Project Purple wants to help Hovingham become carbon neutral.  We want to do this as soon as we can. According to NASA, 97% of the world’s climate scientists agree we are experiencing climate global warming. 

We have all lived through a period of tremendous change and do not want to shirk our responsibility to humanity to leave a planet that is still habitable.  We still want everyone to live in a warm and comfortable home but we are sure there are things we can all do to reduce how much energy we use.  So starting with the good news – some grant funding is available.

Grants available (updated following the 27 March 2021 Gov.uk announcement)

The ‘Green Homes Grant’ will no longer run until 31 March 2022 and ended 31 March 2021.

The Government’s 27 March 2021 announcement can be found here

Domestic Renewables Heat Incentive (RHI) If you want to make improvements to your heating system then you may be eligible for the Residential Heat Incentive (RHI).  This grant and payment is managed by Ofgem.  See https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/domestic-rhi

The grant is paid quarterly over a 7 year payment period.  The grant, if you are eligible and accepted into the RHI scheme, will pay a large proportion of the cost of the installation over that 7 year payment period.  As you would expect there are conditions and criteria that need to be fulfilled, and you will need to use an approved/registered member of the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS) otherwise you will not qualify for a grant.  

Heat pumps The main types of systems applicable in Hovingham would be heat pumps.  There are two main types: one is ground sourced and the other type is air sourced.  Both pumps run on the same principle but use a different source for their initial heating source (one uses the air the other uses pipework that runs under your garden or grounds). https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/renewable-energy/heat

The benefits of an air source heat pump

• lower fuel bills are likely, especially if you are replacing conventional electric heating will usually qualify for an RHI grant
• lower carbon emissions
• no fuel deliveries needed
• can heat your home as well as your water
• can be used in conjunction with other technologies such as solar thermal water heating
• minimal maintenance required
• both are best used with underfloor heating but a radiator system will work well provided high output modern radiators are fitted and correctly sized.  The heating fluid will only be heated to around 40-45°C by a heat pump system as opposed to a fossil fuel system which heats the fluid up to 55/60°C

The benefits of ground source heat pumps are similar although the installation costs are usually greater (due to the ground works required) but ground source heat pumps are more energy efficient.  

An ECO grant (part of the Warm Home discount strategy) This may be available but you must already qualify for certain benefits so looking at the website is essential to determine your eligibility. If you’re a homeowner or a private renter (with permission from the landlord) who receives qualifying benefits, you could be entitled to an insulation grant from the Government.  https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/environmental-programmes/eco/support-improving-your-home

Any existing loft insulation must be 100mm (4’’) or less to qualify for ECO funding.

Energy collective bargaining scheme Ryedale District Council use an online auction (an annual process through a web platform ichoosr).  It is possible to register by phone for the scheme with ichoosr direct on 0800 048 8285 The date for entering the scheme has closed for 2020 but there are usually three auctions a year and registration for the auctions is required but simple to do.  The scheme is designed to reduce your energy cost but not necessarily the carbon footprint as it is based on price alone although the scheme says they are using only green suppliers this year (2020). This may well change so you will need to check to see who the winning supplier is before accepting any offer.  https://www.ryedale.gov.uk/living-here/housing/white-rose-home-improvement-agency/choices4energy-collective-energy-switching.html

Green energy supply One way to support the village to reduce its total carbon footprint quickly would be to encourage many residents to move to a 100% green supply tariff which varies between the different suppliers.  There is only one company recommended by ‘Which’ magazine (the firm being Octopus).  There are however a whole host of green suppliers including Yorkshire Energy.  Rates all vary slightly and at any one time the best rate may be very attractive however costs increase and unless the rate is fixed the customer has no guarantee against price rises.  The current average price paid across all UK tariffs for electricity is 14.5p/kWh (as at 1st October 2020)

The link below shows that a lot of companies supply green energy - but many companies are not fully ‘green’.  The below article is from 2019.  There will have been changes since publication.

https://www.which.co.uk/news/2019/09/how-green-is-your-energy-tariff

The ‘elephant in the room’ is that we need to wean ourselves off fossil fuels and as long as there continues to be a large differential between the cost of electricity and gas/heating oil per Kwh, the slower that transition will be.  The link below explains 

https://www.ukpower.co.uk/home_energy/tariffs-per-unit-kwh

It can be reasonably argued that the easiest way Hovingham village can push towards carbon neutrality is for all homeowners to obtain their electricity from a 100% green energy supplier.

More tips to save energy and therefore reduce your carbon footprint and save money

Have a look at Carbon footprint - https://www.carbonfootprint.com/energyconsumption.html

If you haven’t got low energy bulbs fitted you should change to them immediately to save money. They use less than 20% of the power of what we used to call standard lightbulbs and their carbon footprint is less than 17.5% of the standard light bulb.  Just have a look at the table on the Carbon footprint site.

Just by making minor changes such as hanging out your washing instead of using the tumble dryer will save you pounds.  You could choose to put your appliances on a lower temperature setting with usually no reduction in the quality of the cleaning of your clothes/dishes etc

If you have to replace an old appliance always choose the most energy efficient replacement you can: ideally one with an A+ rating or better (ratings go up to A+++).

See Links section for useful energy efficiency improvement websites

Residents share their experiences