The Bargain buggy of tomorrow?


In terms of output and innovation, China are massive, if not the major players in the world renewables game.

Up to now, though, they might be said to have lagged behind others in the development of low-carbon vehicles – even though for the last few years they’ve been making noises about catching up and ultimately outdoing the rest in that department too.

But with all the solar panels coming out of the nation – it’s no surprise that the idea of a solar-powered car has piqued interest.

Innovation is not just about producing the shiniest, most cutting-edge technology – it could also be, for example, about making something that smashes affordability barriers.

That certainly rings true in the case of Zhu Zhenlin’s design. The Xiangshan County Technical School student has put together a solar-powered car for just £2! Hey, it’s not the prettiest (though this article does point out its Snoopy seat covers) and only does 25mph, but at that price, what exactly are you demanding?

The 22-panel, 12 battery car can also be charged from the mains, that as the Daily Mail’s article points out, would be pretty handy if you have aspirations of driving it around any UK town.

For all the gawking at the slightly clunky nature of Zhu’s design and tongue-in-cheek comparisons to the likes of the Nuna6 solar racer designed by Dutch engineers, bits of DIY creativity like this are really heartening – a role for real people, not just giant companies, in getting to grips with low-carbon energy.

To make a start on your own electric vehicle journey, visit our website.

Current Affairs, Green economy, Media, Microgeneration, Products, Transport

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May 4, 2012

1 Comment

Smart meters: consumer friendly, but will they be smart enough to save the consumer energy?

Image from Energy Saving Trust 'The Smart way to Display'

Guest post by Tara West on behalf of renewable energy company, Good Energy

In 2014 energy suppliers in the UK will begin the lengthy process of installing smart meters in every home and small business throughout the country.

The government, which set out plans for this ambitious programme in March 2011, are confident that the rollout will allow consumers to cut down energy consumption and save money as a result.  Why? Because the meters provide accurate information about how much energy is used and when, without the need for a human meter reader, and sends accurate bills based on this data.

The energy industry are already planning to deliver the promise of smart meters for 30 million households and businesses, but can we be sure that the devices will be intelligent enough to actually do what the government wants them to do?

One of the first issues that need to be addressed is the fear that consumers could be exploited during the installation. This has been addressed by proposing that no sales will be undertaken during this time and no marketing activity around meter deployment will take place without consumer permission prior to the visit.

However, the biggest issue relates to apprehension about privacy and data access. Existing data protection rules would enforce that energy companies could only use data from the smart meters for the purpose intended and the Government has defined the purpose as billing or regulatory purposes. If suppliers want to use the information for anything else they would have to get the customers permission from the customer beforehand.

The worry is that smart meters may not deliver much beyond energy usage to customers, despite their ambition to reduce carbon emissions. Most of us are too busy to permanently be thinking about how much  energy we are using so allowing smart meters systems to work as a cohesive smart energy network would be a more efficient way of decarbonising our energy sources – by  letting smart meters work together to optimise usage according to real time.

Additionally, a smart metering system for households that use solar panels as a form of green energy needs to be able to enhance usage of their own power before taking power it the grid. This infrastructure would result in effective and efficient energy consumption.

Manage energy use in a smarter fashion, particularly in each neighbourhood, and this will mean a smaller carbon footprint, as well as less of a need for network upgrades and any inconvenience they entail. However, for this to happen, energy companies need access to real time smart meter data, which seems a long way off.

Finally, there is a need for the energy regulator, Ofgem, to ensure that it does not take a ham-fisted approach to simplifying energy tariffs. As its current proposals in this area stand, they will severely undermine the development of the type of energy tariffs that will mean bill savings for consumers if they use their energy in a certain way.

Tariff simplification must not close the door to the kind of more responsive energy market that consumers will come to expect in a ‘smarter’ world. The government is taking a step in the right direction.

The new smart meters will lead to changes for consumers who choose to use the data, which will ultimately reduce consumption. Just receiving bills based on actual usage will be beneficial, particularly as energy prices increase alongside fossil fuel prices.

Having said this, if as part of this rollout a smarter energy system was being put in place, it would mean we would be ever closer to the where we need to be. Smart meters can always do with being smarter!

