Windy Craft
Renewable Devices entry into the 2009 Edinburgh Canal Raft Race. on 27th June 2009
The Swift Turbine Team managed to come a respectable third on a miserable rainy day in Edinburgh when the rest of the country was sweltering in temperatures around 30 degress.
week ending 3 July 2009
Eco Showroom
Allbrite UK’s innovative eco-retail showroom in Mold, North Wales, sells solar power, solar hot water systems, energy-efficient under floor heating and domestic wind turbines. The Allbrite UK premises are believed to be the only fully eco retail showroom in the country. Powered by solar generated electricity, with a turf roof providing insulation and solar powered hot water, the store has no heating or lighting costs.
Plumbing & HVAC 3rd July 2009 more >>
City Contribution
A major step in tackling climate change is for city authorities to take a leadership role. Uniquely, cities can pull together consumers and businesses associated with energy, transport and other services to form a coherent plan of action. For instance, only cities can bring together all the parties needed to make a mass rollout of electric vehicles financially viable.
Times 3rd July 2009 more >>
Arbroath Project
A £25,000 AWARD from Scottish Power’s Green Energy Trust has been put to good use at a residential centre in Arbroath. The Windmill Christian Centre in Millgate Loan has used the money granted last October to install new solar-powered water heating, a wood-fuelled boiler and improved insulation.
Dundee Courier 3rd July 2009 more >>
Press & Journal 2nd July 2009 more >>
National Trust
EUROPE’S largest conservation body, the National Trust, is carrying out feasibility studies to decide whether more of its historic buildings and castles are suitable for renewable energy developments. Perpetual Energy has been appointed to conduct some of the assessments, which will analyse the viability of Biomass and Solar Thermal technologies.
Perpetual Energy Press Release 2nd July 2009 more >>
Hockerton Turbine
A VILLAGE community group has raised thousands of pounds to help pay for a wind turbine. The Sustainable Hockerton group, known locally as Shock, has raised £65,300 to add to £86,250 which has been raised by people in the village. More than a quarter of people in the village, near Newark, supported the proposals for the turbine.
Nottingham Evening Post 2nd July 2009 more >>
York University
PROPOSALS for two huge wind turbines at University of York’s new Heslington East complex have received a cautious welcome from nearby residents. The university is currently working with Partnerships For Renewables, part of the Carbon Trust, to assess which area of the 117 hectare site would be suitable for the turbines.
York Press 2nd July 2009 more >>
Windy School
Children at Goonhavern Primary school officially switched on their new wind turbine last Friday, after becoming the first in Cornwall to receive funding from the Co-operative’s £2 million Green Energy for Schools scheme.
This is Cornwall 2nd July 2009 more >>
Micro-CHP Jobs
The UK could benefit from 250,000 jobs and up to £70bn in revenue from low carbon technology. The Carbon Trust, a government-backed agency that studies ways to promote low-carbon technologies, carried out economic analyses in six areas of low-carbon industry including offshore wind, wave, solid-state lighting and micro combined heat and power.
Guardian 2nd July 2009 more >>
Small Business Loans
The Carbon Trust has announced that it is to provide small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in the UK with improved access to £100 million in interest-free, unsecured loans. According to the organisation, the government-backed loan scheme has already helped thousands of small businesses to cut their energy consumption and carbon footprints by installing energy efficient equipment. In order to make funding available to more SMBs, the Carbon Trust has lowered the minimum loan amount to £2,000, while also doubling the upper limit to £400,000.
Low Carbon Economy 1st July 2009 more >>
Aberdeenshire Housing Concern
PLANS for a major housing development in a coastal Aberdeenshire village have stalled over concerns about the number of affordable homes proposed. Councillors have deferred a decision on a bid for 67 houses at Johnshaven to allow the developer to consider increasing the number of affordable properties included. The lack of any renewable-energy elements to the housing design was also a concern to councillors.
Press & Journal 1st July 2009 more >>
Solar Ulster
PUPILS and teachers at Eden Primary School are celebrating the completion of their latest renewable energy project. The environmentally friendly school has installed a set of solar panels which will generate clean, environmentally friendly electricity. The panels are placed on the south facing roof of the school and were funded by Northern Ireland Electricity and the North Eastern Education and Library Board.
Larne Gazette 1st July 2009 more >>
Leeds Affordable Warmth
Residents at a Leeds sheltered housing complex can be excused for having a sunny disposition after learning they can expect to save in excess of £2000 a year thanks to newly installed solar panels. As part of a scheme to make Oak Tree Court in Gipton more energy efficient, ten solar panels have been installed to the south roof to help heat up to 60% of the residents’ water supplies completely free of charge.
