This year we’ve £2500 to allocate, and we need your to help decide which one gets the cash.
We’ve had four great organisations apply; their applications are summarised below. You can see more detailed applications here.
Solar panels at the Brighton Earthship
Installation of 3kWp additional solar panels to increase the renewable energy generating capacity at Earthship Brighton.
Applicant: Low Carbon Trust
Summary
“Earthship Brighton is an off grid community and education centre in Preston Park in Brighton. We currently get around 3,000 visitors a year: 1,600 local school children, 250 participants on our Green Building Courses (including ‘Introduction to Photovoltaics’) and over 1000 visitors on tours. After running the centre for 10 years, we need to increase the renewable electricity generating capacity at Earthship Brighton. We currently have 1 kWp of solar panels and this project will add an additional 3 kWp. The achievement will be that the earthship will be able to run purely on solar electricity.
It is estimated the system will be able to generate at least 4,000 kWh of electricity / year. Electricity will be stored in batteries with a backup generator running on plant oil or bio-diesel to top up the batteries if required. This will make Earthship Brighton the only zero carbon off grid building that that people can visit in Sussex.
Project cost: £3,150
BEC funds covers 79% of project costs: 12 x 250 W mono -crystalline PV modules + fixing
Project Exposure: around 3,000 visitors a year
Eco Open Houses, in Worthing
An event showcasing how to reduce energy and water bills in buildings, providing practical examples for visitors. Applicant: Transition Town Worthing
Applicant Transition Town Worthing, see the project webpage here
Summary
The event will provide an opportunity to visit new and renovated open homes and venues, showing how to reduce energy and water bills in and around Worthing, Lancing and Ferring.
“We will provide living examples of how visitors to the Eco Open House event can save money on energy and water bills, sending them away with practical knowledge, case studies with contact details for suppliers etc, and a wealth of information on how to live a more sustainable lifestyle – often by making simple, achievable changes. […]
There are workshops to learn about draught-proofing and solar PV systems, and help to switch your energy supplier to the most advantageous tariff. Save money on energy and water bills whilst staying warm and comfortable and reducing your carbon footprint. Includes exciting new development on Lancing seafront, as well as fantastic retrofits showcasing solar thermal and solar PV, super insulation, water management systems and more. […]
We would hope to get between 700 and 1000 visitors to the event with as many as possible completing feedback forms and pledging to go away and make changes in their lives that are along the lines of those demonstrated by this event.”
Project cost: £6,800
BEC fund covers 37% of project costs, for publicity and marketing
Project exposure: 700 to 1000 visitors (expected), in Worthing and surrounding areas
One Planet Living in Hanover & Elm Grove
Start-up for One Planet Living Programme in Hanover & Elm Grove Action Plan.
Applicant: Hanover Action for Sustainable Living (HASL)
Summary
“Full planning for the translation of a local One Planet Living Vision and Action Plan (supported by Bioregional) into a one-year programme of activities, events and public meetings during the whole of 2016. The programme of activities and initiatives will be explicitly related to the 10 sustainability principles on One Planet Living. A key part of this work will be to plan for neighbourhood carbon reduction. The funding will cover the overheads and costs for:
- public events scheduled at the Hanover Eco-Refit Community Centre (*),
- practical measures (e.g installation of a smart meter at Hanover Centre),
- recruitment of student volunteers
- creation of new action groups
The Eco-Refit Community Centre has been renovated and transformed into a more energy efficient community and demonstration space – for the wider community to connect with, and be motivated around the One Planet Living sustainability principles. The centre provides access to the carbon-reduction information boards (with QR Codes) and acts as a demonstration of what can be done to reduce energy/carbon footprint, via loft and wall insulation, secondary glazing, LED lighting, and a more efficient boiler, etc. This example now needs to be a demonstration space”
Project cost: £2,295
BEC funds covers 100% of project costs, mainly for operations/premises/publicity and marketing, and capital (30% for smart meter).
Project exposure:
East Brighton, Hanover and Elm Grove area
LED lighting at the RSPB visitors’ centre
Installation and showcase energy-saving LED lighting to visitors by replacing old CFL and halogen fittings and bulbs in the education room, shop and café of the visitor centre.
Applicant: The RSPB, Pulborough Brooks
Summary
The RSPB aims to reduce its carbon emissions by 30% by 2020 from a 2010 baseline. The RSPB Pulborough Brooks Visitor Centre has about 100,000 visitors a year and 2,500 school children on visits. There is a huge potential to showcase LED lighting as a quality product with amazing energy-saving potential. LED lighting is estimated to save 90% of the energy used by conventional lightbulbs. We will do this by producing an information sheet for visitors, encouraging them to “do try this at home!”
- Our project will:
- save energy and carbon emissions (in line with our environmental policy),
- reduce energy costs so we have more to spend on saving nature,
- raise awareness of LED and energy issues amongst our visitors,
- offer visitors and school children an improved experience.
This project will help us to achieve that goal. In addition, it will complement other environmental measures we have taken at Pulborough Brooks e.g. PV panels, Automated Meter Reader (AMR), composting etc. Mondial, the lighting company estimates that we will save about £1,118 a year and 4,700 Kg of carbon emissions every year.
Project cost: £5,632
BEC funds covers 38% of the project costs, for: capital (equipment: LED)
Project Exposure: 100,000 visitors a year, in Pulborough Visitor Centre, West Sussex
We have specified a fairly broad criteria for the decision, which is based on the rules under which BEC operates. The criteria are:
