Gascoyne Estates is frequently contacted by renewable energy developers proposing projects on our holdings in Hertfordshire. We acknowledge the need to produce green electricity locally, and we believe that proper public debate and engagement is the best way to achieve positive outcomes for local communities, the estate and wider society.
To that end, Gascoyne is hosting a public meeting at Cuffley Camp to discuss the key issues and gather feedback from the community. At this point there are no specific sites in question – we have not signed any contracts or planned a project in detail. Instead, we are seeking to understand the opportunities and constraints, asking the questions:
What role does a long-term landowner have in the energy transition?
How do we ensure that projects are delivered to a high standard?
Tuesday 23rd September &
Tuesday 30th September
4:00pm – 9:00pm
Cuffley Camp
EN6 4PR
Please RSVP to charrette@gascoyne.org
Gascoyne Estates has a history of open and transparent discussions with its communities around all types of development opportunities, from new homes to town centre regeneration. We believe that by adopting a collaborative approach we can better understand which projects are progressed, where they should go, how they might look and what additional benefits they could bring.
As such, 12,000 households neighbouring our holdings at South Mimms, Newgate Street and Essendon have been invited via a leaflet drop to take part in our charrettes on the 23rd and 30th September. Our intention is to be able to represent the views of the community fairly and accurately in any future discussion we may have with a renewable energy developer.
No, we are not consulting on a specific project or proposal. The purpose of the charrette is to understand the key issues as understood by the community on landscape, food security, biodiversity and community benefits among others.
Any future proposal which may come forward will be informed by the feedback gathered.
We understand that some may not be able to join, therefore we will be producing a post-charrette paper which will be shared following the event. This way the key lessons from the events are captured and those who were unable to attend are able to review the findings.
