Transparency and lobbying: District Council "agrees with the principle" of "declaring any contact with developers or campaign groups"

The independent Cllr Claire Wright has been attempting for some time to have the District Council consider seriously the issue of lobbying.

This is from February this year:
Futures Forum: District Council meets to consider issue of Lobbying ... Weds 26th February

The latest attempt was last week:
Futures Forum: District Council meets to consider issue of Lobbying ..... Tues 28th October


EDDC standards committee to debate lobbying on planning matters on Tuesday (28 October)

Monday, 27 October 2014 2 Comments by Claire

EDDC’s standards committee will debate a motion of mine that I lodged back in February, following months of trying to get the standards committee to discuss it after I had raised it at the overview and scrutiny committee…. AGES ago!

The motion was: “Openness and transparency in the planning process is vital. This council therefore agrees to include an item on the agenda of all development management committee and planning inspections committee meetings, requiring members of those committees to declare if and who they have been lobbied by, about items on the agenda.”Tomorrow’s agenda item follows a postponement from a scheduled meeting in July.

A paper from the new monitoring officer is included with tomorrow’s agenda, containing much information on the code of conduct and rules governing planning committee members, which the report implicity seems to suggest, are adequate so the motion is not required.

There are no recommendations on a way forward, simply a request to review the information and make a recommendation to cabinet. There is however, an interesting suggestion on page 18 of the papers - about setting up a public central register to record all lobbying approaches received by planning committee members.

This is an excellent suggestion, however, we need to remember that the motion I originally put forward, could quite easily be implemented, by planning committee members simply, as part of the agenda, stating whether or not they had been lobbied, and if so, whether for or against the application.

I see this as a transparency issue and one that in the circumstances of an ongoing police investigation into a former councillor’s planning activities, to be very much in the public interest and also one which will help with trust at the council - at a time when trust is at an all time low.

See two previous debates below -

http://www.claire-wright.org/index.php/post/more_lobbying_definition_confusion_but_report_returning_to_standards_commit

http://www.claire-wright.org/index.php/post/but_what_is_lobbying_confusion_breaks_out_over_motion_to_encourage_greater

Comments

1. At 12:22 am on 28th Oct Jo Frith wrote:

I would think that there might be a great increase in the lobbying of local Councillors by neighbours in the future given that they will probably not get a chance to speak at DMC on an application. So might this make the Agenda item rather unworkable?

2. At 08:18 am on 28th Oct Janice Owen wrote:

This seems like an excellent suggestion. I think a lot of people feel that developers have discussions with council members regarding forthcoming planning applications and that they are ‘done deals’. There must be transparency and openness as being able to trust ones elected officers is very important, but unfortunately many people do not.

EDDC standards committee to debate lobbying on planning matters on Tuesday (28 October) - Claire Wright

This is the report from the Herald following that meeting, together with comment on Cllr Wright's blog:

Standards committee agree principle of transparency on lobbying planning cttee

Monday, 03 November 2014 3 Comments by Claire

Below I have copy typed an article on page 4 of this week’s Ottery Herald ....

District planning chiefs could be required to declare any contact with developers or campaign groups, if a new rules being considered by a council watchdog are adopted.

East Devon District Council’s standards committee met last week to debate whether existing regulations provide enough scope to cover lobbying of - and by - councillors.

Current rules say that councillors must, at the start of meetings, publicly state if they have personal or financial interests in any planning applications being considered.

The committee discussed a previous request by Cllr Claire Wright, ward member for Ottery Rural, for greater transparency in the planning process.

Cllr Wright said, in addition to the existing rules, members sitting on the council’s development management committee (DMC) should be required to declare if they had been lobbied on applications - and if so, by whom.

At Tuesday’s meeting Mrs Wright said: “I don’t see that the current rules provide a facility for councillors on the DMC to say whether they have been lobbied.”

She said that in order for EDDC to address concerns about a perceived lack of transparency in the planning process, it might hvae to “go a bit further” than other authorities.

“I think people would appreciate that,” she added.

