Tuesday 22 December 2009

Copenhagen - the road ahead starts at your front door

A thoughtful guest blog from Stevan Lockhart -Project Officer for Assynt Renewables

On the news pages of the Assynt Renewables website, we did not report at all on the build-up or process of the Copenhagen conference as news about it was everywhere. They even counted how many leaders arrived in electric vehicles. Copenhagen seemed to be item number one on the agenda for such a long time. Now here we are, wondering exactly what happened and whether it’s been a good thing or a bad one, a missed opportunity or a good start. Were we misled by all the expectation that grew in its run-up, with headlines such as “Road to Copenhagen,” which now seems to have resulted only in a general agreement that we should all do better? It seems to have been an example of a complex issue dissected to the point of simplicity, which turns out to be complex after all.

Summary: Coming at this time in the history of humankind leaves us struggling to understand the complexities that go to make up what happened at the Copenhagen Accord. But concentrating too much on this one event leaves us distracted from the things that matter. And these are things that we as individuals can do something about.

We are left with more questions than before, though at least now there is no illusory silver bullet of “Copenhagen” sorting everything out. Conveniently released details of scientific squabbling made us wonder whether we are being hoodwinked by climatologists trying to make a name for themselves, or hoodwinked by nay-sayers trying to establish their own scientific proofs.

Claims that soot in the upper atmosphere is “worse” than carbon dioxide for global warming have been thrown in too. China and India are portrayed as the big problems, when we in the West, and America in particular, are far worse offenders, the finger pointing looking, even to the least intellectual, like the distraction it is. In this instance, the BBC, for example, did and does itself no favours for purported impartiality, rigorously favouring our own point of view.

There were those saying that every nation on the planet had to agree to change its ways with immediate effect no matter what the other consequences and there were those saying that the required changes to systems of government would amount to a global police force and global government to make Orwell’s 1984 look like a feelgood romance. For them, Copenhagen’s “failure” comes as a relief. And there were those saying simplistically that reductions in our carbon emissions would solve the problem while others said that global warming has nothing to do with carbon.

On the other hand, as Roger Harrabin has reports, “If the climate was a bank they would have saved it, said Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. But it is not. And they have not.”

But none of this matters.

Forget the climate. The fundamental issue, which has not yet been addressed in any way, is the basic fact that we simply consume to much of the planet’s resources. Much of what is proposed, increased use of renewable energy, electric vehicles etc, may be considered to be window dressing. Magic schemes such as carbon sequestration and other technological wonders are held out as “just around the corner.” We simply need technology to solve all our problems. But the reality is different. 

As was re-iterated in “The Big Debate” on BBC Scotland on 16th December, if everyone alive right now lived the way we do, we would need two planet Earths to supply the resources we use. That is the problem. We simply use too much, and we do not understand that we have now hit the limits.

So why can’t we act? Why do we find it so much more attractive to head blindly along a path that, deep down, we know leads to destruction? It is, one suspects, because we humans are so poor at recognising risk. Take an obvious example, our response, in the UK at any rate, to modern crime. 

We have signed away many of our liberties because of our perceptions of the modern danger of acts of terror, yet the danger posed by the the biggest killer by far, the car and fast road transport, we simply have processes such as the largely ignored NCAP safety ratings. Our response is stupidly disproportionate; it seems as though we have no logical ability to tell real from perceived threats.

We need a massive event, some cataclysm, to indicate to us the trouble we are in. Scientists graphs do not move us to action. And the proof of that is global response to the banking failure. Here, in spite of all the climate and energy related improvements which we are told we can’t achieve because of economics, we found the ability, within weeks, to spend amounts of money the size of which we can’t even understand.

So until something happens, like the North Atlantic Drift stopping flowing, creating some massive and unignorable event, we will continue in our international bickering; we do not realise that the times have changed.

We should heed voices like E.F.Schumaker, who wrote a long time before climate change became the issue of the day:-

To talk about the future is useful only if it leads to action now. And what can we do now, while we are still in a position of ‘never having had it so good?’

And that’s the issue. At a time when politicians should be showing leadership, we see the effects of the expenses scandals, leading us to questions their real motives. When we are told things need to change dramatically, the most dramatic change of which we are aware is the amount we are having to pay anonymous bankers. And at this time, we have the backdrop of the Iraq enquiry further introducing doubt into our minds about how well politicians have our best interests at heart. 

We have “mechanisms,” like carbon trading, which, it seems, are simply there to enrich a small proportion and which, it seems, are used in a very different way to their intention, rather than achieving their real aim.

But, says Schumaker, we can make a difference. If we start behaving differently ourselves. If we as individuals put our own ethics first, rather than pre-fabricated ethics from news services or corporate PR. If we question, ourselves and how we live. If we start at home.

Communities aren’t always geographic groups of people. Sometimes communities are simply individuals who happen to be going in the same direction. And groups of communities may make up a groundswell Groundswells can change the world.

But what can I do? Some excellent examples can be found on the World Wildlife Fund website at http://www.wwf.org.uk/how_you_can_help/change_how_you_live/

Understand how much you consume. The WWF has a tool here http://footprint.wwf.org.uk/ which can tell you how many Earths would be required for everyone to live the way you do.

Save energy. Don't assume the way you've used energy in the past is a point to aim for in the future.

Decide carefully whether or not to buy things. Good advice in troubled economic times too.

Consider how much, why and how you travel. Can you make better choices?

Examine your diet, the food you eat and where you get it.

Well what about Copenhagen? Has it put us on the right road? Perhaps not. So forget the possibility of some immense change in life that gets thrust on you. Initiate change for yourself. Do something, even if it’s just changing your mind. Take some of the above ideas, or generate some of your own. Set some standards for yourself. Once that process starts, by ones, twos, hundreds, thousands and millions, Copenhagen’s best outcomes will be dwarfed, and who knows, the world may well be a better place tomorrow.

