the place where energy is used. (Also known as DG, Distributed Energy Resource, DER, or decentralised Energy - DE).

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Electricity generation – The process of producing electricity by transforming other forms or sources of energy into electrical energy; measured in kilowatt-hours. Electricity grid - A common term referring to an electricity transmission and distribution system. Emissions -The release of greenhouse gases and/or their precursors into the atmosphere over a specified area and period of time. Energy audit - A survey that shows how much energy is used in a given space with the overall aim of assisting in energy efficiency. Energy payback - Energy payback is the recovery period of the energy spent in manufacturing of the energy system Energy recovery -The recovery of useful energy in the form of heat and/or power from burning waste. Generally applied to incineration, but can also include the combustion of landfill gas and gas produced during anaerobic digestion. Fossil fuels -Coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas and other hydrocarbons are called fossil fuels because they are made of fossilised, carbon-rich plant and animal remains. These remains were buried in sediments and compressed over geological time, slowly being converted to fuel. Fuel Cell - A device that produces electricity with high efficiency (little heat); by using a fuel and a chemical which reacts with it (an oxidiser) at two separate electrical terminals to produce an electric current. Fuel Poverty - is said to occur when a household needs to spend more than 10% of its income on total fuel use in order to heat its home to an adequate standard of warmth.

Greenhouse effect - A warming of the Earth's atmosphere caused by the presence in the atmosphere of certain heat-trapping gases (e.g., water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane). These gases absorb radiation emitted by the Earth, thereby retarding the loss of energy from the system to space. The greenhouse effect has been a property of Earth's atmosphere for millions of years and is responsible for maintaining the Earth's surface at a temperature that makes it habitable for human beings. An Enhanced Greenhouse Effect is when the increased concentrations of these gases are "enhancing" the natural greenhouse effect. It is the "enhanced greenhouse effect" that is expected to cause a large and rapid rise in average global temperatures.

Greenhouse gases - Those gaseous constituents of the atmosphere, both natural and artificial, that absorb and reemit infrared radiation and that are responsible for global warming. The most potent greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, is rapidly accumulating in the atmosphere due to human activities.

Green energy - Energy generated from renewable or small-scale low-carbon local sources.

Green Energy Act - A Private Members' Bill introduced in 2009 seeking to cut out the red tape for micro generation and promote energy production and energy efficiency measures.

Hydro power - Power obtained from the natural movement of masses of water

Kilowatt-hour (kWh) - One thousand watts acting over a period of 1 hour. The kWh is a unit of energy.

Micro-generation - Defined as generation of a capacity of less than around 50 kW. Micro power generation is particularly suitable for households and small businesses.

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Municipality - is an administrative entity composed of a clearly defined territory and its population and commonly denotes a city, town, or village, (or a small grouping of them). A municipality is typically governed by a mayor and a city council or municipal council.

Non-renewable resources - are natural resources that are not naturally replenished once they have been harvested. Non-renewable resources can be used up completely or else used up to such a degree that it is economically impractical to obtain any more of them. Fossil fuels and metal ores are examples of non-renewable resources.

Nuclear power - is energy produced from controlled (i.e. non-explosive) nuclear reactions. Commercial plants currently use nuclear fission reactions to generate electricity. Electric utility reactors heat water to produce steam, which is then used to generate electricity.

Peak oil - is the point in time when the maximum rate of global petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production enters terminal decline. Photo- voltaic - A solar panel which produces electricity. Recovery - Involves the recovery of value from waste, through recycling, composting or incineration with energy recovery. Renewable Energy - energy sources that can be replenished in a short period of time. The five renewable sources used most often include water, solar, wind, geothermal and biomass. Non-renewable energy sources consume carbon or nuclear based fuels. Smart grids - integrate all connected user actions (both suppliers and users) to provide a

sustainable, competitive, and reliable electricity supply. Solar power - is the generation of electricity from sunlight. This can be direct as with