Budleigh Salterton councillor, Alan Dent said it was not uncommon for DMC members to receive emails from developers, but added that such correspondence was “taken at face value.” He said: “I tend to ignore that and wait for the officers’ report.”

Cllr Ray Bloxham said that although the word “lobbying” conjured up images of improper conduct, most lobbying was “perfectly reasonable” and done by members of the public who objected to planning applications.

He warned that trying to adopt a “catch all” policy could result in limited meeting time being taken up by councillors listing every person they had spoken with about each application.

The committee agreed with the principle behind Mrs Wright’s request but resolved to revisit the issue later.

Comments

1. At 06:38 pm on 03th Nov Sandra Semple wrote:

So if Councillor Dent ignores emails and Councillor Bloxham thinks lobbying is ” perfectly reasonable” why would they object to Councillor Wright’s request? Councillor Dent just has to tell people which emails he has ignored and Councillor Bloxham simply has to list those “reasonable” lobbying aporoaches and we can all be happy!

2. At 11:47 am on 04th Nov Paul wrote:

I don’t think that anyone has said that lobbying is unreasonable - at least in principle, though it would be easy to imagine examples where it was not appropriate.

However the issue is about transparency, about what may have influenced a councillor to take a position. Councillors are rightly expected to declare a non-pecuniary interest (like a planning application within sight of their own home) and lobbying seems to be very similar.

3. At 01:16 pm on 04th Nov Tim Todd wrote:

I find Councillor Bloxham’s thought processes most concerning- yet again.

Of course most lobbying is “perfectly reasonable”. The problem is that you need a procedure in which to differentiate between the reasonable and the corrupt. Or does he think it is “reasonable” to allow the corrupt to slip through unchecked along with the bona fide?

For goodness sake, nobody on East Devon District Council should need the potential for corruption in planning explained to them. They, more than any other council in the country, need now to be seen to be squeaky clean.

Had such precautions and procedures been in place ten years or more ago, I am quite sure that a good few planning applicatiions would not have gone through as they did.

In any case, are councillors Dent and Bloxham not aware of their leaders promises of transparency- or do they recognise such idle promises for what they are?

Finally, if the above doesn’t work for them, Councillors might like to read their own Anti- Fraud, Theft and Corruption Policy, dated 15th March 2012. (http://www.eastdevon.gov.uk/anti-fraud_theft_and_corruption_policy-2.pdf)

Given the events that followed this policy’s introduction, in a little under twelve months, it demonstrates how naive the council has been and how weasley were its words.

Standards committee agree principle of transparency on lobbying planning cttee - Claire Wright

See also:
Futures Forum: District Council meets to consider issue of Lobbying ... but "What is lobbying?"
Futures Forum: "What is lobbying?"... "Openness and transparency is vital."
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Neighbourhood plans: an extra £23m: "Giving local people a real say in shaping what gets built where."

There is more and more interest building up in the District about how to put Neighbourhood Plans into effect:
Futures Forum: Neighbourhood Plans for towns in East Devon: Axminster and Ottery St Mary

There have been some voices of caution - with regard to how much 'developers' might have an influence over any such process;
Futures Forum: 106 payments and the NPPF... the repercussions for East Devon

Central government has pledged more funding:
23 million pounds for UK citizens to shape their communities | POST Online Media

Here is a full report from the Rural Services Network:

£23m for more neighbourhood plans

Written by  Ruralcity Media

• Be the first to comment!

THE government has unveiled an extra £23m to help more communities to get involved in neighbourhood planning.

Neighbourhood plans allow local people to put forward and vote on their proposals for the type of development in their area – and where it should go.

Local communities can draw up 'neighbourhood plans' that can be used in determining planning applications, and 'neighbourhood development orders' that grant planning permission.

Around 1,200 communities across England have already begun the process of neighbourhood planning, with 33 plans and one order having been approved in local referendums.

So far, the government has helped more than 700 local groups develop their plans, with more than 1,000 communities involved in neighbourhood planning.

