Future Generations Commissioner Urges Wales to Double Ambition for Community Energy
Local power, owned and run by communities, can be the key to solving Wales' future energy needs, says the Future Generations Commissioner.
Welsh Government needs to be more ambitious so Wales has more solar, wind and water energy sources owned by and earning money for local people, said Derek Walker.
Mr Walker, whose role is to challenge government on how they're improving lives for people born in the future, wants to see more schools, health centres and community buildings in Wales powered by renewable energy, where communities earn and save money from the energy themselves.
In his Future Generations Report, he calls for more resourcing and support from Welsh Government for renewable energy projects, owned and led by community organisations and local authorities, and asks public bodies to do more to collaborate with the community, to release land for local energy schemes, and purchase the energy.
Mr Walker is meeting First Minister, Eluned Morgan, on World Environment Day, June 5, to advocate for more support for local energy. During the meeting he will share the work of Star of the Sea, Borth, an arts and music venue with roof-top solar panels, which directly powers the neighbouring NHS GP surgery.
His Future Generations Report highlights further collaborative successes, including Awel Aman Tawe and its two-turbine 4.7 MWp community windfarm 20 miles north of Swansea, and a community-owned micro-hydro turbine in Bethesda which generates electricity that is sold to the grid from the local river, with profits reinvested back into the community.
Wales has already achieved 1GW of locally owned renewable electricity and heat capacity, against its target of 1.5GW by 2035. Mr Walker said he wants to see at least a doubling of the target to 3GW by 2035. 1GW is enough to power half a million homes.
He said:
'Community energy will play a crucial role in addressing climate change, involving communities in decisions, reducing energy bills, creating jobs and helping Wales become more energy-resilient in the future.
'While Welsh Government has committed to expanding renewable energy generation by public bodies and community enterprises and good work is being done, the targets aren't ambitious enough.
'I want to see Welsh Government increase resourcing to its Energy Service, so that over the next 10 years we can unlock the latent potential and make our communities the new power hubs in Wales.' A learner at Garnteg Primary School using solar equipment helping to save the school money, and our planet. Image by Patrick Olner.
The Welsh Government Energy Service has invested £210 million in more than 400 projects since 2018, including wind farms, rooftop solar installations, low carbon heating schemes, hydropower and zero emission fleets and EV.
This, Welsh Government says, will achieve an estimated £367 million in local income and savings in their lifetimes and will have prevented the burning of nearly 300,000 tonnes of coal.
In 2023, it set a target for 1.5 GW of locally owned renewable energy generation capacity by 2035, with an expectation for all new energy projects to have at least an element of local ownership from 2020. It has also committed to expanding renewable energy generation by public bodies and community enterprises in Wales by over 100 MW between 2021 and 2026.
Paul Cowley, Community Renewables Technical Manager, Welsh Government Energy Service, said:
'Across the nation, community organisations are grappling to address very real issues from the local to the global. Community energy delivers on multiple fronts, supporting local jobs, helping to build community resilience, responding to fuel poverty and the affordability of energy and taking action to tackle the causes and effects of climate change.
