This film tells the story of our relatively recent dependence on oil and what this has meant in terms of prosperity, population and conflict. Focusing on teh phenomenon of Peak Oil - many in the film agree that this has been reached. With interviews with many CEOs of oil companies it highlights th... more
Fill her up – with four-star olive oil A company specialising in alternative fuel technology has teamed up with taxi drivers in Cheltenham to help them run their vehicles on cooking oil from today. The brains behind the stunt is Stonehouse-based Green Fuels James Hygate. The entrepreneur, who cr... more
Buy Nothing Day, Saturday 29th November 2008 Put simply ... Saturday November 29th 2008 is Buy Nothing Day (BND), it’s a day where you challenge yourself to switch off from shopping and tune into life. The rules are simple, for 24 hours you will detox from consumerism and live without shopping. ... more
Become a Carbon Watcher Gloucestershire Carbon Watchers has been launched. We are looking for households to try out the Carbon Watchers approach to cutting carbon through: * energy efficiency * saving water * reducing waste * choosing low carbo... more
UK: April 30, 2008 LONDON - Millions of the world's poorest children are among the principal victims of climate change caused by the rich developed world, a United Nations report said on Tuesday, calling for urgent action. The UNICEF report "Our Climate, Our Children, Our Responsibili... more
Grant helps cut Christmas lights power use: Energy efficiency in action Coleford may have hit the headlines as one of the first towns in the UK to start putting up its Christmas lights – with the big switch on coming soon on 28th November - but the town is also hoping its dazzling displays will b... more
Supermarket chain the Co-op has embarked on a scheme to further reduce its carbon footprint by retro-fitting energy efficiency systems in many of its 4,500 stores. The food retailers, which prides itself on its ethical credentials, has now completed the first phase of the scheme fitting the syste... more
24 October 2007 New CO2 evidence means climate change predictions are 'too optimistic' Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are increasing much faster and will be harder to control than scientists have predicted, a study has found. An international team of researchers has found that, since 2... more
Industry urges government loans for commercial building insulation A pre-budget call has gone out to the government to provide up-front loans for businesses to insulate energy inefficient buildings. Upgrading all non-domestic buildings to level C of the government's Energy Performance Certific... more
28 February 2008 Sumatran deforestation driving climate change and species extinction, report warns The destruction of Sumatra's natural forests is accelerating global climate change and pushing endangered species closer to extinction, a new report warned today. A study from WWF claims that con... more
The Forest of Dean District Council's recycling performance is among those of the worst in the the UK according to Venk Shenoi, as well as one of the most expensive. Claiming a rate of just under 36% in 06-07 ranked the FoDDC 80th out of 280 district councils but this includes the 7,470 tonnes coll... more
Consumers looking to buy electric or hybrid vehicles can expect to see up to £5,000 slashed from the showroom price tag by 2011 as Government seeks to persuade motorists to opt for low-carbon cars. While details of the funding are still under development, top ministers have now announced th... more
1 November 2007 Co-op thinks green with new credit card A credit card that offers a lower interest rate on ethical purchases, as well as donations to a rainforest charity, was launched today by the Co-operative bank. The bank, which is widely regarded as the most ethical on the high street, is ... more
EU Approves 5% VAT On Home Improvements The UK is to be given the option to charge VAT on home maintenance and repairs at a reduced rate of 5%, after a ruling by European Union finance chiefs. The ruling paves the way for the UK government to ease the tax burden on a construction industry badly h... more
Green News. 31 October 2007 UK faces EU fines over reliance on landfill The UK faces being hit by massive EU fines over its continued reliance on landfill sites for rubbish with the taxpayer picking up the bill. The Government has been slammed by MPs for failing to respond quickly enough to an... more
An Apple a Day Gets Thrown Away 07 April 2008 A staggering 4.4 million* whole apples are being thrown away untouched every day in the UK, according to the latest figures from Love Food Hate Waste, WRAP’s (Waste & Resources Action Programme) campaign to tackle food being wasted in UK homes. ... more
Issued on a first come first served basis, grants are currently available; £400 towards solar hot water heating systems, £1200 for ground source heat pumps and £2500 for solar electric photovoltaic (PV) systems. (Oct 2007)... more
Last chance for Renewables Grant The Gloucestershire Renewable Energy Grants (GREG) programme is a partnership between Gloucestershire County Council, the six Gloucestershire District Councils and Severn Wye Energy Agency. It is designed to help householders to find out if domestic renewable ener... more
Buried deep in last week's budget is a titbit of information that will have those working in waste management breathing a sigh of relief - clarity over plans to steadily increase the rate of tax on waste going to landfill for the next four years. While at first glance this might not seem a big is... more
Scientists invent £2 energy saving lightbulb that last for 60 years 30/01/2009 A £2 energy-saving lightbulb that lasts for 60 years has been developed by scientists at Cambridge University. The researchers have designed a bulb that is three times more energy efficient than today's best ... more
Local Produce/Suppliers Market - 1st Dec 2007 Monthly market at the Assembly Rooms, St Briavels - 9.30am to 1.00pm - just follow the signs Contact : Assembly Rooms, St Briavels... more
Green News. 10 April 2008 Brazil builds £10m condom factory to help save rainforest Making love might not seem like the most obvious way to save the world's largest tropical rainforest - and combat the threat of Aids. But according to the Brazilian government, which this week opened a &p... more