Housing minister Brandon Lewis said the government was "giving local people a real say in shaping what gets built where" in their local area.

"I now want to take this further, to get more people and communities involved in neighbourhood planning," said Mr Lewis.

"The £23 million I am announcing today will help many more community groups to bring their neighbourhood plans into reality."

Neighbourhood planning allows people to choose where new housing and businesses should go, the size and density of new building and can give the green light to developments.

The funding will providing community groups with a further £1 million for grants during this financial year, in addition to £4.25m already awarded since 2013.

Grants of up to £7,000 can be applied for on mycommunityrights.org.uk.

At the same time, £22.5m is being made available from 2015-2018 to provide community groups with expert advice, grant funding and technical assistance about neighbourhood plans.

Some £100,000 has been allocated to enable groups to organise workshops on neighbourhood planning in their local area.

Local planning authorities can also take advantage of a £12m funding pot to help them meet the cost of their responsibilities and to support local communities.

Planning authorities can claim up to £100,000 a year each to help communities start a neighbourhood plan, with an extra £25,000 for each plan or order that passes an examination.

£23m for more neighbourhood plans
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Exeter's Materials Recovery Facility: "waste as a saleable commodity"

A piece from the latest Sustainable Crediton newsletter - comparing the different recycling systems in Devon:

Recycling: Why is it so confusing?

Have you ever wondered why there is a completely different recycling system in North Tawton and Crediton or for that matter in Exeter and Newton St Cyres? It's confusing isn't it? Indeed one of the commonest questions we as Sustainable Crediton's Waste Action Group get asked is 'Why can they recycle all plastics at the doorstep in Exeter, whilst here in Mid Devon we can only doorstep recycle plastic milk bottles?' 

To see if we could find out some of the answers members of the  Waste Action Group recently took a trip to Exeter's Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) on the Marsh Barton Industrial Estate.

Exeter's MRF, one of the first to be built in the UK 10 years ago, is housed in a giant warehouse. All Exeter's recycling is delivered here by a fleet of large lorries that cover the whole of the city. It is emptied out into an enormous mountain with all the plastics, paper, cardboard, tins etc. mixed together. From there it is loaded by forklift onto the MRF machinery, a series of massive belts, lasers and magnets operated by 16 staff.

As the material moves along the belts, some components are separated out by the machinery and some by the staff handpicking them. The separated materials fall down chutes into dedicated bins where they are crushed and baled and then stored in the yard outside. The material is then sold to companies, mostly in the UK, who reuse it to create new products. We saw rows of neat bales of crushed steel cans, aluminium cans, paper, cardboard and different types of plastics all waiting to be collected.

Matt Hulland, who manages the facilty, explained 'We do not think of the material we receive here as waste but as a saleable commodity that just needs sorting. Currently the sum raised by selling the products we produce is sufficient to cover the cost of Exeter's entire waste collection system. Of course this helps to keep Council Tax down.'

So how does Exeter's system differ to here in Mid Devon? MDDC operates a system whereby the recycling is sorted at the kerbside. You will notice that the recycling truck that comes to your doorstep is smaller than one in Exeter and contains a series of compartments into which the staff sort the recycling as they go from house to house. To speed up this process the Council asks you to pre sort the recycling in your black box into its various types to help the operatives. Once the full trucks arrive at the Tiverton depot (near Tesco) the recycling is then baled straight away, ready for sale, with no extra work required.

Each system has its advantages and disadvantages of course. In Exeter food waste is not collected and glass must be taken to bottle banks, as both food and broken glass would be a hazard to the MRF machinery and the staff. Here in Mid Devon both these are collected at the doorstep. As they are both heavy, this means that our recycling rate, which is 49% and is based on weight not volume, looks better than that for Exeter. However people are becoming more and more aware of just how much plastic waste we produce now, which, because of its bulk, is currently not included in Mid Devon's system.

