Save Your Energy

National Energy Saving Week sounds quite delicious doesn't it .....put your feet up, have a cup of tea/coffee/beverage of choice and expend very little energy.

While its actual intent -saving the planet- does sound rather more energetic. It doesn't have to be. It must have been quite a feeling for this man when he became the first Londoner to sell energy back to the national grid which was generated from his solar panels. After this success he is now installing a wind turbine at his home.

Though not everyone can go this far, taking a range of simple energy reduction measures such as boiling the kettle with a little less water in it can make a big contribution. So you can still relax, have a cup of tea and help save the planet all at the same time. But remember not to leave the tap running when you brush your teeth afterwards. You might not be able to sell your energy back but forking out less on energy bills is certainly a warm and comforting thought so you won't miss turning down the thermostat by 1°c.

The Energy Saving Trust, the organisation behind National Energy Saving Week would like to see everyone adopting a range of energy saving measures to help reduce 20% of our energy consumption.

The cheap and simple, Top 10 and efficient driving energy saving tips can all be found at their website www.energysavingtrust.org.uk

In a separate initiative, Farington County Primary School in Leyland will be setting a shining energy saving example as they are set to receive solar panels worth more than £20,000 paid for by the Co-operative Group's £1m Green Energy for Schools scheme and match-funded by the government.

Headteacher Joanne Ramsbottom told the Lancashire Evening Post: "To be one of the first schools in the country to receive free solar panels through the scheme is fantastic. All the children, especially the Eco-School committee members, are very excited."

The school is one of the first, and one of only 100 nationally to benefit from the scheme. Read the rest of the story here.

So unplug those mobile phone chargers when not in use, (fully) load up that washing machine and then put your feet up and have an energy saving cup of tea. Every little helps and every little put together means alot. Saving the planet is all in a day's work.