New Service to Cut Energy Bills

 

29th January 2014

Local Charities en-form and Signpost are working with Colchester Borough Council to reduce energy bills for local residents.

They are currently running a Government funded project to review consumers energy bills and then to offer free, impartial and unbiased advice on alternative tariffs. If you decide to switch they will even arrange this for you.

Although the service is open to anyone it is aimed at those who have never switched energy providers and don’t feel confident enough to do so.

Andrew Wilkinson of en-form said ‘Savings of up to £200 are available, although the most we have saved a customer so far was £149. Apparently, almost 60% of consumers have never switched. ‘

There are many reasons why people do not switch including being unsure of the process, unable to receive impartial advice, no access to the internet or finding the process complicated. This service will arrange everything for you and then let you decide if you want to switch.

If you would like to benefit from this service or know someone who could, please telephone en-form on 01206 367776 or e-mail info@en-form.org.uk They will be visiting most local areas over the next few months.

Green Homes Wanted

 

29th January 2014

Have you had solar panels installed on your home, or perhaps a wood burning stove or a heat pump, in fact anything that makes your home energy bills cheaper, then environment group en-form wants to hear from you now.

Working with local Transition Town groups and Colchester Borough Council, en-form will be holding a Green Open Homes Weekend based in Colchester and a twenty mile radius in May.

Andrew Wilkinson of en-form said ‘Green Open Days are like the familiar Heritage and Garden Open Days. Householders who have implemented green measures and lifestyles to their homes and would like to spread the word are invited to open their doors to the public to share their experiences and explain the numerous benefits and implications.’

At the moment 12 homes have registered their interest in opening and en-form are looking for at least 20. If you are interested in participating or know someone who is and your home is within 20 miles of Colchester please contact en-form on 01206 367776,greenopendays@en-form.org.uk or website colchester.greenopenhomes.net

The project has been funded by the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) through the Green Open Homes Fund run by the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE)

Grants available for Renewable Energy Systems

 

The deadline for Renewable Heat Premium Payment (RHPP) voucher scheme is approaching on March 31^st, 2014. The scheme aims to help households without access to Main Gas grid with the cost of renewable heating installations such as heat pumps, biomass boilers and solar thermal. This funding is a great opportunity to replace the old inefficient heating systems with renewable heating technologies, and cut the energy bills and carbon emissions.

RHPP, run by the UK government, offers vouchers to householders across England, Scotland and Wales. The amount received as a part of RHPP depends on the technology installed.

If you qualify, you will get:

• £1,300 off an air-to-water heat pump system,
• £2,000 off a biomass boiler system,
• £2,300 off a ground source or water source heat pump system.

Additionally, a grant of £600 is offered towards the cost of solar thermal systems for all households including on-grid properties. These vouchers must be redeemed in 3 months or by 31st of March, whichever is sooner.

Full eligibility criteria are as follows,

• You live in England, Scotland or Wales.
• For heat pump and biomass boiler grants, the new system must be the property’s main source of heating. This is not required for solar thermal grants.
• The property is owned by you or you have permission from the house owner to install the new system.
• The product and installer must be certified under Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) or Solar Keymark.
• The property already has basic energy efficiency measures installed where possible – such as loft insulation up to 250 mm and cavity wall insulation
• You have all the necessary planning and environmental permissions as appropriate.
• You must have had a Green Deal assessment before submitting a claim for the payment of your voucher.

Please follow go to the link below to find out more about RHPP and apply for the funding.

http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Generating-energy/Getting-money-back/Renewable-Heat-Premium-Payment-Phase-2

Check your energy Deal Now

 

With the first of the Energy Companies to raise their prices by 8% today, now is a good time to review your energy needs for the next 12 months or even longer. (Long term fixed rates still available)

This coincides nicely with the Councils Big Community Switch (see below). Its worthwhile registering as you are not under any obligation to switch but will be advised of the terms they have negotiated.

You have until Tuesday. Do it this weekend.

Alternatively you may wish to check out the market for yourself using a comparison service. We like Eneryhelpline (not least because if you eventually take up an offer from this website, we receive a donation at no cost to yourself and we need the money). All the sites seem to offer the same deals.

Check it out at Energyhelpline

 

Join the Big Community Switch for possible fuel bill savings

With rising prices of food, travel and services, Colchester residents can now see if they can cut their home energy bills by switching provider in the Big Community Switch.

The Council is encouraging residents across the borough to register before 18 November to be in with a chance of being offered savings.

Signing-up must be done through the easy, no obligation online form at www.colchester.gov.uk/bigcommunityswitch

An email address, along with a recent bill, showing annual home energy usage and tariff, are needed by all residents to sign up.

Shortly after the national auction on November 19th 2013, all residents who have registered will be contacted by the organiser, iChoosr, with details of their household’s offer.  Savings are not guaranteed but for those offered a better deal who then decide to switch, all will be moved collectively to the winning energy company by early December.

