A set of standards for new onshore wind farms has just been published by Scottish Renewables which will deliver numerous benefits for local communities including improved financial benefits and a more consistent approach to the development of community benefits packages.
The new protocol will be the first of its kind in Scotland. It outlines a number of key commitments from the Scottish onshore wind sector which includes £5,000 of community benefit for investment in local projects. This could mean the generation of several millions of pounds from a large scale wind farm, much of which could be injected into locally-identified projects over the lifetime of the wind farm. It will also include a commitment between industry and the Scottish Government to explore the potential for greater community involvement in the ownership of onshore wind farms.
“We want to clearly state our industry’s commitment to delivering local benefits from every new wind farm in Scotland” said Niall Stuart, Chief Executive of Scottish Renewables. “The protocol will also ensure a consistent approach to the development of community benefit agreements. According to the Scottish Government’s online register, community benefit has topped £5 million per year and we’re keen to build on that success as new projects are developed.”
Mr Stuart went on to describe the major changes brought about thanks to community funding from wind farms, which includes energy efficiency measures, college bursaries, investment in museums, construction of cycle paths and investment in community transport schemes. The benefits from onshore wind can stretch far beyond the local area given that meets the equivalent of more than 20 percent of the Scottish electricity demand, helps to address the problem of climate change and is responsible for attracting more than £1.3 billion of investment into the Scottish economy.
The announcement was also welcomed by the Scottish Energy Minister, Fergus Ewing, who argued that the protocol goes further than those adopted in other parts of the UK.
“Scotland is continuing to lead the way on community energy, and this commitment to a baseline level of community benefits of at least £5k per MW continues to set the pace” Mr Ewing said. “This protocol is an important step in the right direction as we move towards a position where as many new wind farms as possible, even small scale developments, are able to sign up to these commitments. In light of recent announcements regarding the renewable sector in Scotland these set of standards not only show strong leadership from Scottish Renewables, but also the huge investment opportunities still to come make it even more vital that DECC think again about the level of support being proposed through Electricity Market Reform.”
The protocol also contains a commitment to follow the forthcoming Community Benefit Good Practice Guidance and a pledge to sign up to the Scottish Government Register of Community Benefits from Renewables.
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