'The Energy Service provides a range of technical advice and funding support to local councils and social enterprises. The latent demand for such projects is huge so we welcome the commissioner's call for more community energy in Wales.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
25 minutes ago
- Telegraph
I shouldn't have gone to PMQs, says Reeves
Rachel Reeves has admitted she regrets attending prime minister's questions after she was seen in tears on the Government front bench. The Chancellor said she had been dealing with a 'personal issue' when her bottom lip shook and tears ran down her face during a moment of distress in Parliament on Wednesday. Ms Reeves was speaking after she made a surprise appearance alongside Sir Keir Starmer to unveil the Government's 10-year plan for the NHS. In an interview with The Guardian, Ms Reeves said she regretted going into PMQs after a 'tough day at the office', but hoped people 'could relate' to her distress. She said: 'In retrospect, I probably wished I hadn't gone in... But you know, it is what it is.' The Leeds West and Pudsey MP said she never thought about resigning despite backbench anger over the way she had handled the economy, adding: 'I didn't work that hard to then quit.' A backbench rebellion saw the government forced to drop key welfare cuts, which has left the Chancellor with a £5 billion black hole to fill. She has insisted she is 'totally' up for the job of Chancellor and asserted that she and the Prime Minister remain united. Ms Reeves said: 'People can see that Keir and me are a team.' Sir Keir stood by his Chancellor in the aftermath, telling BBC Radio 4 Today's Nick Robinson: 'She is going to be Chancellor into the next election and for many years afterwards.' He was quick to deny any political link to her tears, insisting it was a personal matter, saying: 'I'm not going to go into the personal matter of a colleague.' Labour insiders have claimed that the Chancellor has made herself 'unsackable' after the public tears. A government source said that Sir Keir 'seems to have tied himself to her' after her tears, which triggered a £3 billion market sell-off and crash in the pound's value. 'I thought at the beginning of Wednesday she would go, then thought it was confirmed when I saw her crying at PMQs but then she didn't,' said the source. Another source said Ms Reeves had enjoyed an 'outpouring of sympathy' over an incident that was still 'inescapably linked to the political facts' of the welfare rebellion. A third added that being pictured distraught on television had 'shored up her position'. In a turbulent week for the government, Ms Reeves refused to rule out tax rises in the autumn budget, saying: 'I'm not going to, because it would be irresponsible to do that. 'We took the decisions last year to draw a line under unfunded commitments and economic mismanagement. 'So we'll never have to do something like that again. But there are costs to what happened.'
Times
an hour ago
- Times
Keir Starmer has a mixed record at his first anniversary as PM
Twelve months ago, Sir Keir Starmer declared outside Downing Street 'the work of change begins'. In his first words as prime minister, he warned that Labour's ambitions 'will take a while'. From rebuilding Britain and putting the NHS back on its feet, to securing borders and delivering cheaper energy, the loftiness of Sir Keir's goals were matched by the self-reverence with which he pledged to act. The era of 'noisy performance' was over, he claimed, and politics would 'tread more lightly on your lives' under his stewardship. On the first anniversary of his election, Sir Keir's scorecard suggests there is much to be desired in his delivery record to date. It is, of course, too early to decree whether the Starmer government has succeeded or failed to deliver the change it promised the country. Yet following a week of acute chaos — thanks to the abrupt U-turn on welfare reforms and the emotional scenes of Rachel Reeves in the Commons — it is hard to conclude that politics has been any quieter or less intrusive.
Leader Live
2 hours ago
- Leader Live
Preferred candidate for chairman of Climate Change Committee announced
The chairman plays a key role in the committee's work of advising ministers on climate targets and reporting to Parliament on progress made in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The UK Government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive all agreed on Mr Topping as the preferred candidate for the CCC role, Mr Miliband said on Friday. Before any formal appointment, Mr Topping will be questioned by MPs on the energy and environmental audit select committees on July 16. Mr Topping is currently a member of the Climate Change Committee and previously held the position of the UK's high-level climate action champion. Following an 18-year private sector career in emerging markets and manufacturing, he worked as executive director of the Carbon Disclosure Project and chief executive of the We Mean Business Coalition. If approved, Mr Topping will replace interim chairman Piers Forster, a leading climate scientist who succeeded former environment secretary Lord Deben in the role in 2023. Mr Miliband said: 'I am delighted to announce the preferred candidate for chair of the Climate Change Committee – Nigel Topping will bring his extensive experience to this role, having already served on the Climate Change Committee for more than two years and as a UN Climate Change High Level Champion for Cop26. 'The CCC plays a vital role advising the UK and devolved governments on our climate targets and this announcement comes at a crucial time, as we deliver our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower with good jobs, energy security and growth for the British people. 'Net zero is the economic opportunity of the 21st century and Nigel's strong business background will help us drive growth on the transition to net zero, unlocking opportunities for Britain. 'I look forward to progressing the appointment in the coming weeks along with ministers in the devolved governments.'
