Community Energy Literature Review

The report “Local government and net zero in England” from the National Audit Office (NAO, 2021) estimated that 91% percent of the 232 local authorities in its sample had adopted at least one commitment to decarbonise in line with government net zero policy. It gave the total number of principal local authorities in England – London borough councils, unitary authorities, metropolitan councils, county councils and district councils – as 333. The report focussed on “local authority work that contributes to the UK’s net zero target rather than on climate work more broadly”, on contributions to emissions reductions within the UK, rather than on climate change adaptation or on emissions from imported goods and “on the relationship between the UK government and local authorities in England for net zero.” The list of key findings indicated that central government had not developed with local authorities “any overall expectations about their roles in achieving the national net zero target” and...

  The production and use of different forms of energy have been mapped geographically for a variety of reasons, and some examples will be outlined briefly before describing a recent place-based energy calculator for the UK. Scales of mapping vary in the examples from the global through region, country, city and parish down to city block. Both energy production and use have been mapped by type, such as coal, gas and oil, wind and solar renewables, by the associated emissions, and by energy flows between geographical regions. The purpose and the intended audience vary from case to case. The Global Atlas for Renewable Energy is a resource coordinated by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) which “allows its users to find maps of renewable energy resources for locations across the world.” (Global Atlas for Renewable Energy, 2021). The Global Solar Atlas provides information on irradiation levels on land worldwide within a suitable range of latitudes, and calculates t...

Bristol net zero by 2030: The evidence base (December 2019) is a report prepared for Bristol City Council by the Centre for Sustainable Energy together with the consultancies Ricardo plc and Eunomia [1]. Some of the main points of the report will be summarised below, and its relevance to other local authorities will be briefly discussed. Bristol’s ‘net zero’ target refers only to scope 1 and 2 emissions; these are defined in the Global Protocol for Community-Scale Greenhouse Gas Emission Inventories [2]. Scope 1 GHG emissions are those from sources located within a city boundary, and scope 2 GHG emissions occur as a consequence of   the use of grid-supplied electricity, heat, steam and/or cooling within the city boundary. Scope 3 GHG emissions are all those that occur outside the city boundary as a result of activities taking place inside it. (Examples might be emissions associated with purchased goods and services, business travel, transportation and distribution). Sc...

In her 2016 Ph.D. thesis Gillian Westcott examined the part played by subjective attitudes to climate change in determining the policy and actions of local authorities in South West England [1].   The research used interviews with officers and members of seven local authorities in the area, conducted during the years 2010 to 2013. While much has changed since then, the views expressed could well be relevant to today’s community energy workers and others who engage with local authorities on climate change issues. In addition to its central focus on individual subjectivity, worldview and motivation, the study investigated corporate culture, climate change denial, the influence of central government policy, local political realities, and institutional structure. The thesis is valuable in providing historical and theoretical background to climate change issues at international and national level through its review of the literature, however the emphasis in this article will be on ...

The plans for six areas are discussed: Cornwall’s Climate Change Plan [1]; Bristol’s Mayor’s Climate Emergency Action Plan 2019 [2] and the related One City Plan [3] and Corporate Strategy 2018 – 2023 [4]; the Plymouth Climate Emergency Action Plan 2019 [5]; Towards a Carbon Neutral Exeter [6] and the related Energy Independence 2025 Roadmap [7]; Stroud District Renewable Energy Resources Assessment [8]; and Wedmore energy study [9]. The approximate populations of the areas are: Cornwall 545,000; Bristol, 463,000; Plymouth, 263,000; Exeter, 130,000 (Greater Exeter 481,000); Stroud, 117,000 ;   and Wedmore, 3,300. The main topics identified in the plans are: Global temperature increase – the target figure adopted by the plan; Dates set for carbon neutrality; Methodology; Assessment of historical and current emissions; Partner organisations and their relationships; Costing; Community engagement; Specific areas of intended action (e.g., building standards, retrofit,...