The UK government is consulting on whether to make community benefits a legal obligation for renewable energy developers.
Communities hosting renewable energy generation projects could benefit from new community facilities, better transport links and investment in apprenticeships under the plan.
The government is consulting on introducing the legal mandate as part of its Plan For Change. Locals would decide where the investment would go; the plan also set out how communities could own a stake in the renewable energy infrastructure they host through shared ownership.
It would set minimum community benefit fund amounts based on the size of infrastructure projects, starting at tens of thousands a year on the smaller end and reaching into the millions for large-scale developments.
Earlier this year, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero announced that as part of the government’s Plan For Change, households living near new or upgraded electricity transmission pylons would receive energy bill discounts of up to £2,500 over 10 years.
The government is seeking input on the proposal, asking for feedback on which types of energy infrastructure should be required to pay into community benefit funds, which could include energy storage as well as renewable energy generation.
Ames Robottom, head of policy at trade association for offshore generation technology developers RenewableUK, commented: “Renewable energy developers have a long history of providing a wide range of benefits for local communities, such as community benefit funds which support local initiatives, electricity discounts, employment initiatives and environmental projects.”
Gemma Grimes, director of policy and delivery for solar industry trade association Solar Energy UK reiterated this sentiment, saying “solar farms are already providing a wide range of voluntary community benefits”.
She warned that it is important to retain flexibility, ensuring that communities have a say in what they gain. Grimes said: “Adopting a mandatory system risks limiting the ways that a community can benefit from hosting infrastructure, undermining the goals we all share and making it harder to be a good neighbour.”
Touching on how the scheme would be enforced, the government notes: “We would not intend to link community benefits to the planning system, given the well-established principle that community benefits are not a material consideration in planning decision making.”
The full version of this article was published on our sister site, Current±.
