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Climate change film: Carmarthen Energy Agency

The Princess Gwenllian Hall in Kidwelly is one of the first community buildings in Carmarthenshire to benefit from Carmarthen Energy Agency’s (CEA) latest renewable energy programme with the installation of solar panels on its roof.

Guto Owen is manager of the CEA and saw the project as an opportunity to bring renewables right into the heart of the community - starting with solar: ‘It's one of the most visible technologies, it's one of the easiest ones to install and we wanted to showcase it, support the community halls themselves and to show that it works. Even in February, it's working on a fine sunny day.’

Brian Rees is chairman of the trustees that run the hall: 'We were lucky enough to get a grant to put a solar panel in. We’re getting free hot water and less gas is being used in the building. The more the facilities get used the bigger the saving will be.’

The Princess Gwenllian Hall is a project with a difference too. Flat panels are usually used just for heating water but these are used for ventilating the gym as well. From having problems keeping the gym cool in the summer this ingenious project means that the hotter it gets there's more sun to cool down the room.

Guto explains: ‘We've installed what's called an evacuated tube solar energy system, which provides heating for the hot water and some of the heating needs. Once it's installed it's free to run as you're getting free energy from the sun.’

The solar project is the first phase of a much more ambitious project for the CEA. They plan to install a mixture of renewables in community centres across the county creating zero-carbon buildings which essentially need no energy from fossil fuels such as gas or coal.

Zero-carbon feasibility studies have been carried out across 30 halls in the county to determine whether this can be achieved. As Guto explains: ‘It might be biomass and solar in one place; it might be wind or even solar PV in another site, it all depends on the site itself. You need expertise in order to advise you on the best way forward in delivering a zero-carbon facility.

‘We need a basket of technologies. We want to show that we don't have to rely on fossil fuels, we can generate our own energy.

The results of the studies are in and Guto and his team are looking for the project funding to take them forward to the next stage. ‘Some of that will rely on grants, but more importantly we want to show the business side as well. Renewable energy isn't all that costly over the lifetime of the system itself. And it can be its own power station and generate revenue for the community.’

Rhian Owen is community projects officer at CEA: ‘For the solar project we were lucky enough to find two funding sources: the One Fund, a new European fund run by Carmarthenshire County Council and Clear Skies, from the Department of Trade and Industry.

‘It's very successful in the sense that it's really built awareness across the county. We're getting phone calls from people asking to be part of our project.’

‘We're finding that communities are pretty switched on and engaged already,’ adds Guto, ‘they're looking for their own contribution to combating climate change. Our role is to act as project managers.’

‘We think it's very important that we give correct and impartial advice,’ says Rhian, ‘this empowers the community to make their own decisions. I feel strongly that these buildings are really the hub of community.’

Brian agrees: ‘We host sport, conferences, camera clubs, scout activities, dance and dramas - there's quite a few things going on,’ he says, ‘as a result of the junior badminton this weekend one of our under 13s girls represented Wales out in Ireland. Without it she would never have had a chance.’

‘And it's very important that the people living within these villages and towns are able to afford to run the buildings,’ adds Rhian, ‘one way that we can do that is by helping them to cut their energy costs.’

Guto re-iterates the environmental benefit too: ‘Climate change is the issue, the science is in, there's no debate about that any more. What's really exciting is that these technologies are here. What we're trying to do at the Energy Agency is cut to the chase and get the technologies on the ground, both for our projects and the community projects themselves but also as a showcase for the wider community. And the wider community is essentially everybody.

Rhian adds: ‘Think positive and if you really want to do it the money and the advice is available!’

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