Planning Policy Statement – Planning for a Sustainable Future

Planning for a sustainable future is in the process of being implemented throughout the country. The PPS will soon introduce a requirement for 10% renewables to be included in new developments.

This requirement was started by the London Borough of Merton who developed the scheme through work on Local Agenda 21. Their Environmental Action Plan had an objective to reduce energy use and promote the use of renewable energy. In 2003 Merton adopted these principles within their Development Plan and new applications were expected to incorporate renewable energy systems into the development. It then became a condition for development of the land. Despite some initial resistance it was soon accepted and seen to be a success. As all new development was working to the same planning standards, a level playing field was created and no developer felt disadvantaged by the requirement.

The Government were impressed by the results in Merton and encouraged all Local Authorities to follow suit, and this has been strengthened with the release of a consultation document, soon to be released as a PPS. Within the revised PPS all Local Authorities will be expected to introduce their own “Merton Rule” within their Development Plans. In advance of the publication of the revised PPS many Local Authorities are introducing the 10% renewable rule as their development plans come up for renewal.

The new PPS requires substantial developments to generate 10% of their energy demand from on site renewable sources. The type of renewable system used will vary for different types of buildings as Solar Thermal can work well for residential developments but would not provide sufficient energy for offices where ground source heat pumps may be more suitable. The type of system will often be determined by SAP/SBEM calculations that are required by Part L of the Building Regulations. These calculations provide the energy mix of the building and the total energy load. Once these figures are calculated the most appropriate renewable system can be chosen to calculate the 10%. One word of warning,
it would be sensible to reduce the buildings energy load to a minimum, as 10% of 100kwh equates to a more expensive renewable option than 10% of 50kwh.