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LOCAL COMMUNITIES AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
18. There is potential, particularly in rural areas, for communities to invest in ownership of renewable energy projects or to develop their own local projects for local benefit. Small scale wind farms, such as those proposed by local communities, may be able to supply electricity to the local distribution network and more widely on the transmission network. The Highlands and Islands Community Energy Company ( HICEC) is able to assist community groups develop renewable energy projects designed to generate and use renewable energy for their long term and collective benefit. Further details are available at www.hie.co.uk/community-energy.html. The Scottish Community and Householder Renewables Initiative is funded by the Scottish Executive and managed jointly by the Energy Saving Trust and HICEC to provide grants, advice and project support to assist the development of new community and household renewable schemes in Scotland. Further details are available at www.est.org.uk/schri. Planning authorities should put in place positive policies to enable communities to develop such initiatives in an environmentally acceptable manner.
19. A range of benefits are often voluntarily provided by some commercial developers to communities in the vicinity of renewable energy developments. These can include Community Trust Funds which support a variety of projects, including energy conservation initiatives, within the local community or opportunities for local communities, as a whole, to invest in developments with local long term environmental, social and/or economic benefits. Local authorities may facilitate and encourage such initiatives so long as it is recognised that any benefit, including mechanisms for negotiating with communities, is offered entirely at the discretion of the developer. Benefits that cannot be considered material in planning terms should not be taken into account when assessing whether a specific proposal is acceptable. .
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