How Lancashire and Cumbria are leading the way in renewable energy
Do you live or work in Harrison Drury’s heartland of Lancashire or Cumbria? New research has shown that these two counties are way ahead of other regions when it comes to generating renewable energy.
The study, published by environmental and renewable energy think tank Green Alliance, includes a county-to-county comparison of each county’s production of, and capacity for, renewable energy. It found that Lancashire and Cumbria are battling for first place having generated energy with impressive levels of onshore wind and biomass.
Sun shines on the North
Despite having a reputation for its damp and drizzly weather, the study shows that the North West’s most northerly counties are actually sunnier than you might think. With this comes a surge in solar panels now appearing on more than 60,000 of the region’s residential homes, almost 24,000 of which are in Greater Manchester alone.
As for top spot for renewable energy within the region? That honour goes to Allerdale where a staggering 87% of its electricity consumption comes from renewable sources.
A majority of this comes from onshore wind, but is now being supplemented by additional power from biomass and waste, which just goes to show that any region can employ a variety of sources when it commits to renewable methods.
Progress and the future
The renewable energy trend showcased by Allerdale is a representation of the strides forward that the region has made. Offshore wind is by far the msot dominant source across the North West, currently boasting more than a gigawatt of up and running offshore wind capacity. To put that into context, that is the level of capacity required to power one million households.
The region is also starting to look at more creative projects – Halton Lune Hydro have raised £1.4m from local investors to build an innovative hydro scheme on the river Lune that now supplies 300 homes.
When you combine all of these sources, renewable energy now providse 19% of Lancashire and Cumbria’s electricity consumption, placing the region fourth nationally, below Yorkshire and the Humber, Wales and the East of England.
If you’re a resident in the North West and have experienced the recent advancements in the region’s renewable energy sources, we’d be interested to hear your views. Please share in the comments section below.
Harrison Drury have a team of experienced energy solicitors based all over the North West, ranging from our head office in Preston, to Lancashire, Garstang, Kendal and most recently Clitheroe.
You can get in touch with an energy lawyer at our head office by calling 01772 258321 and asking for Katie Kozlowska, or emailing Katie.Kozlowska@harrison-drury.com.
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