Planning for Renewable Energy in Worcestershire Research Paper

APPENDIX A ● Planning for Renewable Energy in WorcestershireSolar Hot WaterSolar water heating is a proventechnology, whereby the sun's energy isused to supplement the hot water in abuilding. The technical requirements forsolar hot water (SHW) are minimal. Asuitable, broadly south-facing surface isrequired on which to mount the collectorsystem, and a separate hot water tank isneeded, which may be difficult toaccommodate. This effectively excludesmost flats from using the technology.There are no noise or vibrationimplications of SHW, apart from thoseassociated with installation andmaintenance. Visually, SHW involves alarge black area of collector plates (eitherflat-plate, or the more efficient - and moreexpensive - evacuated tubes). Thesurface area can vary, but typicalinstallations are in the order of 3-5m2,with a relatively shallow depth. Typicalsystems should allow households to save1,000-2,000kWh of energy per year 37 .Typical costs are £1800 - £2700 perstandard domestic system; and £700 persquare metre for commercial systems.Solar PhotovoltaicSolar photovoltaic (PV) panels sharemany of the characteristics of solar hotwater panels. Again, a south-facing(preferably sloping) surface, such as aroof, is needed. In appearance, bothrequire a large surface area of blackpanels, although PV plates are nowavailable in a variety of sizes, and can bemade into roof tiles. PV panels are also ofshallower depth than those used forSHW, as the technology does not requirecirculation space for water/liquid. Themain drawbacks of PV as a renewabletechnology are that the panels produce arelatively low amount of electrical energy,and the costs, although falling, remainhigh. According to the Energy SavingTrust, a typical domestic PV system of1kWp may be 10m2, and generate800kWh of energy. Installed costs may bein the region of £4,000-6,000, which is asubstantial sum for the averagehouseholder; indeed, the House of Lordsreport Renewable Energy: Practicalities' 38 ,states that "…without a major reduction inunit cost they are unlikely to contributesignificantly to the United Kingdom'selectricity needs". In the non-domesticsector, it has been suggested that solarpanels may be a viable alternative to'prestige' claddings on office buildings.Whilst this design solution may well beacceptable, its scope is likely to beextremely limited in Worcestershire.Data suggests that irradiation in theCounty is good 39 , with average productionof 2.4kWh per day for a 1kW systemlocated in Worcester city. Irradiation levelsat other towns in the County are providedat Appendix F.The domestic cost for PV isapproximately £5000 per kW for roofmounted,with a higher cost for roofintegrated.Non-domestic costs areapproximately £4000 per kW forroof-mounted, again with higher costs forbuilding-integrated.373839Renewable Energy Sources in Rural Environments,The Energy Saving Trust (March 2004)Renewable Energy: Practicalities, House of LordsScience and Technology Committee, July 2004European Commission Joint Research Centre, 2007,data available at: http://re.jrc.ec.europa.eu/pvgis/apps/pvest.php?lang=en&map=europe40Technical Research Paper