24 Dash 1st July 2009 more >>
Black Isle Plans
Following on from last year’s Black Isle Ward Forum on the subject of Greening the Black Isle, 14 community buildings across the Black Isle Ward have now successfully had their premises audited for energy efficiency, energy management and renewable energy options. The audit will assist groups in making choices which will reduce their running costs and carbon emissions. Several of the groups have already started to develop capital projects, based on the findings of the report, to undertake energy efficiency and renewable energy measures in their buildings. Resolis Hall has recently installed a solar panel for domestic hot water, whilst Ferintosh Hall are due to start work on their insulation and the addition of a solar system this summer.
Highland Council 1st July 2009 more >>
Anglesey School
Education Minister Jane Hutt will officially open the purpose-built eco friendly Ysgol y Graig in Llangefni on Anglesey on Friday, July 3rd. This is the first school of its kind to be built on Anglesey, with a host of energy saving features, including a sustainable timber structure, and ‘green roof’, which provides a natural habitat for plants and insects. Ysgol y Graig also breaks new ground as it produces over 50% of its own electricity through photovoltaic roof tiles and a wind turbine, with surplus electricity sold back to the national grid when school consumption is low.
Anglesey Council 1st July 2009 more >>
Zero carbon houses dumped
At least the government seemed to be getting something right - insisting that all new homes be zero carbon by 2016 and launching a scheme to improve the energy efficiency of existing stock. But a fortnight ago, the government suddenly dumped this plan, when it published its new consultation document on Part L of the building regs.
Guardian 30th June 2009 more >>
Birmingham tackles fuel poverty
A Birmingham-based eco partnership has rolled out its award-winning project to the deprived South Lozells area of the city, helping residents living in fuel poverty to significantly reduce their fuel bills. The South Lozells Eco Scheme, which is being delivered by Family Housing Association thanks to funding from Housing Market Renewal Pathfinder Urban Living, has seen 26 low income owner-occupier homes in the area fitted with solar panel hot water systems and energy efficient boilers.
24 Dash 30th June 2009 more >>
Leeds Carbon Cuts
LEEDS City Council is being urged to cut its carbon emissions and create hundreds of jobs at the same time. Environment campaign group Leeds Friends of the Earth says if Leeds City Council insulated buildings and switched to renewable energy, it could create 301 jobs as well as slashing climate-changing emissions. The group commissioned independent research by environment experts, Carbon Descent.
Yorkshire Post 30th June 2009 more >>
CHP Conference
The Conference on 25 Nov 2009 will demonstrate the relevance and viability of CHP as part of a competitive, equitable and low-carbon energy future. The workshop sessions will give full coverage to all aspects of the sector, from industrial to micro-CHP.
CHPA 30th June 2009 more >>
Rubbish Flats
100 eco flats are to be built in Luton by the end of 2010 as part of Milieu Architects’ environmentally sustainable project. The apartments will use solar collectors and wind turbines, and would turn waste materials into energy to keep heating bills down to around £100 per year
Easier.com 29th June 2009 more >>
Energy Monitoring
Pupils in Perth and Kinross will be the first in Scotland to test energy monitoring equipment that has been installed by the Council in four schools as part of its commitment to protect the environment. Ewgeco energy monitors, produced by Perth-based company Tayeco, will give real-time readings of how much electricity, gas or water is being used. They also store data that the schools intend to use to understand and therefore reduce their energy consumption.
Perth & Kinross Council 29th June 2009 more >>
The Royal Heat Pump
A GLOUCESTERSHIRE based renewable energy company has been given the Royal seal of approval after installing their equipment at Highgrove. Ecovision, which has its head quarters in Uley, recently installed some of their latest eco-friendly technology at Prince Charles’ estate near Tetbury. The Prince has long been warning of the dangers of climate change and was keen to make the necessary changes to his home to conserve energy with air and ground source heat pumps.
Gloucestershire Gazette 29th June 2009 more >>
Co-op Funding
PUPILS at a Westcountry school will learn about renewable energy every time they attend classes. Goonhavern Primary School has become the first in Cornwall to receive a wind turbine funded by the Co-operative’s £2 million Green Energy for Schools scheme. The Co-operative has spent more than £1 million installing solar panels at 100 schools across the UK since 2007, including at Bosvigo School in Truro. It is now investing a further £1 million to install solar panels at 60 schools and to pilot three additional renewable technologies – wind turbines, biomass boilers and ground source heat pumps – at more than 20 schools.