Tuesday 8 December 2009

Virgin Oil from North Harris


Thanks to David Wake, Energy Development Officer from North Harris Trust for this guest blog.

I feel like a proud father after the birth of his first child. Today I have my first batch of Biodiesel –and it looks good enough to drink!
Way back in July, the North Harris Trust started collecting waste vegetable oil. We opened up a Community Recycling Site in the summer and thought this would be a good project for the two part-time staff, during the long winter months when the site has fewer visitors. The first purchase was a 1000 litre IBC container (after we’d exhausted all our fish farm contacts) to build up a stock of oil. This has always been the greatest uncertainty for me. Harris only has a handful of hotels and bars that use cooking oil, so stocks are limited. Most proprietors are just glad to see the back of the oil. The official route for disposal is an 80 mile round trip to the Municipal Waste site –and a fee for disposal. So when the Trust offered to take the oil, they were very happy to oblige. The only catch though, is that there are a few enlightened individuals who are also making Biodiesel for their own consumption. The proprietors say “first come first served” so there are no guarantees on the source of raw material for our little process.

After a brief conversation with Community Energy Scotland, I made contact with a handful of other trail-blazing communities. I spoke to people already making their own road fuel in Uist, Lanark, Orkney and Eigg to find out how difficult it was. If you look on YouTube on the web, then there are guys in America mixing up chemicals in their back yard, with home-made equipment. After many questions, I finally made contact with Green Fuels who make the Fuelpod range of covertors. Their product is self contained and looked to me to be one of the safest. They also supply all the bits and pieces that you need to go with the machine, from chemicals to test equipment. I actually ordered my Fuelpod2 through a community development trust in Lanarkshire. They are fuelling a fleet of community mini-buses from their machine. They gave me the re-assurance I needed to start making fuel and were very patient with me. As an agent for Green Fuels, they also put money back into their community from my purchase.

Prior to ordering, I did try to seek funding for the project. Be aware that some of the larger climate change funds don’t want to see any benefits to local business. They need carbon savings for the man on the street. That one was difficult for me to justify. I was lucky enough to convince my Directors that I could achieve a 2 year payback on their investment and so self-funded the equipment.

After 4 months, and the end of the summer tourist season, we have amassed a stock of just under 1000l of sieved oil. This will make enough Biodiesel for a year’s worth of Trust motoring. With oil in hand, I set about making my first fuel. The process is quite simple. It involves mixing the waste vegetable oil with methanol and a liquid catalyst. All this is done in sealed containers. After an hour of reaction, and an overnight settling, hey presto, you have biodiesel. It’s quite amazing how the biodiesel separates from a thick treacle-like Glycerine. All you have to do then is pour off the glycerine and filter the biodiesel to take out any impurities. By the end of day 2, we had 50 litres of what almost looks like a good malt whisky.

The Trust runs a diesel Citroen Multispace. With some trepidation, I reversed it into the shed at the Recycling Centre to fill up for the first time. The Fuelpod has its own fuel pump –just like at a petrol station. With a full tank, I headed back to the office. I knew one of my colleagues was going out in the afternoon and needed the vehicle. A great dilemma gripped me. Do I tell, or do I keep quiet and wait to see if there are any problems? The biggest issue with biodiesel is that everyone says it works and that there are no problems running it in standard diesel cars and vans. There are no guarantees though. The manufacturers of the machines will say that it’s difficult to maintain a standard of quality when you make such small batches. Speaking to all those other community groups that are making it – they’ll all say “We run it in all sorts of cars, with no problem” but there’s still no guarantees. My plan is to blend it with standard “fossil” diesel initially and reduce the mix as time goes by.

It’s a simple process – and if you can secure yourself a stock of waste oil you can be saving up to eighty pence a litre whilst significantly reducing your carbon footprint. So why isn’t everyone doing it?
http://greenfuels.co.uk/product/fuelpod-2.aspx
http://www.ruraldevelopmenttrust.co.uk/

Thursday 3 December 2009

Think global - act local




As the big guns are gathering in Copenhagen to deliberate on the state of the planet, a dedicated group of people are holding vigil in Trafalgar Square in London where they are holding a climate camp. There is also an Ice Bear that is rapidly melting in the square - despite the cold. I happened to be in London over the weekend and saw this poignant symbol of the issues we face.




The Ice Bear seemed dwarfed at times by the grand surroundings and crowds and that for me reflected how it can feel when thinking about climate change. What is agreed to ( or not agreed to) globally over the next few days will potentially dictate our futures. The nations of the world are deciding what commitments they will make to lower their carbon emissions at the United Nations Climate Change Conference. Many fear that the leadership will not be strong enough to take the measures that many scientists say need to be taken to avert the worst impacts of climate change. It is easy to feel that we have little control in these world wide affairs but what is heartening is the commitment and effort being put in at a local level within many communities.






Last week saw the announcement of another round of Climate Challenge funded projects. It is inspirational to see what is happening at a community level. Many of the communities that the John Muir Trust works alongside have successfully applied to the Climate Challenge fund for support either through the Powerdown Initiative supported by Community Energy Scotland, or independently.

There are a couple of interesting intiatives being funded in this latest round. One is a bid by Comrie Development Trust in Perthshire to mirror the Governments Climate Change Delivery Plan at a local level. This entails intially carrying out feasibility studies to see what is possible in terms of looking at electricity, heat, transport, land use and waste. Comrie have also added in attiudes and behaviour change which interestingly is missing from the Governments plan.

Another interesting initiative is based in Glen Lyon. Here they are looking to see if it is possible to fuel houses in the future from locally sourced wood through expanding the current wood supply and investigating options for coppicing. The area met its own fuel needs some hundred or so years ago so learning from the past may give clues to the future. It is hoped the scheme will be able to revive traditional skills, promote wildlife, create employment, and save money.

