The results are in, and people in the Stroud District have voted overwhelmingly for a future powered by wind.

The vote ran for a total of nine weeks and with nearly 1,000 votes cast, 89.9% of votes cast answered ‘yes’ to the question, “Should we make 50% of Stroud’s electricity from local wind energy?”.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to give us their view, either online or by post.

5050 has given a voice to the silent majority in favour of powering Stroud with wind. The vote was intended to kick-start the debate about our energy future in the Stroud District and demonstrate to the Council what people in the area really think.

The need for us to harness renewable energy in the UK is clear and compelling. Firstly we have the looming global energy crisis – the world is running out of fossil fuels, our own North Sea is all but depleted, and we rely on increasingly unstable parts of the world for our energy. Secondly we can’t afford to burn fossil fuels anymore, it’s the biggest single cause of Climate Change in the UK – and that threatens our ability to live on this planet.

Ecotricity’s first ever turbine was built right here. Thirteen years have gone by since then and it’s still the only turbine in the District – in the County in fact. We all need to be taking more action, and more quickly, the climate won’t wait. Climate change and energy security are such pressing issues, much more has to be done to enable wind energy in all parts of the country.

The survey results echo our experiences in other parts of the country, where there is ‘massive but passive’ support for our wind farm plans. Opinion polls consistently tell the same story – generally upwards of 80 per cent of people in every opinion poll survey ever undertaken in the UK support wind energy, including in their own backyard. The Stroud 5050 campaign has proved that Stroud District is no exception, and the public will is there to make a change.

We’re really chuffed with the result, but we also know this isn’t the end of the road. It’s an important step to making sure that the voice of the silent majority gets properly heard in Stroud. These are our thoughts, we’d love to hear yours…

Sources of information:
HMGovernment.
The UK Low carbon Transition Plan – National strategy for climate and energy July 2009

HMGovernment.
UK Renewable Energy Strategy July 2009

Generation Targets for 2020.
Submitted by: Centre for Sustainable Energy, Peter Capener, Wardell Armstrong International June 2005

Survey of renewable electricity and heat projects in South West England
regensw June 2009

Jargon:
Installed GW – this is the capacity of the installed renewable energy.
GW – Gigawatt. 1 Gigawatt = 1,000 Megawatts
Biomass + W + AD – Biomass, Wood & Anaerobic digestion.
AONB – Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty

It will come as no surprise to most people that our county (Glos) is way off the mark, as far as hitting its 2010 targets. This also would imply that if every county were as bad at meeting targets as we are, the nation will also fail to meet its obligations… and if every country did the same, then the world will fail also. Act locally, think globally as they say.

Stroud5050 is a campaign that recognises the value of ‘glocal‘ thinking and action. Every county across the UK needs to find suitable sites for renewable energy projects, and there are a lot of considerations. Choosing a site to build on is not a simple process though… there are a number of factors that have to be thought through before even applying for planning permission is considered, including:

• Is the average wind speed sufficient?
• Is the site in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty?
• Is the site designated as being nationally or internationally important for wildlife?
• Housing density?
• Will there be an objection from civil aviation or MOD radar operator?
• Is there a risk of interference with fixed radio/phone links?
• Is there nearby connection to the national grid?
• What is access by road like – good or poor? Can we actually get turbines onto the site?

Here’s how we overlaid all these factors onto Stroud District to identify the potential sites for a new wind park (based on current data and constraints).

As you can see – there really wasn’t much in the way of choices, and it certainly isn’t an arbitrary process.

We hope these slides show how and why Berkeley Vale site was chosen. And we hope you will also understand the urgency of wind development in Gloucestershire – to deliver our county’s share of the national and global CO2 reduction targets we all are responsible for.

We are totally committed to doing our part towards achieving Gloucestershire’s renewable energy target for 2010, 2020 and beyond – we need you to do yours, too.

The tone of much of the conversation has sunk well below what we’d deem acceptable. Apart from using unfounded and unsubstantiated ‘facts’, many have decided to resort to personal attacks. This is not conducive to grown up discussion, which is, after all, the reason we have any commenting system at all.

This website is about climate change, it’s about local solutions, it’s about the future and finding out what the people of Stroud REALLY want.

In future all comments not adhering to the comment guidelines will not be published. What we need is an informed debate, one backed up with reason. Not plain old tit-for-tat mud-slinging.