Manchester City Council has become the first local authority to sign up to a voluntary agreement to slash the waste from its own construction projects. The council has joined leading companies such as Balfour Beatty, Laing O'Rourke, Asda and Marks & Spencer in joining a voluntary scheme set ... more
Regulations passed by government this week will seek to reduce waste from batteries by passing the cost of their collection and disposal back onto those who make them. The idea is similar to the producer responsibility schemes set up to ensure that the manufacturers and retailers of electrical go... more
Microgeneration grants and planning 02-Apr-08 BERR has announced changes to the Government's Low Carbon Building Programme designed to remove barriers to adoption of small scale green energy technology and projects. There will be more generous grants for schools and public buildings, £10 mill... more
5 January 2008 Thousands of oaks dying from disease For centuries it has been a steadfast symbol of England, but the mighty oak now faces a battle for survival as a devastating disease advances through the nation's forests. The virulent contagion, called oak decline, slowly kills the plant from t... more
A report from the Environmental Audit Committee has welcomed the UK Government's £535 million green stimulus plan but says it is not enough to transform the UK into a low-carbon economy. The plan should make improving the energy efficiency of existing buildings a top priority, says the committ... more
2007 - Britain installed about 270 solar panels, compared with 130,000 in Germany. It is the worst performer in Europe for the use of renewables producing only 2% of its energy this way. In January 08 the EU said Britain must raise that share to 15% by 2020. But grants to help households install ... more
UK: February 29, 2008 LONDON - The British government should replace VAT, a European Union-regulated tax on goods and services, with environmental taxes to encourage green products, an environmental lobby group said on Thursday. The Green Alliance, an independent think-tank, said such a mo... more
27 February 2008 £10,000 loan to install renewables in your home The government should adopt a radical new system of assistance for people wanting to install renewable energies on their houses, the Renewable Energy Association says today. Frustrated by the failure of the government's low-... more
£27m energy-efficiency fund for SMEs The Carbon Trust is offering small businesses a total of £27 million in interest-free loans to invest in more energy-efficient equipment, writes Tom Whitney The Energy Efficiency Loans scheme enables individual SMEs to borrow between £5,00... more
4 March 2008 Government backflip on solar panel policy Householders will be able to make money by fitting solar panels or mini wind turbines to their roofs, under proposals to be announced in the Budget next week. Those who generate their own renewable energy through the devices will be able to... more
Every third Saturday each month starting Nov 17th 9.30 - 1.00pm Fresh local produce including meat and poultry, organic fruit and vegetables, wholefoods, pickles and preserves, bread, cheese, cakes and chocolates. Next market15th December... more
Households Cut Energy Use By 35% In Energy Efficiency Challenge A year-long energy efficiency challenge has seen households across the UK cut energy usage by up to 35% and reduce CO2 emissions by nearly a quarter. The British Gas Green Streets programme gave eight streets in eight UK cities &poun... more
Have you noticed that supermarkets seem to sell their expensive organic ranges in compostable packaging, but for those of us that can't always afford the pricey stuff we are left with a load of waste that just goes in landfill. I ( the sender) am very very unhappy about this so I have set up a... more
Published at the end of October, the Stern Report begins to set out the economic costs of climate change. Taken from the Independent, it states; "Warming will have many severe impacts, often mediated through water... Melting glaciers will initially increase flood risk then strongly reduce wat... more
Transport moving in the "wrong" environmental direction, EU report says The transport sector is travelling in the "wrong direction" environmentally, according to a new European Environment Agency (EEA) report. Agency report Transport at a Crossroads finds the sector contrib... more
UK wind turbine industry becalmed! 30/04/2009 The headlines don't get any more encouraging. Days after the Budget re-emphasised the strategic importance of the green economy to pulling us out of recession, the wind has been well and truly taken out the sails of the good ship United Kingdom by the a... more
The Welsh Assembly Government is introducing new plans aimed at improving the energy efficiency of homes in the region. The plan, which will introduce new rules for the home energy efficiency scheme (HEES), will mean more assistance for low-income homes to reduce fuel poverty by improving insulation... more
While a growing number of businesses are waking up to the value of cutting their carbon footprint, the issue of water use is still uncharted waters for many companies. Government-funded advisory service Envirowise has developed an online water efficiency tool that allows companies to look at wher... more
Young Energy People! The YEP! Partner schools have now appointed their student led School Energy Management Teams (SEMT). In the UK there was a formal recruitment process with students undergoing an interview with Severn Wye Energy Agency (SWEA) to gain a post on the SEMT. The first job of the... more
8 February 2008 On the market: the zero-carbon home with an affordable price Once it was a dream; then it was an experiment; and now, the zero-carbon house is a reality. You can pick up the phone and order one, and in three months you can be living your life without contributing anything from y... more
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Community Re-Paint us an award winning network of 50 paint re-use schemes located across the UK, collecting leftover and surplus paint from householders, retailers and re-distributing them to the community, voluntary and charitable groups. Over 300 million litres of paint are sold in the UK to the DIY market and to trade decorators. Approximately 37.5 million litres of DIY and 2.5 million litres of trade paint remain unused and there could be as much as 100 milion litres of paint stored in homes across the UK. The paint tends to be stored and then disposed to landfill