If you have an idea in your community for reducing your carbon footprints need you need to get your ideas to grant administrators - Keep Scotland Beautiful- by 13th Jan 2010 for the next panel at the end of Feb. Be aware though. ....It can take quite some time from a panel decision to announcement by a minister if you are successful in gaining a grant. This can have implications for some projects will be even more crucial as the timescale for the fund decreases. It is due to finish in March 2011 and it is not yet clear if an initiative which has allowed many communities to act locally on a global issue will continue. Now that would be a good Christmas present from the Government.

Wednesday 25 November 2009

Galson Estate Powering Down

Kirsty MacLennan is the Powerdown Project Officer for the Galson Estate, North Lewis. In this guest post she describes the work taking place on the estate to reduce carbon usage.

Community Energy Scotland (CES), Development Trust Association Scotland (DTAS) and 27 community groups came together to form the Community Powerdown consortium. The consortium was successful in a bid to secure £1.5 million from the Scottish Government’s Climate Challenge Fund for the first phase of a coordinated effort to achieve carbon reduction projects and behaviour change within the participating communities.

I (Kirsty Maclennan) am the Powerdown Project Officer for the Galson Estate Trust with the main aim to reduce carbon emission in the area, by increasing energy efficiency within the community. The average British household spends £620 on energy bills during the winter, about £200 more than an energy efficient home. Insulating your home is key to reducing your energy bills and carbon emissions, loft insulation acts as a blanket, trapping rising heat from the house below. If you currently have no insulation and you install the recommended 270mm depth you could save around £150 a year on your heating bills and around 800kg of CO2 per year. Also insulating cavity walls could save you around £115 a year on your fuel bills and 610 kg of CO 2.

The way people use and conserve energy in the home is set to be revolutionised in Scotland with the offer of free energy audits, advice on becoming more energy efficient and free or discounted loft and cavity insulations. This is great news as this service is now available to 8506 houses throughout Lewis and Harris, which should reduce fuel poverty which is a major concern for householders in the Galson Estate Trust area. Due to this scheme being announced a couple of months ago, we looked at the insulation scheme that we had planned and we are now thinking of different ways such as domestic renewable energy that can help reduce fuel poverty while still working with Energy Saving Trust on this new scheme.

As well as looking at insulation I am looking at developing the Community Market and increasing local food production, we have had several markets so far. They have been very successful showing interest from both producers and buyers which was very positive. We ran a Community Market every second Saturday until the end of October. We have looked at developing allotments however we believe it is not the lack of land that is stopping people from growing their own fruit and vegetables it is know-how, so we are at the moment looking for people who are willing to train and educate people on how to grow their own vegetable.

On Friday 30th October we helped to host a low carbon lunch in the local hall for 44 local senior citizens. The lunch was held as part of the CSV’s annual Make a Difference event and the Julie and Kirsty teamed up with the Local Volunteer Centre to organise and host the lunch. The lunch was designed to follow on from the success of the community markets and all the ingredients for the meals served were sourced from the estate area with donations of meat, fish and vegetables coming from local crofters. As well as the lunch a number of local agencies had information available about resources that may be available to help people make their homes more energy efficient as reduce their food waste in order to reduce their Carbon footprint.

Education is extremely important in all areas, the third area which I work on is educating people in energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions, I have produced a leaflet that will be distributed to all the 900 houses within our estate this contain simple steps to saving money, saving energy and saving the environment such as turning your thermostat down by 1 degree could cut your energy bill by 10% and using energy saving light bulbs which lasts up to 12 times longer than an ordinary light bulb and can save £590 over the lifetime of all the bulbs.

We are also working with schools and have arranged for eco-drama to come up in November to do a couple of shows and workshops in the eco-schools in the estate, before this we are hoping to get the children thinking of renewable energy and energy efficient measure within the estate and afterwards as a follow up have a quiz with a energy efficient prize.

If you have any enquiries or helpful information don’t hesitate to get in touch:
Tel:01851810825 email: kirsty@uogltd.com

Thursday 12 November 2009

Diverse aims - managing woods for the future


Last year various communities associated with the John Muir Trust met at Sconser on the Isle of Skye and considered the resources available to sustain themselves into the future. Wood was identified as one resource that could support community energy needs in the future as it is carbon neutral.
Following up on this idea we met with residents from Strathaird and Torrin estates on Skye a few weeks ago. The Trust is considering its plan for the woodlands on the estates over the next 20 years. One possibility is to support a sustainable wood fuel supply for the future - in which case planting soon is essential.

Drafting up a plan presents opportunities for those with an interest in the woodlands to become involved. Although selling Trust land to the community or an individual is not an option - some form of joint management or partnerships could be considered.

Jake Willis from the Community Woodlands Association and an experienced forester, provided examples of how communities were able to meet diverse and multiple objectives in managing woodlands if they incorporated these at the outset. For instance it is possible to plant trees for wood fuel that also allows for a network of paths for leisure/recreation purposes and increased biodiversity in addition to providing local employment. Communities across Scotland have managed woodlands through a variety of approaches – sometimes owning wood, sometimes leasing it, sometimes in partnership with another organisation. On Knoydart, the Forest Trust there have been developing the woodlands with diverse aims in mind including managing the mixed woodlands around the Inverie village to provide locally useful timber, diversity of habit and access for the public. North Harris Trust have been experimenting with growing wood for biomass.





After some lively discussions we got maps out and people started plotting the ‘wish list’ for the future. Key themes (from two meetings) were:

  • Increased leisure use of woodlands including: extending the path networks; incorporating walks that are child friendly with picnic benches and good in wet/wild weather; considering wooden sculptures and involving children in design of these
  • Using woods for cycling, walking and recreation
  • Planting for biodiversity and wildlife
  • Interest in a continued wood fuel supply - with a move over time to hard wood
  • An interest in fruit trees and orchards
  • Using of woods for education and history (there is a deserted village and other historical artefacts in the area).

