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Shropshire Climate Action: Renewable Energy in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin Renewable energy production in Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin Read information about the potential renewable energy capacity across Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin and why we support solar farms and roof top solar Read the Shropshire Renewable Energy Opportunity Map report (Full .pdf -100Mb) Browse the Renewable Energy maps via Shropshire Council's website Renewable Energy Mapping for Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin How much renewable energy potential is there in Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin? Where is it, and how could it impact the local economy? What future infrastructure will be needed to support the journey towards net zero carbon Shropshire by 2030? Shropshire Council funded Zero Carbon Shropshire to explore these questions in 2021. The mapping exercise looked at where the opportunities are for ground-mounted solar and wind farm development in Shropshire and the associated grid constraints and opportunities, to help plan for the development of the local energy industry for decarbonising residential, industrial and other energy use. The series of on-line maps show the siting possibilities of such infrastructure with the aim of helping inform planning decisions to provide a strategic approach to energy development in Shropshire and to promote the development of the local energy industry. Watch the webinar discussing the report and maps recorded on the 20 October 2021. The Benefits of Solar Farms The whole world is undergoing an enormous and rapid change in the way it gets its energy, moving away from burning fossil fuels to cleaner, renewable sources such as wind and solar. While climate change is the main driver, political and economic instability in the gas and oil markets are also becoming important factors. We make the case below about the benefits of solar farms as an important part of the UK’s future energy mix. What about coal, oil and gas? They’ve served us well for two hundred years We cannot depend on fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas) in the long-term as they: give off greenhouse gases which are changing the earth’s climate, leading to long-term problems for humans and nature are highly polluting, which is damaging to human health and nature are a finite resource and are becoming too expensive, so more and more people cannot afford them, leading to fuel poverty What about hydrogen? Hydrogen gives off only water when burned and can be used as a direct replacement for most fossil fuel uses. The big problem with hydrogen is there isn’t enough that’s easy to get at and naturally occurring to meet our needs, meaning we’ll have to make it. Hydrogen can be made from water but it takes a lot of energy, which we’d either have to get from burning fossil fuels or from renewables. Using hydrogen, therefore, could meet some of our energy needs but only if we also fully commit to renewables like wind, solar and the rest. Haven’t you forgotten biomass? Biomass means stuff that grows or waste from stuff that grows, such as trees, animal manure and food waste, all of which can be burned or converted to bio-gas using anaerobic digestion which can then be burned to generate energy. Biomass is considered a renewable because other living things can grow to replace what has been used. However, unlike other renewables, biomass gives off greenhouse gases, which contribute to global warming. Although making ‘new’ biomass will re-absorb the carbon release in burning the previous material, this takes time – think how long it takes for trees to grow. So biomass, can only ever be a partial fix to the UK energy mix problem. The National Grid: wind versus solar - generating electricity where it's needed The National Grid has been designed to carry electricity from power stations to where it is used. Changing where we generate our electricity from in-shore power stations to large offshore wind farms bringing their power ashore at a small number of places will place impossible loads on the National Grid, meaning we will have to redesign it at great cost to consumers. Solar farms and rooftop solar can be installed much closer to where the energy is needed which means much less re-design work for the National Grid and, therefore, far less cost to the consumer. It is inevitable that local renewable generation and local consumption, possibly linked to local tariff arrangements, will form part of the UK electricity landscape in the future. Is it true that land cannot be returned to agriculture at the end of the lifetime of a solar farm? No, this is not true. A solar farm leaves no permanent effect on land. It can be removed in a few days and the site reverted back to whatever use it previously had or an alternative. In a couple of years it would be impossible to tell that a solar farm had ever been there. While it is in place, the soil also has a chance to improve its own micro-structures and fauna if it is not being used for intensive agriculture. This is not the case with a power station – think about all the ‘brown field’ sites that we have to spend money on in order to clean up and re-use. I have