Micro-hydro power in the UK: The role of communities in an emerging energy resource

Abstract

Further information on publisher's website:http://dx.doi.org/10. 1016/j.enpol.2013.12.046 Publisher's copyright statement: NOTICE: this is the author's version of a work that was accepted for publication in Energy policy. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be re ected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A de nitive version was subsequently published in Energy policy, 68, 2014, 10.1016/j.enpol.2013.12.046 Additional information: Use policyThe full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-pro t purposes provided that:• a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in DRO • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders.Please consult the full DRO policy for further details. Department of Geography, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3TE AbstractResearch around micro-hydro power is focused on technical aspects with limited understanding of the social organisation and environmental implications. We examine the ways in which microhydro is engaged by people and organisations as a means of contributing to the UK's policy ambition for renewable energy. We bring to the fore the way in which expertise is used and contested. A web based review of micro-hydro schemes in the UK was undertaken and a detailed evaluation of two schemes in the North of England was conducted to determine how expertise and contestation figures in community schemes. Results demonstrate a rapid expansion of micro-hydro in the UK. Ownership/control is highly 'community based'. Until now research around micro-hydro has been dominated by technical approaches with schemes defined in terms of hardware. We propose a third dimension to Walker and Cass's (2007) classification of renewable energy developments: the environmental dimension. We suggest this dimension of micro-hydro is critical, both in terms of the extent to which resources can be realised but also the ways in which it might attract controversy, in particular around how expertise is used and valued.

Identification of Potential Locations for Run-of-River Hydropower Plants Using a GIS-Based Procedure

“…This percentage represents the 14% of the renewable electricity generated in the country. According to a study that was carried out by Bracken et al [5], hydropower projects that have been realized in the UK are, in most of the cases, for small scale energy production (less than 100,000 kWh/yea r). In the last years, the number of micro-hydro plants (up to 5 MW installed capacity) increased due to the high efficiency and low costs, mainly in rural areas and small communities [6].…”

“…As regards the cost of installation, Paish [1] found that, for small plants up to 500 kW, the costs could vary in a wide range, due to the characteristics of the site; nevertheless, using local expertise and technologies can minimize these costs. Bracken et al [5] stated that, probably, more than other community-based renewable resources, the costs of small hydropower plants tend to be very dependent on local conditions.…”

Bürgerenergie in Deutschland

“…Kritisch, reflexiv und erkundend werden immer wieder Fragen nach Beiträgen der Sozialwissenschaften zur Energieforschung thematisiert (Shippee 1981, Rochlin 2014, Ryan/Hebdon/Dafoe 2014, was oft auch eine Forderung der Integration der Sozialwissenschaften in die Energieforschung miteinschließt . Weitere Beispiele für das Zusammenwirken von sozialen und ökologisch-naturwissenschaftlichen Einflussfaktoren finden sich im Kontext von mariner Energienutzung (Bonar/ Bryden/Borthwick 2015) oder hinsichtlich der Bedeutung von Communities im Wasserkraft-Sektor (Bracken/Bulkeley/Maynard 2014) . 2015, Trachtenberg 2015a, dekonstruktivistische Perspektiven hinsichtlich der Entzauberung von Energie-Fakten entwickelt (Sovacool/Brown 2015) sowie Verbindungen der Sozialwissenschaften zur Energiepolitik hergestellt (Stirling 2014) .…”

Competent Enough to Be Heard? Technicians’ Expectations about Local Stakeholders in Participative Processes

“…that it is costly, that loss of control may occur, Irvin and Stansbury, ) or about the communities themselves (e.g. lack of knowledge) tend to reduce community involvement to a one‐way delivery of information (Thomas, ) and thus increase the importance of technical approaches, ignoring social and community input (Bracken, Bulkeley, & Maynard, ). Given the asymmetry of power between the two parties involved, it is extremely important to understand experts’ barriers to community engagement.…”