I am pleased to let you know that the Cambridgeshire Renewables Infrastructure Framework was approved by Councillors at the Project Steering Group on 27th January 2012. The local planning authorities present at the meeting identified that the report will be taken to Cabinet or relevant committees for adoption during March 2012. It is hoped that the CRIF will then provide evidence alongside other key pieces of work to help inform the development of planning policies for renewable energy.
At the same meeting, the Cambridgeshire Community Energy Fund (s) report was signed off. This report identifies how Community Energy Funds proposed under Zero Carbon Policy for new Homes as part of the draft Allowable Solutions Framework can help developers meet their carbon obligations on new sites and how Cambridgeshire can use this investment to support local energy schemes. The executive summary is available below and the full technical report is available if you contact me directly on sheryl.french@cambridgeshire.gov.uk.
I wish to thank all the people who have contributed to the CRIF Project whether this is through attending meetings, events, completing questionnaires, email or discussion – your inputs have helped shape the CRIF and make it a document that we can be proud of and more importantly can deliver the energy security needed for Cambridgeshire to ensure that we can remain a strong and buoyant economy. The work on the CRIF and the CEF has been paid for by Housing Growth Funds and Climate Change Skills Funds and this has provided the opportunity to engage technical experts Camco, Element Energy and Public-I whose contributions have been invaluable. In addition, the work undertaken by the CRIF and CEF will be shared more widely with colleagues across the East of England to share learning and a model for how to do this. Sustainability East are working with Public-I to ensure the learning is captured by the public sector and to facilitate more Renewable Energy Frameworks coming forward.
We all know that the production of a report or a framework is not an end in itself. The key to the success of the CRIF project is how the community, businesses and the public sector now mobilise themselves to take forward the ambitions and really demonstrate delivery on the ground. I look forward to seeing this take shape over the next years and hopefully experience local energy production to boil my kettle and heat my water.
Kind regards
Sheryl French
CRIF and CEF Delivery Manager
