A pioneering project which brought a ground breaking source of
fuel efficient energy to pensioners whose village has no gas has
led to Harrogate Borough Council being shortlisted for a national
award.
The council's Home Energy Conservation team is in the running
for the Eliminating Fuel Poverty category of the 2005 National Home
Improvement Awards. Fuel poverty is where
homeowners spend more than 10 per cent of their income on heating
and hot water.
Until this summer, elderly pensioners living in council
bungalows in Copt
Hewick either had to use costly electric storage heaters or
solid fuel boilers for both heating and hot
water. Neither system is efficient and both are
expensive to run which is why the council was keen to explore more
fuelefficient alternatives for them.
The eight bungalows have been fitted with underground heat
pumps, which are widely used in Scandinavian countries and
throughout Germany but the technology is only just starting to
appear in this country.
People are getting used to seeing solar panels where energy is
derived from the sun above ground. But
this is a new and exciting development sourcing that same energy
from under ground. Harrogate Borough
Council is the first local authority in the country to use it to
provide council homes with this source of energy and is a huge step
in its commitment to use renewable energy wherever
possible.
Councillor Jean Butterfield, Cabinet Member for Housing
said: "This has been an exciting project for us
and I am delighted that it has been recognised in this way, even if
we don't win we were down to the final three.
Whilst this is obviously a new direction for us, we are already
confident that residents will have more money in their
pockets. They are also telling us how nice it is
to have heat and water on demand rather than having to stoke up
boilers or wait for storage heaters to warm up."
The Rt Hon the Lord Brooke CH is hosting the awards ceremony
on
24 November at the Gladstone Library, Whitehall and the
presentations will be made by The Rt Hon Nick Raynsford, Minister
of State for Local Government and the Regions.
ENDS
FURTHER INFORMATION: Councillor Jean Butterfield is
available for comment on 01423 770381. More
information about the underground heating systems is available from
Andrew Ellis, Home Energy Conservation Officer on 01423
556802.