SusMo success! Church roof turns into power station.

We've been following the situation with solar panels on the roof of St Mary's church in Moseley with interest for some time, as this should be a great opportunity to show other churches what can be done with a real demonstrator project that benefits the local community and the cause of renewable energy as a whole.

SusMo has put in a huge amount of work to make this project a success. They won £30,000 from the Green Streets award for this part of the bid (the other money going to the Mosque and some residential properties). The project also had a further £20,000 lined up to meet the full cost, but that opportunity has now expired. SusMo are now actively seeking a replacement source of funding, and would be delighted to hear from people who can help them find it.

However, the important barrier of permission to install the solar panels has now been overcome. This result comes after a long and arduous campaign. The Planning Inspectorate overturned the decision of the Planning Committee, thereby granting planning permission, in September 2010. The Diocese of Birmingham had to follow a separate (and lengthy) process of evaluation before reaching their decision, but was eventually swayed by the sense and viability of the project.

John Dowell, the agent for St. Mary’s Moseley Parochial Church Council, expressed joy and relief at the Chancellor’s decision. “His decision backs the views of the churchgoers, Moseley residents, and members of the wider public who have written in support, rather than the objectors who wished to preserve the church building exactly as it was in 1910.” He added that it brought the Diocese of Birmingham in line with projects in other parts of the country‚ including London, Bath and Bristol‚ ensuring that the city is not left behind in its response to climate change and rising fuel prices.

SusMo Chair Claire Spencer echoed John’s sentiments. “This installation will ensure that St. Mary’s is less reliant on energy from fossil fuels, and makes a great deal of financial sense. Visually, it sends a wonderful, positive message ‚ the people of Moseley care deeply about its present, its future, and one another. But the process that we have been through with St. Mary’s has also set a precedent, making it easier for other churches to tap into renewable energy‚ and we look forward to their plans!”

SusMo would like to thank everyone who has supported them and St. Mary’s throughout this project‚ the good advice, letters of support and words of encouragement made all the difference.

Birmingham Friends of the Earth offers our congratulations and hopes that this will be the first of many similar schemes in the city.

The Moseley Swap Shop

One man's trash is another man's treasure!

At The Moseley Swap Shop

Have u got anything you don't want? Or do you just fancy some new stuff for FREE? Then the Moseley Swap Shop is the place for you! Brought to Moseley by FOEcycle and REUSED. Don't miss first Swap Shop February the 27^th, at the Prince of Wales. It'll open at 12pm and finish around 5pm and will be appearing at The Prince of Wales every 4^th Saturday of the month!

Come along maybe after a visit to the Moseley Farmers Market, pop in to The Prince of Wales to get out of the cold and there you will find books, clothes, kitchen stuff, DVDs, Computer games, Ornaments, and anything you bring along to add! All for FREE This stall is entirely dependant on you getting involved, so come down and participate! Based on the online yahoo group Freecycle (now Freegle). www.IloveFreegle.org which allows you to place ads to get rid of things you don't need and respond to ads to get things you do, without money getting involved, well worth a look. The Moseley Swap Shop is your local alternative!

We all know about the 3R's, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, this is a great way to achieve all 3 of them on a Saturday afternoon in the pub and leave with some nice stuff! The stall will also be taking donations for Birmingham Friends Of The Earth and have promotional information available about the activities of BFOE in Birmingham, and other information about what Green alternative stuff is going on in Birmingham and how you can get involved if you're interested.

So don't miss out on the 27th of Feb because you won't be disappointed!

If you have any inquires please email me at fisher_woman@live.co.uk

Big Decision For Renewables in Moseley Tomorrow

The planning committee of Birmingham City Council will meet tomorrow morning to decide on the installation of a photovoltaic array on the roof of St. Mary’s Church in Moseley.

SusMo has been rallying support for this as it is a crucial part of the plan for spending the money they recently won in the Green streets challenge to bring energy savings and sustainability to the area.

A report to the committee by the planning officer has recommended refusal, but this withholds crucial information, and seems to entirely ignore Birmingham City Council’s own Sustainability Strategy and Action Plan, as well as the government’s Planning Policy Statement 1: Delivering Sustainable Development. Under the heading of ‘Policy Context’, the report fails to mention a letter of support from Birmingham City Council’s head of Climate Change and Sustainability, Sandy Taylor. Furthermore, under the heading of ‘Sustainability’, the report states the project as ‘Neutral’ – failing to note the array’s expected contribution of 8000kWh of electricity. SusMo has written to all members of the Planning Committee to alert them to these omissions.

With regards to the listed status of the building, it is significant that the National Trust has recognised the threat that climate change poses to our national heritage, and that there will be none left to conserve if climate change is not tackled. The National Trust first installed solar panels on the roof of one of its Grade I listed buildings in 2008, and recommended that owners of other Grade I listed buildings follow suit, where appropriate. Indeed, solar panels are particularly appropriate, given that their installation is a simple and easily reversible procedure which causes no damage to the roof that they are installed on.

For a current example, there is a photovoltaic array on St. James’ Church, Piccadilly.

It is also notable that the Moseley Society, which for decades has guarded the character of the Moseley Conservation Area, is in favour of the application. In total, 22 messages of support were received, and just two objections – one of which came from the Chantry Road residents’ association, which did not consult all residents before forwarding their objection. However, no objections were received from residents on Oxford Road, which is the vantage point from which the panels will be seen most frequently.

For reference, the panels, which are dark blue and low profile, will not be visible from the pavements of St. Mary's Row as they will be hidden by the parapet. Some panels will be visible from the end of Oxford Road but most will be hidden by trees when they are in full leaf.

If the Planning Committee refuses planning permission at its meeting on Thursday, not only will Moseley lose all the benefits that the project would bring to the parish and the wider community, but also, the £30,000 contribution towards the cost of the project from the British Gas Green Street project will be lost, as it has a tight timescale.

The Planning Committee meets on 4 February at 11:00 in Committee Rooms 3 and 4, Council House. The St. Mary’s photovoltaic array is Item 15 on the agenda.

It would seem very strange indeed to reject such a project the day after Birmingham City Council announced it was signing up to 10:10.

(Information from Susmo: susmo@moseleyforum.org.uk)