Never one to hide its light under a bushel, double glazing giant Anglian Home Improvements has introduced its own £2,000 National Window Scrappage Scheme, designed to encourage UK homeowners to scrap their old poorly insulated windows, in return for £2,000 towards the installation of new, and professionally installed, energy efficient windows.

Such schemes have become popular after the cash for wrecks programme appeared to stimulate the ailing car industry throughout Europe and the US. Not to be outdone, there are growing demands on the Government to introduce similar schemes for boilers and windows.

Anglian claim that their own scrappage scheme supports the UK window industries lobbying activity, which focuses around the Glass and Glazing Federation’s (GGF) Government e-petition for a £1,000 windows scrappage scheme. Go here to sign up.

Melanie Russell, Head of Marketing and Communications at Anglian Home Improvements, said:
“Anglian Home Improvements supports and encourages the GGF Government e-petition. As an industry leader we saw the need to offer homeowners immediate support through our £2,000 national windows scrappage scheme, benefiting the consumer, while fully endorsing and promoting the call for UK households to sign the GGF petition.

“Anglian’s windows scrappage scheme, which replaces inadequate insulated windows with new energy efficient ones, means this winter UK households can retain more heat while actually spending less heating their homes.”

Whether this is a marketing version of jumping on the bandwagon, or a genuine attempt people to save money and carbon emissions remains to be seen, but Anglian can only be applauded for what they say is trying to kick start UK households into replacing old widows with energy efficient versions, in order to reach the Governments CO2 reduction target.

And as Anglian point out, much of the country’s precious energy is wasted through poorly insulated windows which not only leak heat, but also money, which is bad for the consumer pocket as well as the UK’s carbon footprint.

Anglian do not go into the details of exactly how the scheme works, but if it is adopted by the Government then they, as well as the industry in general and most consumers, will no doubt grab at the chance to save themselves some money as winter approaches.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

It can only be hoped that when business dragon Theo Paphitis snorts out a few flames, his emissions are low in carbon, because he has joined forces with the Carbon Trust to help promote their power-guzzling equipment scrappage scheme.

The Carbon Trust maintain that British businesses are being forced to “make do and mend” with old, inefficient equipment, as over half don’t have the cash to upgrade it. And furthermore, some 60% of small and medium-sized businesses wait until their equipment breaks down completely before replacing it.

The problem, say the Carbon Trust, is costing businesses £3.3bn a year in wasted energy. This figure was revealed in a survey of 1,500 small and medium-sized businesses at the launch, by Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis, of the Carbon Trust’s Big Business Refit campaign.

Theo Paphitis said:
“The Big Business Refit calls on all UK businesses to scour their premises for old equipment, from air conditioning, to fridges, compressors to factory machinery. With interest-free funding available to replace equipment, leading to average energy savings of 15%, and no security required, it’s an unbelievable deal.”

The Carbon Trust’s aim is to help businesses to scrap their old power-guzzling equipment and replace it with new equipment that’s more efficient and cheaper to run. The campaign provides expert guidance, plus financial support in the form of £100m in interest free funding, which can be paid back through the energy savings the new equipment delivers.

Running until March, 2010, The Big Business Refit offers advice on identifying old equipment, and guidance on suitable replacements in clinics in UK cities, including London, Birmingham, Manchester and Belfast. Businesses can get expert advice, a free energy saving assessment, or apply for interest free funding by calling 01865 885879, or visiting http://www.bigbusinessrefit.co.uk.

Some of the detailed results from the Carbon Trust reveal that some 57% of the businesses questioned have resorted to staff cuts to save cash; some 46% are unaware that they can cut energy costs by replacing old equipment; and, some 41% have accepted higher energy bills as a fixed cost, preferable to paying the upfront cost of replacing old equipment.

The Federation of Small Businesses is also right behind the initiative, having pledged their support.

David Caro, FSB Energy & Environment Chairman, said:
“Due to their size, small businesses are in a unique position to adopt energy efficiency measures more easily and quickly than their larger counterparts. However, small business owners are often limited by time constraints and are not always aware of where and how to access advice on how to go green. The support of the Carbon Trust can help small businesses play their part in being energy efficient and cutting costs, saving money and boosting their own enterprise.”