Residents can help friends and family without internet access or an email account to save too.  Up to five households can be registered on one email address and the offer details then passed on following the auction.

Recognising not all residents have access to a computer or an email account, a range of support is now available both from the Council and local organisations so more residents can benefit.

From the Council’s dedicated 24 hour automated information line – 01206 507555, to a step-by-step email set-up fact sheet, and information on other ways to cut energy use.

Residents needing computer access or support with basic IT skills can make an appointment at the Signpost Resource Centre at Greenstead Library to help create an email or use their computers.  Alternatively why not sign up for a basic IT course at The Colchester Learning Shop in the town centre.  Learner sessions can be used to set up an email account and register interest in the Big Community Switch.

Self-serve computers are also available at the Council’s Customer Service Centre and the borough’s libraries, subject to availability, for residents to register themselves. 

Click here for information on what help is available and where.

Timetable

Register by: November 18th 2013
Auction will be held on: November 19th 2013
Offer Emails and Letters sent out to residents after: November 27th 2013
Deadline to send you confirmation that you would like to switch: January 13th 2014

Green Links

Energy

Energy Management
Good Energy 
Energy Saving Trust
The Green Deal Guide
National Energy Foundation

Renewable Energy Production
Green Energy Team

Food

Grow your own
Landshare 
Online matching service that allows you to find or offer land to growers. If you have a big garden you can offer it on this website for instance.
Grow Your Own (Magazine)
Colchester Allotment Association

Community Projects
Big Garden Project
Colchester Carrot

Local Produce
GFB

Vegetarian
Vegetarian Society
Vegan Society

Wholesale Foods
Suma Foods

New Economics

New Economics Foundation

Sharing Skills
Exchanging skills with other members of your community has taken many forms over the years, from LETS schemes and Timebanks to web based services. In Colchester we have both a timebank and, internationally the web based service Just For The Love of It. Like all community sharing services however, they rely on having lots of members and the members using them both to offer their skills and to request skills. The Colchester LETS scheme folded in 2002. Details of schemes are given below:

Just for the Love of It
This is a web based Community service that lets you share skills, tools, land and buildings.
LETS UK
Time Bank Colchester
Timebanking UK

Finance
Colchester Credit Union
ZOPA UK
KIVA Loans

Sustainability

en-form – The Colchester Environment Centre
Essex University Green Task Force
Transition Town Colchester
Transition Town Wivenhoe

Transport

Colchester Travel Plan

Climate Care
Off-set your emissions by planting trees

Car
The Environmental Transport Association
UK's only breakdown organisation that campaigns for a greener transport policy
Vehicle Certification Agency
Vehicle fuel consumption guide and database
Wombat Car Club
The Colchester based Car club
Essex Liftshare
Free local online car share matching service

 

Cycling
CTC
UK cyclist's membership organisation, including cycling insurance
Colchester Cycle Champions
Cycle Colchester
Colchester Cycling Campaign
Sustrans
Information on the National Cycle Network

Public Transport
Colchester Bus Users Support Group
Transport 2000
Campaigns for Sustainable transport in the UK

Walking
Walk Colchester

Waste – Reduce, Reuse and Recycling

Reduce
Love Food Hate Waste
Stop unwanted Junk Mail

Reuse
Ebay
The famous online auction site that lets you sell everything legal.
Freegle
Freecycle
Give or Take Essex
Like ebay but free. Lets you post unwanted items you want to give away or request items you want.
ReUse Essex
Online directory with search facility listing organisations throughout Essex that collect and redistribute unwanted items, primarily by Charity and Community Groups but also includes some commercial organisations.
Bookcrossing

Recycle
A-Z Guide to Dispose of Waste 
Directory of how to reduce, reuse or recycle specific items in Essex.
Recycle More (VALPAK)
Recycle Now (WRAP)
Information on what can be recycled together with a postcode search of what you can recycle in your area through kerbside collection and recycling bank facilities.
Colchester Borough Council
Details of the recycling facilities available in Colchester.
Use It Again
Waste Busters (Essex County Council)

Water

Water Companies
Anglian Water
Essex and Suffolk Water
Affinity Water (formerly Veolia Water East)

Water Use
Blueprint for Water
7 groups who have set out a blueprint for the UK's Water Supply
Centre for Alternative Technology
has an extensive guide to water harvesting
Environment Agency
Water efficiency advice and to report cases of pollution
Rainwater Harvesting Association
Links to member companies
Waterwise
Campaigns for sustainable water use. Has a useful list of water saving devices

Types Alternative Energy

Renewable energy refers to power generated by a renewable source. When the energy is generated , the resource is not depleted or used up They are naturally replenished and can either be managed so they last forever or their supply is so enormous humans can never meaningfiully deplete them. Unlike fossil fuels renewable energy sources do not release C02 as a by-product into the atmosphere. As the amount of fossil fuel resources on Earth decreases it is becoming increasingly important to find and utilise alternative fuels. Examples are.-

WIND POWER.

