Solar Kirklees
SunCities is a European Commission funded project which began in 2000 and was completed in February 2006. The project aimed to install 3.05 megawatts of solar electricity on 2,000 homes in Germany, the Netherlands and Kirklees in the UK. In Kirklees this includes a total of 351kWp solar electricity systems and 63 solar thermal systems. Around 518 households were involved across Kirklees, including elderly tenants and families with young children. They will benefit from free solar electricity and can expect to save up to £50 a year on their electricity bills.
Kirklees Sun Cities Case Study
The photo shows a solar installation in the Primrose Hill area of the borough
- a solar village of 121 solar-powered homes created as part of an overall
regeneration scheme for the area.
Kirkless Renewable Projects
week ending 22 August 2008
Green Whisky
Diageo, the world’s biggest drinks business, is investing £40m to develop the distillery at picturesque Roseisle in Morayshire, creating 25 jobs and introducing a green touch in the shape of renewable energy as the power source.
Telegraph 22nd Aug 2008 more >>
Lake District Green Building
SOUTH Lakeland’s commitment to ‘green’ building will be under the spotlight next week. The Lake District National Park Authority office in Kendal has been chosen as the launch location for Cumbria Green Build Fortnight, which starts on Tuesday (August 26). More than 40 free events, designed to be informative and interesting for both the public and professionals, have been arranged throughout the county to showcase environmental features from renewable energy to sustainable building design.
Westmorland Gazette 21st Aug 2008 more >>
Warm Glow
A firm which designs energy-saving heating systems has won deals worth hundreds of thousands of pounds. The Underfloor Warehouse says rising fuel bills are leading more and more businesses, councils and homeowners to search for ways of cutting costs. The business, which designs carbon-cutting systems including underfloor heating and solar panels as well as distributing equipment, has had a first-year turnover of £2.9 million and expects this to rise to £4.5 million next year.
Leicester Mercury 21st Aug 2008 more >>
Business East Midlands 21st Aug 2008 more >>
Lib Dems
Nick Clegg unveils plans to make Britain an exporter of green energy by 2050, as he called for a programme “on the scale of the Apollo moon landings” to transform Britain’s dependence on foreign oil, gas and coal supplies. The Liberal Democrat leader demanded the scrapping of new nuclear and coal-fired power stations, instead proposing the establishment of a renewables delivery authority to oversee a massive expansion of wind, solar and wave energy, funded by guaranteed premium prices for green energy. All new homes should be built to world-leading standards of insulation, and energy companies forced to spend £500m a year insulating the existing housing stock.
Independent 21st Aug 2008 more >>
Guardian 21st Aug 2008 more >>
Guardian 21st Aug 2008 more >>
Telegraph 21st Aug 2008 more >>
New York
Mayor of New York, Michael Bloomberg is calling for the city to become a major generator of renewable energy. He wants to see New York wean itself from dependency on the conventional power grid by massive investment in wind, solar and wave energy and opened the prospect of wind turbines being placed on bridges and skyscrapers, in a way that could transform the city’s skyline.
Guardian 21st Aug 2008 more >>
Daily Mail 21st Aug 2008 more >>
North Tyneside Sheltered Housing
A drive to get green technology into North Tyneside sheltered housing has been hailed as the first large-scale project to promote renewable energy. About £100m will go towards the Older People, Homes for the Future scheme, which will be the largest capital investment in the council’s history. The most appropriate technology could include solar and biomass sources.
Hartlepool Mail 21st Aug 2008 more >>
North Tyneside Council 20th Aug 2008 more >>
Green Building 21st Aug 2008 more >>
Contractors Guide
The Heating and Ventilating Contractors’ Association, has launched two guides to good practice for the Installation of Combined Heat and Power (CHP) and the Installation of Biofuel Heating. Both these technologies are becoming increasingly important as the UK drives towards low or zero carbon buildings.
Heating and Ventillating.net 20th Aug 2008 more >>
Another Tesco Turbine
Southport Tesco is planning the installation of a wind turbine and solar energy devices which would save around 15 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year.
Southport Visiter 20th August 2008 more >>
Waitrose Digester Plan
Waitrose has said that it has come up with a scheme that enables renewable energy to be created from waste food. The retailer said wasted items from five of its stores can be used at a special anaerobic digestion plant in Bedford owned by Biogen
Talking Retail 20th Aug 2008 more >>
West Devon
Okehampton Business Centre features Photo-voltaic panels and a wind turbine and a wood pellet boiler to provide the buildings heating, a high level of natural lighting and ventilation, the collection of rainwater to use to flush the toilets and the use of low impact building materials.
West Devon Borough Council 19th Aug 2008 more >>
Good Energy
Good Energy, the only electricity supplier to use 100% renewable sources - has won the British Renewable Energy Company Award. Juliet Davenport, Good Energy’s Chief Executive was presented with the award, for the company that shows innovation, has achieved business growth and whose employees are truly dedicated to bringing success to both the company and the renewables industry.
Green Building 19th Aug 2008 more >>
Fife Eco-homes
The Lindifferon Court development in Ladybank, Fife is now open for viewing. The inaugural development from Scotland-based Blue Property combines exceptional levels of energy efficiency with cutting edge interior design. The superior levels of energy efficiency are achieved through incorporating high specification glazing, super insulation and ground source heat pumps which extract heat from the ground and distribute it through under-floor heating. Furthermore purchasers of each home will be eligible to receive a grant from the Energy Saving Trust* of £4000 due to the improved energy efficiency of the homes. Provision has also been made for the addition of either wind turbines or solar heating at the development, subject to planning.
