Energy News

Green energy devices could become easier to install

Tuesday 10 April, 2007

Being environmentally friendly might become easier if proposals announced by Ruth Kelly on Wednesday are approved.

Kelly, the Communities secretary, has suggested that energy production devices should not need planning permission to be installed, and commented that the planning system “should support efforts to tackle climate change rather than acting as a barrier.”

The proposed new rules would maintain the rights of local authorities to restrict permission in cases where there is a large impact on neighbouring homes.

Kelly’s proposals cover every type of home energy production: including solar panels, wind turbines and biomass. According to the consultation paper, over 100,000 such devices are already installed in the UK, but new laws could increase this number eight-fold.

The Government has acknowledged that, although environmental concerns are at the root of these proposals, householders are increasingly interested in cutting their energy bills by using measures such as solar panels. A south-facing panel can cut a household’s electricity bill in half.

Stores such as B&Q are now selling panels and turbines, but the current laws mean that planning applications get in the way of their installation, sometimes taking months to process.

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