We have decided to ‘flip’ the order of this blog over. So that new content doesn’t get lost and we can bring other voices and arguments into the debate that need to be heard. We have some exciting posts coming up from leading voices in the region which we’ll post in the next few days.

In the meantime we’re looking into the issue of the missing postal coupons. We have used a company we had good faith in. We’re going through the votes we’ve had in to see where the gaps are in responses – anyone out there who didn’t receive a postal vote, can you just email team@stroud5050.org with your post code so we can look into it in more detail?

The bottom line is this IS about the planet where we all have to live. This is our planet and everywhere is our back yard.

Stroud goes to Copenhagen

5050 is a unique opportunity for Stroud District. The UK is increasingly dependent on Russian gas and oil from the Middle East; hardly ideal for energy security. On top of that we are now at a crucial point in the fight against climate change. After nearly 20 years of endless conferences, discussions, and empty promises to cut emissions we have finally run out of time. This December when the world meets in Copenhagen it will be our last chance to agree an effective global deal. It has to be now because we won’t get another shot.

Isabelle Ellis-Cockcroft

My name is Isabelle Ellis-Cockcroft and I’m from Stroud. I am one of 23 young people travelling to the Copenhagen Climate Conference 2009 this December as part of the UK Youth Delegation, on behalf of the UK Youth Climate Coalition.

Being on the delegation is a big commitment. So why am I prepared to put so much of my time and energy into this? Because climate change isn’t about polar bears, it’s about everyone I know and care for; my friends, my family and our future. As a young person I cannot escape climate change. I can choose to bury my head in the sand and ignore the terrifying world I will have to face later. Or I can stand up and be counted. I can start now, while we still have time, and help to build the better future that I want to see.

So as the world turns towards Copenhagen, this is Stroud’s chance to play its part and take its responsibility to the future seriously. Ensuring a renewable and secure source of local energy in the process.

In September the UK Youth Delegation met with some of the UK’s core team of UN negotiators at the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). They spoke about how mass public pressure on climate change is the only thing that will give them the mandate to push for a strong enough deal at Copenhagen.

The UK has done some good talking on climate change; on paper it has one of the strongest climate change policies on the world. But the action the UK has actually taken so far amounts to rearranging deckchairs on Titanic. 5050 is the perfect way for Stroud to show that we are prepared to walk the walk, not just talk the talk. And it sends a clear message to politicians, demanding that they follow suit to protect our future.

But the anti-campaign has kicked off and as always they are making the loudest noise, drowning out the views of the silent majority. So if you would like Stroud to take this opportunity then say so. And if you’re still unconvinced, before you cast your vote, think about what you are really voting for. Perhaps it’s about looking at a bigger picture than the view you see from your kitchen window. I am 18 and in 2050 I will be 59. I want the chance to live my life in a world with a safe and stable climate, where there is enough food and water to go around. Is that too much to ask?

I’m not saying windmills are the only way to tackle climate change, far from it in fact. What I’m saying is that we need to use every tool we’ve got to tackle our deadly addiction to fossil fuels. Wind is a vital piece of the puzzle and its not as if we are going to be over run by turbines. 16 across the whole of the Stroud District is all it will take to meet 5050.

So whether you want to support local jobs or help protect your children’s future, why not step out from the silent majority and make yourself heard?

There clearly are still lots of questions around green energy and wind turbines in particular – so come and talk with Team Stroud5050! We will be at the Stroud Farmer’s Market for the next 6 Saturdays, and we want to meet you!

And on Sept 26th from 10.30-12.30 someone from our wind development team will be on hand to answer general questions about our Berkeley Vale proposal.

Over 1500 hundred people turned up at Thistledown Environmental Centre near Nailsworth on Sunday 13th September for the free event. We gave away nearly 500 kites, and plenty of free soft drinks courtesy of Bottlegreen. Plus with a professional kite demonstration, fantastic kite flying weather, and a nearly sold out ice cream van – we couldn’t have asked for more.

The event took place amidst 70 acres of natural environment and wildlife in the shadow of Gloucestershire’s first and currently only wind turbine at Nympsfield, and proved a cracking location to celebrate the power of the wind and launch our Stroud5050 campaign to make 50% of our local energy green. Thanks to all who attended and helped make this such a great day.

It’s an issue we’ve felt passionately about since we were founded here back in 1995. We’ve already proven the viability of the wind energy with one local turbine, so why not more?

Imagine if half of the district’s electricity was completely renewable, actively contributing to the area and supported by local residents…