I was really taken by two contrasting, but complementary pieces of news coverage yesterday. One of them was on MSN news online about the launch of the new “fat map” for the UK pointing out where the highest levels of obesity across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland occur. (I was intrigued as to why the Shetlands should feature so highly - any ideas from the Islands?).

As an aside I was also amused by a quote from a Senior Project Manager at Doctor Foster Research who, with a poker face, talking about obesity was still able to say that there does seem to be a “growing” problem in some areas.  Oh well - some people just don’t do irony! 

The other piece was an article in the Guardian by Claire Armitstead discussing the contrasting and probably conflicting need to invest in sports facilities for cycling (following our results in the Olympics) compared with Philip Insall - the self styled bike fixer general of charity Sustrans who, quite rightly, is pitching for greater investment in general cycling facilities and infrastructure.  What sensible parent is going to allow their kid onto the road without the appropriate cycle lane and associated safety features? This is one parent who won’t be.  Regardless of whether it is to do with congestion charging, obesity levels rising, or sporting excellence in Beijing - what is vital is that we understand cycling could, should and is for everyone. As Insall is quoted as saying “we have more obese children and much lower levels of daily cycling than Germany with its two cycling medals and Sweden and Switzerland who did not even feature on the medal board in Beijing.  The difference being, of course, is that they invest five to ten times the amount of money in sustainable transport compared to the UK”. There is a lesson there, both for those who want to be off the “fat map” and those on two wheels.

(Credit: Chris Hill)

Without the proper infrastructure investment, cycling will remain a potentially hazardous method of travel.

Philip is on holiday at the moment, so in his place Helen Northmore - Head of Energy Saving Trust Wales - has written a post for the blog.

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Embarking on the waste pilot in Wales has really opened my eyes to the amount of avoidable food waste we actually generate. In Wales we throw away 330,000 tonnes of food each year and more significantly, in Wales, we buy then waste around £500 million on food that could have been eaten.

As an office we all completed food diaries analysing our food waste and were all surprised by the results. Even those who felt that they were shopping and managing their store cupboards efficiently still saw room for improvement. I thought I was good until I wrote it all down and I realise that I cook meals that are too big and end up wasting food when I am full.

Wrap research has shown good intentions are often hampered by a range of factors including:

· Lack of planning when food shopping - buying more than is needed
· Poor food storage knowledge
· Lack of confidence around cooking
· Confusion over food date labels

Smarter management of our store cupboards and fridges and a better understanding of date labels would mean that we could prevent at least 15 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions each year.  While a large proportion of these emissions are associated with embedded energy a significant amount arises as a result of food waste going to landfill sites. 

Comparing carbon saving figures from our traditional ‘bread and butter’ energy saving messages like cavity wall and loft insulation with the equivalent carbon savings to be made through reducing our food waste shows that the Energy Saving Trust can make a significant difference by providing advice to consumers on this issue.

The ’Love Food hate waste’ or ‘Hoffi Bwyd casau gwastraff’’ campaign aims to educate consumers about the problems associated with our continued waste of food. It also provides consumers with a range of ideas, advice and suggestions to avoid such a large amount of waste including recipes to use up left-overs, storage and freezing information and advice on store cupboard planning. It is the combined efforts of bodies such as Wrap and here in Wales ‘Waste Awareness Wales’ along with our support that mean we should be able to work with consumers to make a significant difference to carbon emissions.

Nigel Underdown, Head of Transport Advice for the Energy Saving Trust, was recently interviewed for Carbon Free TV about how we can collectively help to curb the trend of rising transport emissions by making more informed choices when purchasing a car. You can watch the full interview below.   

Philip is away on holiday this week, so in his place Noel Williams, Head of Energy Saving Trust Northern Ireland has written a guest post.

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Over 70% of Northern Ireland homes have oil as their primary fuel for heating and hot water.  This is in stark contrast to GB where over 90% of homes use natural gas.

Natural Gas is going to take some years to reach the ‘Really Rural’ areas of Western Northern Ireland.  Government therefore needs to look at taking a range of short, medium and long-term measures to reduce carbon emissions, energy use and by doing so save the householder money.  ‘Energy Affordability’ is a term I much prefer (as opposed to Fuel Poverty), but it is a particular issue in these times of high fossil fuel costs.  It is also very much on the political agenda at present with the Minister for Social Development establishing a Task Force to explore possible measures to alleviate Energy Affordability needs.

I would like to see a Rural Grant Programme in Northern Ireland to encourage the uptake of energy efficiency measures in areas where choice is limited.  This would need to be combined with outreach work, face-to face advice and home visits, to provide the householder with the most appropriate advice tailored for their needs.  This could be a tailored version of our Home Action Plan within our Green Homes programme.

In the short term, we must ensure that there is maximum take-up of gas along the North West and South North gas pipeline to provide critical mass for extending it into the ‘Really Rural’ areas of Northern Ireland.  In the ‘temporary’ absence (probably 15 years) of natural gas in the Really Rural West, we need to put in place specific measures to ensure that householders are not unduly disadvantaged by being in an off-gas area.

Householders would be able to apply for a grant to replace old, inefficient or broken boilers with new high-efficiency condensing boilers, providing that they have had fabric improvements made to the property to improve the thermal efficiency of the building (i.e. cavity wall and loft insulation).

Regarding insulation, we also see the potential for a rural-only top-up grant being made available to provide these measures for free, or at little cost to the householder.

Also, the proposed Rural Grants Programme could, and ought to, provide a top-up grant for the installation of a renewable energy heating system in Really Rural areas where there is a proliferation of households suffering with Energy Affordability difficulties.

How will you spend your £150?


Well, rumours continue abound that Gordon Brown is set to give a one-off cash payment of £150 to the UK’s seven million family households in order to help alleviate the financial burden being caused by rocketing fuel prices. I've no doubt it will be seen as a positive gesture by many people, but personally I think the Government has missed a trick here by not offering households £150 worth of energy saving measures.

Our own stats show that with £150, a householder could:

Draught proof an entire house, saving around £25 a year with an outlay of around £90.
Buy a hot water tank jacket, saving around £20 per year, with an outlay of just £12.
Fully insulate all pipe work, saving around £9 per year, with an outlay of just £9.
Replacing existing light bulbs with energy saving ones. With a typical cost of around £3 per bulb it would be possible to replace every light bulb in the house.  This could save around £45 a year or £600 over the lifetime of the bulbs!

My maths was never much good, but even I can see that by spending this £150 on energy saving measures means saving around £100 this year, next year, the year after....well, you get my drift!

Plus – there are also a current round of grants available from energy suppliers (due to the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target) meaning many people are able to get cavity wall insulation or loft insulation at much reduced prices, especially those on benefits. Alternatively, the £150 could be put towards a DIY loft insulation top up.

I am really surprised that the Government’s solution to rising fuel prices seems likely to be giving householders a cash lump sum, rather than investing it in a longer term solution like energy saving, which will not only help to permanently reduce fuel bills, but also significantly contribute towards the Government meeting its own challenging carbon emissions reduction targets. Watch the sales of lottery tickets rise!!!