Initiatives
We use a wide range of initiatives to make efficiency savings
and to deliver our environment policy commitments.
Green Guardians
Through our growing network of environmental staff
champions, our Green Guardians, we are encouraging good
environmental practice in every department. We now have over 330
Green Guardians in Kent County Council.
Green Guardians encourage their team to be:
- Energy Smart - Switch off lights and electrical equipment to
reduce wasted energy
- Travel Smart - Use public transport, car share or
tele/videoconference to minimise car travel
- Print Smart - Print less to reduce wasted ink and paper.
Green Guardians also encourage the best use of resources such as
office stationery, by minimising waste and re-using and recycling
items wherever possible.
Energy Efficiency Investment Fund
Since 2006 we have been working with the Carbon Trust and Salix
Finance who part finance our £1 million Energy Efficiency
Investment Fund. This provides money for energy efficiency projects
as interest free loans. The projects they fund must deliver savings
in energy use and the loans are repaid to the fund within 5 years
enabling the money to be used again for new projects. .
Common projects include:
- Low energy and LED lighting
- sensor lighting controls
- boiler controls
- insulation
- voltage optimisation technology.
We have also invested over £100,000 in water efficiency
improvements and part financed renewable energy and biomass
heating projects in several Kent schools and continue to explore
further projects.
To date we have invested £1.9 million, with lifetime savings
estimated at £4.5 million. This is reducing our energy bills
and saving 22,800 tonnes of carbon dioxide, helping us meet our
carbon reduction target.
A large proportion of the fund has been loaned to schools
and used for renewable energy projects.
Renewable energy projects
Since 2008 we have invested in more than 30 renewable energy projects. In doing so we have
attracted funding grants of almost £500,000 as well as expecting
income of over £900,000 from the new feed in tariffs for
electricity over the next 25 years.