Air moves around the Earth because of the differences in temperature and atmospheric pressure Wind turbines harness the movement of air to produce energy. The wind turns the blades which turn a rotor shaft; the resultant mechanical power is used to drive an electricity generator. Wind turbines are often grouped together in wind farms. Wind power has very promising potential in the UK as we live in the path of Atlantic depressions (low- pressure systems) which bring windy weather. The UK currently has over 20 wind farms that could be supplying 10% of the UK's electricity by 2025. Wind farms provide a clean source of energy, but some people do not like their visual impact and the fact that they can be noisy in windy conditions. Suitable locations are often in areas of scenic beauty and so careful consideration needs to be given before they can be built. It is estimated that the UK has a very large offshore wind resource but it is not thought to be financially viable at present.

SOLAR POWER.

Solar power is the term used to describe energy derived directly from the Sun. The Sun provides the basis of energy for all living things. Sunlight has been utilised by humans for drying crops and heating water and buildings for millions of years. Solar energy is free and will never run out. We can use solar panels to turn the Sun's energy into useful energy. There are a number of ways to do this.

Passive Solar Heating.
Houses can be designed with large windows in the south and small windows in the north facing walls. This would allow natural light and heat from the Sun to be used to its full potential and reduce the need for electricity.

Active Solar Heating.
Solar power can be used to heat large bodies of water mainly for domestic hot water systems but also swimming pools.

Photovoltaics.
Photovoltaics allow the direct conversion of solar radiation into an electric current by the interaction of light with the electrons in a semiconductor cell. As development in solar technology has increased it has become much cheaper and the UK is starting to invest in the technology

BIOFUELS.

This is the term used to describe plant material and animal waste which can be burnt to produce energy. It is the oldest source of renewable energy known to humans. Unlike other renewables biomass energy does release C02 but only as much as was removed through photosynthesis during the plant's lifetime. Burning fossil fuels, by contrast, returns C02 to the atmosphere that has been locked away in the Earth's crust for millions of years. Crops can be grown with the purpose of being burnt to produce energy, e.g willow and oil seed We can also extract methane from waste landfill sites and burn it to produce energy. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas and burning it would reduce the amount in the atmosphere.

HYDRO ELECTRIC POWER (HEP).

On the Earth water is neither created or destroyed but is constantly moved around. Water evaporates from the oceans, forming clouds, falls out as rain and snow, collects into streams and rivers, and flows back to the sea. This is known as the Water Cycle. All this movement provides an enormous opportunity to create useful energy. HEP uses the force of moving water to create electricity. However HEP stations often require large dams, which can disrupt ecosystems and displace people. There are a number of large scale HEP stations in Britain. In Scotland they provide a considerable amount of energy. Unfortunately there is little room for further development of large scale HEP stations and the potential of small scale ones is being investigated.

GEOTHERMAL ENERGY.

Rocks under the Earth's crust contain naturally decaying radioactive materials like uranium and plutonium producing a continuous supply of heat. The amount of heat within 10,000 metres of the Earth's surface contains 50,000 times more energy than all the oil and gas resources in the world. Geothermal energy is power generated by harnessing this heat. Wells are used to pipe steam and hot water from deep within the Earth, up to the surface. The hot water is then used to drive turbines and generate electricity. The regions with highest underground temperatures are in areas with active or geologically young volcanoes. These "hot spots often occur around the Pacific Rim. In the UK at a depth of 1500-3000 metres below the surface there are some aquifers that contain water at very high temperatures which can be pumped to the surface and used in heating schemes.

TIDAL POWER.

The idea is very similar to HEP. A dam-like structure is constructed across an estuary to trap a high tide of water and then let it pass through turbines to generate electricity The water flow can generate electricity on the falling tide only, or on the falling and rising tide. The Rance Estuary in France is an example of a successful plant. The UK has potential to widely use tidal power with the Severn and Mersey estuaries being possible sites.

WAVE POWER.

Ocean waves are a concentrated form of wind energy. Friction develops between air and water as wind blows across the water, and waves are produced as energy is transferred between these elements. Taking the motion of the waves, and translating it into mechanical or electrical energy, generates energy from waves. The UK has the potential to exploit a great deal of energy from wave power. There are 2 types of instruments that can generate electricity from wave energy: floaters and sitters. Salter's Duck and Cockerell's Raft are floaters and Vicker's "Duct is a sitter.

Salter's Duck.
This design can extract approximately 90% of the energy from a wave It is made up of a chain of about 25 floats. As they bob up and down on the water a pump is driven and electricity is generated.

Cockerell's Raft.
Lines of rafts are placed at right angles to the wave front. Between the rafts are hydraulic motors or pumps, which convert the energy to high pressure that then drives the turbines.

Vicker's Duct.
Water goes up and down a submerged tube and as the pressure changes water is squirted out and electricity generated.