Current Affairs, Energy supply, Housing, Strategy

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May 2, 2012

2 Comments

Hacking the government to save energy

The clever developers and coders of the world don’t usually get invited to play around with official data – and even less often would this be linked with energy efficiency.

That all changed a few days ago, as data-loving optimists Rewired State (slogan: ‘Coding a Better Country’) asked fellow enthusiasts to join them at the Government Digital Service, along with DECC, DEFRA and ourselves for National Hack the Government Day. All above-board – not the kind of thing stereotypically associated with the word hacking.

On top of the juicy data from government, we chucked in some of the raw data on gas-heated three-bed semis that we use for advice on our website. The idea was to take it all and design whizzy things like apps, software and even games that engage people in making a sustainable difference.

There was an endless supply of caffeine and prizes up for grabs for those taking part – the main one offering a chance to work with government to actually develop the thing for real.

There was certainly some talent packed into the room – people who could take a job lot of stats and make a practically web-ready tool in six hours. From ultimately what was a limited data set sprung a myriad of different takes on it: from wind-assisted cycling guidance to a rather brilliant concept of group-buying insulation for your gran, this was speed innovation with wit and invention.

But who’s getting to build on what they started? That would be ‘Happy House’, who cooked up a natty tool to help home-buyers find an energy efficient place in their area, scooping the DECC Challenge Prize.

Who’s to say where DECC’s favourite concept of the day goes from here – but the potential is certainly there to push energy use firmly into the buyer’s mind-set. Making energy efficiency into real running costs and putting it side-by-side with a mortgage calculator could prove a real eye-opener, for sure.

You can check out all the digital winners, runners and riders here.

Current Affairs, Entertainment, Events, Housing, Products, Strategy

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April 30, 2012

3 Comments

Water waste versus the plastic pitch


There are unquestionably some adaptations to ease natural resource problems that people are more resistant to, for a myriad of reasons.

Certainly, for the football fan, the idea that synthetic pitches could make a comeback as part of the fight against water shortages is little short of anathema – as the majority of the comments on the Guardian article that suggested it attests.

After some of the shocking, bouncy bouncy fare seen at the likes of Luton and QPR in the 80s and early 90s, and that’s without considering injury risk, it’s fair to suggest that a return to the deeply tongue in cheek-dubbed ‘plastic fantastic’ could quite possibly cause a revolt.

But it’s an idea back in vogue nonetheless. The Football League is consulting on the reintroduction of synthetic turf to matches in England after it’s started to re-catch on already abroad.

Tough financial times for many teams at the lower end of the game and sustainability considerations are two driving forces that could see grass shunned in some parts if the consultation concludes affirmatively. But what are the facts behind this being brought up again?

Well, it’s not the kind of thing that you’d be able to tap into our Water Energy Calculator, but the water and energy required to both make grass grow and keep games on when severe weather hits are pretty steep. The article cites 15,000 litres needed to water Crystal Palace’s pitch – UV lighting at the top clubs can run costs into the hundreds of thousands, and that’s without considering the carbon footprint of heating grass in winter.

Scottish club Stenhousemuir has saved £1,000 on its water bills after installing a synthetic playing surface. Where water costs are higher, or the climate much warmer, these savings could be even bigger. Sure, Manchester City are probably losing wads of thousands down the back of corporate box sofas every match day, but for the vast majority of the game’s clubs, such savings are significant.

But its nigh-on essential that the sustainability movement is not simply viewed as a fun-crusher – public buy-in to all change is essential.

While synthetic pitches have undoubtedly moved on since the bad old days, it’s hard to see them matching the subtlety in ball movement and touch that grass provides, so it’s encouraging to note that if football does want to tackle its leaky defences (apologies for that one) it seems there are alternatives to synthetic pitches. Phew.

Pitch run-off water after a downpour can be stored and recycled for watering the pitch. Chelsea is an example on this front – but so far only on their training pitch – while it would come as a surprise to nobody that Ecotricity-backed Forest Green Rovers are getting really serious about water re-use:

For pitch irrigation we are collecting the water from under the pitch to recycle back. Next we will collect rainwater from the stadium rooftops, and sink a borehole to reach the local spring water.  Our pitch will thus be irrigated by a mixture of rain, drain and spring water – and we hope this will make it independent from the water main.