Guest Article by Neil Camp

The simple action of reducing water usage could save people a lot of money off their energy bills, say a consumer watchdog.

People often fail to appreciate that nearly 25% of domestic energy bills are down to heating water and this also equates to just over five per cent of the country’s national carbon footprint.

The watchdog point out that just having brief showers rather than baths could save well over £300 in heating bills. It’s a simple case of less energy needed to heat less water. Further measures should be things such as an aerated shower head and less frequent use of the dishwasher these would also reduce energy bills.

And when coupled with bigger measures such as loft and cavity wall insulation, it could all add up to a significant energy saving.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

If you’ve ever wondered how you calculate your carbon footprint, then a website created by the Welsh Assembly Government will give you a clue.

It helps if you live in Wales of course, but they think that people need a helping hand when it comes to learning about their carbon footprint and what they can do personally to reduce their emissions.

It asks users of the website questions about their lifestyle, then calculates an approximate footprint and finally suggests a plan as to how they can be reduced.

Hannah Emmott, the Welsh Assembly Government’s senior communications officer, said:
“It points out the good things you’re doing and the bad things. The idea is that people go away and look at all of those things and think about what they can do to improve. Some of them might be just little things like changing a light bulb, but others might involve changing the insulation in your house or something like that.”

The website firstly asks about where the user lives, their type of home and then, most importantly of all, their heating system.

According to Ms Emmott:
“Heating is essential in the winter months, there’s no getting away from that, but there are ways that you can minimize energy so you’re not so reliant on it – things like insulating your house.”

The calculator then asks about appliances, especially how often the kettle is boiled for tea. Miss Emmott again: “This may be a tiny thing, but if you do it consistently, if every time you boil the kettle for one person you fill it to the brim, it does make a difference over a period of time.”

Then there are a series of questions about how many electrical items are in the house, then the daily habits of the user of the website.

Once that’s all completed, a carbon footprint is calculated and the user can see for themselves their personal impact upon the world. For most people, it’s sobering moment.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Mickey Mouse has committed himself to cutting his greenhouse gases in half over the next four years.

Well, to be precise, its Mickey’s employer, Disney, which has made the commitment to cut their company-wide greenhouse gas emissions. And, furthermore, they plan to reduce their electricity consumption by ten per cent over the next five years.

Disney is a huge entertainment conglomerate, but it’s the theme parks, resorts and cruise ships which are bearing the brunt of the cuts. These three sectors account for around 90% of the Group’s total greenhouse emissions and just over 70% of electrical consumption.

These and other green targets were recently released in a comprehensive “Corporate Responsibility Report”, coming at the same time as the Group’s financial figures which showed that Disney is feeling the effects of the worldwide recession, with sales dropping across all its activities.

This has led a few cynics to suggest that Disney’s commitment to a green agenda might be more the result of a new financial reality, rather than a conversion to the eco cause.

Within the report, it laid bare its green ambitions, including a 2013 target to reduce by 50% the amount of waste destined to go to landfill sites. It also revealed that the Group’s two huge cruise ships were responsible for nearly half of the Group’s total yearly emissions of 566,000 tons a year. Disney’s resorts and theme parks pumped out about a total of 240,000 tons.

And in case you’ve wondered how fast the electricity meter spins at the Disney resorts, they also revealed that to light the parks and power the rides, it takes about 1.5 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, representing some three-quarters of the Group’s total electricity consumption. That’s some electricity bill every quarter.

Furthermore, the Disney Parks created nearly 300,000 tons of solid waste of which over half was sent to be buried in the earth. The rest was either recycled, re-used, donated to special causes, or composted.

Disney claims it will now be very pro-active in its attempts to be a green company. Such measures include testing hydrogen fueled cars, car pooling amongst its executives and the widespread use of solar panels where possible. And it has gone down the same route as many supermarkets by encouraging shoppers to use disposable bags, rather then relying on plastic bags in the Disney shops.

Also, the Group said it would form a working group that would have as its focus a remit to develop clean-energy strategies and strategies that will reduce the operation’s worldwide carbon footprint.

So, Mickey is turning green, although some might suggest that it’s the downturn that has caused such eco ambitions, it can only be hoped, says the consensus of watchdogs, that more major companies will follow their lead and begin to think hard about their carbon footprints.

Guest Article by Neil Camp