Every council will have to consider planning local district heating schemes, following today’s Planning Policy Statement Planning for a Low Carbon Future in a Changing Climate, according to the CHPA (Combined Heat and Power Association). The new Planning Policy Statement 1 from the Government was welcomed by the CHPA as setting out a clear steer to local planning authorities to present an evidence base for their local plan documents, which should include an assessment of their area for decentralised energy, including district heating networks.

Ian Manders, deputy director of the CHPA said:

“The Government’s document is clear, it says to local councils that they should be mapping heat demand in their area and investigating possible sources of supply of low and zero-carbon heat. They should be looking for opportunities to secure district heating networks in their area.”

“Virtually every major city in the UK is already investigating the creation or extension of viable district heating networks, but the new PPS means that the smaller cities and towns now need to start to do so. It is a tremendous opportunity to provide low and zero-carbon heat and cooling for new and existing buildings.”

Government sources indicate that the financing of the district heating networks could be started out of the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) payments from new developments, or by contributions made by developers seeking to achieve zero-carbon status for their developments under “Allowable Solutions”.

The Government consultation by the department of Communities and Local Government, published today, seeks views on the combination and update of existing planning policy on climate change (PPS1 supplement on Climate Change) and renewable energy (PPG22) from the two documents into one. The new policy document reflects the latest legislative and policy context. The Planning Policy Statement (PPS) will be a supplement to Planning Policy Statement 1: Delivering Sustainable Development (PPS1). Section LCF1.4 reads:

“Local planning authorities should assess their area for opportunities for decentralised energy. The assessment should focus on opportunities at a scale which could supply more than an individual building and include up-to-date mapping of heat demand and possible sources of supply. Local planning authorities should in particular look for opportunities to secure:
i. decentralised energy to meet the needs of new development;
ii. greater integration of waste management with the provision of decentralised energy;
iii. co-location of potential heat suppliers and users; and,
iv. district heating networks based on renewable energy from waste, surplus heat and biomass, or which could be economically converted to such sources in the future.”

Source: http://www.chpa.co.uk/