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Rural Communities Revived by Energy |
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From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: A study funded by the Economic and Social Research Council, of community renewable energy projects in Britain has found that so far, projects are largely based in the countryside, some quite remote. From wind turbines to shared heating systems, small-scale renewable energy doesn't just help in the fight against climate change. It can also bring people together, revitalise local economies and help alleviate poverty. In recent years, government policy has highlighted the benefits of this kind of distributed, small-scale energy generation, and various national programmes have sprung up to fund and support specific projects. "There is a huge demand for this," says project leader Professor Gordon Walker. "It's no longer a question of convincing the public that small scale renewable energy is a good idea. Whenever money is made available it is snapped up immediately, and the funding schemes have been horribly over-subscribed." Walker suggests that some renewable technologies, like wind turbines or biomass heating, are more suited to rural areas, where they can provide a new source of income for farmers. Some projects have been set up and run by communities, with shared ownership of the technology, like a co-operatively owned 75 kilowatt wind turbine at Bro Dyfi in Wales. "Even if a technology is tried and tested in other countries, setting it up in Britain can be a whole new learning process," say Walker. The research project 'Community Energy Initiatives: Embedding Sustainable Technology at a Local Level' was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
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