In total there are 9 different waste collection authorities in Devon and each has its own collection methods. North Tawton for instance is part of West Devon which has a different collection system again. We recognise that our county is very diverse in character and what suits a city system such as Exeter may not be suitable for a largely rural area like Mid Devon. Nevertheless we too feel it would be much simpler for us householders if the whole system was simplified and standardised.

We hope this article provides some assistance in cutting through the confusion. As we write MDDC are currently re-thinking Mid Devon's system as the current truck fleet must be retired shortly. The light on the horizon is that they are now seriously considering including mixed plastics in our doorstep recycling from October 2015. If this is happens, and with the co-operation of us all, our recycling rate could become one of the best in the UK. Now that would be something to celebrate! 

Sustainable Crediton - Recycling: Why is it so confusing?

Exeter Energy Recovery Facility Officially Opened

Posted 16 Oct 2014

Viridor’s new Energy Recovery Facility in Exeter was officially opened today (Thursday 16 October) with a series of celebrations.

The Chairman of Devon County Council, George Gribble formally opened the Facility with a gathering of delegates from Viridor, Devon County Council, construction and initial operating company TIRU/Cyclerval, and  local community representatives.

Later in the day the Minister for Energy and Climate Change, Baroness Verma visited the Facility and formally opened the Education Room that has been created to enable schools to view the process and understand more about waste recycling, recovery and management. 

Ian McAulay, Chief Executive of Viridor said: “ We want people to see waste differently and recognise its real value as a resource.  Each year, Viridor recycles around 2.4 million tonnes of materials and transforms more into 820 gigawatt hours of renewable energy.   Our partnership here with Devon County Council and TIRU will contribute to that ever growing achievement for years to come.”

Deputy Leader, Councillor John Clatworthy said “With our new facility here in Exeter, we can recover energy from our waste, turn it into electricity, and export it back to the national grid. That reduces the running costs of the plant, as well as creating a useful form of renewable energy. In time, we hope to use the steam too as part of a district heating network, making it a truly efficient process.”

The Exeter Energy Recovery Facility will process 60,000 tonnes of non-recyclable waste each year from the local catchment of Exeter and surrounding area and will export enough electricity to the national grid to supply around 5,000 homes.

www.viridor.co.uk/news-blogs/show/energy-for-exeter 

See also:
Futures Forum: Devon Waste Plan Consultation

For a closer look at the whole issue of waste:

Uploaded on 8 Feb 2008

This is the trailer from Rebecca Hosking's excellent 'Message In The Waves' documentary that she filmed for the BBC.

Because of their experience in turning Coles Bay plastic bag free, Jon Dee and Ben Kearney were the key advisors to Rebecca when she turned the UK town of Modbury plastic bag free.

You can check out Rebecca's 'Message In The Waves' website at http://www.messageinthewaves.com/

The Impact of Plastic Bags - from 'Message in the Waves' - YouTube

See also:
Futures Forum: The antidote to Stuffocation: "Sharing, lending, bartering, swapping and gifting networks can all play a part and creating things can be done collaboratively."
Futures Forum: The plastics industry is "incredibly supportive of recycling legislation over a more long-term… reduction of disposable culture."
Futures Forum: Slavoj Žižek: on there being "no metaphysical 'beyond' to put our waste" ..... on "the crisis of late capitalism" ..... and on "the comforting mythology of the recycling industry."
Futures Forum: The alternatives to plastic
Futures Forum: Recycling plastics in England: 5p per bag
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Knowle relocation project: and the longer-term demise of district councils... part seven: "In favour of efficiencies"

It really does seem that Cranbrook and Skypark are all about the expansion of 'Greater Exeter':
Futures Forum: Knowle relocation project: and the longer-term demise of district councils... part two
Futures Forum: Knowle relocation project: and the longer-term demise of district councils... part three: Skypark and "the full economic potential of Exeter"

And to enable the expansion of Skypark in particular, it will be very handy if the headquarters of the District Council relocated there:
Futures Forum: Knowle relocation project: and the Skypark fly-through: "Many a contentious proposal has shimmied through the planning process (and on to the sales office) on the back of a series of CGIs, gleaming evocations that are liable to be slight on detail and heavy on seductive gleam."

