'Trailblazing' plan will radically change the way we live in Cornwall

A new action plan, which will radically change the way the people of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly live, has been dubbed "trailblazing".

Cornwall Council and the Council of the Isles of Scilly have launched the creation of a Local Area Energy Plan (LAEP) which will be developed with residents and businesses across the region and will look at how energy is used, supplied, and managed.

Residents are being asked to help shape ambitious new plans to decarbonise the region's energy systems in order to help Cornwall and Scilly reach net zero and work towards energy security. It will identify and recommend changes to local heating, electricity, gas, and transport and play a major role in helping the region become carbon neutral.

As well as examining the type of technologies and fuels needed, the LAEP will propose required alterations and additions to existing energy infrastructure and make recommendations to help secure affordable energy supplies for the future, through the likes of offshore wind and geothermal supplies.

Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly are the first UK rural and island region to carry out a Local Area Energy Plan. It will build on the region's track record in renewable energy innovation and ambitions to build new green industries, such as floating offshore wind and deep geothermal energy.

Martyn Alvey, Cabinet member for environment and climate change at Cornwall Council, said: "We are trailblazing here as a rural and island area, as this would be a lot easier to do if you're in the middle of Manchester rather than somewhere like Cornwall." He said public participation in the plan was crucial in changing the way energy is used and sourced in the region.

Residents, businesses, and other energy users will have the chance to play a key role in developing the project through a range of engagement activities including the setting up of a panel made up of 50 Cornwall and Scilly residents. It will meet to debate and recommend solutions for decarbonising the region's energy systems and ensure the LAEP suits residents' future energy needs.

There will also be community roadshows and youth-focused engagement sessions, as well as a variety of events designed for the region's businesses that will allow attendees to learn more, ask questions, and understand how they can get involved.

Does this mean radical change for people in the region?

Mark Holmes, head of environmental partnerships and climate change at Cornwall Council, said: "We know there is going to be a huge amount of change required but this plan will allow people to have an opinion on the types of technologies and what things will and won't be supported. We can then provide that intelligence for individuals and organisations when they start to take action.

"The outcome will inform some of the scale of change that is required. It won't be to the extreme of saying 'you can't do this and you can't do that'. We know there are national commitments around stopping the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles, for example, which is going to necessitate some change. This will help inform those changes."

He added: "We know we need to increase our energy security and the ability to generate our own energy locally, so there are unique opportunities such as floating offshore wind and geothermal. The big thing for us is that National Grid as our network operator will use this local evidence to inform their investment and business plan for such things as heat pumps, renewable energy sources or EV charge points which are required to help communities not just decarbonise but be sustainable in the longer term."

Laurence Oakes-Ash is CEO of City Science which will deliver the LAEP, alongside Copper Consultancy in Bristol, the University of Exeter's Penryn campus and business engagement company Mylor Ventures. He said: "This is definitely the most ambitious local energy plan [in the country] and is innovative in a number of different ways. It's one of the first to focus on a predominantly rural environment. The way we are engaging with residents and businesses is also innovative."

Harry Legg, lead member for environment services and climate change at the Council of the Isles of Scilly, added: "Nowhere in Britain is more exposed to the impacts of climate change than the Isles of Scilly, so we are well aware of just how important our transition to a net zero future is. We're fully committed to working with our partners at Cornwall Council to ensure this plan works for our unique home, and look forward to engaging with islanders beginning in July.

"We have a lot of people on the islands who want to see change and are asking 'why aren't the council doing things?' We are and have been behind the scenes and getting to this point of now seeing not only this but a local nature recovery strategy consultation looking at the natural world, and a resilient islands strategy."

Cllr Alvey said of the LAEP: "This is very much tailored to the needs of Cornwall and Scilly and our particular challenges but also our opportunities such as offshore wind and deep geothermal, perhaps a completely different way of heating our homes to the traditional gas and oil that people use down here. The Langarth development outside Truro will be the first deep geothermal powered heat network in the country, for example."

He said there would be a cost element to not just the council but "everybody" particularly as gas boilers become redundant, but added that had to be considered against the "cost of doing nothing".

Mr Oakes-Ash said one of the main points of the energy plan was making any energy transference as low cost as possible for households and mitigating the impact on those most affected. Mr Holmes added there would be the opportunities for businesses in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly to invest in the new technologies, as well as funding opportunities such as government aid to retrofit buildings and other necessary schemes.

A survey was published yesterday to hear residents' views on energy in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly at Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Area Energy Plan | Let's Talk Cornwall

Following the year-long engagement, the LAEP will identify the most cost-effective way of delivering net zero for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly while boosting the green economy and attracting funding. The £500,000 project has been funded by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero through the South West Net Zero Hub.

Cornwall Council declared a climate emergency in 2019 and has since worked to develop a climate change action plan, a nature recover strategy and further declared an ecological emergency in a bid to tackle the decline in wildlife and nature. The LAEP would sit alongside these strategies as part of the council's wider plans for a carbon neutral future.

The Council of the Isles of Scilly similarly declared a climate emergency in 2019 following the Five Island's Academy 'Strike for Climate' petition. Since then, the council has adopted a Climate Change Action Plan which sets out how it will work with local, and national partners, to support and inform plans for renewable energy initiatives across the islands.

Further information on getting involved in the LAEP will be announced in the coming weeks. For more information and to register for news and updates on the plan, go to Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Local Area Energy Plan | Let's Talk Cornwall