Vision:

To stimulate a national move towards sustainable energy practice through demonstration of 6 exemplar sustainable energy communities by 2015, which in turn will inform and build capacity through the SEC network.

Mission Statement:

To support Local Authorities across Ireland to deliver Sustainable Energy Communities.

Purpose:

To be both a catalyst for action on the ground to deliver national targets and a platform for wider debate and strategic influence at a national and European level.

The six exemplar SECs will be delivered by local authorities in partnership with SEAI through the established Management Process - A Structured Approach - and with the support of a toolkit of resources and guidance on best practice. Each SEC will measure baseline energy use within its SEZ and set ambitious targets that can be measured and verified. Any local authority can use the SEC Programme approach and move towards a more sustainable pattern of energy consumption and supply.

There are many advantages to adopting a more sustainable pattern of energy use within a community. These advantages are common to public and private sector organisations and include:

• Allows all organisations work towards achieving national energy policy targets
• Allows organisations to share resources, expertise, ideas and knowledge
• Reduces operational costs through robust energy efficiency programmes
• Assists in the development of sustainable energy supplies through investment and installation of renewable energy technology
• Creates synergies in the Development Plan process to allow for installation of renewable energy infrastructure
• Creates social benefits such as reducing fuel poverty
• Creates an attractive place to do business and research, with increased potential for economic development

The SEC Management Process recognises that each Sustainable Energy Community is unique. The SEC Programme takes a structured approach to developing projects that is based on proven and effective management system methodologies and is consistent with standards such as ISO 14001, EN 16001 and ISO 9000. It uses five simple steps.

This approach to the Management Process provides a structure for local authorities to lead on the delivery of an SEC in their area and to develop a bespoke set of sustainable energy projects that will stimulate and drive the whole community in achieving its targets. This approach is transparent and helps all stakeholders to plan for and deliver projects that reduce energy dependency and maximise the use of renewable energy.

The European Commission estimates that it can take up to ten years to develop an SEC but by adopting this structured approach communities can realise results within five years. More information on the Management Process can be found in the Guidelines which will be available to download here on our site shortly.