Church of England launches petition on solar panels

	The Vatican has installed solar panels

The Church of England is calling on the British Government to slow down its plans to halve the income which organisations can earn from solar panels in order to give churches and other community groups more time to complete installation.

The Church of England, one of ARC's key partners, has been encouraging churches throughout its 44 dioceses to install solar panels as a way of using natural resources to reduce their carbon footprint. The Church, through its national environment campaign Shrinking the Footprint, which it launched in 2009 and celebrated at ARC's Windsor Celebration, is committed to the Government’s carbon reduction targets of 80% by 2050.

Already 35 CofE churches have solar panels installed and more than 300 are actively considering a solar project.

However, the British Government intends to cut the amount organisations can earn by supplying energy from their solar panels - known as the feed-in tariff - by 50% from December 12.

An online petition - to see it, click here - launched by the Archbishops’ Council’s Cathedral and Church Building Division has already attracted almost 1000 signatures from both individuals and groups. It is also asking for a special community tariff.

The Church of England says installing solar panels on churches is a complex business and the 50% cut in return rate proposed for December 12 will penalise churches that are committed to installing solar panels, but will not have time to complete.

Martyn Goss, social responsibility officer for Exeter Diocese, said: “This news is very disappointing. Here in the South-West we have been encouraging churches to install panels and many will be adversely affected by this cut in tariff, resulting in having the rug pulled from underneath them by such short-term political decision making.”

David Shreeve, the Church of England’s national environment officer, said: “The returns on a solar project will not be as financially attractive as they were and take longer to pay back. Whilst in the life of a church building this is not a long time, it will take us into the next generation.

"As well as enabling churches to use renewable energy, we see solar panels on church roofs as setting a brilliant example to their local communities.”