There were contrasting approaches about how crofters viewed trees planting. On the one hand we heard about examples of how crofters had grown trees successfully - supported through the Crofter Forestry Schemes. On the other hand there was strong opposition from some to planting any trees on any croft land. It is of course for crofters to decide whether to plant on croft land or not but I do feel it is possible to find some common ground between opposing views.

Thursday 5 November 2009

Timber!

Recently we have had discussions with residents on Strathaird and Torrin estates on Skye about the future of the John Muir Trust woodlands there. This included a visit by children at Elgol Primary to look at the woodlands and see how wood becomes fuel (there are options for looking at a sustainable supply for the future).
Here is what the children and staff thought of the trip - which included cutting down a tree and turning it into a log for fuel

Hello – Elgol Primary here!
From the children:


Thank you very much, John Muir Trust, for taking us for the walk in the woods. We really enjoyed learning about the wildlife in the woods – things like deer, frogs, worms and even hedgehogs in Torrin.

We found out about native trees like rowan, silver birch, holly, hazel & willow. The guessing game was great fun because we learned lots about animals. It was brilliant to be out of the classroom in the fresh air on such a lovely sunny afternoon. The midges didn’t bother us because we were having so much fun!
Molly & Kirsty P6

Hello! Thanks, JMT, for a lovely afternoon!
I thought it was fun when Ali cut down the tree because I have never seen a tree being cut down in real life, SO COOL!

From Lorna, the class room assistant:

As classroom assistant at Elgol Primary School, one of the “perks” of the job is that I am generally the member of staff who gets to accompany the pupils on outdoor visits. I’m always extremely happy to don my wellies and waterproof jacket and escape from the confines of the classroom and the office!

On Thursday 8 October, Miss McDougall and I had the opportunity to do just this. We accompanied Primary 4-7 on a visit to the John Muir Trust’s woodlands at Keppoch near Strathaird with Alasdair MacPherson and Mike Blunt. Mike talked to the children about wildlife, and played a guessing game with them.
We “weeded” seedling spruce trees, which the children insisted on taking home for their gardens.

One of the highlights of the visit was watching Ali expertly felling a tree.

We were all fascinated by the “Hi Ab” tractor and log bus (my 17 year old son, currently doing a Forestry Certificate at Inverness College, tells me this is what it’s called). The lucky ones helped Ali lift up huge logs with it – but unfortunately there wasn’t enough time for us all to have a go.

Next we watched the log splitter being operated. It was amazing to see how quickly tree trunks can be fed into the machine, sliced up, and fall off the end of the chute as……… logs for the fire. Naturally we all wanted a go of this too, but health and safety dictate otherwise. The children were quite happy to go home with a log for the fire, having had a healthy and interesting afternoon in the open air.


More from the children:
I also enjoyed playing the animal game. Cori P5

We went to the woods with Ali on the 8th of October - it was a nice day but the midges were really bad.

I thought the best bit about going to the woods was watching Ali cut down the tree.

The red machine cut the log and we got to take a log home. Katie P7

Hi! Finlay here! I’m P4.
We went to the Dun Ringill woods. It was really fun. Ali chopped a tree down.



The weather was sunny and midgy

I liked the trip to the wood because it was fun when we got to move the logs on the machine.

I felt a bit scared but I want to do it again. Archie, P4

Hi I’m Duncan, in P4. It was really fun when we went to the woods and we saw Ali chop down a tree, then most of us got to control the logger.


Next blog will report on what the adults think of the woodlands...........

Friday 9 October 2009

Home loans for energy efficiency and conservation

OFGEM warned today that the price of gas and electricity bills could rise as much as 60% over the next few years as energy companies make the switch to more renewable sources of energy so it is welcome news that the Scottish Government is looking at what actions it will take around energy efficiency.

Yesterday it launched its consultation document on its energy efficiency action plan. At the same time it announced a new loans scheme for home owners wanting to take energy conservation measures such as loft and wall insulation. It is all on a pilot basis but at least it is moving in the right direction.

The Highlands and Islands have a disproportionate amount of hard to heat properties which coupled with the weather conditions means heat and electricity bills are on average higher. Conserving energy is the most efficient way to make it all go further.

The loan scheme includes money for solid wall insulation - an issue with many older properties that are hard to heat. This is an issue we have been raising as it has been missing from previous schemes as walls lose even more heat than lofts.

Loans are accessed through a number of ways including if you undertake a home energy report/ audit through the Energy Saving Trust. A number of communities are looking at this in the near future including: Assynt, North Harris and Galson Trust as part of their Climate Challenge projects.

Under the new loan scheme you can borrow money (from £500 to £10,000) to:
  • Install cavity wall or solid wall insulation and/or loft insulation;
  • Install renewable energy systems, such as wind turbines, solar water heating, heat pumps, small scale hydroelectric schemes and wood fuel heating systems;
  • Replace old, inefficient boilers.

The energy efficiency or renewable measure funded by the loan must be recommended in one of the following documents:

  • Home energy report (produced on completion of an Energy Saving Trust Home Energy Check (HEC);

You can find out more about all these documents and how to get them by calling your local Energy Saving Scotland advice centre on 0800 512 012.

For more information check out the Energy Savings Trust website.

Living in an old solid wall property, running on an ancient oil boiler this is something I'll be investigating for myself.

Friday 2 October 2009

Good for the pocket, good for the planet

The nights are drawing in and across the country boilers and stoves are getting lit for the winter, so it’s not surprising that October 1st was Central Heating day. It’s not surprising either that this is the time of year when energy bills start to stack up.

Reducing heating costs is not only good for the pocket, it’s good for the planet, and there are lots of things you can do to keep warm without spending a fortune on fuel through the winter.

According to the Energy Savings Trust turning down the thermostat by one degree Celsius can shave eight per cent off heating costs.

If you are not brave enough to turn down the heating down a full degree or two in one go, try reducing the heat a small amount every day, you probably won’t notice the difference – at least until the utility bills come in. And if you have a timer, try setting it to come on half an hour later than last year.