According to Stagecoach a couple of weeks ago, it seems most businesses and media consider Cranbrook and Skypark to be part of 'Greater Exeter':

"… The Exeter Megarider zone is being extended to include the new town of Cranbrook... "

Stagecoach announce Cranbrook bus fare reduction - News - Cranbrook Herald
Cranbrook now part of Exeter according to Stagecoach | East Devon Alliance

And according to the WMN, Skypark is part of Exeter - whilst a senior Councillor comments about the direction of local government:

"Conservative Ken Potter, of East Devon District Council, which is currently engineering a move to new purpose-built premises at Exeter’s Skypark, said the mood at a recent Local Government Association conference was in favour of efficiencies but not of political union."

Ex-leader warns Devon: don't get caught napping on devolution | Western Morning News
Futures Forum: Knowle relocation project: and the longer-term demise of district councils...... part six: "I think we will see economic groupings rather than political ones.”

It appears that East Devon's neighbours - in Dorset - are also in favour of 'efficiencies', according to a story from yesterday:

North Dorset agrees tri-council merger:

Weymouth and Portland council will vote on the plans before 6 November

North Dorset District councillors have voted to merge with two other authorities as part of a "tri-council" arrangement. It has been claimed the merger, which also includes West Dorset and Weymouth and Portland councils, will save £6m by 2020. North Dorset has followed West Dorset into agreeing the move with Weymouth and Portland to vote on Thursday.

The authorities would share one chief executive and senior management team. A "single workforce" would also be created but it is has not been made clear how many job losses there will be. Each council will continue to set its own budget and remain independent, but will work from one office.

Related Stories
One boss for three Dorset councils 24 OCTOBER 2014, DORSET
Councils may join forces to save £6m 15 SEPTEMBER 2014, DORSET

BBC News - North Dorset agrees tri-council merger

As commented on by the EDA earlier today, this might point to the future of East Devon:

Where Dorset leads will East Devon, Mid-Devon, Teignbridge and/or Exeter follow? It is said the Dorset councils will save around £200 million a year.

Three Dorset councils merge all admin functions | East Devon Alliance

It seems, therefore, that more than a simple sharing of IT facilities might be in the offing for East Devon and its powerful neighbours - in Devon:
Futures Forum: Knowle relocation project: and the longer-term demise of district councils... part four... IT services and "Another fat little privatisation through the back door approaching?"

And meanwhile, in the wake of the Scottish vote, the whole issue of 'unitary authorities' vexes the local and national press:
Hold tri-merger to ease the risks (From Bridport and Lyme Regis News)
What is the point of West Dorset District Council? (From Bridport and Lyme Regis News)
Devolution for Devon? Labour to unveil 'self-rule' plan for Plymouth region | Plymouth Herald
Grassroots rebellion over arrogant leadership in Devon and Cornwall | Western Morning News
Escape from Omnishambleshire: the case for the old county boundaries » The Spectator
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Climate change... and 'Interstellar': degrading soil and running out of food

The sci-fi blockbuster from Christopher Nolan is strangely 'prescient':
Salt’s poisonous effect is growing threat to crops
One-fifth of Global Farm Soil Degraded by Salt - ScienceBlog.com
Unprecedented Pressures on Farmland — with 30 million Hectares Lost Annually — Poses ‘Direct Threat to the Right to Food of Rural Populations’, Third Committee Told | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases - United Nations

As reported in Friday's Independent:

UN report: Climate change has permanently ruined farmland the size of France



UN describes new film Interstellar as prescient

TOM BAWDEN  ENVIRONMENT EDITOR  Friday 31 October 2014

There may be those who feel the apocalyptic plot of the new Hollywood film Interstellar seems a bit far-fetched, with humans forced to look for an alternative planet because this world can no longer feed them.

But it has been given credence by a new United Nations report that has found that the destruction of the environment has left an area of farmland the size of France useless for growing crops.

