Community Energy Scotland and the reclaiming of Gigha, Scotland

Summary

The energy transition in Scotland profits from a land reform that has inverted historic property relations. Historically, Scotland is viewed as one of the most important examples for the enclosure of the commons.[1]  Up until the 19th century, large estates in Scotland were still being commodified [2] and sold. More often than not, the former inhabitants were given a free ticket to America and advised to leave the land without delay. Only the tenants, the so-called crofters, and landowners, who often lived far away and are the ancestors of today’s absentee landlords, remained. During the second half of the last century, the Home Rule movement developed to reunite land use and land possession. Its greatest success was the community buy-out law passed by the Scottish parliament in 2003, which until 2010 was followed by a further land reform act. These made land use by landowners compulsory. At the same time those actually living on the land were granted a right of pre-emption at preferential prices. Since then, crofters have been buying land through trusts and funds founded by them as forms of collective and local ownership.

Wind energy plays a significant role here. The land for the community associations needed to be purchased with bank loans that would need to be repaid. New community life, too, needs to be financed. Frequently this led to the erection of wind parks, either as purely external capital investments, or, in many cases also as community energy wind parks.[3]

Financing community projects

To promote a democratic financing of community projects, Scotland established the central state planning agency, Community Energy Scotland (CES). This agency consults and supports communities and residents. Perhaps most importantly, it also provides loans at favourable conditions that make it easier for communities to gather the necessary funds. Alone in 2012, the CES supported 302 projects. This mixed form – combining a central state agency, government loans and municipal participation – is again based on the socialisation of the land, because socialisation would not have been possible for most villages, let alone community wind farms.

In Scotland the political framework for the energy transition is far more favourable than in other parts of the UK. The Scottish government has partial sovereignty over its energy policy planning and uses this sovereignty for the energy transition. It even exceeded its 2011 goal of sourcing 31% of its energy supply from renewables by 4%.[4]  A seldom form of miscalculation. Encouraged by this success, Scotland now aims to produce 100% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020. But before that is the 2014 referendum on independence from the UK. Because the idea of the energy transition in Scotland is linked to the question of independence, the result of the referendum will also impact future energy policies. A debate on energy autonomy in Scotland easily ends in a passionate discussion of the question of national autonomy.[5]