But while it’s the rich clubs that should be taking the lead in more sensible pitch innovations, clearly mass roll-out will require grass-roots investment from football’s authorities elsewhere. It remains to be seen in this happens, but for the purists, the great hope will surely be for efficiency without draining the life out of the beautiful game.

Current Affairs, Entertainment, Green economy, Products, Strategy, Waste, Water

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April 25, 2012

2 Comments

For better, for worse: social media and engaging change

Avoiding chirping into a green void can be tricky...

By Zoe Holliday

I know it’s ironic to write this on a blog, but I’ve become somewhat disillusioned with social media lately. It all started when I realised that I’d become one of those people who posts about what they’ve had for dinner. I’ve always been critical of people who tweet mundane/trite bits of information about their day-to-day lives. Turns out that I am one of those people.

Then I started to realise what a terrifying number of my friends who don’t actually interact with me on facebook/twitter were reading my posts. This has started to impede conversation in real life; I regularly start telling a friend something and they inform me that they know, because they’ve read it on facebook (turns out I also talk about what I have for dinner a lot).

The final slap in the face(book) was when I realised that despite having hundreds of “friends” on my account, any attempts to mobilise them into action by, for example, suggesting we go for a drink, has a truly pitiful response rate. Less social networking, more social not working.

But in an era when more than one in every five hours spent by UK users on the internet is on a social networking site, organisations cannot afford to ignore social media. So how can you avoid my mistakes and create content that is interesting, encourages interaction and inspires action? In the field of energy efficiency and sustainability, doing just this is what it’s all about – or else your whole point is going to be rendered pretty much pointless.

Interesting content is a given, considering the average ‘half life’ of Facebook and Twitter links (the amount of time after its peak at which it has had half of the clicks it will ever receive) is only around 3 hours. It’s a simple and immediate way to convey an energy-saving message or an offer available to help people make a sustainable change, but if it’s not interactive and you’re just firing links out blankly, chances are that interest will wane yet quicker. What else?

Well, social media should always be a two-way process – and that means both creating content that people want to respond to, but also replying if they get in contact with you. After they realised that the number of complaints and enquiries on their Twitter account was increasing, Norfolk County Council handed over responsibility for responding to these queries to its customer service team; their account is now picking up 500 followers per month, which their media officer recognises is in no small part due to the fact that tweeters get a quick and friendly response to any compliment or complaint.

Monmouthshire County Council took the idea of sharing responsibility for online content one step further and opened social media access to all staff, to encourage them to engage more effectively with colleagues, residents and partners. A dangerous move? Well not really. If the statistics (and, oddly, a survey of my own friends) are to be believed, more people own a mobile phone than a toothbrush. Employees will find a way to access social media during working hours if they want to. So why not encourage them to put it to good use?

Here’s the tricky part, though – how do you use social media to encourage people to actually do something? The toughest ask of all, and clearly not something I’ve been personally successful in.

But there have been some interesting campaigns out there, using everything from competitions (like the American Alliance to Save Energy’s Drive Smarter Video Contest), through appeals to social responsibility (like Lewisham Council’s Love Lewisham campaign, which allows residents to sign in with social media accounts to upload photos of issues such as damaged footpaths or recycling bins) to the time-tested method of peer pressure… in the US, Opower’s newly launched facebook app supported by 15 utilities allows users to compare their own energy use to similar homes (using a national database) and to compete against friends to reduce energy use and improve efficiency.

This idea might not be so far off for the UK – just the other day Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg announced that the Government will be trialling OPower’s home energy software. Watch this space….

How do you use social media? Who do you follow? Tell us in the comments box below, like us facebook us or give us a tweet @EnergySvgTrust – we’d love to hear from you. (Unless it’s about what you had for dinner)

Advice and support, Communities, Media, Strategy

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April 25, 2012

2 Comments

Saving energy and water in Wales – the Aussie way…

 

We’re always heartened to hear of local projects benefitting from international inspiration here at blog HQ. Its nigh-on essential that we’re sharing what’s worked – and indeed, what hasn’t – if we’re to change behaviours and move towards a more sustainable way of doing things.