heard that solar panels contain lead and that this can enter the environment – is this true? Like all electronic apparatus solar panels and control systems contain lead (in the solder used to make electrical connections) and other rare metals. These cannot leave the device when in use, but the equipment must be disposed of properly at the end of its use, either by re-use elsewhere or by proper re-cycling. The elements that can be recovered are of value (many are scarce) so there is a strong financial as well as legislative imperative to recover these. Given that these installations may have lifetimes of 30 or 40 years, the need for this recovery will increase into the future. Already, the scrap value of ‘old’ consumer electronics from your local recycling centre has increased several-fold. The alternatives to fossil fuels include renewables The most obvious alternative sources of energy that do not give off greenhouse gases are: Renewables (wind, solar, hydro, geothermal, wave and tidal) Nuclear Hydrogen Renewables can be used for most things we currently use fossil fuels for and are endlessly available – the wind is always blowing somewhere, the sun is shining, rivers are flowing, waves are forming in the sea and the Earth’s core is generating heat. What about nuclear? While we can perhaps use nuclear as part of our future energy mix, we cannot rely on it as a replacement for fossil fuels. This is because existing nuclear power stations are nearing the end of their useful lives and new ones take a very long time to build, are hugely expensive and present significant risks. We still don’t have a good way of safely dealing with nuclear waste. Why can’t we rely solely on offshore wind farms? In the UK wind farms are now big business and wind turbines are very efficient at converting wind into electricity, so why do we need solar at all? The UK Government has set targets for onshore and offshore wind capacity to be installed by 2030 and 2050. These targets, together with some existing nuclear capacity, do not meet the likely total UK electricity demand. We will therefore need to continue to burn gas to make up the shortfall or turn to other renewable sources such as solar. It therefore makes sense to increase energy generation from all renewable sources. In addition, offshore wind farms aren’t in the best location to provide electricity to all parts of the UK and sometimes the wind doesn’t blow. I hear solar farms are not efficient, so why would we build them? Solar panels are usually between 15 and 22% efficient , meaning they convert 15-22% of the sun’s energy that falls on them to electricity. This is much less than wind turbines at 50%+ or a standard gas boiler at as much as 94% or even a standard car engine at between 60 and 85%. Efficiency is an important consideration if you are dealing with a limited resource. However, wind and solar are free and readily available, whereas gas and petrol have to be found, mined, refined and transported – think of North Sea oil rigs, oil tankers, gas pipes and petrol stations – meaning their efficiency is much less than it may appear. Grazing sheep and bee-keeping on solar farms are token gestures aren’t they? No, this is not ‘tokenism’. During the life time of the solar farm, the land could, for example, be used for livestock grazing or bee-keeping, both of which can generate additional income for the land owner. The presence of bees and other pollinators is a good sign that biodiversity is improving. Or the land could simply be left to lie fallow or managed to encourage wild flowers to grow thereby invigorating nature. All of these possible uses, without pesticide or fertiliser application, will allow the soil fertility and condition to improve and flora and fauna to flourish, increasing the biodiversity and health of the ecosystem. Do solar farms undermine our food security? 60% of our food is imported, land is being taken out of cultivation at a rate of almost 100,000 acres per year, and yields are declining due to the effect of global heating. Can we afford to lose more arable land to the development of solar farms? Economics, consumer habits and expectations are the major drivers of food imports, not the proportion of land used in the UK. The availability of best and most versatile (BMV) land may be more than enough if alternative crop varieties and new forms of growing (hydroponics etc) become commonplace. Moreover, the land used for a solar farm can quickly and completely return to farming use if needed. It is for landowners to decide how they manage and use their land. The idea that good land is somehow ‘poorly used’ if it has a solar farm temporarily sited on it is not the whole story – the reasons for this are far more complex. Many traditional forms of agriculture are not financially sustainable. We should be asking “why do landowners look to solar farms and other schemes as the only viable business for their land?”. Big Solar Co-op installs solar panels on rooftops which are the size of a tennis court or bigger, and where the building has high electricity usage (prior to 2022 prices, at least £20k in electricity bills). See their website to find out more. Or submit information about your site via https://bigsolar.coop/submit-a-site/ for an assessment and response from the local coordinator.