photovoltaic (PV), or indirect as with concentrating solar power (CSP), where the sun's energy is focused to boil water which is then used to provide power. Sustainable Development - Keeping the overall environmental impact from operation within different areas of society within the limits of what man, society and nature can sustain in the long term. The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan - plots how the UK will meet the 34 percent cut in emissions on 1990 levels by 2020, set out in the 2009 budget. REFERENCES Boyle, G, (2004). „Renewable Energy‟, OUP 2ND Ed ISBN 9780 1992 6178 9. „Cities, Towns and Renewable Energy, Yes in My Front Yard‟ (2009), IEA. Climate Change: Synthesis Report, Summary for Policymakers (2007), Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. „Collective Power, changing the way we consume energy‟ (2009). The Co-operative Party. „Cooperative Energy – lessons from Denmark and Sweden‟ (2004), URBED, DTI Global Watch. Freiburg Solar Energy Guide (2006), Municipality of Freiburg IM Brisgau

Global Status Report on Local Renewable Energy Policies,(2009), ICLEI–Local Governments for Sustainability.

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Hale, Stephen, „The new commandments of climate change strategy‟ – how to cut emissions and win elections too‟, 2010, Green Alliance.

Hopkins, R, „The Transition Handbook: From oil dependency to local resilience‟ (2008). Green Books.

Industry Taskforce on Peak Oil and Energy Security (ITPOES), February 2010, „The oil crunch – a wake up for the UK economy‟.

Kumar, V, Leitner, A, Wehrmeyer, Wilton, P, W, Woodman, P, Dr Vidal Kumar and Petra Wilton Lean and Green - Leadership for a low-carbon future (July 2009).

Littlecott, C, „Unlocking a Low Carbon Europe‟ (2010), Green Alliance.

Martinot, Eric, Global Status Report on Local Renewable Energy Policies, REN21 Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century, Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies (ISEP), ICLEI–Local Governments for Sustainability, 2009.

„Places, Bases and Spaces‟ (2009), Urban Forum.

Scott-Cato MS, English co-operative movement, „Market, Schmarket: Building the Post-Capitalist Economy‟, New Clarion Press, 2006.

Sørensen HC, Lars Kjeld Hansen, Jens H. Mølgaard Larsen , "Middelgrunden 40 MW offshore wind farm Denmark: Lessons Learned", 2002.

„The UK Low Carbon Transition Plan‟ (2009) Department of Energy and Climate.

The Future of UK Gas Supplies, (2004), POST Note 230, UK Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology.

The 2010 Oil & Gas UK Activity Survey, Oil and Gas UK Tutken, A, „Climate change: Global Risks, Challenges and Decisions‟ (2009), IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 6. UK Statistics Authority, UK Energy in Brief (2009), Department of Energy and Climate Change. Walker G P et al, „Harnessing Community Energies‟ (2007), Innovation Brief 11. ESRC, Sustainable Technologies Programme. Walker G P, Hunter S, Devine-Wright P, Evans B, Fay H, „Harnessing Community Energies: explaining and evaluating community-based localism in renewable energy policy in the UK (2007), Global Environmental Politics‟, vol 7, no 2, pp 64-82. WEB REFERENCES

Baywind: http://www.baywind.co.uk/baywind_home.asp

Centre for Sustainable Energy: www.cse.org.uk

The Committee on Climate Change: http://www.theccc.org.uk/

The Carbon Trust: www.carbontrust.co.uk

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Co-operatives UK: http://www.cooperatives-uk

Co-operatives Europe: http://www.coopseurope.coop/

Community Energy: http://www.communityenergy.info

Danish District Heating Association: http://www.fjernvarmen.dk

Decentralised Energy Knowledge Base UK - http://www.dekb.co.uk/

The Department of Energy and Climate: www.decc.gov.uk

Digest of United Kingdom Energy Statistics, 2009: www.decc.gov.uk

Energy4All: www.energy4all.co.uk

The Energy Savings Trust: http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk

Energy Beyond Oil Project: http://www.fraw.org.uk

The Green Alliance: http://www.green-alliance.org.uk

Green Communities (EST): http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/cafe/Green-Communities

The Guardian (Carbon emissions): Carbon emissions: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/may/21/carbon-emissions-questions

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Micro-power UK: http://www.micropower.co.uk/

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New Economics Foundation – Plugging the Leaks: http://www.neweconomics.org/projects/plugging-leaks

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The UK Energy Research Centre: http://www.ukerc.ac.uk

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC): www.unfccc.int