Go Eco: Save Money and the Environment

Household energy bills have been headline news recently as the UK is faced with spending more and more on heating and running its homes.  This is an unwelcome prospect for all of us, but particularly the elderly and the less well off.  

Perhaps a solution lies in local authorities and property developers investing more in eco housing.  The Devon and Cornwall Housing Association (DCHA) hit the headlines in 2005 when its groundbreaking and award winning social housing development, Oak Meadow, opened in South Molten.  In line with meeting government objectives of all new homes being carbon neutral by 2016. The DCHA, in conjunction with architect David Gale, designed and built 35 eco friendly homes.  This development not only provided local residents with environmentally friendly homes, it also offered them accommodation that was low cost to run and maintain.  

Oak Meadow homes were built to include a number of features that help reduce energy consumption.  These include:

• Walls that contain blown newspaper to provide cavity insulation;
• Water that is solar-heated and the use of rainwater to flush toilets;
• Doors and windows that are triple-glazed  and windows that have trickle vents enabling homes to retain their warmth in winter and remain cool in summer, while large windows, high ceilings and skylights make best use of natural daylight;
• Cool larders, designed to reduce the size of fridges, have been installed in some properties.  They use circulated  cold air taken from outdoors in the winter and from the soil in the summer to keep food such as fruit and vegetables cool and fresh meaning fridges are only required for dairy and meat products; and
• Conservatories that are south or south-west facing to maximise the sun’s potential with sheds being positioned in the courtyards outside to shelter properties from cold north easterly winds howling through.

These initiatives clearly have a positive impact on the environment but have also contributed to as much as a £600 difference in annual energy and water bills when comparing Oak Meadow to similar sized houses built a decade previously.  

But cost saving is not the only benefit these eco homes have brought to the residents.  Being environmentally friendly has meant that the homes are healthy to live in.  Floors are tiled, wooden or covered in marmoleum with no carpets so the build up of dust mites is avoided.  Large windows and high ceilings ensure the accommodation has a pleasant, light and airy feel. Any paint used was organic and kitchen units and fitments are made of natural wood.  PVC has been avoided and radial electrical wiring in bedrooms reduces electro-magnetic fields.
Furthermore, the areas around the houses have been landscaped to provide private and communal outdoor areas that encourage residents to grow their own fruit and vegetables and enable children to live and play amongst the natural habitat of many native British species of wildlife. Research conducted by the developers has shown that promoting green living not only reduces household bills but positively encourages a sense of social well being, brings people together and empowers them to take more control of their homes and surroundings.  

Oak Meadow is now over five years old, but things don’t stand still in the eco-housing market.  The DCHA, in partnership with the Devonport Community Land Trust, is about to launch its newest eco-development: Garrison Close in Plymouth.  Of this development, Rose Hunter of the DCHA says: “We are about to finish five homes in Plymouth as part of partnership with a community land trust that will be code level 5 and we think (subject to agreement) that may offer an option to rent to buy at a later date through shared ownership – so very cutting edge on all fronts”.  Compared to Oak Meadow, this is a smaller scale social housing development.  The five Eco friendly homes are being offered to local families who can demonstrate their commitment to environmental issues.  Being code level 5 they are designed to be at an even higher level of efficiency and carbon reduction and on top of the likely energy savings these eco homes will offer as a result, the five lucky families will be able to rent their state of the art eco-homes for 20% below market rate.

It sounds like eco-homes offer a win-win situation to local residents and the environment, and in many ways it appears Oak Meadow and the soon to arrive Garrison Close actually do so.  Clearly there was an initial outlay in terms of developing houses that were efficient and eco-friendly: Oak Meadow bumped development costs up 30% and although Garrison Close was proportionally less expensive than its predecessor, it is still more when comparing it to standard accommodation.  However, the price may be a small one if it means we can reduce our carbon footprint, save our natural resources and shield ourselves from soaring energy bills at the same time.

Author Lindsey Armstrong