Going Green Through Use Of Brownfield Sites

Many businesses are nowadays looking for ways to both reduce their exposure to volatile energy prices and to reduce their carbon footprint. For many industrial and commercial energy consumers in possession of real estate assets located away from residential properties which have relatively easy access to the local electricity distribution system, developing onsite wind generation to provide electricity plus income from tradeable ‘green certificates’ is becoming an increasingly attractive option. If managed correctly, such developments may also have a positive effect on a business’s green credentials.

Recent examples of such projects include:

• McCain Foods investing £10 million to build three wind turbines at the UK’s largest chip factory, thereby helping to cut its energy bills at the site by up to 60%. Corporate Affairs Director Bill Bartlett said "This demonstrates that a large-scale manufacturing plant can operate efficiently while significantly reducing its carbon footprint"