Of course everyday energy efficiency is not just about central heating. Green Footsteps have a load of handy hints on how to keep your home cosy without impacting on your energy usage. For example, making use of thick curtains and soft furnishings for insulation, and some great ways to keep your kitchen nice and warm.

Wednesday 16 September 2009

Reducing energy consumption is key to the future

The Government’s new energy adviser, David MacKay, has warned that unless new sources of energy are found the country will have a power shortage by 2016.

The suggestion that the United Kingdom will face blackouts less than a decade down the line should be enough motivation to persuade the government it is time to concentrate on energy conservation. Soon we will have to address the fact that we are living unsustainably.

As a country we have a choice - either live more efficiently, or live with less. By continuing to focus on energy production, the government is attempting to spend their way out of a crisis that has been caused by excessive consumption, rather than tackling the problem head on.

As the country’s leading wild land charity, the John Muir Trust is concerned that a reckless commitment to upping the build rate of energy projects will allow huge swathes of the country to be parcelled off for land hungry renewable energy schemes without proper assessment of each development.

The delivery of a secure, sustainable and affordable energy portfolio requires a commitment to protect the local and global environment from the effects of both energy production and consumption. The country urgently needs a national energy strategy that focuses on conserving energy and on energy efficiency, as well as producing it by more sustainable means. .

As John Muir said more than 100 years ago, “Not blind opposition to progress, but opposition to blind progress.”

Monday 10 August 2009

GREEN ISLAND FEVER!

Here on the Isle of Eigg, we want to use what we've learnt along our carbon-busting journey to inspire and inform others. We've achieved loads, but our 'to-do' list continues to be added to as new ideas come along. One thing we have learnt is we're not alone; there are many communities across Scotland and beyond trying to do their bit to counteract the effects of climate change, live lighter on the planet and save cash as well as our collective futures.

Eigg is just one Green Island - but you don't need to be surrounded by water to be an island. Any small community of less than 100 folk can be a Green Island, working together to make a difference.

And why small, why less than 100? If you know who you're working with, recognise their face as well as their name, we think it's easier to achieve something together. So if you're an office, a class, a street, village or even a club of people who share an interest, you can all be Green Islands.

Whether you're trying to something small and simple, or complex and long term, by joining together and coming up with the simplest of plans, your community could be a Green Island too.

Please join us, and be listed on our website http://www.islandsgoinggreen.org/ as a Green Island. If you're already up and running, then tell us a bit about what you're up to at You Tell Us and we'll add your website to ours. If you're not sure where to begin, then we hope you find our simple Five Step Plan is a handy tool. Any questions - drop us a line!

Oh, and if you're wondering why RIP in the photo? It's Eigg Primary saying Rest in Peace to all the generators that USED to provide Eigg's electricity. Since the switch on of Eigg Electric in February 2008, our power has been courtesy of wind, sun and water. Peace, perfect peace and 24 hour power for the first time. Deep joy.

Thursday 30 July 2009

The search for installers continues




Well today has proved interesting. I thought I'd go back to basics and do as recommended by the government and check out the Energy Savings Trust information. On their website I put in the postcode for the area on Skye I'm trying to find insulation for to see what grants might be available.

That was easy it came up with British Gas. I phoned their number, as on the website, and got through to Scottish Gas Wall and Loft Insulation. Good, I'm on the right track, press the correct number, listen to the dreadful music then speak to a human being. Then the fun begins.

"The Isle of Skye? Do you know if that is part of the British Isles? I'll just go and check."
My affirmation that it was part of the British Isles is ignored - back to that music. Clearly I am no longer speaking to someone from Scottish Gas as surely they would know that...

"Yes madam, it is part of the British Isles and we can help. We have a special offer on - prices have just been reduced from £250 to £199 for a typical 3 bedded semi detached property!"

Excellent I think - that is just what I'm looking for.

"We just have to fill in a form"

Piece of cake I think. As I suspect, a survey will have to be done first so I enquire as to where someone will come from to do the work. My British Gas man thinks it will be someone from Glasgow and asks innocently how far away that is. He sounds a little stunned when I inform him that this is a round trip of 400 miles and ventures that maybe there is someone closer than that.

"What was your postcode?" he enquires with a change in tone " I'll need to check this out."

More music...........

That was enough to halt proceedings.

"Oh, we don't cover there at all. You could try the Mark Group based in Glasgow."

I have already spoken to them. They, like pretty well everyone else on the list of accredited installers are part of a big chain. In this case I was told to phone their head office in Leicester to get information about a quote to Skye ( which of course would require a visit).

Meantime I had found an installer who would quote without a survey - at last a little common sense. This company, based in Stirling gave me a quote for between £650 and £750 depending on the type of insulation material used for a 3 bedded semi-detached property. How is that for an incentive to line your loft!! I wonder what the payback period would be for this easy measure.

When I enquired as to why the cost is so high, I got the answer I expected. It is primarily because of the cost and length of time required to travel from Stirling to Skye and back again. Imagine if there were local people who could do this using locally available materials...........it takes 1-2 hours to line your average loft.

On the plus side - if a community organsied a campaign for insulating lofts - it is likely they would be able, with assistance from Energy Savings Trust Scotland to get a much better deal i.e. in the region of £200 and free to some householders. Check out who can advise locally tel 0800 512 012.
Galson Trust and North Harris Trust will likely benefit from the announcement by the Government that they will insulate some homes in specific areas including Lewis and Harris but that is about as far as it goes for most of the Highlands and Islands. Isaly have successfully been down the road of getting insulation - though not with out difficulty so I'm away to find out about their experiences. The search continues....

Wednesday 22 July 2009

Climate change plans and the search for installers


The British Government published its UK Low Carbon Transition Plan last week for moving the UK to a low carbon economy. It looks at how to transform our power; homes and communities; workplaces and jobs; transport; farming and waste. A key aspect of this is the creation of more than 1.2 million "green jobs". This would seem to be good news for us all in this time of recession especially for smaller and more remote communities where opportunities can be limited.

