As the old saying goes...
" When something sounds too good to be true, it usually is"
Community Benefit Fund Frequently Asked Questions
Many members of the community have been sold the Fairytale of the Community Benefit Fund that is going to supply the "Community" with millions of €€€€'s over the course of the life of the proposed Windfarm and change our lives for the better.
They have also been told that the local Community will have the final say in what the Money will be spent on..........Church Roofs, Playing Pitches etc.
Anybody who believes it to be this simple needs to continue reading!
The Truth about the Community Fund
There are strict Government guidelines which can be found HERE , outlining how the Community Fund must be administered & who, how, what and where the money can go.
Will the Community Fund pay for a new roof on Bridgetown Church?
Simple Answer- NO
Unfortunately the Government Guidelines for the RESS Scheme Community Benefit Fund are very specific and on page 27 it clearly states that the fund should not be spent on any projects that promote Religious Activities, see below:
How it works...
The Community Fund is based on the generation capacity of the Windfarm, if it generates electricity, then it generates money for the fund.
What you may not be aware of is, Renewable Energy is intermittent and unpredictable as it depends on Mother Nature to cooperate, sometimes she does not and the wind does not blow as expected, see Irish Examiner article link below:
Tipperary wind farm 'where wind failed to blow' sold for €70m
Should this occur, the community fund will be significantly less than promised.
For the purpose of this article we will give RWE the benefit of the doubt and take them at face value as in their literature, see below:
"Fahy Beg has a proposed installed capacity of 28MW to 48MW which could mean €168,000 to €288,000 per annum every year for 15 years"
Who is the Community?
RWE & EDF continually refer to the "LOCAL COMMUNITY" when discussing the Community Benefit Fund.
"the Local Community will decide this and the Local Community will decide that!"
Implying that the people of Bridgetown & Kilbane/Broadford and very close proximity will control the Committee and and where the money goes.
In reality when examining the finer details of the government guidelines, the "LOCAL COMMUNITY" encompasses a bit more than Bridgetown & Kilbane, see extract from Guidelines document below:
" the community might be better considered, first, in terms of radius – e.g. those living within a certain radius of the project, typically up to 10 kilometres (but can be significantly broader)...........village as far as 20kms away"
The "LOCAL COMMUNITY" as RWE call it could encompass villages as far away as
Patrickswell, Rear Cross, Mountshannon, Dromineer, Shannon, Ballyneety, Cratloe, Sixmilebridge, Tulla, Portroe, Cappamore and everything in between.
Who makes up the Fund Committee?
See extract from Government Guidelines below:
"The Fund Committee consists of ....... community representatives, the project Developer and the Fund Administrator........the Committee should aim to represent the widest cross-section of the community possible........... and geographic location to broaden representation."
In other words, the Fund Committee consists of
-
RWE
-
A Paid Administrator (we'll come to them later)
-
"Locals" - basically anyone in a 20km radius looking for a piece of the pie.
Who has the Final Say?
The RESS Communities Steering Board will have the final say on all decisions regarding the Community Benefit Fund, not the "Locals", see extract from Government Guidelines below:
" RESS Communities Steering Board who will oversee all elements of community participation in RESS, including benefit funds .......will continually review the Funds’ outputs .......will consider any disputes that cannot be resolved through consultation with the SEAI.......is to be chaired by the Department, and its members will include representatives from the community sector, the local development sector, academia, industry and relevant state bodies."
Who is the Administrator?
From our conversations with RWE & EDF they had led us to believe it would have to be an Independent body but from closer inspection of the Government guidelines that is not the case, see extract below:
"It is anticipated, but not mandatory, that the Developer of the project will appoint a third party to administer the Fund. Some developers may choose to handle the administration in-house, and that is perfectly acceptable."
Whispers on the grapevine have lead us to believe that it will be Kieran O'Byrne, RWE's Community Engagement Officer, we cannot confirm nor deny this but it would explain why the man is so enthusiastically selling this community fund to the "Locals". And his past antics confirm that his moral compass is for sale to the highest bidder, see links below:
https://www.irishtimes.com/news/Kieran-OByrne_sells_out_ to_Scientology_Cult
https://fionaolearyblog.wordpress.com/2018/02/23/Kieran-OByrne-CCIPR-and-Scientology Cult
Who gets the Money?
Assuming we believe that the Wind Turbines deliver €168,000 to €288,000 per annum as stated by RWE, where will the money go?
As set out on page 19 of the Government Guidelines the money must be allocated as per the following:
"a) a minimum of €1,000 shall be paid to each household located within a distance of a 1 kilometre radius"
There are 45 homes within 1km (approx. 52 buildings).
Each home owner within 1km will receive "Near Neighbour Compensation" equating to €9.90 per week after tax*
Total cost to Fund
Min €45,000
"b) a minimum of 40% of the funds shall be paid to not-for-profit community enterprises whose primary focus or aim is the promotion of initiatives towards the delivery of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, in particular Goals 4, 7, 11 and 13, including education, energy efficiency, sustainable energy and climate action initiatives"
This heading is very specific and does not include GAA/Football clubs or similar the 4 headings are:
Goal 4 - Quality Education: Funds could support knowledge and skills needed in communities to promote sustainable development, through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles.
• Goal 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
Goal 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities: implementing integrated policies and plans for communities towards inclusion, resource efficiency, mitigation and adaptation to climate change.
Goal 13 - Climate Action: Funds can be used to improve education, awareness-raising and improve capacity on climate change early warning, mitigation, adaptation and impact reduction.
Total cost to Fund
Min €67,200 - €115,200
This is the largest portion of the fund, the headings are very specific as to what projects can be funded. They must be centered around Sustainable Energy/Communities and Climate Change.
Despite what you may be led to believe, this portion of the fund is not designated for local sports clubs, churches etc...
We would question the motivation of certain local individuals who seem to be campaigning hard for this Community Benefit Fund with seemingly no attachment to this project who would appear to be eyeing up this portion of the fund for personal projects/gain.
c) 10% of the funds may be spent on Administration - Kieran O'Byrne??
Total cost to Fund
€16,800 - €28,800
d) in respect of Onshore Wind RESS 1 Projects, on “near neighbour payments” for households located outside a distance of 1 kilometre from the RESS 1 Project but within a distance of 2 kilometres from such RESS 1 Project.
There are 135 homes between 1km to 2km (approx. 158 buildings).
Each home owner between 1km to 2km will receive "Near Neighbour Compensation" equating to €4.96 per week after tax*
Total cost to Fund
€67,500
Total Funds Remaining for Sport Clubs, Societies and Local Entities
Approx €0.00
*After tax calculations based on single pre tax income of €35,300 or couple with combined pre tax income of €44,300*