< Back South Shropshire Climate Action mentioned in Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons Fiona Morgan 17 Jan 2023 Following on from our meeting with our Philip Dunne (MP) on the 6th January, Philip Dunne raised a question at Prime Minister's Questions in the House of Commons on the 17th January where the work of South Shropshire Climate Action was mentioned. The video can be watched via this link . "Does my Right Hon. Friend the Prime Minister join me in welcoming many of its [the Independent Review of Net Zero] recommendations, particularly to provide clarity and continuity to all those working to decarbonise our economy, especially those supporting the South Shropshire Climate Action group in my constituency?" Previous Next

< Back The Marches Real Food and Farming Conference: 15th - 16th September Jane Cullen 16 Sept 2023 Our reflections on this fantastic ground breaking local food conference The Conference held at Partridge Farm, near Bishop’s Castle, was a greatly enjoyable day and showed many exciting projects to a new audience – if you are at all interested in your food, where it comes from, how it is grown, how far it has travelled to get to you – you know all the issues - here were practical, pragmatic and possible models that deserve to be known, and adopted, much more widely. The dung beetle safari, led by Claire Whittle who is a farm veterinary surgeon specialising in conservation medicine and regenerative agriculture, demonstrated how dung beetles not only make the structure of the soil much better but rather amazingly also reduce parasite organs in livestock. Claire’s enthusiasm and knowledge lit up those on safari. Another eye opener was the Johnson-Su Reactor which Kate Gatacre opened and described. Although I could not build one in my small urban garden anyone with a bit more space could: all you need is an old pallet, some lengths of drainpipe, wire, fleece, sawdust, green waste and some space. The beautiful, crumbly, clean- smelling compost which was dug out was absolutely perfect. Having experience as a producer I went to the session on Market Linkage, which followed the path between local producers Tish Dockerty and Jan Morgan-Birtles, who trade regularly at the ‘Local to Ludlow’ Market, and a Food Hub in Birmingham, via Slow Food and the Open Food Network. It’s good to see technology making these links quick and practical - for the good of all. Lizzie and Jane Hulton-Harrop also gave an excellent presentation as they charted their move into Regenerative Farming. Pollardine Farm’s soil fertility is improving, rapidly responding to changes in their practice – the first one being a really good rest for the land. There’s much more to hear about this project and the careful research behind the changes, look out for our forthcoming video of the climate and Nature related work being done at Pollardine Farm - which will be available soon. Previous Next

< Back What is Going Wild in Bishop’s Castle? Dan Hodgkiss 1 Aug 2024 How the project is developing to support local wildlife Going Wild in BC, often known simply as Going Wild, is about improving green spaces around the town and parish of Bishop’s Castle for the benefit of people and wildlife. It’s an integral part of Bishop's Castle’s Town Council Biodiversity Action plan, our local response to the Biodiversity crisis - the current sorry state of our wildlife. We’ll be surveying at least 20 sites across the parish, creating a picture of the town’s wildlife and habitat management plans to help them flourish. We’re also recruiting, supporting and training volunteers to help look after these spaces, ensuring their survival beyond the lifetime of the project. People won’t protect what they don’t know, so a big part of this project is engaging local people with nature on their doorstep through joining in local events and running regular kids' clubs. Our goal is to produce a ‘how-to’ toolkit, to allow local councils across Shropshire and the wider UK to replicate our plan. Actions as simple as planting an acorn or complex as creating a pond from scratch both have value. It’s not rocket science: together we can make a world where we thrive alongside the rest of nature. Get in touch with Dan at goingwild@lightfootenterprises.org Previous Next

