Scotland has earned its reputation as the powerhouse of Europe in recent years with policies focussed on tackling the climate emergency, renewables generating more than the equivalent of Scotland’s power needs annually and renewables driving an 80% reduction in emissions from the power sector since 2002. Despite this Scotland’s latest report card from the Climate Change Committee could not have been clearer: must try harder – much harder!
This report has highlighted where we are failing, but also provided recommendations to get our net-zero journey back on track, and unsurprisingly the further growth of renewables will be absolutely key. In line with the Scottish Government’s Onshore Wind Policy Statement, the CCC have independently assessed Scotland’s progress and stated that Scotland’s onshore wind fleet must double by 2030 to meet our net zero obligations.
Scotland is ahead of the game here with the landmark Onshore Wind Sector Deal signed last Autumn by Energy Minister Gillian Martin MSP and the renewables industry. The Sector Deal sets out a series of commitments for both the public and private sectors across planning, supply chain growth, skills, community and the environment, with the aim of maximising the deployment of onshore wind and ensuring a just transition is at the heart of its delivery; bringing wider economic and societal benefit.
Key messages from the deal include:
Planning: by 2025 the Scottish Government aims to come to a decision on major wind farms within 12 months, a significant acceleration from today. While proposals to standardise planning documents will help, resources will also be key, with planning departments seeing a 16% reduction in their workforce and a 29% reduction in expenditure since 2010/11 – the biggest cut in any local authority service over that time. While the Sector Deal focuses on generation, planning authority resources are also a key constraint on the development of new electricity network connections, in turn a key constraint on the delivery of new generation.
Biodiversity: Tackling the climate crisis goes hand in hand with tackling the nature crisis – almost half of Scotland’s species have declined in the last 50 years with 1 in 9 at risk of extinction. The Sector Deal will ensure a balance between the need for increased onshore wind capacity and impacts on land use, with biodiversity enhancement – not restoration – now required by every project seeking consent. The restoration of peatland is another key focus with the sector working to restore and enhance thousands of hectares of damaged or degraded peatland across the country.
Communities, Skills and Supply Chain: the Sector Deal formalises the joint approach of government and industry to community wealth building through community investment funds and community shared ownership, as well as skills and training and supply chain growth. Working hand in hand with our communities we can provide highly skilled roles in rural and coastal areas which have suffered depopulation in recent years. Working in partnership we can allow these communities to thrive and grow and to direct their own priorities.
However, as the Climate Change Committee makes clear, hitting 20GW by 2020 is also dependent on decisions made by the UK Government and regulators. We desperately need to speed up connections to the grid and also to address the transmission charges paid by Scottish renewable power projects – the highest tariffs paid by generation anywhere in Europe. With tariffs set to double over the next decade in much of the country, these are a real and genuine threat to the business case for new wind power in Scotland, and to the UK’s ambition to decarbonise the country’s electricity system by 2035. While the Climate Change Committee didn’t spare the Scottish Government in its latest annual review, maybe it’s time to look a little wider at the barriers to onshore wind in Scotland and to meeting our much-heralded climate change ambitions.
muirhallenergy.co.uk