Batman director Christopher Nolan’s latest film may ultimately prove implausible – Matthew McConaughey leads an interstellar mission to find another world for the human race to inhabit – but the reasoning for his expedition appears to be sound, if a little extreme.

McConaughey’s character, known only as Cooper, is a farmer in a world that has become desperately short of food. Human activity has degraded the soil so badly that they're forced to live in a giant dustbowl and crops are all but impossible to grow.

Although soil degradation is nothing new, Interstellar is proving strangely prescient, as its release coincides with a new UN report showing the trend has reached alarming levels, with 7.7 square miles of agricultural land being lost every day because it has become too salty. Climate change is making the situation worse because warmer temperatures require more irrigation and increase the speed at which the water evaporates, the report warns.

The report, written by the United Nations University, highlights large areas of farmland in arid and semi-arid parts of the world, such as the south west of the US and Australia, which are suffering from a combination of heavy irrigation and poor to non-existent drainage systems. As a result, a thick crust of salt is forming across much of the world, which is costing £17bn a year in lost crop production in regions including China, India and Pakistan.

Water used for irrigation contains varying quantities of salt, which, in the absence of a good drainage system, is left behind when the water evaporates.

The effect can be intensified by groundwater – which also contains salts – and which rises to the surface as the water table rises following irrigation without drainage. In other words, drainage systems serve to flush the salt out of the ground by carrying it away from soil.

A total of 240,000 square miles of farmland worldwide has now been contaminated. The Indus Valley in Pakistan is one of the worst hit areas, with salinization cutting rice production by 48 per cent in recent years, while wheat is down 32 per cent. Salty soils also cause losses of around £469m annually in the Colorado River basin, an arid region in the south west of the US. In Turkmenistan, more than half of the irrigated land is damaged by salt.

Manzoor Qadir, lead author of the research, told The Independent that the growth of salty land has huge implications for feeding the world in the coming decades, at a time when population growth is already putting huge pressure on resources.

“To feed the world’s anticipated nine billion people by 2050, and with little new productive land available in irrigated zones, it is important we promote and invest in sustainable land management practices,” said Dr Qadir, of the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Heather.

“Basically, with every irrigation we tend to add salts to the soil. If we do not remove them or decrease them from the roots, they tend to accumulate there. It can be cost-effective to invest in sustainable land management in countries confronting salt-induced land degradation,” he added.

Salt damage can also be reversed through measures such as tree planting and crop rotation using salt-tolerant plants, but these measures are extremely expensive and can take years.

The report has been published in the journal Natural Resources Forum.

'Interstellar' is just one of a growing number of pieces of artwork which features climate change and other environmental themes

Interstellar is part of a growing movement in the arts, in which creative people such as poets, playwrights and filmmakers are incorporating climate change and other environmental themes into their work, increasingly with input from scientists.

Chris Rapley, professor of climate science at University College London, has teamed up with Duncan Macmillan, the playwright who recently adapted George Orwell’s 1984, on a new climate change “performance” called 2071, which opens at the Royal Court Theatre in London next week.

This follows the debut of In a Vulnerable Place in Norwich in October, a new play in which University of East Anglia creative writing lecturer Steve Waters performs a personalised monologue about the risk climate change is posing to the Norfolk Broads, which was influenced by conversations with science colleagues.

Other examples of the arts tackling environmental issues include In Promised Land, a 2012 film starring Matt Damon that focuses on the dangers of fracking and Climate Dress – a collaboration this year between Exeter University, the Met Office, the London College of Fashion and the Victoria and Albert Museum looking at how clothing can be used to communicate ideas about climate change. The London School of Economics’ Grantham Institute on Climate Change held a slam poetry competition on the subject of climate change in March.

