Daily Archives: 12 May 2023

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12 May 2023

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Planning applications validated by EDDC for week beginning 24 April

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12 May 2023

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Renewable energy projects worth billions stuck on hold

Why can’t the government deliver the investment necessary to provide the infrastructure to power green growth? – Owl

Billions of pounds’ worth of green energy projects are on hold because they cannot plug into the UK’s electricity system, BBC research shows.

By Esme Stallard & Justin Rowlatt www.bbc.co.uk

Some new solar and wind sites are waiting up to 10 to 15 years to be connected because of a lack of capacity in the system – known as the “grid”.

Renewable energy companies worry it could threaten UK climate targets.

National Grid, which manages the system, acknowledges the problem but says fundamental reform is needed.

The UK currently has a 2035 target for 100% of its electricity to be produced without carbon emissions.

But meeting the target will require a big increase in the number of renewable projects across the country. It is estimated as much as five times more solar and four times as much wind is needed.

The government and private investors have spent £198bn on renewable power infrastructure since 2010. But now energy companies are warning that significant delays to connect their green energy projects to the system will threaten their ability to bring more green power online.

A new wind farm or solar site can only start supplying energy to people’s homes once it has been plugged into the grid.

Energy companies like Octopus Energy, one of Europe’s largest investors in renewable energy, say they have been told by National Grid that they need to wait up to 15 years for some connections – far beyond the government’s 2035 target.

‘Longest grid queues in Europe’

There are currently more than £200bn worth of projects sitting in the connections queue, the BBC has calculated.

Around 40% of them face a connection wait of at least a year, according to National Grid’s own figures. That represents delayed investments worth tens of billions of pounds.

“We currently have one of the longest grid queues in Europe,” according to Zoisa North-Bond, chief executive of Octopus Energy Generation.

The problem is so many new renewable projects are applying for connections, the grid cannot keep up.

The system was built when just a few fossil fuel power plants were requesting a connection each year, but now there are 1,100 projects in the queue.

Torbay Council has been hit by the delays. The diggers are already clearing the ground for a 6-hectare solar plant it is building in Torquay. It is due to be finished next year.

The council plans to use money raised from selling the energy to help fund local services, but it has been told the plant will not be connected for five years.

And even that date is not certain. “Worryingly, there are some indications that that could slip into the mid 2030s”, said Alan Denby from Torbay Council. “That’s a real problem for the council in that we declared that we wanted to be carbon neutral by 2030.”

With projects unable to get connections, construction is either being paused or projects are being completed but are unable to produce any power.

Torbay Council’s solar site was due to finish in a year but will not be connected until 2028 at the earliest

National Grid, which is responsible for moving electricity across England and Wales, says it is tightening up the criteria for projects to apply so only the really promising ones join the queue.

But a huge new investment is also required to restructure the grid so it can deal with more power sources, says Roisin Quinn, director of customer connections.

“Fundamental reform is needed,” she told the BBC. “More infrastructure is needed. We are working very hard to design and build at a faster pace than we ever have done before.”

Energy Networks Association represents the UK’s network operators, such as DNOs, which connect people’s homes to the main system owned by National Grid. It says that the government needs to speed up the planning process so electricity infrastructure can be built more quickly.

A Department for Energy Security and Net Zero spokesperson said: “We have connected the second highest amount of renewable electricity in Europe since 2010 but we recognise the challenge of connection delays.”

The government is due to announce a new action plan for speeding up connections later this year.

The energy regulator, Ofgem, which oversees the operators, said that all stakeholders were playing catch-up with the government’s targets.

Rebecca Barnett, director of networks at Ofgem, said: “The targets have been increasing in the last two or three years dramatically and there is a long lead in investment time that is needed to commit, develop, and deliver these really big assets.

“I think that has caused a real problem; we definitely need to catch up. The incremental approach of the past is not fit for purpose.”

Ofgem says it has agreed to allow the National Grid to raise an additional £20bn over the next 40 years from customer bills to pay for the huge upgrades the grid needs.

Customers have seen household prices soar over the last year following the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and a run-on gas.

But Ms Barnett said this new investment will have a minimal impact on customers bills and will help shoulder the burden of some of the volatile energy prices.

“The future is for green, more secure and in fact cheaper energy. We know there is some investment cost needed to get us there, but in the long run it is going to be cheaper for us all,” she said.

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Wanted: bat detectives

Owl fears that it is too late for the rare grey long-eared bats of East Budleigh. Owl received reports they disappeared along with their habitat when an old barn was demolished and developed despite the provision of a “bat house”.

Help protect our winged friends

We’re being invited to become ‘bat detectives’ in Devon as part of a major conservation study.

Radio Exe News www.radioexe.co.uk

The Devon Bat Survey returns this year with opportunities for nature lovers to get involved in one of the county’s biggest citizen science initiatives. 

The survey has run since 2016 and has clocked up millions of sound recordings of the flying mammals, contributing to conservationists’ knowledge of bats and their habits.

This vital information helps understanding about the health of Devon’s environment which can then be used to help protect the bats. All UK bats eat insects, so they need conditions in which insects thrive including clean rivers, wildflower rich meadows, healthy woodlands and hedgerows.