We especially like it when the connection seems a little odd at first glance – like traditional wet Wales getting inspiration from draught-prone Australia on how to manage water use.

But that’s just what’s happening with Energy Saving Trust Cymru’s BywCraff Caerdydd – or LivingWise Cardiff for non-Welsh speakers.

Energy and water efficiency advice is moving away from general advice on a reactive basis towards really tailored, personalised, home-by-home guidance on a local level.

For this project, we’ve used examples from as far afield as Ipswich (England, that is – there’s one in Queensland you know), where a successful energy and waste scheme swept the town, as well as of course our Aussie cousins, who have seen reductions in water use of between 7 and 21 per cent through similar approaches.

It’s not all about water use alone though – it’s about connecting it directly with energy use in the minds of households – specifically, 1,000 of them in the Rhiwbina area of north Cardiff.

What’s the area got that’s of so much interest to us, you may ask? Quite simply, high water and energy use, and high levels of water metering – which in theory should be a good first step on getting to grips with home water use in a serious way.

As with a lot of our regional work, it’s very much a collaborative business, with partners as diverse as Environment Agency Wales and the Consumer Council for Water. It all works on a sliding scale, from simply finding out what people know already about their water use, to visiting homes and assisting real, long-term behaviour change.

In total, LivingWise is aiming to cut over 400 tonnes of CO2 – strewth.

Lofty ambitions are not something our Welsh representatives fear, however. But of course, the buy-in of the people of Rhiwbina is nigh-on essential for success. So what’s in it for them?

Plenty, basically. Each person in the UK uses on average, about 150 litres each day. That’s a lot – and a fair bit going down the drain that needn’t. But factoring in that about 30 per cent of your household energy bill is from heating the water, and the fact that’s worth about £200 per year on average, then the reasons for action are compelling.

And if energy bills and carbon emissions weren’t enough to think about, there’s also the drought question hanging over this island at present. Water shortages are no longer a problem far away, and no-one would want to see Cardiff resembling Alice Springs in the foreseeable future.

To residents of Rhiwbina, we say: we’re on our way, fear not those water and energy bills. To everyone else, we say: this is the future of changing our ways in a sustainable direction, so don’t be surprised when similar schemes hit your respective streets.

Advice and support, Communities, Green economy, Housing, Local Authority, Waste, Water

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April 23, 2012

1 Comment

Smart homes: not so popular with teenagers

Not on the smart home's watch...

Often it’s the auxiliary benefits of energy efficiency measures that prove the ‘tipping point’ between just thinking about getting them done and biting the bullet.

Some of our recent research has also shown that people are even prepared to pay a bit more for measures that show this sort of ‘value added’ – the added security that comes with double glazing, for example.

It turns out that smart home energy management systems may have the ultimate auxiliary benefit for the suspicious parent. Treehugger.com reported the story of and Australian dad and avid remote energy monitor inspector who managed to snoop out his kids’ house party while he was out having dinner 500 miles away.

After initial confusion at seeing a hefty energy-use spike in his absence, it was teenagers in his company completed the sell-out of his own progeny, by explaining what was really going on. After calling his daughter, she did try and slow down the energy consumption, but too little too late: busted.

There are some concerns that mass smart metering could only benefit energy companies through more accurate customer usage information – but we’re keen to ensure that armed with the correct information, this isn’t the case, and that households can really make a change towards wiser energy choices.

What’s more, this story does seem to illustrate that the micro, domestic ‘conversations’ between man and meter may be just as telling as the macro ones at corporate level.

We’ve had our blogger Steven Harris transcribing (imaginary?) discussions with his own smart home before – and it remains to be seen whether such an energy boffin will be able to resist the temptation for teen snooping opportunities as his children grow older.

All this said, it doesn’t have to mean eternal enmity between teen and machine –the less money parents spend on bills, the more they’ve got to treat their kids to that thing they’ve been on at them about for months on end (without becoming a huge victim of the rebound effect, naturally). Perhaps all that we’ll see is the secret house party having something of a low-carbon makeover…

Current Affairs, Energy supply, Housing, Media

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April 20, 2012

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The heat is on – oh, right here actually

Oh we do like a bit of mapping here on the blog – right little energy orienteers we are. We’ve had regional solar potential maps, roadmaps for entire Scottish renewable strategies, and more.