UN report: Climate change has permanently ruined farmland the size of France - Environment - The Independent

See the on-line debate at:
UN report: Climate change has permanently ruined farmland the size of France : worldnews

In the US and Australia, there are powerful lobbies determined to refute the link between climate change and 'salt-induced land degradation':
Futures Forum: "Climate science has been dragged into the American-style culture wars that are turning British intellectual life into a battlefield."
Futures Forum: The continuing politicisation of the climate change debate

And at the heart of the unsustainable push to produce maximum yields in the name of 'food security' is the trend of 'farmland grab':
farmlandgrab.org | Home
UN moves to curb farmland grabs - FT.com
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Climate change... and protecting Sidmouth against rising sea levels

During Sidmouth's Science Festival last month, a talk on climate catastrophe was one of the most interesting if not the most startling:
Futures Forum: Climate change "is encouraging the sleeping giant beneath our feet to stir once again" ... Prof Bill McGuire @ the Sidmouth Science Festival

Following on from these general observations, here is a piece printed in the latest Herald - with permission from the author:

Latest local news & information in Sidmouth | Sidmouth Herald

The steering group looking at managing the beach at Sidmouth is concerned with these longer-term impacts:
Futures Forum: Beach Management Plan for Sidmouth
Futures Forum: Sidmouth Beach Management Plan Steering Group - background

Here are some startling projections for Sidmouth:
Futures Forum: Pennington Point: a beach management plan
Future vision: Sidmouth coastal erosion insight - News - Sidmouth Herald
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Local energy can be very profitable: "Seizing the opportunity of decentralised energy generation can provide new income streams for communities and councils."

There have been a lot of scare stories of late about how the national grid is about to collapse:
National Grid: Britain 'at greater risk of blackouts' as power stations close - Telegraph
Britain faces ENERGY BLACKOUTS if this winter is long and cold, warns National Grid | UK | News | Daily Express
Could Plymouth be plunged into darkness thanks to power crisis this winter? | Plymouth Herald

The new economics foundation looks at this a little more closely - and points to the experience in Germany "shows us that by securing the benefits of energy generation locally – through council-run energy companies and community co-operatives – it is possible to have a new debate about the future of energy generation."

Energy round-up: losing power?

Photo credit:   Rachel Melton

OCTOBER 31, 2014 // BY: GRIFFIN CARPENTER

Three things you shouldn't miss this week

1. Chart: Winter spare capacity

2. Article: National Grid warns of lower winter power capacity - National Grid has warned that its capacity to supply electricity this winter will be at a seven-year low due to generator closures and breakdowns.

3. Article: Drilling Deeper: New Report Casts Doubt on Fracking Production Numbers - Post Carbon Institute has published a report and multiple related resources calling into question the production statistics touted by promoters of hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”).

Should we be worried about the threat of a cold dark winter? The prospect of gas shortages looked less likely after Russia reached agreement with Ukraine over payments. Closer to home though, a National Grid report has shown that spare electricity generating capacity this winter is at a seven year low.

National Grid’s warning was greeted with the time honoured ‘blackouts’ headlines despite assurances that contingency plans are in place and analysis showing that power cuts are highly unlikely. Yet there was little mention of the role renewables could play in easing supply pressures. Never mind that a major cause of the current low spare capacity is a spate of unplanned outages at coal, gas and nuclear facilities - proof it isn’t only renewables which can suffer from ‘intermittency’. Nor that energy from wind briefly outperformed nuclear last Tuesday – confirmation of its importance in the energy mix. Instead the announcement was treated as another chance to grind political axes about ‘unreliable’ renewable generation.

In fact it isn’t renewable energy that’s unreliable, but energy policy,particularly in the UK, which has utterly failed to cope with the recent slump in fossil fuel prices. The US shale gas glut has led to a surge in American exports of coal, making it far cheaper to burn the dirtiest fossil fuel over here, while European gas fired power stations - with higher fuel costs – are being mothballed. Soon the UK will be paying coal fired stations – which had been due to close – to stay open longer. This shakeup to the UK energy industry sends all the wrong signals and will cause UK emissions to rise.

All this comes as neither the EU Emissions Trading Scheme nor Britain’s Carbon Price Floor – capped by George Osborne in the last budget – is remotely close to achieving the rapid transition to low carbon energy we need. Yet another energy crunch shows that the current system is cracking and renewable technologies can provide not only a low-carbon energy source, but also a promising solution to market disruptions. 