Unfortunately the current system means it is unlikely any small businesses in rural communities will have a look in:

I've been searching for installers who can give me quotes for doing loft insulation work on a couple of properties on Skye. It is easy to find the correct website for the list of the 'accredited installers' but that is about as easy as it gets. If you want to get someone who is local then it seems that central Scotland is about local as it gets. A survey is needed by most in order to get a quote. That is a round trip of some 400 miles, just for a quote, before any work starts...

If you want to use a local skilled tradesperson then there is no subsidy or grant available unless they are accredited. To become accredited costs several thousand pounds. It is an onerous prospect for a small outfit, involving a considerable amount of time and it is unlikely there will be any financial return as you are then competing against the 'big boys' who can buy in bulk and provided the economies of scale. The accredited installers are all part of large companies and they can afford to go through the accreditation process.

So, in trying to reduce the carbon footprint of a building, more road miles are expended than would seem necessary as there is an 'accreditation' box to be ticked. The system is apparently in place to provide quality control. Surely that is more easily monitored if the person who did the job lives locally and you can call them back if anything needs sorted?

At a workshop on retro-fitting ( i.e. insulating existing properties rather than new build) at the recent Comrie Climate Challenge Conference one of the attendees expressed his frustration at his attempts to establish a small sustainable business using sheep's wool for insulation. The carbon footprint of this is considerably lower than the glass wool fibre and mineral wool fibre and would seem to offer opportunities for wool in an otherwise difficult market but the funding is not there to support it and as far as I can work out no-one using this material is on the accreditated list. This method is particularly good for older stone properties as it has high breathability and is a good way to use up poorer quality wool.

It would seem the time is right to ask for changes to be made. Much of the regulation is governed by OFGEM. We need to think long term so that how and what is delivered by way of energy efficiency measures really starts to support local sustainability and a low carbon future. Wouldn't it be great if the actual costs of producing something in carbon terms ( the embodied carbon) was considered as well as the cost in pounds. Then the logic of using local people and local produce would become sensible rather than cheapness being the main factor.


Friday 10 July 2009

Whose plate will it end up on?

In an increasing number of communities there is an appetite to reduce food miles and explore ways to use what is available locally. One food resource available potentially in abundance in some rural and remoter communities is deer.

It seems a simple process - kill the deer, butcher and process them locally, then sell locally.

Sadly, the venison industry is anything but simple. The growing taste for venison means that we are actually importing venison from the other side of the world with it being flown thousands of miles from New Zealand to meet the demand from processors, supermarkets and restaurants for this lean meat.

At the same time, according to Scotland on Sunday over a third of the venison produced by the £70.4 million a year industry gets sent to the continent - primarily by the game dealers – to end up being stuffed into German sausages.

Part of the problem is there are restrictions on when deer can be culled, so they are not available all year round – unless farmed. Another issue is licensing. Historically most of the deer culled has gone to licensed game dealers who can get more from exporting than selling locally ( this is the fate of much deer culled on John Muir Trust land as it is for many estates).

Investment in local butchering and processing is a costly affair. The capital costs for deer larders that meet the standards and facilities to skin the beasts make it prohibitive for many communities to look at.

So are there other ways to get local food to your plate?

The Fife Diet encourages people to sign-up to eating food from the region, monitor their progress and share their experience. They are working closely with suppliers and local farmers. The group aims to shorten the supply chain, reduce food miles, create innovative distribution services and re-localise produce. This approach is meeting with some success with some 800 people already signed up to the initiative.

In Assynt and North Lewis, thanks to funding through the climate challenge fund communities are hoping to look at the issues around food production and food miles.

According to research some 70% of food miles are created by the consumer driving out to buy food.

Meanwhile, next time you have a plate of venison, check where it comes from. Has it taken 11,000 airmiles to arrive on your plate from New Zealand or a maximum of 370 airmiles from Scotland?

Thursday 25 June 2009

Join the revolution

"Join the revolution" was the invitation from Comrie Development Trust to communities from across Scotland working to tackle climate change in their local areas. Picturesque Comrie, in rural Perthshire may not seem a hot bed for radical ideas but the village "where ancient rivers meet new ideas" felt pretty radical by the end of a weekend conference in early June.

The conference, run for communities by communities, brought over 100 delegates and speakers to the village for a weekend of presentations, workshops and visits.

It felt somewhat doom and gloom at the start as local MSP and Environment Minister Roseanna Cunningham opened proceedings. A very honest and frank discussion followed the speechifying. Roseanna made clear that many politicians know the urgency around climate change issues but evidence suggests the electorate are not ready to take the measures required. People need to make and win the arguments in their own communities before the politicians will move boldly, concluded Roseanna. In other words - the present encumbents won't take risks with their future political careers. An issue Alastair McIntosh - the next speaker- refers to as NIMTO syndrome ( Not In My Term of Office).

Provocative as ever, Alastair (author of Hell and High Water) recognised that there are no easy solutions - and maybe no solutions. Much of the increase in carbon has arisen in our own lifetime where we have moved from necessary consumption to consumersim and unnecessary consumption. His plea is for us to reconnect with the natural elements that we have lost touch with and with children and look to our inner development.

There is a ray of hope in what he said - we can take charge of ourselves and learn to be content with less material wealth. So from the spiritual challenge we moved to the challenge for communities.

Simon Hooton from Sustainability South West ( a charity based in England) shared his thoughts on how communities can raise their game. Essentially he argued we have to imagine and plan for better options - recognising that less is more. Like Alastair he emphasised the way in which we have become separated from nature and called for future considerations about the environment to be grounded in what the environment can do for people - rather than seeing it as something out there to which we have no connection and 'protect' in a sterile way.

Simon's organisation promotes a scheme called Fair Shares Fair Choice. Using a CO2 reduction model called Contraction & Convergence (C&C) to calculate a ‘fair carbon share’ for every person who lives in the UK, practical support is offered through case studies and a 'carbon lifestyle coach'.