< Back Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s visit to Bishop’s Castle’s wind turbine public meeting in April Mike Watkins 1 Apr 2023 Lightfoot (members of SSCA 's network) show their support for the development of the Bishop's Castle Heat Network At a public meeting in Bishop’s Castle this month, called to report on the progress of the projected Wind-Turbine-powered Bishop’s Castle’s Community Heat & Wind Network , over 70 people responded to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s request for a show of hands to vote on the authenticity of the climate crisis, the use of on-shore Wind-Turbines as one means of countering it and, specifically, on whether a Wind Turbine should be used for BC’s Community Heat & Wind Network . There was an overwhelmingly positive response to all his questions, with only a few dissenting or undecided. Hugh proffered an opportunity to those unconvinced or unsure to join his team to visit and learn from other renewable energy projects that will be covered as part of the Channel 4 documentary, which is to be screened in the autumn. The Heat and Wind network, designed by Sharenergy and Carbon Alternatives with funding from Shropshire & Telford Community Energy , would supply heat from an air-source heat pump powered by a Wind Turbine, which could be pumped to at least 100 houses in the Town as well as the Community College, the SpArC Leisure Centre and Enterprise House. The Heat Network would not be financially viable without the Wind Turbine. The scheme would result in a massive reduction in carbon emissions for the Town – which has an above average carbon footprint, dependent, as it is, on oil and LPG heating - and enable people to get rid of their boilers and oil tanks. A response is awaited from Shropshire Council to a pre-planning application for the Wind Turbine. A FAQs document about the scheme can be accessed via this link . To find out more about the project please e-mail: climateaction@lightfootenterprises.org Previous Next

< Back Protest in Shrewsbury to "Say No to Rosebank" 8 Nov 2025 Calling for an end to drilling for oil and gas in the North Sea Campaigners from Extinction Rebellion Shrewsbury, the Shrewsbury Green Party, and Fossil Free Shropshire held a street stall on Pride Hill to raise awareness about the Rosebank oilfeld. 100 postcards were signed to Julia Buckley MP asking her to sign the "Stop Rosebank" pledge. Although the Labour manifesto promised no new oil and gas licenses, environmentalists are increasingly concerned the Government is set to U-turn on this. The Rosebank oilfield will do nothing to lower UK bills or ensure energy security and will create more CO2 than the combined annual emissions of the 28 poorest countries in the world. Take action here . Previous Next

< Back Celebrating Marches Energy Agency 25th Anniversary Fiona Morgan and Nick Read 14 Oct 2022 SSCA's Project Co-ordinators deliver a talk at MEA's anniversary event In October SSCA’s Project Co-ordinators were invited to speak about South Shropshire Climate Action at Marches Energy Agency's 25th Anniversary celebration. The focus of the talks and discussions among those attending was on how to tackle the cost of living crisis and eradicate fuel poverty and how this aligns with getting to net zero carbon. With contributions from staff at Marches Energy Agency, Citizen's Advice, Wrekin Housing Group, Shropshire Council, Food Poverty Alliance, Zero Carbon Shropshire, Severn Wye, Community Resource, Shropshire Wildlife Trust, Evora Edge. It's by working together that we help to tackle these crises. Previous Next

< Back Teach the Future campaign Rosa Strange 2 Sept 2024 Making our schools more sustainable The RAAC scandal that broke a year ago affected hundreds of schools across the UK, damaging the education of thousands of children and young people. For many, the scandal served to highlight the extent to which school buildings are unsustainable, as well as unsafe and falling apart. Teach the Future is a student-led campaign to urgently improve education on the climate crisis in the UK. Fund the Future is our newest campaign, calling for the UK government to significantly increase funding for the retrofitting and rebuilding of school buildings, to help them become more environmentally sustainable. As well as helping the country to reach net-zero targets, eco-friendly retrofitting is vital for ensuring that students have a safe learning environment, while helping schools cut high energy costs, and allowing young people to see and learn about sustainable architecture first-hand. Our report , released in September 2023, estimates that it will cost £16.3bn to retrofit all UK schools to net-zero emissions . We are calling on the government to step up and deliver the funding we need to save education. But we can’t do it alone. We need UK school staff and pupils to send in photos of crumbling and inefficient school buildings, to show the government the effects of underfunding. To be in with a chance of winning a £50 National Book Token, send us pictures of the unsafe and damaged areas of your school by emailing hello@teachthefuture.uk or completing our anonymous form . Previous Next

< Back A poem about climate change: to inspire thoughtful consideration and action David Powley 4 Jun 2024 Part of the Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow exhibition, Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre, Craven Arms, May 2024 This poem by David Powley formed part of the Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow exhibition held last month at the Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre, Craven Arms. The exhibition focused on the theme of climate change and the environment and the need for action and highlighted the importance of involving people of all ages in action and discussion about the issues. You can find more information about the project via this website . What the older generations did YESTERDAY means that we must all fix things TODAY so that the younger generations have a TOMORROW Previous Next