Easier Property 19th Aug 2008 more >>
Go-green to beat energy crunch
Energy saving tips from the P&J
Aberdeen Press & Journal 19th Aug 2008 more >>
Eco-bling
A leading green architect has criticised many renewable energy technologies as “eco-bling”. But the Scottish Government will now make sure grants for microgeneration won’t be available unless you have insulated first.
BBC 19th Aug 2008 more >>
Scrap Turbine
A £20 wind turbine created by a Portsmouth University student which can be created from recycled materials to help people in the developing world has been unveiled. Max Robson, a product design student, wanted to build an electricity generator which could be put together anywhere in the world.
Daily Mail 19th Aug 2008 more >>
Banbury Guardian 19th Aug 2008 more >>
Engineer 18th Aug 2008 more >>
Shepway Grants
Grants of up £1,000 are being offered to Shepway residents towards the cost of solar hot water or electric systems.
Hawkinge Gazette 19th Aug 2008 more >>
Eco-vision
Renewable energy advisory and installation firm EcoVision has revealed ambitious expansion plans that would see it operate from 14 different locations within the UK by mid 2011. Speaking to BusinessGreen.com, company founder and chief executive Peter Randall said that the company was aiming to develop a national network of offices capable of meeting the rapidly expanding demand for green microgeneration technologies.
Business Green 18th Aug 2008 more >>
Kielder Observatory
All the energy the observatory needs is generated by a 2.5kw wind turbine and by solar power. This special building touches down on the Kielder landscape as gently as a long-legged fly on the nearby reservoir.
Guardian 18th Aug 2008 more >>
Holiday ZED
Bill Dunster of ZEDfactory’s latest idea is holiday homes that can generate their own electricity and will not need to be connected to the national grid. The company has produced draft plans for 30m2 “Landark” cabins, designed to sleep up to six people. The well insulated cabins will include a composting toilet, wood-fired kitchen stove, a green roof and solar panels.
Green Building 18th Aug 2008 more >>
Existing Stock
The UK Green Building Council (UKGBC) is working with the Energy Efficiency Partnership for Homes, the Sustainable Development Commission and the Technology Strategy Board to carry out a wide-reaching industry and stakeholder consultation on reducing carbon emissions in the existing housing stock.
Green Building 18th Aug 2008 more >>
Heat Pumps
RES has signed a deal with Hungarian heat-pump designer Thermo Kft, giving it instant access to Kft’s designers. Kft is one of Europe’s leading heat-pump designers. RES aims to train and develop installers and engineers, which will allow it to significantly boost the number of systems it instals and maintains and to target commercial contracts for the first time. It is now installing a system for a hotel in the east of Scotland.
Sunday Times 17th Aug 2008 more >>
Lincolnshire
Ground breaking plans for an eco-friendly social housing scheme in Long Sutton near Spalding in Lincolnshire have received unanimous approval from councillors. The Long Sutton Earth Sheltered Social Housing (LESH) scheme received massive praise from South Holland District Council development control committee members, who believe it will make Long Sutton recognised worldwide. Each house will use state-of-the-art energy saving technology, including photovoltaic panels installed on the roofs.
Green Building 16th Aug 2008 more >>
The real thing
A PUBLIC consultation will be held over plans to build a wind turbine standing at around 110m at a Coca Cola depot in Wakefield.
Wakefield Express 15th Aug 2008 more >>
Plymouth Aquarium
Plymouth’s National Marine Aquarium is hoping to become the first organisation in the city to achieve a leading environmental full accreditation by introducing a raft of innovative ‘green’ initiatives.
South West Regional Development Agency 15th Aug 2008 more >>
Northern Irish Solar
Switched on Schools, a pioneering renewable energy project funded by Northern Ireland Electricity, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) and the Education and Library Boards, has installed solar panels at 43 rural schools across Northern Ireland. These working examples of renewable energy are complemented by an online educational resource which is designed to educate the next generation on sustainable energy issues.
Fermanagh Herald 15th Aug 2008 more >>
Energy Efficiency
Thousands of householders who have seen their fuel bills rise could be missing out on money to help them improve the energy efficiency of their homes. A government initiative, the ‘Carbon Emission Reduction Target’ (Cert), a home-insulation programme funded by energy companies, was launched in April. Under it, the companies must offer grants to enable householders to make their homes more energy efficient in order to hit carbon emission reduction targets. Cert spending is expected to reach £3bn over the next three years. Forty per cent of the money has been ring-fenced for the over-seventies and vulnerable households in receipt of qualifying income benefits, but the bulk is aimed at all other householders, and very few have taken it up.
Observer 10th August 2008 more >>
Small-wind
A new Carbon Trust study into the potential of small-scale wind energy has found that small wind turbines could provide up to 1.5 Terawatt Hours (TWh) per year of electricity (0.4% of total UK electricity consumption) and 0.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (MtCO2) emission savings. This is based on 10% of households installing turbines at costs competitive with grid electricity, which is currently around 12p per kWh.
Carbon Trust Press Release 7th August 2008 more >>
A key finding of the report is the overall potential ‘carbon prize’ for the UK - how much carbon could be saved if small wind turbines were widely deployed. Based on current turbine costs and electricity prices, a saving of 1.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide is possible if 10% of the population installed turbines.
Enviro Solutions 17th Aug 2008 more >>
BWEA welcomes the Carbon Trust’s recent report on small wind systems. There can now be little doubt that the UK is in a fantastic position to benefit from correctly sited small wind systems. At the right locations, small wind systems can produce electricity cheaper than the grid and payback their embedded carbon within months. With the best wind resources in Europe, today the UK has literally millions of homes and businesses waiting to benefit from the effective deployment of this technology.
BWEA Press Release 8th Aug 2008 more >>