Low Carbon Solutions

Public Sector Conference, Regen SW in partnership with EST

From national ambition to local delivery, a conference examining the role of the public sector in delivering carbon savings and sustainable energy, which will see the launch of the South West renewable energy resource assessments and delivery support tools.

Agenda:

Planning in a changing climate

This workshop will provide local authorities with an understanding of the requirements placed on them by the PPS1 supplement on planning and climate change and its proposed update: the consultation on PPS: Planning for a Low Carbon Future in a Changing Climate.

The workshop will explore how the new regional support tools available to local authorities can be of assistance in meeting these planning requirements, including the SW Planning Toolkit on Climate Change and training courses to support planning officers, councillors and development managers.

We will also hear from a leading local authority, from outside the region, as they present on their experience of developing a sustainable energy evidence base and planning policies.
 

The Carbon Reduction Journey

This workshop, led by Energy Saving Trust, will explore the tools and support available to local authorities and public bodies to assist them in understanding how to devise a robust long term carbon reduction plan, pulling in third party tools, programmes and products. This starts with undertaking a self evaluation of local carbon reduction performance, both strategically and operationally, assessing sources of local carbon emissions, devising local priorities and scenarios for long-term carbon reduction, considering both national and local measures, and considers how to mobilise for delivering actions at authority and partnership level.

Supporting community-led initiatives

This workshop will explore how local authorities and public bodies can support and encourage community-led renewable and low carbon energy initiatives.
We will hear about the national and regional level support programmes available to communities, how communities are responding, and discuss what more the public sector can do to support local community action on sustainable energy.
 

Ringmasters in the low carbon transition

This workshop aims to help local authorities take up their new role as the ringmasters in the transition to low-carbon existing communities and new developments. It introduces two important new regional GIS based mapping systems to identify heat use and renewable energy resources and examines a case study of how one local authority has moved from developing its evidence base towards delivering low carbon solutions.

Realising the low carbon potential of the public sector supported by Camco

This workshop will:

• explore emerging thinking about the potential scale of the opportunity (including revenue generation) that the public sector could realise from deployment of renewable energy, at on-site, community and commercial scales
• examine the role of the public sector in both commissioning and enabling renewable energy
• discuss barriers, solutions and incentives, delivery mechanisms and commercial models
• look at new initiatives in the region and beyond to support local authorities and other public bodies in realising their potential

Turning offshore ambitions into local opportunities

This workshop will explore the role of the public sector in meeting the challenges and maximising the opportunities presented by offshore renewable energy in the south west.
With offshore renewables (wave, wind and tidal) expected to form a major part of the UK’s energy mix, we will hear about the south west’s own energy resource assessment, the roadmap for development and the challenges of balancing marine energy with other demands through the marine spatial planning process.

We will also discuss the opportunities (and challenges) to maximise economic benefits from offshore renewables and highlight some of the business and supply chain opportunities that could be exploited. We will draw on the experience from other regions that already have large scale offshore renewables projects.