14.1 Uninterrupted and affordable energy supplies are essential to any sustainable city. If there is any uncertainty over the availability of adequate energy generation then it may affect the scale of investment that can be attracted to Salford. The cost of energy supplies is important not just in terms of the overall economic effect but also because of its impact on social inclusion and fuel poverty.
14.2 Energy generation and use will have an enormous influence on the ability to significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions and therefore minimise the city’s contribution to climate change. It also has the potential to have adverse impacts on local air quality if not properly controlled. Energy therefore cuts across a wide range of economic, social and environmental issues.
14.3 The Government’s proposed Fifth Carbon Budget would result in annual emissions of greenhouse gases by 2032 being, on average, 57% lower than they were in 1990. This carbon budget is based on an analysis of the most cost-effective path for the UK to achieve the goal set out in the Climate Change Act of reducing its emissions by at least 80 per cent by 2050 compared with 1990.
14.4 At the sub-regional level, Greater Manchester published its climate change strategy in 2011, setting out how it will build a greener, more sustainable region. This sets a target to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 48% compared to 1990 levels by 2020.
14.5 In order for Salford to contribute to meeting these targets it is vital that the Local Plan supports an increase in the sustainability of the supply and use of energy. Minimising energy use in new developments, both in the form of new builds and retrofit of existing building stock, will be a particularly important part of this, and will have a direct economic benefit in terms of significantly lowering the running costs of new and existing buildings as well as helping to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
14.6 Taking advantage of opportunities for renewable energy generation and the use of low carbon technologies, including the provision of decentralised low carbon energy networks, can make a significant contribution to the diversity and security of Salford’s energy supplies, as well as supporting the achievement of targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It is vital that where opportunities exist, the environmental, together with social and economic benefits, are secured.
14.7 Increasingly, the competitiveness of cities will be heavily influenced by the quality and capacity of their digital infrastructure, such as high speed broadband and the latest generation of mobile phone and wireless technology. Salford’s long-term success, and its ability to secure investment and attract modern businesses, will in part rely on constantly improving its digital connectivity, enabling it to respond to opportunities such as the ‘internet of things’ (the networking of a wide range of devices, buildings and other items) and ‘smart cities’ (integrating technology to manage assets and provide data). Access to high quality digital infrastructure, and having the skills to utilise it, will also be a vital component of social inclusion, enabling everyone to take up employment, education and social opportunities, as well to access the full range of services that are increasingly provided online.
14.8 Salford is already well-positioned from an economic perspective, with MediaCityUK at Salford Quays recognised as an international centre of digital creativity, with a range of digital-based businesses as well as the The Landing digital enterprise hub. It will be important for future economic growth and job creation to further enhance this position.
All developments should accord with the following energy hierarchy (in order of preference):
1) Minimise energy demand
2) Increase energy efficiency
3) Utilise renewable energy
4) Utilise low carbon energy
5) Utilise other energy sources
The retrofitting of existing buildings with energy efficiency measures will be encouraged, particularly where this would reduce fuel poverty.
The development of renewable and low carbon energy schemes will be supported where they are appropriately located and designed. The diagram below shows the locations that are likely to have the greatest potential for such schemes, but developments across the whole city should be capable of incorporating some sustainable energy measures.
Within district heat network development areas, where there is an existing or proposed district heat network, development should connect into the heat network, or be designed to do so, unless it can be demonstrated that there are more effective alternatives for minimising carbon emissions or such connection is impracticable or financially unviable.
Development and energy proposals that would generate significant surplus or waste heat should take all practicable measures to utilise that heat to meet local energy needs.
Temporary energy generation facilities must provide full details of the arrangements for decommissioning and the reinstatement/restoration of the site.
Reasoned justification
14.9 Carbon emissions should be reduced as far as practicable and following the energy hierarchy is an important part of this. The priority is for carbon emission reductions to be delivered through improvements to the energy efficiency of building fabric and ensuring that carbon emission reductions are ‘future proofed’ for the life of the development.
14.10 Renewable and low carbon energy schemes are also a significant component in making Salford a more sustainable city. This is in terms of reducing the city’s contribution to climate change, improving the security of its energy supply together with cost savings to users and contributing to the alleviation of fuel poverty. They also contribute to the achievement of targets for sustainable energy generation. A positive approach will therefore be taken to renewable and low carbon energy schemes, having regard to the wide range of potential benefits they may offer.
14.11 The opportunities in Salford for major renewable energy schemes are significant. However the constraints of the city must be recognised, including existing transport infrastructure, geography/topography and the large amount of Grade 1 and 2 agricultural land, along with underlying technical issues such as relatively low wind speeds in some areas.
14.12 The main renewable and low carbon energy opportunities are identified on the sustainable energy opportunities map. This excludes wind, which is covered separately by Policy EG2 with designation of opportunity sites as shown on the Policies Map. Applicants will be required to carry out further investigations to determine the appropriateness of individual proposals, but it will be important to take advantage of these as far as possible where this does not lead to unacceptable adverse impacts. The type of impacts will vary depending on the technology being used, but the need to protect residential amenity is likely to be a common issue for most scheme types. Other considerations include impact on the local environment or wider landscape, harm to sites of nature conservation or biodiversity value, impact on heritage assets, and interference with telecommunications and aviation equipment.
