The purpose of windfarms is to provide national and international
benefits in tackling climate change and energy security. As they are
relatively simple to construct and designed to operate without significant
maintenance there are unfortunately few major intrinsic local benefits.
This problem is recognised by the e UK Government in their Energy
Review 2006: “New renewable projects may not always appear
to convey any particular local benefit, but they provide crucial national
benefits”.
The Developer,
REP, has tried to address this problem and produced a Community Benefit
Programme; issued for consultation. The Programme includes the following
measures as part of the windfarm scheme:
1.
Community Fund
Total funding of £50,000 pa for the life of the windfarm is
proposed. The windfarm is planned to operate for 20-25 years, creating
a total fund of between £1million and £1.25million. Alternatively
a £600,000 capital sum at the beginning of the windfarm is offered.
It
is proposed that total funding is split equally between two community
funds, one for Maerdy and one for Treorchy. It is proposed that these
be democratically controlled funds where each resident of the community
has an equal vote on how the funds are spent to foster individual
empowerment and strengthen community ties.
2.
Improved Recreational Access Plans
The windfarm site is currently very difficult to access and is hardly
used by the public at all. A new footpath is proposed from Maerdy
Colliery site up onto the windfarm site, plus various other signage,
styles and bridges, to encourage more access onto the site. The footpath
would connect up other existing footpaths in the area to form a new
circular route from the Colliery site; it would also provide a link
from the Colliery site to the Coed Morgannwg Way long distance footpath.
It is hoped that the windfarm together with the access plans will
provide a significant feature of interest that will encourage the
use of footpaths, cycle paths and increase the informal recreational
value of the Colliery site.
3.
Visitor Development Opportunities
The windfarm provides a potential recreational and educational visitor
attraction. Maerdy has a significant tourist population nearby in
the Brecon Beacons and also an easily accessible large school population,
both within one hour drive. The Maerdy Colliery site adjacent to the
windfarm has excellent vehicular access and would make Maerdy one
of the most easily accessible windfarms in Wales. The windfarm could
be integrated into the reclamation of the Colliery site, with a visitor
centre, footpath links to the Coed Morgannwg Way, a point of interest
along the Sustrans Cycle Route, and enhance the opportunity created
at the Colliery site.
4.
Alternative Timber Haulage Route
Felling of the Pentre Forestry Block is due to commence in 2007. Current
plans are for the timber to be hauled through residential streets
in Maerdy over the A4233 and through the centre of Aberdare. Over
2,000 timber lorry journeys are planned over the next 25 years, concentrated
in 5 harvesting years. The windfarm provides an alternative haulage
route to the west that avoids passing through any communities whatsoever.
The potential resident disturbance and driver delay caused by the
current route thereby are avoided.
5.
Direct Electricity Supply
The Windfarm proposed at Maerdy is in a very rare, if not unique,
situation in being located adjacent to a brownfield site with industrial
development potential. This creates in principle the opportunity for
a direct electricity supply arrangement whereby the cost of transporting
electricity over the grid is avoided. Electricity could, hence, be
offered at a discount and this could be significantly competitive
to attract industry to locate at the Maerdy site with the associated
economic benefits for the area. Further feasibility studies would
be required.
The
community benefit programme contains 5 key proposals. The first two
proposals are considered integral to the windfarm development. The
later three proposals identify potential additional benefits flowing
from the windfarm. These later proposals are intended to capitalise
on the windfarm, but are additional to it, requiring cooperation and
support from third parties.
Consultation
Responses
The
full Community Benefit Programme Consultation Document is available
to
download online or hard copies are available on request from REP.
The
programme was consulted on in 2006 at the time of the planning application.
With planning permission approved in August 2008, the consultation
has been re-openned for further comments to be received. Interested
parties are requested to respond by 31 December 2008. Contact
