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News & Views From the Front Line
Monday, 2 February 2009
Weekly Tip #42: water recycling
This is the latest of a series of tips extracted from the Green Business Bible e-book:Use rainwater harvesting for a sustainable source of water but avoid grey-water recycling until technology improves.
Grey water-recycling is the use of water from sinks, showers and baths, although many people use the term erroneously when they mean rainwater harvesting. The main problem with recycling grey-water is the other material (eg soap and faecal matter) that comes with it which can cause odours, safety issues and other problems.
Labels: tips, water conservation
# posted by Gareth Kane : 09:12
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Friday, 15 August 2008
Terra Infirma saves companies £175k each
Until March, Terra Infirma carried out environmental healthchecks on behalf of Envirowise, looking at waste, water and energy. We've just been reviewing the files of the two dozen or so visits we carried out under this scheme - in sectors as diverse as steel stockholding, pharmaceuticals and catering - and the average savings were a whopping £175 000pa.Imagine what that means to a medium sized manufacturing company in these tight financial times - they could keep 4 members of staff on for that money, making them even more competitive as things start to pick up. Makes you think, doesn't it?
Labels: energy efficiency, terra infirma, waste minimisation, water conservation
# posted by Gareth Kane : 08:00
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Wednesday, 25 June 2008
Cultural conservation vs energy conservation
I've recently been working on the eco-renovation of two buildings in a conservation area, one of them listed. This has been a real challenge - historical buildings like these two are designed to allow the free flow of air (and with it heat energy) through the building fabric. Alter this and at best you will get condensation problems and at worst the building fabric will rot. The only way to do it effectively is external insulation and vapour protection, but this will change the appearance of the building and you can't do that in a conservation area.This gets even worse with the listed building. All windows have to be preserved where possible, and if replaced, then replaced like for like. You can now get double glazing with the same bead size as old single glazed windows, but this is still verboten due to the different depth of each unit which you will notice if you look carefully. Secondary glazing can be put in, but you can't draught proof the outer pane or you will probably trap moisture between the two with fatal results.
Having struggled with these constraints for the last couple of months, I am now of the opinion we really need to think again. There must be a better balance between preserving our heritage and making buildings suitable for the 21st century.
If you think this is a minor issue, then just think - 5% of existing buildings are listed or have some form of conservation protection. As these are the least likely to be demolished due to that protection, they're also the most likely to survive into the next century.
Labels: eco-building, heritage, listed, water conservation
# posted by Gareth Kane : 18:46
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Tuesday, 6 May 2008
Weekly Tip #13: In the bathroom
This is the thirteenth in a series of tips extracted from the forthcoming Green Business Bible e-book:Toilets/washrooms are a big contributors to your environmental footprint. Lights get left on, taps drip and urinals flush through the night. Install efficient lighting with timer controls, low flow toilets, waterfree or 'intelligent' urinals, and put push taps on your sinks.
Another tip next Monday!
Labels: bathroom, energy efficiency, tips, water conservation
# posted by Gareth Kane : 10:33
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Monday, 28 April 2008
Weekly Tip #12: Last Rinse = First Wash Next time
This is the twelfth in a series of tips extracted from the forthcoming Green Business Bible e-book:If you're a business which does a lot of washing (food, pharmaceuticals etc), why not keep the last rinse water from each wash to use for the first wash the next time around? You'll save on water and effluent costs.
Another tip next Monday!
Labels: tips, water conservation
# posted by Gareth Kane : 09:43
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Monday, 17 March 2008
Weekly Tip #6: Don't flush money away
This is the sixth in a new series of tips extracted from the forthcoming Green Business Bible e-book:Fitting simple water conservation devices in your washrooms can slash your water bills and can have a payback of less than 8 months.
Another tip next Monday!
Labels: tips, water conservation
# posted by Gareth Kane : 09:47
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A highly accessible, practical guide to those who want to introduce sustainability into their business or organization quickly and effectively.