14.13 District heating network development areas have significant potential to support the commercial development of district heating and cooling networks. This is given the existing and future opportunities for delivery of high density new build residential and commercial schemes within the east of the city. The areas identified are based on the proposed scale and distribution of new development in the Local Plan. The Greater Manchester energy master plan(18) and Salford based feasibility study(19) have also informed the identification of suitable locations, considering the existing energy use of buildings for space and water heating(20) and potential anchor loads(21). The requirement for connection to existing or planned decentralised energy networks, applies to new build or retrofit schemes comprising ten or more dwellings, or in the case of non-residential schemes floorspace of 1000sqm or more.
14.14 It is possible that there may be renewable and low carbon energy potential outside the areas identified and such opportunities are in no way precluded by this policy. This is apart for wind turbine development, which is restricted to the areas identified on the proposals, subject to further assessment by applicants. The suitability, feasibility and viability of renewable and low carbon energy schemes is expected to change over the Local Plan period as technological advances are made and the regulatory environment evolves. The sustainable energy opportunities map cannot therefore be seen as definitive or restrictive, but it should be used as a starting point for the development of proposals and the consideration of opportunities for individual developments to move up the energy hierarchy.
Please see Figure 10 Sustainable Energy Opportunities Diagram available in downloadable documents.
References:
(18) Ramboll. Heat Network Masterplan for Greater Manchester (March 2014).
(19) Salford City Council. The Greater Manchester Heat Network Programme. MediaCityUK Heat Network Programme. MediaCityUK Heat Network Expansion Feasibility Study – ARUP (March 2016)
(20) Using electricity and gas use statistics published by the Department for Energy and Climate Change
(21) Based on uses that are likely to have a reasonably even demand for heating and cooling over the course of a day and year, such as swimming pools, leisure centres, hotels, hospitals, universities, police stations, fire stations, prisons, museums, art galleries and gateway centres.
Proposals for wind energy development will only be supported where the proposal lies within an area identified as suitable for wind energy development as shown on figure 11.
Reasoned justification
14.15 Wind turbine opportunity areas have been identified by applying physical, environmental, technical and policy constraints. The combination of a large urban area, the sensitivity of the Chat Moss landscape, the potential impact on tourism, recreation and heritage, and the minimum wind speeds required for commercial wind turbines means that only small parts of Salford located around the M60 motorway are considered suitable for wind energy developments. Not all parts of the opportunity areas will be appropriate for all types of wind turbine. Suitability will depend on the height and design of the turbine and the requirement to leave an appropriate distance between the turbine, residential properties and transport infrastructure, which will vary according to the overall height of the turbine.
14.16 The wind turbine opportunity areas identified on the diagram are most likely to be suitable for small wind turbines (in the range of 23-25 metres in height with a 16-17 metre blade). There may be limited opportunities for medium scale wind turbines in these parts of this city (such as structures with a 50 metre tower and 28 metre blades).
14.17 All proposals must include appropriately detailed technical impact assessments following industry best practice and clearly demonstrate that impacts are within acceptable thresholds. Proposals for wind energy development will only be supported in these areas where there are no unacceptable effects on, amongst other things: residential amenity; landscape character; recreation use of a site; heritage assets; archaeology; biodiversity; best and most versatile agricultural land; ground water; highway and air traffic safety; and radar and telecommunications.
Please see Figure 11 Wind Turbine Opportunities Diagram available in the downloadable documents section.
The rollout and continued improvement of affordable, ultrafast, high capacity digital infrastructure serving all parts of the city will be supported. It will be particularly important to ensure that the City Centre and Salford Quays have the highest quality digital infrastructure to strengthen their role in driving forward economic growth across the city and Greater Manchester.
New development should enable the enhancement of Salford’s digital infrastructure where possible. Adverse impacts on the successful functioning of existing digital infrastructure should be avoided, and, where this is not practicable, appropriate mitigation should be provided.
Reasoned justification
14.18 Digital technology will continue to develop rapidly throughout the plan period, and it will be essential for Salford’s attractiveness as a place to live, work and visit that it is able to respond to this opportunity. This will require continued investment in new and improved digital infrastructure, in the short-term focusing on investments such as the rollout of highspeed broadband but in the longer term seeking to realise the potential of further advancements and the ability of businesses, residents and tourists across the city to take advantage of them. This will be essential not only for economic growth but also for social inclusion, enabling all residents to fully participate in society.
14.19 As well as supporting new infrastructure provision, it will also be important to protect the successful functioning of existing digital infrastructure, including the ability of residents to access strong and unbroken television reception. New development should make provision for appropriate mitigation where adverse impacts cannot be avoided. Proposals for telecommunications development should minimise the need for new masts, protect public health and undertake appropriate pre-application consultation in accordance with national policy.
Monitoring
The main indicators that will be used to monitor this chapter are:
| Indicator | Target |
| Per capita carbon dioxide emissions | Significant reduction (2015-35) |
| Total renewable energy generating capacity | Significant increase (2035) |
| Total heat generating capacity of district heating networks | Significant increase (2015-35) |
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