This year, the Devon Bat Survey is especially keen to hear from people in North Devon, Torridge and the Blackdown Hills – areas where it has fewest records.

Lindsay Mahon, Devon Bat Survey coordinator at Devon Wildlife Trust, said: “The feedback we get from our bat detectives is amazing – people enjoy being involved and discovering which bats are living near them.

“I am delighted that we have been able to open the survey more widely this year and offer more people an opportunity to get involved in helping these protected species.”

“We are looking for surveyors in Devon who have gardens or their own land in which they can safely put one of our digital bat detectors. The detectors themselves are small and come with full instructions. The survey is free to take part in, and people can sign up via the Devon Wildlife Trust website.

“Taking part in the survey involves borrowing one of our bat detectors for a few nights, setting it up outside and letting it do the rest. Participants then upload the digital sound recordings to an online system. This then tells them which bats have visited their garden.

“The survey is usually very popular, so my advice is to book early as the spaces fill up fast. We are extremely grateful to everyone who takes part, including the host centres which act as the collect and return points for the bat detectors.

“We simply couldn’t run a survey of this scale without our host centres and citizen scientists.”   

During its previous seven years the Devon Bat Survey has identified 13 different species of bat in Devon. Some of these are relatively common such as pipistrelles, but others, including greater horseshoe and barbastelle bats, are considered rare and under threat.  

Find out more about taking part in this year’s bat survey at: https://www.devonwildlifetrust.org/devon-bat-survey-2023.

The Devon Bat Survey runs from now until October 6.

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‘Thank you to the residents of Sidmouth who voted for me’

A Letter from John John Loudoun Sidmouth Rural Ward Member. (Simon Jupp responds beneath)

www.sidmouthherald.co.uk

Firstly, through your pages I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the voters in the Sidmouth Rural Ward who in last week’s elections re-elected me with a 73% share of the vote. It is humbling to have so many people to place their faith in me and in what I expressed to them through my election communications. I intend to continue to represent them, and our wider Sidmouth and Sid Valley communities to the best of my ability.

Secondly, in light of the election campaign that our MP Simon Jupp spearheaded on behalf of the Conservatives, not just locally, but also across much of the District, and in response to his comments to the Herald immediately after the election results that “I think everyone should work together”, I wish to speak through these pages directly to him.

The Conservatives ran their District wide campaign based around a set of core issues. The majority of electors decided that these issues were not ones that they felt able to vote in favour of. However one cuts it, be it by total votes cast across the District, or the total number of seats won by each party or grouping across the District, the Conservatives came third behind Independents, such as me, and the Liberal Democrats.

I agree with Simon Jupp, and I have expressed this to him personally previously, that everyone should work together. The Democratic Alliance coalition, that I was part of and which ran the District Council for the past 3 years, is anticipating retaining control of the Council. Collectively we have the mandate from residents to do so. Over the past 3 years our grouping has tried hard to positively reach out to Simon, after all he is one of the MPs within the District.

Regretfully, Simon has not sought to foster a positive dialogue or relationship with the Democratic Alliance. Rather, and the latest election campaign typified this, he has constantly criticised us at every turn. If we had made such a hash of everything over the past 3 years, wasted money or, to quote Boris Johnson “spaffed it up the wall”, surely the voters at the latest elections would not have voted for any of us.

But the voters did vote predominately for Independents and Liberal Democrats to represent them for the next 4 years. So, my plea to our local MP is to respect the

voters’ decisions, respect our mandates and not to continue just criticising every single thing we do. The Democratic Alliance has proven that it is fiscally responsible, delivers quality services and has the support of professional and well-motivated officers and staff.

Therefore, I respectfully ask Simon Jupp to end his partisan party-political bashing of the District Council and those elected to serve the residents. If you disagree with something then sit down and explain to us why you think we should do something differently. Come and talk to us, don’t just criticise through social and mainstream media. You can be better than that and you have my telephone number. The residents of East Devon have decided and that must now be respected by you. As you say, let’s work together for our residents and where we live and work.

Yours sincerely John Loudoun.

In response to this letter from John Loudoun, Simon Jupp said: “I wanted to respond directly to the letter from Cllr John Loudoun who represents Sidmouth Rural Ward on East Devon District Council.

First of all, congratulations to Cllr Loudoun on his re-election. We clearly both share the same passion for Sidmouth and the Sid Valley and want to do the best for the residents we serve.

Sadly, Cllr Loudoun has decided to spend significant energy in this week’s paper saying that I am not fostering a positive dialogue with the coalition of independent and Liberal Democrat councillors running the show at the council.

I would like to remind Cllr Loudoun that I have spent much of the last few years working with his political administration – even though we do not share the same colour rosette.

I’ve worked with the council to secure much-needed leisure centre and swimming pool funding from the Budget. I’ve worked with the council to secure £15.7m from the Levelling Up Fund to build the Dinan Way extension and regenerate the area around Exmouth train station. And I’m working with the council on important issues like Cranbrook’s district heating network and Sidmouth’s beach management plan.