ISSUES

Energy & Climate Change

Energy round-up: losing power? | New Economics Foundation

And from the new economic foundation's fortnightly e-mail, here's a link to an article from the the chief executive of the Town and Country Planning Association last month:

Is it time for councils to buy back control of the energy grid?

Brits oppose energy developments, while Germans welcome new plants because they bring local benefits

• Kate Henderson
• theguardian.com, Wednesday 22 October 2014 15.57 BST
• Jump to comments (9)

Hamburg, Germany’s second largest city, has taken control of its energy grid back from private ownership. Photograph: Christopher Thomond for the Guardian

If you were asked if you wanted a power station to be built in your town – or even on your street – what would you say? No thanks? Perhaps something stronger.

It is not an unreasonable reaction, especially if you feel there is unlikely to be any benefit to the community through cheaper energy prices or local jobs. You also may not have the time, energy or inclination to engage in the planning process which can often seem complicated, technical and adversarial.

However, this typically British reaction isn’t the case in other countries across mainland Europe. Why? Because communities and councils always directly benefit from new energy generation in the local area.

England’s energy market is dominated by six major international companies and their supply of energy has proved to be a highly profitable enterprise. Energy prices have risen steeply in recent years, partly because of tariffs for renewables, but mainly because of increased wholesale prices of fossil fuels.

As oil reserves diminish prices will increase, with troubling consequences – particularly for those least able to pay. But so far public debate has focused on a vociferous campaign against onshore wind farms and removing the very tariffs we need to transform our energy supply to low carbon sources, rather than looking for examples which can stabilise prices and keep energy profits in the local economy.

Seizing the opportunity of decentralised energy generation can provide new income streams for communities and councils; a particularly welcome source of revenue in an era of local government budget cuts. Re-municipalising energy generation and supply is becoming increasingly common across mainland Europe and it is a significant opportunity for councils in Britain.

Council-run energy plants are certainly not a new idea. Local authorities have pioneered decentralised municipal energy generation for over a century. Today, councils from Aberdeen to Southampton have successfully demonstrated how to establish local energy companies that have levered in long-term investment in projects such as district heating. However, these authorities are still the exception rather than the norm.

I am involved in a pan-European project called SPECIAL, which stands for “spatial planning and energy for communities in all landscapes”. Through this initiative we have had the opportunity to learn how German local authorities now provide locally-generated energy, with the support of the community.

In late 2013 the population of Germany’s second largest city, Hamburg, voted to buy back its energy grid. German federal law requires that municipal authorities invite bids from new companies – including communities – who wish to run the local grid once the fixed-term 20-year contracts come to an end. The population voted to re-communalise electricity, gas and district heating networks currently in the hands of multinational energy companies.

This is just one example of a wider trend: the scale of transformation is truly dramatic. Since 2007, about 170 German municipalities have bought back the grid from private companies. Cities such as Frankfurt and Munich, which always kept their energy companies in public hands, are now showing healthy profits while working towards 100% renewable energy targets.

It is significant that more than 50% of total investments in German renewable energy come from private individuals and farmers. Germany now has 650 energy co-operatives. Much of this change was driven by the right support, including a feed-in tariff from which every citizen, community and region is able to profit, and a robust approach to community participation. This form of participation leads to acceptance, and acceptance leads to investment. The great benefit is that profits drawn from the energy sector are now held in the local economy.

The experience in Germany shows us that by securing the benefits of energy generation locally – through council-run energy companies and community co-operatives – it is possible to have a new debate about the future of energy generation.

Kate Henderson is the chief executive of the Town and Country Planning Association

This article is part of the Guardian’s #bigenergydebate series. Click here to find out more about this project and our partners.

Is it time for councils and co-ops to buy back control of the energy grid? | The big energy debate | theguardian.com

See also:
Germany's Revolution in Small Batch, Artisanal Energy
Toward a networked energy future
Off-grid German village banks on wind, sun, pig manure - Business Insider
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