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Meeting the
challenge of global warming
doesn't mean changing your lifestyle.
In fact it opens new horizons
for holidays and both
indoor and outdoor activities. Healthy
eating and appropriate
clothing are amongst the ingredients
for success. |
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As
an individual... what can you do? Make
choices? How? |
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ECOLIVING
- WEBLINK - ENCRAFT |
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Encraft
offers homeowners an independent professional
service to optimise the energy performance
of their homes, looking at the whole
range of sustainable energy options,
and working with homeowners to develop
viable solutions for their particular
needs.
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CANADIAN
TIMBER FRAME TECHNOLOGY COMES TO CORNWALL |
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last
updated 10th February 05
by 4ecotips.com
 A
young farmer’s wife has built
“green” tourist accommodation
in the hills of Shropshire, with the
help of a Defra grant.
Kate Grubb and her husband Jamie
run the family sheep and cattle farm
at Obley, near Clun in South Shropshire.
The farm is in the Clun Environmentally
Sensitive Area (ESA) and the Blue
Remembered Hills, named after a line
in AE Housman’s classic collection
of poems A Shropshire Lad. |
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BRITISH
PUBLIC WASTES £5BN ENERGY EVERY
YEAR |
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last
updated 3rd February 05
by 4ecotips.com
 Did
you know that the British public wastes
around £5 billion worth of energy
every year and that the average household
could save up to £200 a year
on their energy bills by being more
energy efficient?
A survey carried out by British Gas
found that while householders were
aware it was important to use less
power, the results were a clear ‘could
do better’. See Eco Living.
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BE
MORE CLIMATE FRIENDLY BY AVOIDING HFCs |
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last
updated 3rd February 05
by 4ecotips.com
A new climate-friendly consumer guide
targets aerosol cans that contain
f-gases (HFCs and PFCs) which are
more dangerous to Earth’s climate
than CO2s. There are many consumer
products that contain f-gases so the
guide suggests what you should do
to avoid them.
For instance, if you are buying a
new fridge make sure you chose a make
such as Hotpoint, Siemens or Bosch
and others which don’t contain
HFCs. When it comes to insulation
use mineral fibres not HFC-based foams.
Where air conditioning is concerned
select a unit which uses hydrocarbons
(very energy efficient) and if you
are supporting your local football
team don’t celebrate with silly
string or a claxon horn which both
release HFCs.
Most current car air conditioning
systems contain HFCs but there are
new ones coming along which are a
lot less pollutant. And if you use
an inhaler see if your doctor can
prescribe one which uses a dry powder.
By avoiding HFCs in the products
we use in and around the home we can
make a real contribution to saving
our planet.
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ELECTRICAL
EQUIPMENT PRICES TO INCLUDE RECYCLING
COSTS |
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last
updated 7th January 05
by 4ecotips.com
On 13 August 2005 the EC directive
on waste electrical and electronic
equipment (WEEE for short) become
effective. One of the things it aims
to resolve, for instance, is the growing
mountains of fridges that are carpeting
larger and larger areas of the UK.
After this date, when you buy a new
appliance the price you pay will almost
certainly include a built in cost
to cover the recycling of the equipment
when it’s served its purpose
in your home and you dispose of it. |
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HOMES
INFORMATION PACKS ARE ON THE HORIZON |
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last
updated 26th November 04
by 4ecotips.com
The government has succeeded in getting
the Housing Bill through the House
of Lords with the compulsory requirement
for a Home Information Pack (formerly
known as a Seller’s Pack) to
be prepared before a home is sold.
They will be produced by a new “army”
of 7500 home inspectors who will be
licensed and trained by SAVA, the
organisation set up to promote higher
standards in residential surveying.
But so far there is no indication
of how much this service will cost
individual home owners and landlords!
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CANADIAN
TIMBER FRAME TECHNOLOGY COMES TO CORNWALL |
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last
updated 29th October 04
by 4ecotips.com
Timber frame, energy efficient, healthy,
flexible, self build Super E house
to be unveiled by the Government of
Canada in Cornwall. The Super E programme
- teams up Canadian housing exporters
with UK builders to produce advanced,
energy efficient healthy, homes. |
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CENTRAL
LONDON HOMES MAKE BEING ENERGY EFFICIENT
EASY |
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last
updated 29th October 04
by 4ecotips.com
Yorklake Homes has been working with
award-winning Bill Dunster Architects
to design and build the first ZED
Apartments at Tomlin's Grove, Bow
in Central London. The ZED concept
saves the buyer major costs in energy
bills and provides a great living
environment.
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NOT-SO-ECO-FRIENDLY
RUBBER-CLAD HOUSE |
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last
updated 22 Oct 04
by 4ecotips.com
 Not-so-eco-friendly
rubber-clad beach house is a red herring.
A rubber-clad beach house built at
Dungeness, has won the Stephen Lawrence
Prize sponsored by the Marco Goldschmied
Foundation. It was designed by Simon
Conder Associates. But surprisingly
for an award winning house design
it seems to pay sparse attention to
energy saving.
Described as a “tactile house”
it’s built using a lot of timber
and plywood and is covered from top
to footings with material akin to
that used for wetsuits. Simon Conder
explains: “It’s a tremendous
material that is both waterproof and
breathable, and in its black colour
echoes the local tradition of fishermen’s
shacks with their timber painted with
pitch to keep out the formidable elements.”
And the “elements” on
Dungeness beach are indeed formidable.
So for a house which does not appear
to have any special energy saving
strategy it could have a costly future,
both for the owners and for the environment.
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ECO-HOUSE
GETS TOP ARCHITECTURAL PRIZE. |
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last
updated 22nd Oct 04
by 4ecotips.com
 Described
as an eco-house of exceptional standards,
the Black House at Prickwillow in
Cambridgeshire, built from pre-painted
corrugated fibre-cement sheeting,
has won the RIBA Manser Medal 2004.
With a “barn-like” quality
it took just four days to erect the
lightweight timber-frame structure
on concrete piled foundations, which
allowed the rest of the house to be
completed in wind- and weather-tight
working conditions. The whole building
programme took eight months from start
to finish and cost just over £170,000.
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WARM
HOUSE USES RECYCLED NEWSPAPER |
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last
updated 22nd Oct 04
by 4ecotips.com
 Recycled
newspaper keeps award-winning North
London home warm.
In-Between, is a contemporary take
on the traditional terrace built between
existing houses in North London. Designed
by Annalie Riches, Silvia Ullmayer
and Barti Garibaldo, it won this year’s
Architects’ Journal First Building
Award organized in association with
Robin Ellis Design & Construction.
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your news!! |
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