A large group of attendees met at the end of the day to consider how to encourage our politicians to take up a similar approach for Scotland to support the ambitious Climate Change Bill. My thought is: Are we brave enough to go down this route and make the radical changes we need for a truly sustainable future?

On a positive note - the Scottish Government has committed to targets in the proposed bill that reflect the science. So maybe we really are at the start of a revolution where government and communities will be heading the same way.

Tuesday 19 May 2009

To see more images from Jamie's trip to Eigg's Giant Footprint Festival in May go to www.flickr.com/photos/johnmuirtrust

Wednesday 13 May 2009

Eigg's Green Revolution


Eigg’s Green Revolution

Guest contribution from Jamie Grant (JMT Communcations Officer) who visited Eigg’s recent ‘Giant Footsteps’ festival.

Sue Hollands stands on the back step of her home sipping a cup of tea and waiting for a break in the rain to get back to work in her garden. Rain interruptions are part of her daily life on the Northern side of the island of Eigg. On stormy days she watches angry showers whip in off the Atlantic. Today the precipitation is almost imperceptible, a fine drizzle that hangs over the singing sands below her house like a grey curtain.

Islanders like Sue, a teacher at the school, are used to their lives being dictated to by the elements. A single standing stone offers the only sustained resistance to the wind on the high blown, treeless plateau in the centre of Eigg. Gales frequently stop the ferry from reaching the island and encourage a spirit of independence and resourcefulness in its people.

Their resilience has helped residents turn the very elements that so dominate island life to their advantage. Sue’s cup of tea was boiled with renewable energy generated on the island. In fact every household on Eigg is now hooked into an electricity grid that is powered by a mix of community owned hydro, solar and wind energy.

A year ago the island, which is too far from the mainland to be connected to the mains, celebrated the completion of a £1.7 Million electrification project to hook the ninety odd residents up with home - grown, green power. A 100kW hydro electric scheme is supported by four small wind generators and bank of solar electric cells. Power is distributed, via bank of powerful batteries, around the island in underground cables.

To control demand residents are restricted to a maximum of 5kW of energy in their homes at any one time. Sue has an energy monitor fixed above the sink in her kitchen where it gives a constant reading of her energy use. “I’m always on the look out for low energy appliances,” said Sue. “Last week I was thrilled to find an electric kettle that boils water with 1.5kW rather than 3kW.”

If Sue, or any other household on Eigg, exceeds the 5kW limit the electricity supply is automatically tripped and she has to pay a reconnection fee of £20. This only happened to Sue once, when she put the washing machine and the dishwasher on together. “It is a good incentive to think carefully about what we are switching on at home, and when,” adds Sue.

Energy efficiency is nothing new to Eigg residents. Before the electricity grid was installed householders depended on noisy diesel generators that produced less energy at a greater cost. “This has made a huge difference to us,” Sue says. “Electricity is now far cheaper and far more reliable.”

The key to constantly keeping the lights on using green energy from the West Coast’s fickle climate has been in using a mix of renewable technologies. The hydro scheme provides back up for the wind turbines on calm days, just as solar power makes up for the drop in rainfall over the summer months.

Community participation and ownership has also been critical to the projects success. Residents contributed over £200,000 to the project thought the Eigg Trust and dedicated an enormous amount of volunteer time and effort into its development. “This is our system - uniquely adapted to the islands scattered community - and it works,” Sue says proudly.

Eigg residents could be forgiven for sitting back and feeling rather smug about their green credentials. But their new energy supply has invigorated debate in the community about how even deeper cuts can be made in the island’s carbon dependence. The Eigg Trust is the only Scottish finalist for the NESTA lottery backed Big Green Challenge. Ideas for how to best invest the potential £1 million pounds of funding from the Challenge include solar panelling, wood fuel, electric cars and more local food production.

Which is where Sue’s organic gardening skills come in. Her immaculate beds spread out in a fan shape from her back step, each fertilised with seaweed collected from the shoreline. “I’m thinking of cutting back on work to dedicate more time to the croft,” she tells me. “We want to concentrate harder on providing food for the community and becoming more self sufficient in every aspect of our lives.”

Thursday 30 April 2009

New Energy Assistance Package


I asked Mhairi MacSween, Community Outreach Worker, from the Energy Advice Centre for the Highlands and Islands to explain more about the new Energy Assistance Package that was announced in April. This takes over from the Central Heating and Warm Deal programmes.

I must say I found my brain a little scrambled trying to get it all clear in my head. As Mhairi said to me: "It is still fairly complicated so it is best to get people to ring us."

Essentially, as she explained, the new package means that everyone is entitled to free advice, an energy audit and a benefit check. Then some groups of people are entitled to further support including insulation and heating measures, mainly, these are people who receive 'qualifying benefits'.

The easiest thing to do is to call free on 0800 512 012 and get taken through the process
or check out the website
www.energyassistancepackage.com

This PDF file can also be downloaded from the Energy Assistance Package website, or you can view the quick guide online

In sum, there is good news for some older people and some with young families who can get free insulation etc. and this can include WALL INSULATION and other heating measures like replacing a boiler. Young families on 'qualifying benefits' are included for the first time.
And what about the not so young and not so old and able to pay?
I asked Mhairi if there was any support for those who are able to pay for some works.
Here is what she had to say:

Support can be offered in a variety of ways
By campaign/area (a one off price agreed by the Energy Saving Scotland advice centre and a contractor in that area for a limited period and discounted due to the large take-up) typically this is £199 for loft & cavity subject to survey but it varies. We can work with any group wishing to do a campaign in conjunction with us. We have a marketing manager who helps set up these campaigns. We just completed a campaign in Skye at £199 – so they were getting it for the same price as the mainland!

For individuals, e.g. if they phone into the call centre, to check all the utility providers and see which is the best deal (again this varies as each utility company is different and prices can change so we use a calculator to work it out which is updated continually from head office).

