• District Heating Scheme
• Aspley solar panel project
• Energy Park proposal
• NHS Carbon Reduction Project - reducing waste and energy in care homes
• Saving energy in our schools
• Nottingham Energy Calculator
• Green Theme Partnership

District Heating Scheme

Nottingham has the largest district heating system in the UK, serving close to 5,000 homes and more than 100 businesses with 65km of pipes. This scheme helps save 27000 tonnes of carbon dioxide annually across Nottingham. The council's energy from waste plant has been running since 1972 and the latest extension is expected to be completed in 2013.

The heat is produced by the Eastcroft Energy from Waste (EfW) plant, owned by Nottingham City Council and operated by private contractor WRG. The steam is sold to Enviroenergy Limited, an energy services company (ESCo) wholly owned by Nottingham City Council.

Enviroenergy run the CHP and district heating infrastructure and manage distribution, metering and billing.

For more information, visit the Enviroenergy Limited website or Enviroenergy Limited website.

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Aspley solar panel project

E.ON and Nottingham City Council are working in partnership to fit solar panels to 600 homes in Aspley.

This project will help reduce energy bills for people in some of the most deprived areas of the city. The work started in March 2011 and will be completed in the summer of 2011.

It is one of the largest domestic photovoltaic (PV) scheme in the UK, which builds on Nottingham's reputation for successfully delivering large-scale energy infrastructure projects and maintains the city's position as the UK's most energy self-sufficient city.

Energy Park proposal

Our vision is to create a flagship Energy Park on Blenheim Lane in Bulwell, which uses low carbon renewable energy created on site to supply competitively priced power and heat to co-located business units.

This project will have a hugely positive impact on Nottingham's economy by providing employment opportunities and attracting inward investment.

Click here for more information on the Energy Park proposal.

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NHS Carbon Reduction Project - reducing waste and energy in care homes

NHS Nottingham City is working with Nottingham City Council and Nottingham Energy Partnership to set up innovative ways to reduce waste and unnecessary energy use in four care homes.

There are seven pilot projects funded by NHS East Midlands on behalf of the East Midlands NHS Sustainable Development Network to reduce greenhouse gases, save money and improve health. The key areas looked at are:

• Medicines management
• Reducing waste including food and food packaging
• Increasing residents' access to the natural environment
• Assessing the feasibility of installing renewable energy generation equipment

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Saving energy in our schools

The Schools Collaboration on Resource Efficiency (SCoRE) project has helped 12 infant, junior and primary schools in Nottingham save money by reducing their energy consumption and cutting carbon dioxide emissions within their schools.

Nottingham City Council, alongside every other LA in the East Midlands, ran a pilot in partnership with the Carbon Trust and East Midlands Regional Improvement and Efficiency Partnership earlier this year entitled SCoRE.

As a result, all participating schools reduced their energy usage by between 10 and 30%. This equated to approximately 200,000 kWh between the twelve schools and if continued, they could save a combined total of £20,000 off their annual electricity bill.

The Schools estate still accounts for 35% of total Nottingham City Council carbon dioxide emissions.

This year, Nottingham City Council will roll out the scheme to all schools with the same aim: to help schools reduce their energy bills by 10% mainly through simple changes in behaviour and the way energy is used, particularly for heating and lighting.

The SCoRE Launch event is being organised for November 5^th 2012, which will act as a platform for delivering the resources needed for the scheme to continue and ensure that all schools are aware of who to contact in case they require further assistance over the next few weeks.

Whilst in schools, the City Council's SCoRE officers will hold workshops and provide information the following:

• Getting benefit from Automatic Meter Reading
• Taking Control of Heating
• Eco-Schools, a Whole School Approach

The Council looks forward to reaching out and working with schools, imparting lifelong knowledge to pupils' and helping teaching staff to become more energy efficient.

SCoRE Pilot with Nottingham City schools on YouTube:

Nottingham Energy Calculator

The Council, with support from Nottingham Energy Partnership, is the first local authority in the country to develop an interactive online tool to help citizens find out more about which low carbon technologies could be suitable for their homes, helping them to make long term savings on their energy bills.

The calculator will highlight a range of renewable energy and energy efficiency opportunities for an individual property, for example, if it could benefit from increased loft or wall insulation or if it may be suitable for solar panels.

The calculator will also provide easy-to-understand information about each low carbon technology.

The development of the Nottingham Energy Calculator is a key element of the Council's Energy Strategy, which aims to reduce city-wide carbon emissions by 26 per cent by 2020, and to ensure that 20 per cent of Nottingham's energy requirements are met from low or zero carbon sources, by the same date.

The Nottingham Energy Calculator is due to be launched jointly with the new city Climate Change Strategy in the New Year.

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Green Theme Partnership

The Green Theme Partnership has been set up to address Nottingham's environmental issues and to sustain the quality of life of local people.

The Partnership has public, voluntary and private sector members and delivers activities for the One Nottingham Executive Group for the Sustainable Community Strategy.

For more information, visit The Green Theme Partnership website.