< Back South Shropshire MP supports the repeal of the Climate Change Act 2008 Chris Deaves 1 Nov 2025 Our response to local criticism of the Act Stuart Anderson, MP for South Shropshire, has recently stated his intention to support the repeal of the 2008 Climate Change Act. Below is the response (abridged), sent on behalf of Shropshire Climate Action and local groups in the South Shropshire constituency: “We… strongly support the 2008 Climate Change Act and are very concerned to learn that you wish to see the Act repealed. We believe that the political consensus…and the implementation of the Act have enabled the UK to make significant progress over the last 17 years on reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The Act's robust, legally binding framework, and the independent advisory body it established in the Climate Change Committee (CCC), have proven particularly effective. The UK has been widely recognised for its climate leadership internationally, increasing its influence and leverage in international negotiations… Repealing the Act would cause significant damage to the UK’s reputation at home and abroad, jeopardising confidence and investment in the UK’s vibrant green economy… (which) is growing at three times the rate of the wider economy. Repealing the Act would also undermine the UK’s Nationally Determined Contribution [NDC] to the Paris agreement… The CCC 2025 report and the recent report in advance on the state of Climate action worldwide…explain the urgency of accelerating action. As far as we understand it, your desire to repeal the Act doesn’t appear to be premised on any scientific data that challenges either the Climate Change Committee’s report nor the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. 75% of the UK population want to see the Government taking action on Climate Change. Any retreat from our Climate commitments by political parties will carry grave consequences—undermining our national credibility, damaging our international standing, and betraying the trust of future generations.” Our chair, Chris Deaves, adds his thoughts: “I studied astronomy at university. In my studies I saw no evidence of space fleets arranging with tons of clean water, air, food or life forms. The earth is finite and so are its resources. It is ironic that Shropshire contains the cause and solution to these issues. Ironbridge is the birthplace of the industrial revolution and its consequences, not least of which is idealisation of growth based on increasing output, which cannot be maintained for ever. On the escalator from the Shrewsbury bus station is a picture of Charles Darwin and a quote: “It is not the most intellectual of the species that survives; it is not the strongest that survives; but the species that survives is the one that is able best to adapt and adjust to the changing environment in which it finds itself.” Seeking to retain obsolete concepts of growth (and its concomitant evil of unfair resource distribution) is a fearful and unthinking response to the need for change and a cheap hook on which to hang short-term populist policy. Improving the cost of living, resource inequality and better public engagement in governance require evolution, not a nostalgic adherence to old policies. The increasing ‘undemocratic’ objections we see around us are signs of democratic evolution in progress by the only routes open and policy makers would do well to remember that all the principles of evolution apply remorselessly to us all.” Previous Next

< Back Minsterley Meadows success Janet Cobb 1 Dec 2024 Fundraiser saves nationally important Shropshire grassland Following a 10-month campaign by local people and nature conservationists, Middle Marches Community Land Trust and Marches Meadow Group are delighted to announce that Minsterley Meadows have been purchased. Thanks are due to The National Lottery Heritage Fund and players, 367 donors, Morris & Co and over 100 supporters and volunteers. The meadows are nationally important and are amongst the best flowery grasslands in Shropshire. They support over 5,000 green-winged orchids, a species which has severely declined over the last 100 years. Over 90% of Shropshire’s green-winged orchids are in these two hay meadows. In addition, funds have been secured for ongoing management of the meadows including supporting local people to care for them and engaging with young people through a local art project, activities and events as well as working closely with local schools. Peter Carty, Chair of Marches Meadow Group commented: “This is a fantastic achievement…such places are arks of wildlife from where we hope to collect seed and material to spread into new meadows” Geoff Rogers, Chair, Minsterley Parish Council adds: "The Parish of Minsterley greatly appreciates all those who have secured the purchase of Minsterley Meadows saving it for future generations.” Previous Next