Cllr Loudoun’s energy may be better spent on writing about what he plans to deliver for his residents. I’ll continue to work constructively with him and the incoming administration on shared objectives. It’s a great a pity the last administration accepted my support in private but refused to acknowledge it publicly.

Simon Jupp MP – Member of Parliament for East Devon

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‘The Tories deserved to lose the local elections last week’ – Martin Shaw

It was good to see East Devon roundly rejecting the Conservatives in the elections last week, with their leader losing his seat.

Martin Shaw www.exmouthjournal.co.uk

The Liberal Democrats did well, benefiting from the excellent work that Richard Foord has done in his first ten months as an MP. Most of the Independents who have been central to EDDC’s new start since 2020 were also returned, and with Labour and the Greens both winning seats, the stage is set for the continuation of the Democratic Alliance administration – with a stronger mandate.

The Tories deserved to lose, not only because of the mess they have made of the country, but also because of their attempt to block voters from exercising their democratic rights. We don’t know yet how many were turned away from local polling stations for not having the right ID, and the numbers may prove low. However others who didn’t have the right ID will just have decided to stay at home. No wonder the turnout seems to have been lower than usual.

This, for the Tories, was the point of the scheme. The list of acceptable ID was rigged against young people, because the whole idea is to deter people who are likely to vote against the Tories from voting. There have have been virtually no cases of people fraudulently attempting to vote in the UK, so it was a made-up problem. The scheme is deliberate ‘voter suppression’ as they call it in the US, where the idea was copied from.

Photo ID seems likely to have deterred some older people as well. One of my neighbours, a conscientious voter of over 90 years old, thought he wasn’t going to be able to vote because he’d returned his passport and driving licence. Fortunately his daughter reminded him that he had a postal vote and didn’t need ID for that – but if he’d been on his own, he probably would have lost his vote because of the confusion the scheme has created.

Even John Hart, Tory leader of Devon County Council, agrees that the Photo ID requirement is unnecessary. But not one Conservative candidate in East Devon was prepared to call out the Photo ID scandal.

What we really need are schemes to encourage people to vote. Thousands of people in East Devon, and millions nationally, are not even on the electoral register. We need automatic voter registration when people turn 18, when they get their national insurance number. That way every adult would get a polling card reminding them of each election. This, of course, is the last thing that Rishi Sunak’s Tory government is going to introduce. But why isn’t Keir Starmer putting it forward?

Another thing that would help is Proportional Representation. For a hundred years until Richard Foord’s election, non-Tory voters in East Devon wasted their votes in general elections (as Conservative voters did in safe Labour areas). Most of the time, everyone assumed that the result of the election was a foregone conclusion. No wonder many didn’t bother to vote.

It’s time to bring in a fair voting system in which everyone’s vote counts and all parties are represented proportionally to their support among voters, so that the government reflects what the majority of people want. The current far-right

Conservative government was elected with only 43 per cent of votes – 57 per cent voted for the other parties.

Fair votes is more democratic, guards against extremism, and involves people in the political system. Keir Starmer may end up being a good prime minister who improves people’s living standards and restores the NHS. But if he continues to set himself against Proportional Representation, he will be letting down the people of East Devon.

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Newton Poppleford has ‘likely’ faced its worst flooding in 50 years, says the Enviroment Agency

The East Devon village of Newton Poppleford this week ‘likely’ faced its worst flooding in 50 years, according to the Environment Agency.

Becca Gliddon eastdevonnews.co.uk

Storm damage has caused road closures and the use of temporary traffic lights in areas of East Devon worst hit by flash flooding.

Devon County Council (DCC) said the clean-up operation on roads was ongoing following Tuesday’s storms (May 9), which caused flooding in a number of areas of the county.

The county council said parts of Exeter and East Devon – including Tipton St John, Metcombe and Newton Poppleford – were hardest hit by the torrential downpours.

Temporary traffic lights are in place on two sections of the A3052 at either end of Newton Poppleford. These are on Four Elms Hill, because of a collapse of the road and on Exeter Road, Newton Poppleford, due to edge subsidence and a dangerous private wall.

The council said road closures on Lower Way at Harpford and Hawkerland Road were the result of debris being cleared from Venn Ottery Road and Stoneyford, between Hawkerland Cross and Newton Poppleford.

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “It is likely this is the worst flood experienced in Newton Poppleford for 50 years, exceeding the 2008 flood.”

Roads have been swept and highways teams are continuing to clear silt, mud and debris, ahead of the risk of further rain showers forecast for Thursday (May 11).

As water levels go down, bridges and structures are being inspected for any potential damage.

The county council said it is also working closely with the Environment Agency to assess the impact of the flooding in a number of communities, and how many properties have suffered floodwater damage.

Councillor Stuart Hughes, DCC cabinet member for highway management, said: “The deluge of rainfall in some parts of the county was extremely intense and it led to localised flash flooding in several communities.”

He said the council highway’s team was working to clear debris from flood-hit roads.

The Environment Agency has been monitoring river levels, checking flood gates, and clearing trash screens, said the county council.