The way that many residents in the Moorlands heat their homes and get their water hot is set to change significantly over the next decade - if national government plans are to be believed. New gas boiler sales will be banned from 2025, other energy sources such as heat pumps will be encouraged.That is just part of a dramatic shift in the way that we make and use energy over the next few decades. The National Grid already relies on renewables for over 50% of its output on some days and that proportion is only set to rise.
As part of this shift the government and power companies are expecting community-led organisations and individuals to start generating and storing their own power – whether from hydroelectric schemes, solar panels, wind turbines or even their electric vehicles sitting idle. But this change will be immensely complex, involving a whole range of different players. While the direction of travel is clear, the pace of the change and the precise route that journey will take remains painfully unclear.
On Sunday April 3rd Moorlands Climate Action will stage its first Energy Fair at the Foxlowe Arts Centre in Leek. The event, which is free to all, will bring together a number of people and organisations already involved in the first stages of the Great Energy Transition. “When it comes to information on the future of energy generation and use in the Moorlands, we are far closer to Ground Zero than Net Zero,” said Moorlands Climate Action’s Mark Johnson. “There are just far more questions than answers at the moment. We cannot provide all the answers – no-one can – but we can provide some and get the conversation going on the more difficult issues.”
He argued that some of the issues are already affecting people in the Moorlands – planning applications are now coming in for new solar farms and battery storage facilities, for example, yet residents, councillors and officers have almost no knowledge of how, why, and where these might be needed. “In the future, residents may have to upgrade electrical systems in their homes and streets will have to be dug up. This will save people money in the longer term, yet it will involve uncertainty and disruption.”
A range of experts from Staffordshire, Cheshire, Derbyshire, Yorkshire and beyond will be presenting and present at the Energy Fair. The day will be broken up into three main sessions: Community Energy Production, Personal Energy and Use and Home Insulation and Retrofit. “The question of energy efficiency is a crucial one,” said MCA’s Energy group coordinator, Nigel Williams. “With the coming brutal spike in people’s energy bills, it is going to be essential to get information out to people on simple, practical ways in which they can save energy – and money.”