A new national campaign encouraging everyone across the country to play their part in making Scotland a cleaner, greener place to live has been launched.

The new Greener Together campaign demonstrates that every greener effort – big or small – does make a difference. By showing we can all contribute, the campaign encourages people to recognise greener living benefits for them, their families and Scotland as a whole. Importantly, it seeks to empower everyone to work together to make a difference and create a greener, cleaner Scotland now and for the future.

Launching the campaign Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said: “Every journey starts with a single step and Scotland will truly go Greener Together when we realise the individual actions we take can collectively have a massive impact. There are many ways to go greener, which bring big benefits if we all get involved. Turning our thermostats down by just one degree, for example, not only saves money but also reduces the amount of energy we use as a country. By taking this green action, we could save up to £60 per year as well as reducing Scotland’s carbon emissions from housing by ten per cent.

Scots homeowners lead the way in take-up of renewable scheme

Scottish households are saving hundreds of pounds by embracing green technologies like solar thermal hot water panels and wood fuelled boilers. Scots are leading the way when it comes to a £15m national voucher scheme (£12m for individuals and £3m for social housing) to help households install heat generating systems, such as wood fuelled boilers and heat pumps.

The vouchers are worth a maximum value of £1,250 and are issued in Scotland by the Energy Saving Trust. But those wishing to make their homes more cosy and energy efficient only have until 31 March 2012 before the scheme expires.

It is rural parts of Scotland that have proved the most likely to embrace the voucher scheme with almost a quarter of applications coming from households in the Highlands Council area. So far, 114 vouchers have been issued to homeowners in the Highland Council area, followed by 73 in Aberdeenshire Council area and Perth & Kinross with 47 vouchers.

Wood fuelled boilers have proved the most popular form of green technology comprising almost 32 per cent of applications in Scotland. Solar thermal hot water panels are the second most popular technology.

The scheme primarily targets households not heated by mains gas – who have to rely on higher carbon forms of heating which also tend to be more expensive than gas, such as heating oil and electric fires to keep warm. Vouchers for the following technologies are available to householders in Scotland, England and Wales:

Ground Source Heat Pump – £1,250 (for homes without mains gas heating)
Wood fuelled boiler – £950 (for homes without mains gas heating)
Air source heat pump – £850 (for homes without mains gas heating)
Solar thermal hot water panels – £300 (available to all households regardless of the type of heating system used)

Interested homeowners should get in touch with their local Energy Saving Scotland advice centre on 0800 512 012

 LEDs offer a brighter future

LEDs can bring about significant reductions in energy and maintenance costs, according to an Energy Saving Trust field trial of over 4,000 light fittings in England.

It waws recently forecast that LED lighting has the potential to become the dominant technology in domestic and commercial lighting as early as 2015.

In 2008, the Energy Saving Trust completed a feasibility study that looked into installing LED lighting in communal areas of social housing, such as stairwells and corridors. The study showed that there was considerable potential for achieving energy savings in such areas, particularly as the lighting is typically on 24 hours per day.

Now Lit Up, the Energy Saving Trust’s field trial report of the technologies in action, shows increases in light levels, colour temperature and good maintenance of performance over time, as well as considerable energy and long-term cost savings.

The trial also showed LEDs maintaining their performance over time. Light levels were measured after approximately six months use, showing average maintenance of levels across the two trial phases of 93.6 per cent. Some sites showed no discernable change over the time period at all, while one found increased light levels.

On the back of the study, the Energy Saving Trust is planning to begin discussions with government and industry about ways that the market for LEDs could be supported in coming years. The Trust are also looking to endorse a larger range of LED products under the Energy Saving Trust Recommended labelling scheme over the coming months.

There’s never been a better time to get active so contact us now!

More information on Kirkhill MUGA, tariffs and how to book.

Following an open-tender process, the KDAA have appointed White & McGinn of Fairways Business Park, Inverness to head the project team for the Kirkhill Centre Forward project.  White & McGinn are a well-known Inverness architect practice who have considerable experience of working with community organisations and charitable organisations. They will lead a professional team that will produce detailed plans to take the project to the stage to tender for the building work.

The Kirkhill Centre Forward project team have been working hard submitting funding applications and hope to be in a position to apply to Highland LEADER funding for the building work in February. With luck we’ll be able to start building work just after Gala Week in June.

The recycling point in Inchmore has been well used for the past four years and the Trust would like to thank the site owner for the use of the land. We are also delighted the Kirkhill District Amenities Association agreed to the relocation to the community centre.

The community centre car park is used by many people including children so please keep the site clean and tidy and don’t leave any other rubbish by the bins.

With the bins at the centre of the village it is hoped they wil be even more widely used. Remember if you can’t reduce or reuse, then RECYCLE IN KIRKHILL!

Another group of community residents have come to the end of their free electricity monitor period. We have 5 electricity monitors that are very easy to install and show how electricity is being used over the day in our homes. Some of the recent feedback from the residents who’ve had the meters included;

- Halogen lights very energy hungry and expensive,

- Computer screens were using much more electricity than the actual computer,

- The kettle is amazingly expensive, having the electricity monitor also made me realise how often I walked away from the nearly boiled kettle and then re-boiled it a couple of minutes later;

-  The washing machine is also very expensive to run and the monitor really highlighted that – the machine is on its last legs so I will be looking to replace it very soon and will be paying particular attention to the drum size and also the  energy rating.