Less and less the map is a metaphor: with the necessity for local authority sustainability strategies, community schemes etc. to play their part in the UK’s future energy security and household comfort, the government, individuals and organisations like ourselves are developing more sophisticated ways of taking a view of what can be done where.

It’s the government’s latest effort we’re drawing attention to this time. Planners have a huge role to play in the UK’s sustainable future, and DECC is hoping to help them plot out, quite literally, hot spots for local renewable heat networks.

The fact that news of the new National Heat Map came out alongside details of the Renewable Heat Incentive and the RHPP scheme that we administer is telling: such incentives don’t work in isolation. It’s about building on market-building mechanisms with robust data and knowledge. It’s also clear that getting more renewable heat in people’s own homes isn’t the whole solution – community-scale renewables and networking are vital.

The map models heat demand density, covering Residential, Commercial, Industrial, Public Buildings and Total heat demand, alongside locations for Combined Heat and Power plants, Power Stations and local authority and regional boundaries.

Using government data and the wise heads at the Centre for Sustainable Energy, it could well prove the on-the-ground starting point for further feasibility studies that may get large-scale district heating schemes off the ground.

Advice and support, Communities, Current Affairs, Energy supply, Heating, Local Authority

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April 18, 2012

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Revolutionising rural renewables

By Joseph Hildred

Let’s be honest, beyond the recent craze of installing solar PV panels on the roofs of our homes how many of us can actually say we are familiar with renewable technology at a local level?

The fact is there’s a wide range of renewable technology out there which can be effective at a community level. Ok, maybe you won’t get a micro hydro turbine in your back garden, but perhaps there’s a river nearby where a community hydro generator could be installed.

In one of our own ‘attitude trackers’ in the not too distant past 44% of people asked would like to see more local demonstration of renewable technology, and 40% would be keen to see their street supplied from a communal renewal energy source. The results of the same survey also showed that, whilst people are keen to see and even utilise renewable energy in their community, they are not ready to implement it themselves.

Enter the Rural Carbon Challenge fund. One of my colleagues previously talked up a share option scheme for hydroelectricity in Saddleworth – but now there’s six other new community based renewable energy projects for England’s Northwest.

The projects, which have received a total of over £2.1 million funding between them, aim to deliver a change to the way energy is generated in the rural Northwest. What’s more, they’re expected to save 58,000 tonnes of carbon, create 16 jobs, and of course provide the training to go with them.

With our partners Defra and Envirolink Northwest, we selected the most innovative projects that also offered good value for money and could show others in the region how it’s done. All of the projects will be up and running by October 2013.

A bit more about the six projects this blog hasn’t covered before:

Blencathra Renewable Energy – Low Carbon Vision
Blencathra’s huge selling point is the educational programmes on offer alongside micro hydro and biomass technologies, that should really inspire others in the region.

Cheshire and Warrington Rural Biomass (CHERUB)
The Mersey Forest are creating a sub-regional cluster of biomass heating installations in Cheshire and Warrington, specifically targeting off gas grid community and business buildings, in order to provide training in the installation of the technologies.

Cockerham Green Energy Company
Cockerham Green Energy Company is a co-operative of local farmers who have received funds for a 330KW anaerobic digestion plant, which will produce heat and electricity to nearby farms. The plant will be fuelled by the waste products of the nearby farms, along with a small amount of excess grass silage.

Halton Carbon Positive
A biomass district heating system and micro hydro turbine are being fitted to provide heat and electricity to nearby new build housing. The development, which will be built to PassivHaus standard will be the first carbon neutral co-housing development in the UK, includes the refurbishment of a mill to provide eco-friendly work spaces.

Generating Success
Greater Manchester Centre for Voluntary Organisation (GMCVO) are developing a series of community renewable ‘Trailblazers’ designed to inspire rural community groups to deliver their own renewable projects.  GMCVO are being funded to deliver the first three Trailblazers, which will include one new build community venue. Each of the Trailblazer venues will have solar PV installed.

