Consultation opens on wind farm community benefit standard

VIEWS are being sought on proposals to create a South of Scotland Standard for community benefits from onshore wind. The South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE), with assistance from Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders councils, has recently launched a second round of engagement. It is a key step in SOSE’s Better Benefit project, which aims to ensure communities consistently receive the highest standard of community benefit from renewable energy developments. The consultation follows agreement at the September meeting of the South of Scotland Regional Economic Partnership (REP) to seek views on a regional Standard which would aim to make best practice the norm across every community in Dumfries and Galloway and the Borders. Proposals are based on extensive engagement over the past year with community councils and development trusts. There is significant national consideration of the future of community benefits arrangements through the Scottish Government's review of the existing voluntary Good Practice Principles. Independent analysis by BiGGAR Economics in 2023 found that onshore wind community benefit has delivered around £30m to South of Scotland communities to date, with up to £900m potentially being generated over the next 35 years. The draft South of Scotland Standard includes nine key themes. Themes include, high-quality community engagement from first point of contact; a standardised minimum community benefit payment; and Transparency and accountability. The consultation on the South of Scotland Standard is open until 5 pm on Monday February 16 and can be completed online at southofscotlandenterprise.com/Community-benefits-consultation Russel Griggs, chair of South of Scotland Enterprise, said: “Community benefits belong to communities – and that’s the way it should be. “Our interest is in ensuring, as best we can, that both community benefit and the wider economic contribution of renewables are as strong as possible. “These proposals reflect what we heard. They build on the Scottish Government’s Good Practice Principles but go further. “Our goal is for what is currently regarded as best practice to become standard practice right across our region. No community deserves less than that.”