Auto Amazon Links: No products found.
Six battery storage facilities, equivalent to 128 football pitches, are planned for Scotland’s Borders as part of the country’s renewable energy revolution. As the demand for renewable energy across Scotland increases, so too does the need for battery storage to be integrated into the grid. However, concerns have been raised over the impact on rural villages. The Berwickshire village of Leitholm is warning that “the heart is being ripped out of their community” as more than 200 acres of farmland are set to become concreted compounds within a three-kilometre radius of the village. The farmland is being turned over due to the expansion of Scottish Power Energy Networks (SPEN) electricity substations, due to the increase in energy generated by onshore and offshore windfarms.
Scottish Power Energy Networks has started creating and expanding electricity substations to meet the increasing demand for renewable energy generated by wind farms. The National Grid predicts that energy storage will need to increase by six-fold by the end of the decade. Battery storage facilities will store excess energy, and release it when there is less wind or during a higher demand. If the six proposed facilities near Leitholm are approved, more than 200 acres of farmland will be transformed into concreted compounds within a three-kilometre radius of the village.
Villagers firmly believe that Scotland’s renewable energy revolution is coming at a cost and it has been at the expense of their village. Retired nursery owner Seonaid Blackie expressed her fears while stating “This is not the place it used to be and people are worried sick.” Seonaid and her husband recently sold their family home, outside Leitholm, to secure their retirement but the buyers backed out on finding out about two battery storage facilities planned within a mile of their front door; since this was expected to adversely impact the value of the property. James Finnie, another resident, had to face the immense pressure of a 40% reduction in the sale value of his home due to the proposed battery storage site being planned directly behind his home.
The Berwickshire village has a population of 300 residents and community council Chairman Bob Hope warns that “every part of Scotland could be affected” by such developments. Industry experts believe that energy storage plays a vital role in Scotland reaching its net-zero targets, but highlight that they should not be at the expense of environmental concerns. Prof John Irvine from St Andrew’s University believes that there needs to be a balance: “Having food production and carbon capture are also very important – there needs to be a balance…controls need to be in place to make sure you have enough energy storage, but also to make sure that you don’t have too much.”
what-is-image-caption
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
Auto Amazon Links: No products found.