Sustainability Action Plan

Generate your own renewable energy!

There are lots of ways that households can generate their own energy at home without producing CO2 emissions. These include: solar thermal to produce hot water, photovoltaics to produce electricity and wood fired boilers to heat your home and produce hot water.

If you would like to find out more contact local renewable energy experts Zedfabric, tel 020 8404 1380 or pop into their show room at: 21 Sandmartin Way
Wallington, Surrey SM6 7DF 

For advice on grants try the Low Carbon Buildings Programme.

Switch to a green energy supplier

There are electricity suppliers who now source all of their electricity from renewable resources such as wind and solar. Signing up to a renewable energy provider can reduce your CO2 emissions by a third and many cost the same as a normal energy provider. However, some 'green' tariffs are misleading and use carbon offsetting rather than generating or buying renewable electricity. The 100% renewable tariffs we recommend are:

Good Energy : tel 0845 456 1640
Ecotricity New Energy Plus tariff: tel 08000 326 100
British Gas Zero Carbon Tariff:
Green Energy: tel 0845 456 9550

If you decide to switch to Good Energy please use the link above. For every home or business that switch to Good Energy through One Planet Living, Good Energy will donate £20 to One Planet Living in Sutton. At the end of each year we will hold a public meeting for Sutton residents to decide how the money should be spent in making Sutton sustainable. So if 1,000 of you make the switch, in May 2009 we'd have £20,000 to spend on local projects!

Lighting

Normal light bulbs use up to 30 times more energy than energy saving bulbs such as CFLs and LEDs so switching could save you lots of money!

CFLs come in a range of shapes and sizes and the light they give out has improved recently. CFLs tend to pay for themselves within the first year of use and a CFL can save £100 over its lifetime (they also last up to ten times longer than normal light bulbs)

You can also now get CFLs that are compatible with dimmer switches
Try Ryness, nearest store: 184 High Street, Sutton, Surrey, SM1 1NL
Tel: 020 8643 8339 or www.ebulbshop.com

Halogen Spotlight Alternatives

There are also very low energy LED bulbs available that can be used instead of halogen or normal spotlights and use a fraction of the energy (3W instead of 60W!). The light produced by these bulbs is now very good and LEDs can last for decades! A 3W LED spotlight costs around £7. They are also available from:

Screwfix : Unit 1, Kimton Park Trading Estate, Kimpton Way, Off Oldfields Road, Sutton, SM3 9QH OR 40-44 Purley Way, Croydon, CR0 3JP
Freephone 0500 414141

LED halogen alternatives
Robert Dyas : Order line 0845 450 3004

Recycling bulbs
It is important to recycle the energy saving bulbs correctly using the appropriate facilities as they are considered hazardous waste
Ryness will recycle all energy saving bulbs
184 High Street, Sutton, Surrey, SM1 1NL

Appliances

Lighting and appliances account for around 35% of the CO2 emissions in your home and most of your electricity bills.

When buying appliances, always look for the Energy Saving Recommended logo, it is your guarantee that these products are the most energy efficient in their category. They will also cost less to run and help prevent climate change. An efficient fridge-freezer can save 84kg of CO2 and around £17 a year.

Washing machines: you can also save energy by washing at lower temperatures; washing clothes at 30oC instead of a higher temperature can use around 40% less electricity and modern washing powders and detergents work just as effectively at lower temperatures.

TVs: Plasma TVs use about four times more energy than normal TVs
Kettle: Only fill the kettle with as much water as you need
Dryer: Consider drying your clothes on a clothes line outside if possible as this will save energy

Standby: turning appliances off at the wall instead of leaving them on ‘standby' can also help to save money. Did you know:

• Video players use up to 85% of the energy they use when switched on when left on standby, dishwashers left "on" at the end of their cycle consume 70% of the power used when they are running and washing machines use 20%.
• If everyone in the UK turned their appliances off at the wall this would save a million tonnes of CO2 and around £700 million!

If you find it difficult to remember to switch off from standby, there is help at hand with some eco-friendly gadgets;

Standby Buster £14.95: By plugging your electrical appliance (such as a TV or a radio) into a Standby Buster socket, it can be completely switched off by way of remote control. No electricity is wasted while the appliance is not in use (other types also available including 3 socket). Available from Primrose London  0870 499 0220

Keeping cool in Summer
As our climate begins to change summers will become hotter - you probably remember the heatwave of 2003, which killed 2000 people in the UK.

There are lots of things you can do to help your home to keep cool in summer and mean you don't have to buy energy-hungry air conditioning units! These include:
• Switching off unused appliances to reduce internal heat produced
• Installing awnings to protect rooms from the sun while allowing light and ventilation
• Improved loft and cavity wall insulation
• Double glazing
• Protecting green spaces around you and planting trees which can shade the house (and let in light in the winter when their leaves have gone)
• Use ceiling or desk fans to create a local cooling effect

Double or triple glazing

Around 10% of a home's heat is lost through its windows so getting your windows double glazed or adding secondary glazing is a great way to reduce heat loss. Timber framed double glazed windows are much more environmentally friendly than PVC framed windows and are now quite widely available. As a quick fix you can also get double glazing film from most DIY stores - it costs around £15 for 6 square meters.

Thick lined curtains: curtains can make a real difference by reducing draughts and keeping warmth in.

Radiator foil:

Backing your radiators with foil can save 51kg of CO2 per year and about £7 from your heating bills. Radiator foil is available in most DIY stores.

Draught exclusion

iIf you can feel cold air coming in around the windows or doors in your home it means warm air is escaping. Sitting in a draught doesn't just give you a pain in the neck, in a typical home 20 per cent of all heat loss is through poor ventilation and draughts. Draught proofing is cheap and easy to do and if everyone in the UK draught proofed their homes, we'd save around £130 million! Draught excluders are available from most DIY stores, or contact the Draught Proofing Association for details: 01428 654011

Upgrade your boiler

If you receive benefits you may be eligible for a free replacement boiler and improved heating controls. Grants of up to £4,000 are available. To find out more call Coldbusters on freephone 0800 358 6669, or write to Coldbusters, FREEPOST SEA 0116, Thornton Heath, CR7 8XT

As the current lifespan of a boiler is around 15 years, choosing a heating system with a high efficiency condensing boiler with the correct heating controls can make a huge difference to your heating bills over time, and can save around £150 a year. For more free information on the best systems available contact the Energy Saving Trust on 0800 512 012

Free and discounted loft and cavity wall insulation

Do you know that by insulating your home you can save up to £200 per year?

If you are over 70 or in receipt of certain benefits, you can insulate your home for free! For everyone else insulation is still cost saving - it will cost around £200 for loft insulation but you can make that back from saving on your energy bill. Phone your energy supplier or the Energy Saving Trust on 0800 512 012 for more information.