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Achieving Impact with Community Benefit

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Where is the Money GoingArdgay, Sutherland

David HannahCommunity Council Panel Member

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WINDFARM ACTIVITY IN THE NORTH HIGHLANDS OF SCOTLAND

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WHERE DOES THE BENEFIT COME FROM?

IN THE BEGINNINGDevelopers just told us what we would be

getting – no consultation and no options

PROGRESSNow when developers are planning to invade

our community they come and talk to us, negotiate with us and seem to be more

flexible about what ‘Benefit’ means to them & us.

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Wind Farms & DevelopersBeinn Tharsuinn - 20Achany - 19Rosehall - 19Sallachy - 22Glen Morie - 42Dalnessie - 27Coire na Cloich - 13Glen Cassley - 26Braemore - 25Beinn nan Oighrean - 2

SSESSEE.ONWKNAESSSERock by SeaSSEWind Prospect Developments

LtdRock by Sea

Operating - Proposed

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From the previous slide you will have seen that

there are/proposed over 200 turbines for our area

and we anticipate some £1 million every year for

the next 25 years in community benefit, if they all

go ahead, and we expect to be a very wealthy

community.

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BALANCE SHEETBENEFIT – INCOMEBeinn Tharsuinn (6

years)£104,953.15

Achany – (4 years)£380,000.00

Rosehall – (1 year only)£61,132.50

GRANTS – AWARDEDArdgay locally£95,456.03

Ardgay, Bonar Bridge & Lairg£315,066.43

Ardgay, Bonar Bridge & Lairg£59,271.37

Some of the balances are future committed funding where grants are

given over 2 or 3 years

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WHO BENEFITTEDVillage HallsCommunity Council

NewsletterCommunity WoodlandsYouth Development GroupLearning CentreDevelopment WorkersGolf ClubPrimary School Parent

CouncilVoluntary Groups Christmas Lights

Apprenticeship SchemeFoundation Scotland

Administration CostsCitizens Advice BureauOld Peoples CentreCommunity Care ForumNew FuturesAngling ClubFootball ClubRoyal British Legion

ScotlandArchaeology Group

Most of us did – in some way or another

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APPRENTICESHIP SCHEMEPOTENTIAL

EMPLOYERSGarageJoinerBuilderElectricianPlumberEstatesFisheries Trust

YOUNG PEOPLEUnqualifiedEarly leaversNo opportunitiesNo industryNo prospectsNo moneyPoor transport

linksScheme costs to date £55,826.23 5 Apprentices with 3 more due to start work this year

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What has been achieved in Ardgay and the Kyle of Sutherland and what we have learned during the process

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GOOD THINGS•Many of the smaller groups and organisations which were awarded grants would not have been able to continue, and progress.

•Funding has helped them to grow and recruit new members because of what they asked for grants for.

•In many cases the money has been used as partnership for other applications for funding.

•Sometimes the grants helped to keep people in employment long enough to access more finance, or to complete a project.

•Money will keep coming for the next 25 years, and we are setting up an endowment trust to make sure it will continue.

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SOME BAD THINGSPeople have become dependent on grants and stopped fundraising for themselves.

Groups and organisations ‘expect’ that they will be bailed out if they don’t have sufficient reserves to carry out projects to completion.

Other people outwith our community are jealous and accuse us of ‘rich’ discrimination because we have wind farms and they don’t.

Local authorities are always looking for ways to cut their funding to us because we are getting community benefit, and they are not getting a cut.

Developers make contracts to get them through Planning – then try to renege on them, or plead for a reduction until they are in profit.

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NOWAs Windfarm ‘Experts’ we are now a bit wiser

in progressing enquiries and applications from developers.

We get commitments before agreeing not to object, although individuals can and still do our community accepts the general policies that say we need alternative energy.

Having established precedents we are looking for the maximum achievable benefit in exchange for loss of our natural and spectacular scenery.

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WHAT NEXT?We continue to work with our neighbours to ensure

there is no reasons to form individual agreements.Developers are ‘expected’ to offer more than

recommended, either in profit share or other benefits and they are encouraged to support local employment.

By setting up endowment trusts we will secure future funding for our communities when new technology supercedes wind farms.

Through support from Foundation Scotland and groups like us across Scotland we lobby the Scottish government to set out consistent policies for both communities and developers.

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THANK YOUThat concludes my small presentation thanks

for listening and if you have any questions I’ll try to respond now, but if I can’t give you the

answer I’ll find it and let you have it later.

WE HAVE PLANTED THE SEEDS

NOW LET US REAP THE HARVEST