The Dyfi eco-valley in Europe
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The Dyfi eco-valley in Europe |
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Become a member of ecodyfi We want everybody in the Valley to join, so it only costs £1. Drop into Ty Bro Dyfi or send some stamps. The information centre is open Monday to Friday between 10.00 and 3.00. You might even like to get involved in staffing it or in helping to run a project. Please come and see us!
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The Dyfi valley has been recognised at a European level for helping the local community to use clean home-grown sources of energy. Ecodyfi, together with Powys Energy Agency, the WDA, Forestry Commission and Powys County Council won the award for best rural partnership under the European Commission's "Campaign for take-off of renewable energy". Subsequently, Andy Rowland of ecodyfi was asked to present the work at the annual meeting of the International Solar Energy Society. This was held recently in Gothenburg, Sweden. The workshop helped energy agencies learn from each other's experiences. Meanwhile, Powys Energy Agency is a partner in a European research project to study those communities that have made efforts to be more sustainable in their use and production of energy. The Dyfi valley is one of the most advanced areas of Europe in this respect. It was represented at a recent meeting in Crete and will be visited by a social scientist in October. It is hoped that lessons learnt will benefit communities in Eastern Europe. This visit is timed to coincide with an international conference and study tour in mid Wales organised by Powys Energy Agency's Greenheat campaign. Speakers from Finland and Austria will share their experiences of how to get more heat from renewable sources such as locally-grown wood. Andy Rowland explained that this can be burnt as woodchips or wood pellets as well as the traditional logs. "When we spend money on gas or oil it goes straight out of the local economy", he said. "Making it easier for people to get hold of properly seasoned logs will help local farmers get value from their woodlands as well as reducing the amount of environmentally-damaging carbon dioxide we put into the atmosphere." Further information: Andy Rowland, Manager, ecodyfi. tel: 01654 703965 More about the AwardA partnership created to achieve renewable energy targets in Powys has won a prestigious European Union award. Powys Renewable Energy (RE) Partnership, which is part of the EU's 'Campaign for Take Off' (CTO) has won the "100% Communities: Rural" category in the CTO Award. Andy Rowland of ecodyfi recently received the Award from the Vice-president of the European Commission, Loyola de Palacio, at an international ceremony in Salamanca, Spain. Powys County Council became the first Authority in the UK to join this European scheme by forming a Renewable Energy Partnership in July 2001. The Council has worked with other bodies to establish Powys Energy Agency and commit itself to achieve identified renewable energy targets with its partners. The partnership includes the now established Powys Energy Agency, ecodyfi, the Welsh Development Agency and Wales OPET Cymru, with the Forestry Commission now closely involved in the developments that are taking place. Cllr. John Thompson, County Council portfolio member for energy and chairman of Powys Energy Agency, said: "The award is great news for the County, not only because of the prestige that it brings to the area, but because it establishes our partnership as one that can be trusted to deliver good work and implement projects. "This is vitally important when it comes to securing additional funding in the future. The European Commission, for instance, has made it quite clear that it wishes to fund good ideas and integrated projects. This award recognises that this is exactly what has been happening in Powys and the Dyfi Valley. "I am so pleased that Andy Rowland from ecodyfi was able to receive the award on our behalf because it was his pioneering work and determination that set the model for our current success." The Powys entry into this year's Awards was a video called 'Energising Powys: Working together for 100% renewables', which highlighted the key renewable energy developments in the Dyfi Valley and Powys emerging from community and small scale developments. The video demonstrates the variety and imagination of people and projects within the Dyfi Valley and Powys in moving away from dependence on polluting fuels. The sectors covered include solar and hydropower, community wind energy and biomass projects. Some examples include projects of farms, householders, community groups, public sector bodies, local businesses and a school. These projects strengthen the local economy because they help the growth of relevant businesses and because more of the money spent on energy stays in the area now. Anybody interested in using renewable energy in their homes or businesses can find help through the projects co-ordinated by Powys Energy Agency and ecodyfi, including the Powys Solar Club. Grant aid is sometimes available. The Agency works from Ladywell House in Newtown. For further information contact: Lee Evans, Assistant Communications Officer, Tel: 01597 826023; Fax 01597 826231; e-mail: evansl@powys.gov.uk.
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