If you are interested in getting a free monitor for a couple of months, please get in touch with me on 07584 297485

“How To” Case Studies

Over the winter we will be preparing a number of “How To” case studies. These will explain in non technical terms, renewable energy and how to make homes more energy efficient. So if you have thoughts about making 2012 an energy efficient home3 year, keep an eye on the web pages for these guides.

Keeping Warm Over the Winter

Finally, the colder temperatures are well and truly here for  the winter. The Energy Saving Trust has some tips on how to keep warm over the  winter. While some of these sound pretty common sense, how many of us have given them some thought

- Get together – spending more time together over Christmas and New Year watching telly or playing with new presents means not all the rooms in our homes have to be heated to the same temperature. Turning the heating down in rooms we are not using will help reduce the heating bill,

- Exercise – having just spent the afternoon sledging, with my children I can vouch that despite the cold temperatures, exercise for a couple of hours is a good way to keep warm.

- Give your home a draught proofing MOT, checking there are no unwanted cold winds getting into your house,

- Top up the duvet with some blankets on the bed or make sure the duvet is suitable for the colder winter temperatures. A duvet rated 13.5 tog is good for the winter.

3^rd December 2011 @ 12 midday

YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN US TO OPEN THE BUILDING AND MEET THE KIRKHILL AND BUNCHREW COMMUNITY TRUST WOODLAND GROUP

Refreshments available after the opening!

Please park at the main Reelig Glen Forestry Commission Car Park and walk up into the woodland

The log building in Upper Reelig Community Wood has been  relocated from Balnain Wood and will be used as a focus for the community woodland group’s activities, as an equipment store and a resource centre for Forest School and other community activities.

Kirkhill and Bunchrew Community Trust Woodland Group secured support for the building  from their own funds,  the Highland LEADER programme and Forestry Commission Scotland. It’s constructed from local logs, scribed to fit together. Whole larch logs and milled timber from Reelig were used in the construction and with a turf roof it has a low visual and environmental impact. Local log builder Mike Cooper relocated and finished the building on site in Reelig.

The building is situated in the beech trees down from the upper car park.

Aird Branch Highland Hospice presents Aladdin which is directed by Inchmore’s Liz Hoey and includes a strong cast of Kirkhill talent. It’s a traditional family pantomime with the best of Christmas entertainment – songs, jokes, a juggling dog and an Abba reunion! Forget the winners of Strictly and X Factor, this show has the answers to the questions on everyone’s lips this December!

Will Princess Jasmine escape her arranged marriage?

Will the evil Abanazzer succeed in taking over the world?

Will Widow Twanky finally find herself a man?

Book your tickets now to find out!

Performances are at the Phipps Hall, Beauly on Friday 9th and Saturday 10th of December at 7:30pm, with a 2:30pm matinee on Saturday.

To book your tickets, head to Morrisons Hardware Store in Beauly or Robertsons Farm Shop, Beauly or ring Liz on 01463 831 422.

Tickets cost £7 and £5 concession (£6 and £4 Saturday matinée).

Find the case studies at our Energy Efficiency and Low Carbon Programme pages at the local information section.

At the end of October the Kirkhill Primary School hosted a Renewable Energy fair, supported with the Climate Challenge Funding. Several local organisations attended: Inverness College which has established Scotland’s first renewable energy training centre, Highland Birchwoods, a local charity encouraging the uptake of wood fuel systems and local firms AVC Energy, Begetube and Black
Isle Renewables. Staff from the local Energy Saving Scotland advice centre were also present and several community residents booked up free, impartial home visits to discuss which renewable energy systems would be most appropriate. We are grateful for these businesses and organisations making the time to attend. Senior pupils at the school have been working on energy efficiency and renewable energy projects and some of their work was also on display at the Fair.

 Community Case Studies

As interest in renewable energy grows, there are an increasing number of community residents installing systems in their homes. For
some residents this has involved fitting new renewable energy systems to replace older electric or oil/LPG heating.  For others it involves fitting renewable energy systems in their newly built house.  As building standards and energy prices rise, an increasing number of newly built houses are incorporating renewable energy systems as part of the heating mix. Several residents were happy to discuss experiences with their renewable energy systems so we have prepared a suite of case studies that highlight the pros and cons,
what went well and what didn’t.  We hope these are of interest and use.

 Solar Panels

Over the last year or so, I’ve received numerous flyers from companies offering to fit solar panels on my roof. By receiving a payment from the big energy companies for every unit of electricity produced by the panels, homeowners were getting some support to offset high purchase costs. The additional payments, added onto the reduced energy bills, meant the new solar systems were paid off in a reasonable period of time. Revisions to the support programme have now halved the payments received by homeowners installing any system after Dec 2011. If you are thinking about a solar PV system, a very simple calculator that lets you see the benefits.

 Extra £400k pumped into Scottish home insulation scheme

An additional £400,000 is to be allocated into the Scottish government’s Universal Home Insulation (UHIS) loan fund to help more
homeowners lower their energy bills and reduce emissions. Already £12.5 million has been invested in the scheme in September and the boost will see more households given interest free loans for extensive energy efficiency upgrades like renewable energy systems and new condensing boilers. It is also hoped that the additional funds will prevent more Scots from entering fuel poverty.