Green energy technologies not only have a positive effect on the environment and health, they present an ideal opportunity for the regeneration of deprived areas. Daniel Clayton reports.

The 1990s saw a massive change in the way electricity in the UK was generated as coal power stations were displaced by natural gas generators in the dash for gas. In 1990, two thirds of electricity came from coal fired power stations. By 1998 this figure had dropped to 33 per cent - over the same period natural gas generation rose from 0.5 per cent to 33 per cent. There were huge environmental benefits from this change, natural gas produces significantly less emissions than coal for key atmospheric pollutants. The table below shows the emission factors for both fuel sources.

Until 1999, the electricity generation industry sector was the largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the UK. The shift to gas reduced emissions by such a factor that industrial combustion is now the highest emitting sector of carbon dioxide with 39 million tonnes of carbon per annum. The next twenty years should see an equally important, if more gradual change, as renewable energy sources become increasingly important in electricity generation.

The advantage of renewable energy is that the majority of the technology available lends itself to small local uses. UK cities normally have minimal electricity generation capacity within their boundaries; the key large power stations are usually in more rural areas. This is also true for current renewable energy capacity - wind farms, hydroelectric and biomass projects are almost always rural developments. Therefore, a key question is how do you increase the sustainability of the energy usage and supply to an urban area?

Cities draw in large amounts of resources from outside. If renewable technology could be brought more widely into the cities, power could be generated close to the population. If a city could generate a sizeable proportion of its energy needs from renewable sources, the environmental impact of the city would be reduced and a greater level of sustainability achieved. If you add to these local generation projects a strong, targeted energy efficiency campaign that tackles the problem of the vast amount of energy wasted in cities, such as unnecessary lighting, then there is the opportunity to drastically cut emissions of greenhouse gases, achieve a more diverse electricity supply and make energy use more benign.

The "renewables obligation" that was included in the Utilities Act 2000, requires electricity suppliers to ensure that 10 per cent of their electricity is supplied from renewable sources by 2010. The target will be tough to achieve, especially considering that the proportion of the UK's electricity generated from renewables has increased from only 2 per cent in 1997 to 2.8 per cent in 1999 (Source: UK Energy in Brief 2000, DTI).

Out of all of the European Union members, only Belgium generated a smaller proportion of its electricity from renewable sources than the UK in 1997. In the same year, Austria managed to produce 72 per cent of electricity from renewable energy. All of Britain's major European competitors achieve a higher renewable rate: France 15 per cent, Germany 4.5 per cent, Italy 16 per cent and Spain 19.9 per cent. Against this background of under achievement, Britain has excellent resources for wind (33 per cent of the total European wind resource), wave and tidal energy schemes. If the 10 per cent target is to be met there will need to be a massive expansion of the number of renewable projects.

Much of the target will be met by relatively large central renewable plants, such as the waste straw burner run by Energy Power Resources Ltd, at Ely in Cambridgeshire. However, an important contribution towards the 10 per cent target can be made by small, local renewable energy schemes. These are schemes that generate energy close to the consumers in small plants and systems that increase the sustainability of an area.

Urban Mines, the Halifax-based not for profit environmental company, have been examining "green" energy technologies and campaigns in the form of a "sustainable energy area", that could play a key role in helping to regenerate deprived areas. Such an area would aim to revitalise a deprived area by bringing jobs, investment, environmental improvements and increased awareness through the development of energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. As well as helping to bring regeneration, the project would aim to drive down greenhouse gas emissions from the target area. The UK has already made large reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from power stations by switching from coal to gas power, and it is envisioned that further cuts can be made by building new renewable energy systems.

The approach that has been used is to look at the whole energy cycle from how the energy is generated to how it is used by consumers. The intention of the project team is to target a deprived area and raise awareness of renewable energy, slash the domestic, public and business energy usage and generate renewable energy within the area. The aspiration of the project should be to reduce emissions of "greenhouse" gases, to lift a number of households out of fuel poverty and to bring new investment and jobs into deprived areas. Listed below are some outlines of small, "green" energy projects that would be combined together to develop a sustainable energy area.