Anaerobic Digestion Delivering Sustainability and Upland Prosperity (ADDS+UP)
Low Luckens Organic Resource Centre, in the far north of Cumbria have been given funding to build a small scale anaerobic digester which will provide heat and electricity for the farm, with some surplus being exported to the National Grid.  The carbon dioxide produced will also be captured, stored and used to promote organic vegetable growth in poly tunnels. Real rural innovation.

Whilst the outputs of the RCCF may appear impressive, that’s not where the benefits stop. The true success of the fund will not be measured in green kW produced and CO2 saved, but by the legacy it creates. The hope is that the projects will kick start a generation of future projects, inspiring those that may have at first been apprehensive to take the plunge.

It’s about being that spark – starting something that paves the way for a new generation of renewable energy projects that will shape the future of rural areas.  You can find out more about each project by reading the factsheets on the Energy Saving Trusts RCCF page.

Advice and support, Communities, Current Affairs, Energy supply, Microgeneration, Strategy

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April 16, 2012

5 Comments

Retrofitting, 15 storeys high

By Gary Hartley

Think of the concept of giving a 1960s concrete tower block an ‘eco facelift’ and you might have visions of Del and Rodney dragging rolls of bulk-bought insulation up the stairs of Nelson Mandela House.

Of course, it’s entirely possible that’s just me. What you probably would think is that it sounds like an ambitious, maybe even daunting aim. Retrofit isn’t a piece of cake in a three-bed semi, so to approach multi-floored buildings of fairly rigid construction principles requires serious application.

But a long way from Peckham, Barton in Greater Manchester to be precise, City West Housing Trust have taken on the challenge, completed it, and is about to welcome residents back to their newly warmer and more sustainable homes.

Of course this kind of work doesn’t come cheap – but it’s nigh-on essential to take on even the toughest-to-treat of Britain’s unique and varied architecture if ever-rising fuel poverty and the UK’s carbon emissions targets are to be attacked head on.

As part of a £14.3million area-wide renewal scheme, the Barton block is the first of four to be tackled. But of course you want to hear about the tech spec for this more unusual of projects. So what have they got up to?

Well, the energy efficiency basics are more than covered, which is of course the only place to start. Modern ventilation and high-insulation cladding are the basis upon which some much newer-to-market technology is added. Solar water heating and highly efficient boilers combine in a system known as EcoPod – something which aims to get to the heart of fuel poverty: the ability to be comfortable while reducing the cost of doing so considerably.

Best of all, this system replaces electric storage heaters – notorious energy-suckers in older social housing. Innovative too is the Building Management System installed in the block, to alert the landlord when the most ‘at risk’ tenants are not adequately heating their homes. Based on the recommendations on both targeting the most in need and making use of modern technology from our recent In from the cold report, this sounds like progress.

Tackling the energy efficiency of Britain’s iconic tower blocks seems to be something very much on the agenda of housing pros. RIBA hosted a seminar last year on this very issue featuring top architects and estate experts, where a case study of a project a lot closer to Peckham was cited.

Sprunt and United House teamed up to retrofit Colne and Mersea, two 1970s 17-storey residential tower blocks, named, on the Harts Lane Estate in Barking, East London. Occupants remained in their homes throughout the work as insulation measures, solar PV, community heating, triple-glazing and smart meters were installed.

From our own perspective, a particularly exciting development in this scheme was the focus on water use. We recently spoke about the current drought threat looming and how simple measures and behaviour changes could save a high water-usage four person household around £420 on water and gas bills and over half a tonne of carbon dioxide each year.

In this case, these guys have clearly been using our Water Energy Calculator – low flow-rate taps and special baths were put in the blocks with an expressed aim of cutting water usage from 180 litres to around 90 litres per resident per day.

One area of food for thought, though: neither of these tower block retrofits seem to have improved the energy efficiency of the building’s lighting. Our Lit Up report from last year showed that LEDs in social housing communal areas can improve light quality, cut costs, and improve a sense of wellbeing to boot, so perhaps this is something to look at.

Here are just two examples – we’re sure there’s lots more, pushing the boundaries of energy efficiency and architectural innovation still further. Please drop us a line if you feel we ought to know about a project near you – we’re always open to a Part II around here.

Communities, Current Affairs, Energy supply, Green economy, Heating, Housing, Lighting, Local Authority, Microgeneration, Strategy, Water

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April 13, 2012

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