Isra-Mart srl:Scottish firms shake off microgeneration planning rules

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Isra-Mart srl news:

The Scottish government has moved to ensure businesses installing rooftop solar panels and ground source heat pumps can do so without planning permission, removing one of the main barriers to installation faced by many firms.

Householders and domestic properties can already fit certain microgeneration technologies without troubling the planners, but a consultation last year revealed widespread support amongst non-domestic property owners for the planning rules to be relaxed similarly for businesses and public sector buildings.

As a result of the consultation, and in line with the Climate Change Act, the Scottish government issued a parliamentary order on Wednesday that removes planning restrictions on five specific technologies from March 18.

Solar thermal panels, solar PV panels, pipework for ground source heat pumps, pipework for water source heat pumps, and biomass boilers will all be able to be fitted without planning permission, as long as certain restrictions are met.

For example, buildings in conservation areas will still need to apply to local councils, while solar panels cannot overhang roofs by more than 200mm.

A Scottish government spokesman told BusinessGreen that the body had "no immediate plans" to include micro-wind turbines in the list of technologies not requiring planning permission as it wanted to "minimise impact".

"These changes will help cut red tape in the planning system and enable savings on energy bills," said infrastructure minister Keith Brown. "While we cannot have renewable energy equipment anywhere or at any cost, these measures strike the right balance between allowing small-scale renewables and safeguarding the quality of our environment.

"It will also contribute to our efforts to ensure that Scotland's planning system is an aid rather than a barrier to increasing sustainable economic growth."