TACKLING ENERGY EFFICIENCY
As already stated, between 1970 and 1999 the energy consumption in the UK domestic sector increased by 25 per cent. Much of this rise has occurred since 1990 and is blamed on the increasing use of electrical appliances with standby modes. All local authorities have responded to the Home Energy Conservation Act (1995) that set the target of increasing the energy efficiency of domestic housing within each authority by 30 per cent within 15 years. Added to the activities of local government are the Energy Efficiency Standards of Performance (EESoP) and Energy Efficiency Commitment (EECIII) schemes run by energy supply companies.

Electricity and gas supply companies must give £1.50 per customer for efficiency projects. Projects funded by the EESoP and EECIII schemes have included the replacement of old inefficient fridges with new devices, free energy saving light bulbs and funding for cavity wall insulation. Most of these schemes are targeted at families on benefit and pensioners. They are particularly useful for deprived areas, which may have high numbers of households that are classed as being in fuel poverty (10 per cent of household income spent on fuel costs).

In the domestic sector big savings can be made through advising consumers of grants available for energy conservation work and of low or no cost measures that will save energy. Similar awareness schemes could be targeted at the business and public sectors.

COMBINED HEAT AND POWER SCHEMES
Combined heat and power schemes generate electricity and then use the waste heat from the process to provide space and water heating. The process manages to get more useful energy out of the input fuel than traditional methods. The amount of CHP generation capacity actually fell during the 1980s and did not reach its 1977 level until 1994. A key element of raising the energy sustainability of an area would be to identify all potential CHP opportunities. The project would aim to identify local businesses that have electricity demands great enough to warrant on-site generation of electricity, with near by heating demands.

PV TILES AND SOLAR WATER HEATING
Photovoltaic (PV) solar panels are becoming cheaper as the annual production of tiles increases. However, if a system is installed on an existing building the payback time can be in the region of 100 years. The most cost effective use of the technology is to use the tiles as building facing materials in new buildings. PV systems are cheaper than some facing materials and reduce the energy requirement of the building. It takes around three years for the PV tiles to generate as much energy as was used in their manufacture, ie they then become a source for greenhouse gas emission reduction.

Solar water heating uses simple technology to heat water in black pipes. The latest uses of the technology utilise tracking devices that point the unit towards the sun to obtain maximum solar gain.

BUILDING LOW OR ZERO EMISSION DWELLINGS
Tackling fuel poverty and providing affordable warmth is a key concern. In some areas up to 30 per cent of homes are classed as being unfit for human habitation. Regeneration projects often focus on adding new housing or refurbishing existing stock. In many cases energy efficiency and renewable technology can be incorporated into the design of new buildings to reduce the amount of energy needed to heat the home. There are a growing number of examples of zero and low emission developments. One that has received much attention is the Beddington Zero Emission Development (BedZED), this scheme has photovoltaic arrays, low energy appliances, heat recovery systems and reduced ventilation levels that mean overall the development should have no net emission of greenhouse gases.

DEMONSTRATION RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECTS
There are two main aims of this project, firstly it will aim to educate pupils on the benefits and the technology involved with renewable energy, secondly it will demonstrate practical applications of renewables. In recent years a number of renewable energy projects have been used to raise awareness of the technology and as teaching aids. An example is the PowerEd project which includes a small wind turbine and solar panel system. Improving the environmental performance of schools makes good environmental sense and can bring renewable energy into the community. The SEAM project is an awards system that grades schools on their environmental performance. The SEAM project gives schools an environmental battle-plan on how they will reduce their environmental impacts.

ORGANIC WASTE
Urban areas produce large volumes of organic waste that can be used to produce energy. Traditionally some organic waste has been burnt in incinerators to generate electricity or heat. This process can produce emission of dioxins if there are problems when burning the waste. A way to reduce the problems of air emissions is to place the organic waste in an anaerobic digestion unit, which breaks down the waste to produce methane gas. The gas can then be burnt to provide heat and power.

There are a multitude of other small-scale energy efficiency and renewable projects that could be developed in an urban location. It is hoped that the project ideas listed above can provide an initial starting point that will help in the regeneration of a deprived district and will create a base for the further exploitation of renewable energy.

Daniel Clayton, Urban Mines Ltd, The Cobbett Environmental Enterprise Centre, Village Street, Norwood Green, Halifax HX3 8QG, UK. Tel: 01274 699403.
E-mail: daniel.clayton@dial.pipex.com
Web: www.urbanmines.org.uk