So where are we now?
The project did not encounter opposition to the idea of saving energy: the threats of adverse effects triggered by climate change, such as inundation of low lying lands, fires, droughts and floods, are fairly well understood. However, the lack of agreed international assessments of the severity of those effects, and the lack of leadership on what must be done to counter them, have fostered inertia. In the absence of guidance, many people, probably most, just want to carry on their busy lives. So the Challenge North Leigh approach was to stage community events which people would join for the fun of it, and thereby induce them to active participation in conserving energy. “Think global: act local” and “Every little helps” appeared to be mantras which appealed to most people.
The results so far have been promising. Savings of just over 9% were recorded in January and February 2009, indicating that “It could be done”. How were the savings made? The change to low energy light bulbs which were made widely and often freely available probably contributed significantly. However, March brought only a 5.36 % saving. We have not discovered any reason for this result and it is clear that progress to a sustained 10% is not going to be a simple month by month progression.
April results showed a 7.87% saving and May 7.6%. These figures probably reflect the decreased use of lights during the long spring and summer days. It therefore makes sense to look to other areas for possible savings and the lead given in the Nor’Lye News July edition is:
“Heating uses much energy so let’s concentrate on that. Yes, I know you have turned off the central heating but what about……… Is the energy-guzzling tumbler dryer rusting away while your washing dries beautifully in the sun and wind? Do you only heat the quantity of water you need? Do you avoid rinsing or washing things in running hot water? Is your water hotter than is needs to be? If your hot water tank is remote from the kitchen, do you use a kettle for small quantities instead of running the tap a long time?”
We look forward to the June results. Meanwhile there has been increased interest in Smart Meters since the government announced that they should replace existing electricity meters by 2010. Smart meters continuously transmit the amount of energy used back to the supplier’s computer making meter readings unnecessary. Most of these meters will also transmit the information to small monitors, somewhat like our Current Cost Monitors, so that people can see how much electricity they are using. Red/amber/green lights on the devices will alert users when the demand exceeds certain thresholds. Electricity suppliers foresee the possibility of using the continuous metering to arrange individual contracts which will save consumers money by allowing suppliers to spread the load more efficiently.
The coordinating group are always alert for additional ways of promoting increased savings. New ideas would be most welcome! So would additional members of the coordinating group. If you can help with either, please contact Candy Kerpache on 01993 882233.
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