I met up with local, self confessed eco fanatic Harriet Martin at her new house in Birmingham to see what can be done to make dramatic changes to your energy use and your bank balance.

I was startled when the fact filled; energy saver told me that the average person’s carbon footprint is 10 tonnes a year! – and that is not including any flights you might take. Harriet and her husband Chris are hoping to reduce their carbon footprints to 5 tonnes by the end of 2012.

If that wasn’t scary enough, then brace yourself for this. For every three hours of flying you make a year, you must add on an extra tonne to your carbon footprint. Flying is one of the major issues surrounding climate change because of the damages it causes at such high altitude.

Cruising does not offer the environment any relief either, the sheer size and speed which the liners travel at, makes the alternative form of travel nearly as detrimental to your carbon footprint as flying.  I will never feel the same way about my summer holiday again!

On a lighter note, there are ways to prevent some of the damage escalating further and I have an expert on hand to tell us how she did it.

 Harriet began by explaining the alterations that she and her husband, Chris, are making to the outside walls of their newly owned, 1930’s, semi-detached house.

The construction of this type of house means there is an open cavity between the outside bricks and the inner bricks, which incidentally can be filled to prevent heat loss. But this dedicated couple haven’t stopped there; they’re also installing dry lining to the walls for further insulation, which is set to reduce the heat loss through their walls by 85%.

The benefits of dry lining insulation is also being used under the ground floor floor-boards to prevent any further heat loss, a similar technique is also being applied to the upstairs floor-boards.

“The materials for this have been relatively cheap, especially when compared to the savings we will make in the long run with our heating bill”, explained Harriet.

Like many houses of its era, theirs was originally heated by open coal fires in each room, a nice original feature to the house but not exactly practical.

 Again, following suit, central heating was installed in the 1960’s, running of a gas boiler, similar to many that we would still find in our homes today. However, for Harriet and Chris these 60% energy efficient boilers simply do not make the cut if they are to reach their desired carbon footprint, so they are changing theirs to a Worcester Bosch which is an incredible 90% energy efficient.

She went on to say, “My husband and I will be given £250 fuel allowance in our retirement by the government and we hope to save ourselves £1000 a year on energy bills, therefore the fuel allowance should cover all of our household energy bills. This also means that the extra insulation will pay for itself within two years.” This seems too good to be true I think to myself, but this lady knows her stuff!

I am told by Harriet to look out for “A rated” goods. These include double glazed windows, boilers, ovens and other major household appliances. The A rating means that the products meet the best standard in energy efficiency.

Harriet explains, “Many of these products are still classed as specialist but it is just a case of asking whether A rated products are on offer, it is in the company’s interest to supply them.”

They are clearly passionate in their own project but Harriet is keen to explain the ways that many everyday families can lower their carbon footprint.

She stresses that “Many people will be unaware of their true carbon footprint because a lot of the self assessment websites do not include essential behaviours that affect your outcome.”

The first change made to this couples behaviour was their eating habits. “We have become vegetarians because so much energy is used to produce vast amounts of meat, especially larger animals like beef. We have also cut down on the amount we use our car and I use an electric bike to get around where possible.”

 One of the first improvements they made to the house was changing the light bulbs from regular to energy saving. These are simple and inexpensive alterations that will lower long term costs and cut you carbon footprint substantially.

The couple have recently chosen to grow their own vegetables and buy local, organic food where possible. “Vegetables that are not grown organically use pesticides and fertiliser spray to maintain their growth, this uses up more energy again” the ever determined Harriet told me.  

The final stages of this impressive and hugely effective project are to install a solar and PV solar panel. These panels will be fitted to the roof of their house and have the potential to generate enough energy to meet half of their hot water and electricity needs.

This is where the project starts to make a dent in their bank balance, however, if the couple live out the rest of their lives in this house as they intend to, the energy the panels generate will benefit them significantly. 

The pair seems to have thought of almost everything, right down to the last light bulb. If they carry on the way they’re going, who knows, they might meet the zero carbon emissions they hope for. I know one thing for sure, if anyone is capable of it, it is these guys.

The big red suit has been dropped and on Saturday, a local Northfield Santa Claus graced his grotto in a gorgeous green number.

Northfield Ecocentre launched the “Green Grotto” in an effort to encourage young families to go green for Christmas. Families from the local area were invited to the centre to learn about saving energy and to pick up some top tips for saving money and the environment at Christmas.

Georgia Stokes, the manager of the centre which opened in March this year said:

“The Green Grotto has been designed to get families involved in craft activities and to educate them on how to have a sustainable Christmas.”

The day’s activities included making homemade Christmas decorations and a visit to Santa’s grotto.

In keeping with the green theme, all the presents were bought from charity shops or homemade from recycled materials.

In the New Year, the centre hopes to hold a family hour every Thursday from 3.30, where similar activities will be taking place to educate and raise awareness in the local area.