Support can be provided through the Carbon Emission Reduction Target scheme(CERT). CERT schemes are run by various energy companies across the UK. The schemes help tenants and home owners pay for insulation and other fuel saving measures. Anyone can apply for help through these schemes. If you are over 70 or on a low income, you should be entitled to free help to insulate your home. Other people may be entitled to grants to help towards the cost of insulation. Your energy adviser can tell you more about schemes you can apply for. Tel 0800 512 012

In essence:
The local Energy Saving Scotland advice centre for Highlands & Islands offers free, bespoke home energy audits, impartial advice on energy efficiency at home and assistance with accessing grants to help with home insulation and renewable energy technologies and money saving fuel tariffs. Simple tips that cost nothing but can save householders money straight away and stop the wasting of energy.

For any advice or to arrange a free survey of your property for cavity wall or loft insulation Free phone 0800 512 012

Thursday 23 April 2009

Water, water everywhere


It has been raining again over the past couple of days and the week ahead looks unsettled too. Sometimes with so much water everywhere it is easy to wonder why it should be an issue to use it wisely. For those living in remoter places with no access to mains 'water works' such as on Knoydart and Eigg there has long been an understanding of the preciousness of the resource. Many of us however just take for granted the water that comes out of our tap.

I attended a conference run by the Scottish Sustainable Development Forum. This was looking at the results of the Scottish Environmental Attitudes and Behaviours Survey

The first part of the event was various Government officials commenting. Nothing very interesting - mainly grey suits with stock answers - but the second part of the event saw three different but challenging presentations by women (not in suits) with a more practical focus. A provocative input from Tania Flasck, Head of Sustainability at MWH Global Engineering Company got me thinking about water:

She suggested we need to think again about how we use water and what kind of water is used where. For instance - do we need top quality water that is fit for drinking for everything we do? Some countries have a system where the quality of water they use depends on what it is for - so drinking quality isn't used for flushing toilets. Other countries have a de-centralised approach to water so water is delivered close to the source of production. Something to think about for rural areas. Maybe water metering would make us think about our water use?

Why does water use matter?
It took a while for me to understand.
The answers to these questions may surprise you - as they did me:

Who is the largest user of electricity in Scotland?

Scottish Water! The main cost is that of pumping water to us, compounded by the fact there are lots of leaks in pipes on the way. A reduction in demand for water would decrease energy use thus reducing Scotland’s green house gas emissions.

What would the impact be of only boiling the water we needed each time we made a cup of tea or coffee?

The Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs say: "If everyone boiled only the water they needed instead of 'filling' the kettle every time, we could save enough electricity to run practically all the street lighting in the U.K."

What is the average number of litres each person uses per day in the UK?

25 litres; 50 litres; 75 litres; 100 litres; 150 litres

At present, the average UK home currently uses 150 litres per person per day. In Scotland it is 146 litres per person per day according to Scottish Water ( that is about 32 gallons).

How much water is used in the average shower?

12 litres - more than 2.5 gallons. See Waterwise for more information.

Apart from the energy that could be conserved if we conserved water better sometime we have e too much water too quickly: Large coniferous plantations add to fast water run off . This contributes to flooding: broadleaf woodlands slow down the rate at which water runs off and lets it reach the water table in a more measured way.

Water may be everywhere but there are lots of issues that relate to water that will affect us all in the future: how much we use; how much energy we use to get it to us; what we do to reduce the chances of flooding and drought;how we prevent it becoming polluted. I could go on and on....




Thursday 16 April 2009

Sustaining the future in Assynt




Situated amongst some of the wildest and most remote scenery in the North West Highlands of Scotland, the parish of Assynt is dominated by spectacular mountain landscapes.

Pioneers in the past, leading the first community buyout of land in 1993 ( through the Assynt Crofters Trust) the community of Assynt are again seeking to pioneer approaches to sustaining their future. This time, they are tackling the challenges of climate change through the newly established Assynt Renewables. With support from the Scottish Government’s Climate Challenge Fund they are seeking to reduce the carbon footprint of the Assynt Parish area through an energy efficiency project and to secure a more sustainable future through looking at what natural resources can be used for energy.

Chairperson for Assynt Renewables, Alastair Macaskill commented:
“ We are delighted to have been awarded this grant. We will use the £74,220 to employ a project officer for two years and meet project costs. This will be a challenging piece of work as we have housing dispersed throughout a large area along with minimal access to public transport. Looking to the future we know we need to use less energy and find ways to be more sustainable. We know that some 28% of carbon emissions come from householders. This is something we can start to tackle.”

Mark Lazzeri, Development Manager of Assynt Foundation and a member of the board of Assynt Renewables explained:
“ We will start with small steps encouraging householders to take part in an energy audit then look to what solutions we can find as a community to reduce our energy usage. We will investigate ways to make the most of the resources we have around us from food to fuel sources.”

Another board member Chris Chant added:
“One of the exciting possibilities we are exploring is how to reduce our fuel for transport so we investigating options such as electric vehicles and hybrid vehicles. Transport is a real issues here and we had a taste of what happens when the price of oil rocketed last summer. We want to be at the front of change rather than on the receiving end of it in the future.”

The specific objectives for the project include:
· Establishing the baseline carbon footprint of the area.

· Carrying out an energy audit of houses, community buildings and businesses

· Supporting a programme of insulation and efficiency measures to reduce the carbon footrpint

· Investigating the feasibility of local microrenewables schemes which could serve clusters of houses and community buildings

· Assessment of options to reduce the transport miles and food miles in the parish through greater use of local food products and greater quantity of local food processing as well as looking at options for electric and/or hybrid power vehicles

· Looking at possibilities for greater use of wood as a fuel


The project is being supported by Changeworks (Energy Saving Scotland Advice Centre for the Highlands and Islands ) and the John Muir Trust. It will work also with Community Energy Scotland in terms of auditing of some community buildings and looking at community run renewable energy options .