Abstract
Renewable energy communities (RECs) are alternatives toward sustainable production and consumption pathways. In 2020, Italy implemented the EU Directive 2018/2001, defining a common framework for promoting energy from renewable sources. The “Famiglia di Maria”, a foundation dealing with social issues in San Giovanni a Teduccio, Napoli (Italy), in collaboration with “Legambiente” and “Con il Sud” Foundations, released the first Solidarity Oriented Renewable Energy Community project in Italy. Therefore, by applying social life cycle assessment (s-LCA) and life cycle assessment (LCA) methodologies, this study aims to: (i) promote the dissemination of RECs in the Italian and European contexts, (ii) suggest REC scenarios for the best social and environmental solutions, and (iii) support the policymakers for sustainable local development. Some key results show that the solidarity-oriented project has already produced mature outcomes about community cohesion. In contrast, technical skills and awareness about environmental issues still need to be further developed and shared among the stakeholders. Finally, social and environmental indicators converge on the self-consumption model as a feasible alternative for energy justice, community empowerment, and economic and market competition independence.
Highlights
Centralised services have shown their weakness, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic
According to the life cycle thinking tools, social and environmental impact assessments were applied to Solidarity Oriented Renewable energy communities (RECs) of San Giovanni a Teduccio using social life cycle assessment (s-LCA) and life cycle assessment (LCA)
The goal to be reached by LCA in this study is to evaluate the potential environmental benefits of the investigated Solidarity Oriented REC of San Giovanni a Teduccio
Summary
Centralised services have shown their weakness, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. The hospital-based health system has stalled because of too much concentration of services demand, most often causing inadequacy of territorial assistance [1,2]. The reorganisation of centralised services, including energy production, needs to be addressed. The interest for “reterritorialisation” based on sustainable energy production, small scale self-production, and renewable sources is growing [3]. Several countries are designing future energy plans, including balancing centralised facilities and distributed energy systems [4]. In this context, the new concept of “prosumers” arises.
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