Locals are also invited to recycle their non-standard recycling goods at the centre, such as batteries, energy saving light bulbs and mobile phones.

The centre is open to the public on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays and displays the ways you can change your own home to lower your carbon emissions.

As part of an eco-friendly future Service Birmingham are reconditioning old computers no longer needed by their original owners and selling them to low income families at a bargain prices, as low as £40 in some cases.

The recycling campaign has been designed to encourage recycling and cutting back on the large amount of carbon emissions that go into making brand new computers, it is also helping underprivileged families to get to grips with technology and learn new skills.

For many families this will mean not going without because of budgeting and a low income. It is an educational tool for children as well as an increasing communication tool for all ages.

In other cases, recycling computers is aimed at developing the technology, culture and economy of underdeveloped countries. Computer Aid is a non-profit organisation that refurbishes used computers for underdeveloped countries. They use the computers for health and education purposes and are the biggest organisation of this kind, working with over 100 underdeveloped countries.

Computer Aid will also accept old mobile phones and print cartridges as part of their recycling scheme.  

If you have an old computer that is sat in your spare room collecting dust then it could be put to very worthwhile use either locally or abroad. Computer Aid  is a very worthy cause and is always in need of more equipment, a place to research and start thinking about this idea if nothing else.

Computer Aid accepts any working Pentium 4 computers and laptops, as well as 15″ and 17″ monitors manufactured after the year 2002. They also make use of spare parts such as laptop power adaptors, power cables, keyboards and mice.

So a product that is designed to save you money and almost completely made from recycled goods, what’s the catch? The answer is easy, there isn’t one.

Not only is this development in technology environmentally efficient, it saves you pounds off your gas and electricity bills and requires no protective clothing to install. The old fibreglass alternative comes with health risks if the proper precautions are not taken but this non-itch, non-irritant and waterproof product comes with no health risks and the benefits will not deteriorate over time.

The product also boasts resistance to vermin and insect attack, lasting up to 50 years.

There are many new developments that can help people to reduce the amount they spend on energy bills. A member of Friends of the Earth and Sustainable Energy Academy, Martin Normanton was on hand to give me a few helpful tips. Martin said:

“The three most important things to save energy are insulation, sweaters and a high efficiency boiler.”

Martin is a committed “Superhomer”. He told me that by making changes to his home, he and other members “have reduced the CO2 emissions from their home by at least 60%. We have reduced our emissions, and costs by 70%, 75% off our gas and 55% off our electricity use.”

With promises of savings like that and a cut of over half the CO2 emissions made by your home it is almost impossible to see why one would not want to venture into the role of “Superhomer.”

Making gradual changes over the years will ensure a huge reduction in carbon emissions and with new technology, like the production of Eco Wool developing all the time, the reductions could be even greater in the future than they are today.

The prediction has been made along with seven others for the Green Party, based on the latest ICM poll. Over the last two weeks six European election polls have suggested similar outcomes, with the Green Party receiving 11% of the vote.

The almost doubled percentage of votes leaves the “Greens” standing in good stead for this Thursday’s elections. Polls usually underestimate the final outcome of the results, anything could happen on the day and the West Midland Green Party is headed for victory.

The leading green representative, Felicity Norman was pleased with the results of the poll but doesn’t want to “take anything for granted” and is now focussing on the votes that count on the 4^th June. She added that they are “working flat out to make the breakthrough in the West Midlands region.”

The Green Party’s policies reflect a future of eco friendly industry based on the developments and funding into new technology to make this possible. The policies are designed to correct the current environmental flaws in current conventional politics.

Birmingham International Airport announced plans to expand the airport in November 2008. Their plans included the extension of runways by up to 400 meters, costing £120 million. If put in place, the new runway could be up and running by 2012, according to Solihull Council.

The two organisations have worked together to form the website, www.flyagra.co.uk, criticising and opposing the proposal to extend the airport’s runway.

The main messages that the website aims to communicate to its users is that if the plans are go ahead, it will significantly increase noise pollution and damage to the environment. The Flyagra campaign will concentrate on lobbying Solihull Council to refuse planning permission for the airport’s expansion.

Chris Williams, a campaigner for Birmingham Friends of the Earth said:

“Last November’s Airport Master Plan confirmed what many suspected: BIA has no credible climate change policy…we know that climate-changing emissions from BIA’s operations are forecast to grow three-fold in the next twenty-five years if the airport expands as planned.”

To ensure a high quantity of users for the website, an e-mail is circulating that advertises ‘Flyagra’ as the revolutionary treatment that really keeps you up!’ The website mocks the runway extension plans, comparing them to a ‘male organ’ enlargement advertisement. Is it all just another way of being ‘bigger and better’ than the rest?

New lower forecasts of future growth in demand for flights at BIA mean that the controversial second runway is unlikely to needed before 2030.

