District heating: Good practice

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Posted on: 9 August 2011
By: mackene
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Filed under: News

A Homes and Communities Agency programme to evaluate the effectiveness of district heating systems has concluded they can offer a range of benefits. A report on the low carbon infrastructure fund has found it can benefit communities, residents and developers when used in the right way. The low carbon infrastructure fund was a joint initiative from the HCA and the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Launched in 2009, it initially allocated £21 million to 13 projects to allow them to connect homes to district heating networks. A further £5 million was allocated to three more projects later in the year. The evaluation published today examines lessons from the initial 13 schemes. It finds district heating can cut carbon emissions, and reduce fuel and maintenance costs. It also finds communities benefit from a sense of belonging to a shared network. The report sets out lessons for future schemes, such as the importance of linking carbon reduction targets to stages in the planning process, and the need for greater understanding between commercial energy companies and local authorities.

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