This is Cornwall 29th June 2009 more >>
Decentralised Grids
Electricity is, literally, part of the landscape. The skeletal forms of pylons carrying high-voltage lines, marching across the countryside, are such a familiar sight that we barely register them. Yet as we derive more electricity from the landscape, in the form of wind, hydro and marine power, these most visible manifestations of the National Grid may need to change.
The Engineer 29th June 2009 more >>
Northumberland Events
A PROGRAMME of free events designed to help residents and businesses across Northumberland take up renewable energy technology has been launched. From now until September, themed sessions will help everyone from farmers to plumbers to learn more about the ways in which they can design, install and run renewable energy systems.
Northumberland Gazette 28th June 2009 more >>
Forth Ports
Forth Ports, which operates six harbours in Scotland and one on the River Thames, said yesterday it had made good progress with several renewable-energy initiatives. The Edinburgh-based group revealed it had identified potential opportunities for multi-fuel plants at its ports and erected monitoring systems at two of them to assess their suitability for future onshore wind-power developments.
Press & Journal 27th June 2009 more >>
Community Building Competition
A £2m contest that will push community buildings to out-green each other is being launched. Modelled on Britain’s national “green streets” competition when electricity and gas use was reduced so dramatically, the scheme is backed by British Gas. Bids will be invited from any community group with a building - from scout hut to mosque - that can test energy-saving gadgets in the same way as the “green streets” householders. Fourteen projects from across the country will then go head-to-head for a year to see which gets by on the least power.
Guardian 27th June 2009 more >>
Halifax Business Park
A NEW environmentally friendly business park has been created. Ripponden Business Park uses renewable-energy technology to reduce heating costs and CO2 emissions. Planning requirements mean some renewable energy aspects now have to be included in developments but this site far exceeded those requirements. Air source heat pumps were installed to keep it warm.
Halifax Evening Courier 26th June 2009 more >>
Solar Twitter
Performance data from the Energy Crowd’s experimental domestic passive solar energy and heat storage system is being relayed to members of the development team around the world as a series of short Twitter messages, or ‘Tweets’. The numeric message consists of a string of temperature and solar energy level measurements that can be transferred from Twitter to a spreadsheet.
PRWeb 26th June 2009 more >>
Ludlow Digestion
The recent funding award for the pioneering biodigester plant in Ludlow, Shropshire which converts municipal kitchen waste into biogas and a biofertiliser will see new technology installed at the plant by 2011, Shropshire Council has announced. The Ludlow facility was one of five projects given support earlier this month. The others are operated by Blackmore Vale Dairies; GWE Biogas Ltd; Staples Vegetables; and United Utilities and National Grid.
New Energy Focus 26th June 2009 more >>
Welsh Jobs
The environmental campaigning group said if local authorities in Wales insulated buildings and fitted green energy, they could create more than 5,700 jobs, as well as slashing climate-changing emissions. FoE claimed the move would provide employment for hundreds of loft laggers, architects, plumbers, builders, electricians, plasterers and insulation specialists.
Western Mail 25th June 2009 more >>
North Tyneside Jobs
North Tyneside Council could employ 83 new people as well as slash emissions if it insulated its buildings and fitted green energy, North Tyneside Friends of the Earth say following independent research.
News Guardian 25th June 2009 more >>
Eco-homes
A PIONEERING energy-efficient housing scheme in the Highlands could be a model for other projects across the country, according to the government. Alex Neil, the minister for housing and communities, yesterday visited Scotland’s first development of New Energy Homes (NEH), being showcased at Tarbat Park, Kildary, in Easter Ross. Each house features renewable heat-pump technology, under-floor heating, roof insulation, good ventilation and low-energy windows. Built by Tulloch Homes, they are some of the first homes in the UK to use Scotframe’s SupaWall insulation, which reduces air leakage, prevents draughts and helps to maintain a steady temperature.
Scotsman 24th June 2009 more >>
Energy Storage
A tank with an immersion heater may be just an oversized kettle, but there are thought to be around 19m in Britain’s homes, which collectively have the -capacity to store huge amounts of energy as hot water. And this could be key to achieving an almost wholly renewable electricity supply.
Guardian 17th June 2009 more >>
Scottish Strategy
The Scottish Government has published a strategy to ensure that more of the domestic energy efficiency improvements made by energy utilities benefit consumers north of the border. It says Scottish consumers should have had 22 per cent more of the investment - £18 million more - in the 2002-5 period. The strategy is focused on the Carbon Emissions Reductions Target (Cert) scheme that requires all domestic energy retailers to achieve a set emissions reduction using a variety of measures such as insulation and high-efficiency boilers. The targets, which are aimed at helping those in fuel poverty, are national and do not have a Scottish quota.
Utility Week 12th June 2009 more >>