Secretary of BANG, James Botham said:

“Extending Birmingham International Airport’s current runway and increasing airport capacity will make the Second Runway more, not less, likely to go ahead in future. Local politicians hoping to position themselves as both ‘pro-environment’ and ‘pro-airport’ by on the one hand opposing a second runway while on the other hand backing the runway extension are unwittingly paving the way for the very thing they say they are against.”

Birmingham Recycled caught up with Chris Unitt, the web creator for Cquestrate’s project, to find out more.

Chris explained:

“The idea is to break down large quantities of limestone and submerge it into the ocean. The limestone reacts with carbon dioxide and absorbs it from the atmosphere, helping to reverse the effects it has on climate change.”

This seemingly simple idea sounds like the answer to all of our environmental problems, the breakthrough in technology that we have all been waiting for, so I asked Chris, “what’s the catch?” And so, he began to point out the pros and cons of this promising proposal:

” The first thing the project  needs to consider is the possible effects the limestone may have on marine life, we don’t want to set out with good intentions for it to have the adverse effect on what we’re aiming to achieve. For this reason, there is still research taking place throughout the UK, for example in the Portsmouth University marine department”

The idea was first suggested back in 1995 by a man called Haroon Kheshgi and research has continued to take place since, proving this is an economic and necessary proposal. Research has been funded by the company Shell, who are keen to combat climate change. A spokesperson for Shell described this as a “promising idea, with potentially huge environmental benefits.”

Chris highlighted:

“The project aims to raise awareness as well as make environmental changes. We don’t want people to think they don’t have to keep up their energy efficient practises. Prevention is always better than cure.”

So, watch this space, Cquestrate could be the technological miracle we have all been waiting for.

The Eco Chic Wedding and Home Show took place yesterday in Edgbaston. The show offered everything couples need for their eco-friendly Big Day, from bridal wear to exotic honeymoon getaways.

For most newlyweds, setting up home is another major change and consideration for the start of their married life, so organisers incorporated the Home Show into the day, displaying environmentally friendly and efficient household essentials too.

Ethical and eco-friendly weddings are about using recycled goods, organic materials and working closely with fair trade organisations. A couples’ special day can now be about celebrating new beginnings with each other and between them and the environment.

The editor of ethicalweddings.com, Katie Fewings said, “Small actions can make a difference. The ice caps might be melting (and how did they come to be melting? The result of many small actions over a long period of time) but that doesn’t mean they have to stop trying. If another way is possible, let’s do it!”

With most of us complaining that our monthly gas and electric bill are forever on the rise, it should not be too hard for these Bromsgrove based electricians to get us in a more energy-efficient state of mind.

Energy-efficient is a phrase we hear thrown about all too often these days, but do any of us really know what it means? Or how easily it can be achieved? My guess is no. That is why Me Electric’s “Conserve” campaign will be using its electricians and franchisees to promote energy-efficient electrical installations and products.

Customers will be given the necessary information through the firm’s website and via their pricing guide, telling all users how they can achieve cheaper bills and use less energy. Savings of up to £270 per year have been promised by Mr Electric!

It is all about coughing up the money now to install these energy saving devices, in order to reduce your bill in the long run. However, managing director Clive Holston thinks that a few small changes can have enough impact on energy consumption, reducing the effects that our use has on the environment. Let us hope that by small changes, he means cheap changes!

Marine pollution is now one of the biggest environmental issues in the world, encouraging more conservation projects and scientific progression. The EPA’s (Environmental Protection Agency) Open Survey Vessel team have designed specialised “bongo nets” to collect debris from the water, leaving them to fish for the rubbish for up to thirty minute each time. The nets are pulled along the surface of the water where most of the day to day rubbish such as plastic bags and drink cans collect. Scientists are able to use their findings, which can include dead animals to identify the severity and priorities of the problem, helping to develop conservation further.

Marine debris is not only a threat to the animals that inhabit these waters; but it is also putting navigational safeties systems at great risk, as well as humans who are in danger if they enter the polluted waters.

Birmingham’s daytime attraction, the Sea Life Centre, is a keen financial supporter of the Marine Conservation Society, an organisation that campaigns for pollution-free seas and protection for endangered marine creatures. The aquarium is also actively encouraging its customers to communicate the needs of marine conservation to their local MPs, so that change will be bought to this country.

The US have already made radical changes, prompted by President Bush signing into the law, Marine Debris Research, Prevention, and Reduction Act, in 2006, allowing the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) a budget of 10 million pounds to aid their research and prevention of this major environmental issue. The NOAA aims not only to conserve marine life but to educate people on the impact of the debris and how people can help solve this problem. If those who are ultimately causing this problem remain ignorant and uneducated about the effect their actions are having, the problem is likely to get worse.

It paints a distressing picture of reality when our convenience is more important to the everyday civilian than the lives of innocent, distressed and confused marine life. Thank goodness for modern science, may it go from strength to strength.