Energy Efficiency

Herefordshire Energy Action Team (HEAT)

Herefordshire Council’s Herefordshire Energy Action Team (HEAT) aims to help Herefordshire residents save energy in their homes. The HEAT team's work within Private Sector Housing  contributes towards tackling climate change, increasing the provision of affordable warmth in Herefordshire, and promoting the safeguarding finite fossil fuels. The main functions of the HEAT team are :

• Managing Herefordshire’s Special Energy Efficiency Scheme (SEES)
• Referring people to energy efficiency grant schemes funded externally from the council
• Providing energy saving advice
• Coordination of Herefordshire’s Affordable Warmth Strategy
• Development of new carbon reduction and sustainable energy initiatives

Becoming more energy efficient is a great way to reduce your impact on climate change

The prediction is that world temperatures will rise by 2-5 degrees and sea levels by 30-50 cm by the end of the century. Burning of fossil fuels, like coal, oil and gas for electricity, heating and transportation releases gases into the atmosphere that contribute to the greenhouse effect, which is causing climate change.

In Herefordshire, climate change is likely to mean hotter drier summers, warmer wetter winters, increased flooding, summer thunderstorms and less snow. Not only will this affect us, but also the wildlife and countryside. Climate change can reduce the biodiversity, abundance and distribution of plants and animals. The effects can be very complicated due to the complex interaction of all living things.

It is going to take an effort by everyone to make a difference and it is absolutely vital we start now. It is easy to reduce our energy usage, which also saves us money!

Energy Saving Tips

The average UK household wastes around £300 per year through being inefficient. To find out how you can save energy in your home take a free Home Energy Check survey or call 0800 512012. The Energy Saving Trust advice centre (ESTac) offers free impartial advice to households on how to cut their fuel bills with information on energy efficiency and renewable energy grants.

Use Herefordshire’s carbon footprinting calculator to see what impact you are having on the environment at present and get tailored advice on how to reduce it.

Herefordshire Council’s work on energy efficiency is based on the requirements of the national indicator 187 on fuel poverty.  This is measured by annually surveying the percentage of people receiving income based benefits living in homes with a low and high energy efficiency ratings and monitoring the progress made to increase the energy ratings of these properties.

Improvements to the energy efficiency of private homes is also significant in the monitoring of the national indicator 186 (Per capita reduction in CO2 emissions in a local authority area).

Village Hall Energy Challenge

Rural parish councils are invited to participate in the Herefordshire Village Hall Energy Challenge. The challenge is to be held between Parish Councils for 3 months. It will start on March 15th 2010 and finish on June 15th 2010.

The competition is open to all Herefordshire parish councils except the following: Hereford City Council, Leominster Town Council, Ross on Wye Town Council, Ledbury Town Council, Bromyard Town Council and Kington Town Council.

The aim of the challenge is to raise awareness of climate change in rural areas.

Residents within participating Parish Councils will be encouraged to log onto the Herefordshire community carbon calculator at http://www.myherefordshire.com/ to calculate their carbon footprint. This 5 minute exercise involves residents filling in details relating to energy use in the home, travel and food purchasing. The more people within your Parish Council area who complete their carbon footprint, the better your chance of success.

Competing Parish Councils will be arranged into four separate categories according to population size. At end of the competition period, the total number of completed carbon footprints from each Parish Council area will be counted. In each of the 4 categories, the Parish Council with the highest number of individual carbon footprints will receive £5,000 prize money.

Parish Councils must select a coordinator over the period of the challenge who will be the point of contact.

The prize money must be used towards improving the energy efficiency of the village hall, installing a renewable energy technology or for communal cycle parking facilities or pool bicycles. See terms and conditions in the resources box for further explanation of competition rules.

The aim of the competition is to increase awareness of the impact individuals have and the positive contribution we can all make towards tackling climate change by asking as many individuals as possible to calculate their carbon footprint. On completion of the carbon footprint exercise, participants are given a number of recommendations which as well as being beneficial to the environment, may help households make financial savings.

If you would like your community to enter the challenge, please contact your Parish Council.

Parish Councils who wish to take part in the challenge, please write to Harry Fitch, Private Sector Housing, Herefordshire Council, 84 Whitecross Road, Hereford, HR4 0DH or email hfitch@herefordshire.gov.uk by March 5th 2010 to confirm your participation.

All questions about the competition should be addressed to the competition organiser hfitch@herefordshire.gov.uk