Renewable Energy: Solar Energy
Solar water heating panels are being installed on the roofs of seven B-listed Georgian tenements in Edinburgh. These will provide over 50% of the annual hot water requirement of 49 flats from attic to basement.
The National Trust has published:
- Small-scale solar thermal energy and traditional buildings (PDF 1.2MB, March 2008)
- Small-scale solar electric (photovoltaics) energy and traditional buildings (PDF 1.5MB, March 2008)
The National Trust has installed 24 photovoltaic solar panels on the roof of Dunster Castle in Somerset to reduce the castle’s carbon footprint. The design is fully reversible and ensures that the panels do not have direct contact with the roof and that they are not seen from ground level. It is anticipated that the panels will generate 5,500 KWh per year with the potential to save 3,000 kg of CO2 and £550 per annum.
SPAB ‘Solar Panels: The heat is on, and off’, Cornerstone 27, 4, 2006, page 40: “Although renewable energy is broadly accepted as worthwhile in principle, its impact on historic buildings will generally fail to satisfy the relevant planning policy guidance (PPG15). In such cases, the response of planning authorities is predictable, and owners typically conclude that “renewables” are not an option for listed buildings. But it is not that simple. Nigel Gilmour argues that answers to the use of microgeneration on listed buildings cannot be found in PPG15, that ‘it should not be expected to provide definitive guidance where objective decisions will involve a measured weighing of priorities; priorities in which renewables are yet to feature’”.
