Sustainable Energy in Development

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• Setting new standards for energy efficiency and renewable energy in development
• How to submit your energy statement
• Submitting your energy statement online
• The Golden Rules for energy efficiency and renewable energy
• Further information

Setting new standards for energy efficiency and renewable energy in development

Woking Borough Council has taken a strong lead on tackling the causes of climate change, and has led the way in developing sustainable energy.

Our Climate Change Strategy commits the Council to setting the highest standards for new development and Woking is actively promoting Climate Neutral Development. The Surrey Structure Plan (adopted 2004) requires all new development to achieve high standards of energy efficiency, on site generation of renewable energy and wherever appropriate, use of low carbon energy generation.

The key requirements of Policy SE2 are:

• All types of development should incorporate energy efficiency best practice measures in their design, layout and orientation
• At least 10% of the energy that will be required by all commercial and residential development must be generated from renewable sources on site
• On larger developments (over 5,000 sq.m floorspace) combined heat and power (CHP) should be provided

Woking Borough Council expects proposals for all new development to comply with these policy requirements.

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How to submit your energy statement

Planning applicants need to follow six steps to demonstrate how their development proposals meet the requirements for sustainable energy. We strongly recommend that applicants consider how they are going to meet these requirements before making a planning application:

1. Calculate the baseline energy consumption. This is the energy (electrical and heating) that would be consumed by the development when occupied over the course of a year, if the development was built to current Building Regulations minimum requirements. There are a number of tools that can be used to calculate the baseline. These include the National Home Energy Rating Scheme (NHER) for residential development and Energy Consumption Guide ECON 19 for commercial development.
2. Describe the measures that are proposed to achieve 'best practice' design for energy efficiency. Best practice standards are defined by the Energy Saving Trust's Energy Efficiency Best Practice in Housing (EEBPH). This equates to approximately 25% improvement over Part L 2006 Building Regs.
3. Calculate the 'actual' predicted energy consumption. This is the predicted energy consumption of the entire development, taking into account additional energy efficiency measures to achieve best practice in design (measured in KWh/yr for the entire development). Figures shold be provided for the annual predicted energy demand for each of the following: heating (and where proposed, cooling), hot water, lighting and electrical appliances.  Energy figures should be expressed in KWh/year (Kilo Watt hours per year).
4. Calculate the amount of renewable energy to be generated. This will need to be at least 10% of the actual predicted energy consumption.
5. Decide what measures will be used to generate the renewable energy. You will need to carefully consider the options (solar hot water, solar electricity, biomass boilers, wind turbines, heat pumps), and demonstrate the viability of the chosen solution. Viability considerations include solar orientation, solar and wind resource, supplies of fuel (for biomass), visual impact and installation and running costs. Note: it is likely that there will be a net capital cost implication and occupiers will benefit from reduced energy costs, viability should not be assessed on whether the capital costs can be recovered through reduced energy bills.
6. Consider whether the remaining demand can be met by use of Combined Heat and Power (CHP). CHP can make a significant reduction in carbon dioxide emissions through more efficient use of energy.  A number of factors will determine whether CHP will be appropriate in a development.  These include size of scheme, mix of electrical and heat energy demand and patterns of energy demand (i.e. peaks and troughs throughout the day, week and year).  In some locations in the Borough, CHP energy is readily available through existing infrastrcture and you should consider whether your development can connect to it.  Alternatively, it may be more appropriate to install CHP on site.

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Submitting your energy statement online

Go to C-Plan to submit your energy statement in support of a planning application.

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The Golden Rules for energy efficiency and renewable energy

Follow the seven golden rules to successfully integrate sustainable energy in new development:

• Start to plan at the outset how you will address these requirements. Factors such as site layout, building design and orientation all impact on energy efficiency and generating renewable energy. If these are addressed early on, there will be a wider range of options that are viable and the solution is likely to be more cost effective.
• Aim to achieve the highest possible standards of energy efficiency. The greater the energy efficiency, the lower the energy consumption. This will reduce the target level of renewable energy that will need to be generated within the development.
• Think carefully about how energy will be consumed. For example, a development of one and two-bed apartments will have a very different pattern of hot water consumption than a sheltered housing development, and solar hot water heating may not be the most effective means of generating renewable energy in both cases. This is because the quantity of energy generated by a solar hot water panel may fall short of the amount claimed by its suppliers if the occupiers of a development do not consume hot water at a rate equivalent to its production.
• One size does not fit all. Just as with many other aspects of Planning, every development will bring its own circumstances. For example, the solar resource (amount of sunlight available to generate renewable energy) will differ from site to site depending on overshadowing by other buildings and trees.
• Seek advice from energy experts. Modelling the energy consumption of a development and designing to achieve high energy efficiency and integrated renewable energy generation requires particular skills. Early involvement of the right expertise can help to achieve a successful solution and avoid delays during Planning. Advice for house builders is provided by the Energy Saving Trust and for commercial development by the Carbon Trust.
• An energy efficient development is not a 'niche' development. Whilst some examples of energy efficient development are conspicuous by their leading edge design, very high standards can be achieved in more 'conventional-looking' developments. Energy efficiency and renewable energy generation does not need to be at the expense of quality architecture. Many measures (such as wide cavities, insulation, ground source heat pumps) have no visual impact. New products such as solar tiles are also becoming available that have very low visual impact.
• Do not always assume energy efficiency and renewable energy are very costly. Not all energy efficiency measures carry a net cost. For example, designing to capture passive solar energy. The growth in the market for high specification materials and micro renewable energy and higher volumes of production means increasingly competetive prices. In addition, as energy prices rise and environmental awareness increases, consumer demand for energy efficient homes can be reflected in the marketing of new development. Grants and other finacial incentives (such as enhanced capital allowances) can also reduce the net cost.

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Further information