Robert Lloyd - a Sir Gar Blog of random news . . . and some Clecs!

Carmarthenshire’s Housing Services has joined forces with the national Warm Homes Campaign to tackle fuel poverty in the county. Two awareness events will be held later this month and in February. The campaign is run by fuel poverty charity National Energy Action (NEA), which aims to raise awareness of the problem and some of the solutions available for those struggling to heat their homes affordably. People will be able to get advice on energy efficiency at the event, with practical hints and tips on insulating their homes. The events will take place on Thursday January 26 in Pencader Pavilion from 3-6pm and on Wednesday February 8 in the Aberduar chapel vestry, Llanybydder, from 3-6pm. NEA Cymru Director Carole Morgan-Jones said: “Sadly, we know that many already vulnerable people will be struggling to afford to keep themselves warm in their homes this winter. “Wales had the highest winter excess mortality rate at 17 per cent last year and one of the prime causes of excess w...

The Leader of Carmarthenshire County Council is urging people to switch off their lights as part of Earth Hour day. Councillor Kevin Madge is backing WWF Cymru ’s one hour switch off day this Saturday (March 28) at 8.30pm. The worldwide initiative is not only to save electricity but also to bring people together to celebrate the planet and how we need to protect it. Research shows our reliance on high carbon fossil fuel like coal, oil and gas is over-heating the atmosphere and affecting the climate. A record number of 162 countries celebrated Earth Hour in 2014, with many of the world's most famous landmarks going dark for the hour. Many Welsh iconic buildings joined world landmarks in the campaign including; Castell Coch, Caernarfon Castle and Caerphilly Castle; the Newport Transporter Bridge, the Senedd, Cardiff Central Library, St David's Hotel, the National Library of Wales, Sherman Cymru Theatre, and IKEA. More than 4,600 schools and 2 million students took part across ...

The online registration for Wales’s biggest energy switch closes a month from today. Carmarthenshire County Council’s housing department is backing the nationwide Cyd Cymru energy switch, urging as many people as possible to sign up and save money on their energy bills. The scheme works on the concept of ‘people power’ - the more people who sign up to the scheme, the better deal Cyd Cymru could strike with national energy providers to drive down their gas and electricity bills. Those who sign up could save between £60 and £250 per household annually. The council’s Deputy Leader and Anti-Poverty Champion, Cllr Pam Palmer, said: “We could all do with saving money, and at this time of year especially when energy bills are at their highest. “We are supporting the Cyd Cymru scheme because this is a great opportunity for people to drive down their bills. The more people who sign up, the greater chance there is of bigger savings. “All people have to do is register and enter a few details ab...

Carmarthenshire home owners are being advised that the popular Green Deal Home Improvement Fund has come to an end. The fund, set up in June to help households improve the energy efficiency of their homes, is no longer accepting new applications having reached its allocated budget. It had been introduced by the UK Government as an alternative way for home owners and tenants to pay for energy improvements. A number of reputable companies have helped Carmarthenshire residents improve their homes as part of the scheme. But the council’s Trading Standards team wants to ensure rogue traders can’t cash in on the back of the scheme, by offering to carry out work, or assessments for work, that will never be funded. “We want to make people aware that the fund is closed so that they can be prepared should any cold-callers try to con them in to signing up,” said Trading Standards officer Heidi Neil. “If people are approached by such companies they should seek advice before agreeing to anythin...

Home owners in Llanelli’s Tyisha ward may be eligible for help to make their homes more energy efficient . Carmarthenshire County Council’s Housing department has secured £3million to improve 320 private homes in the area during 2015. The funding, provided by the Welsh Government’s Arbed scheme , will be made available to eligible home owners to install new energy efficient boilers and external wall insulation, making their homes more comfortable and cheaper to run, whilst reducing their environmental impact and improving their visual appearance. It is the third Carmarthenshire community to benefit from the scheme, with the council previously successful in funding bids for the Glanymor ward in Llanelli, and Brynamman. The funding is allocated via a bidding process, and is targeted at areas where homeowners will benefit the most – either because they have low incomes and cannot afford to carry out their own home improvements, or are struggling to afford their energy bills. The coun...

The Welsh Government has confirmed [1] that new homes in Wales won’t be required to be ‘zero carbon’ until 2021, five years after the highest energy efficiency standard should have been reached in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland [2]. The government’s plans for energy efficiency improvements for new buildings had already fallen from 40% in 2012, to just 8% in 2013. Environment charity Friends of the Earth Cymru has condemned this further downgrading of the Welsh Government’s once ambitious energy efficiency policy [4], saying it will be bad for Welsh business, as well as for the environment. “Even as our fuel bills constantly rise, and concerns about the impact of climate change are increasing worldwide, the Welsh Government is busily doing everything it can to delay action on energy efficiency for new housing,” said Gareth Clubb, Director of Friends of the Earth Cymru. “But this isn’t just Wales failing to make sufficient headway in tackling climate change. This u-turn on energy...

People in Carmarthenshire are being encouraged to join forces to save money on their energy bills. A Collective Energy Switching Scheme called Cyd Cymru has launched nationally, allowing people to group together to negotiate better deals with energy providers. Now, the council’s Anti-Poverty Champion, Cllr Pam Palmer, is calling on people to give it their consideration – especially as many energy companies are putting up their tariffs. “Saving extra cash has never been so important to people, and with winter setting in and prices going up, now is the time to act,” she said. “By buying energy together, people have a bigger voice. I urge people to have a look at it, and consider switching providers if they feel they could save.” Collective energy switching has been trialled elsewhere in the UK, with participants saving between £60 and £250 per household annually. As part of the Cyd Cymru scheme, people can register online or by phone. Registrations for the first switch will close in six ...

A huge drive is underway at Carmarthenshire leisure centres to go green. Council bosses are spearheading moves to cut the county’s carbon footprint and use less energy leading to cash savings. Hi-tech voltage optimisation hardware has been installed at Carmarthen and Llanelli leisure centres. The kit works by lowering the amount of voltage supplied to equipment and has led to a drop in carbon emissions by 2.55 per cent this year. Figures show it will lead to nearly £11,000 of savings every year which can be re-invested into the centres, and a huge 68 tonnes of carbon will be reduced during that time. During the lifetime of the equipment around £200,000 of savings will be generated and carbon will be reduced by 1,286 tonnes. The council’s Corporate Energy Officer Neil Evans said: “We have undertaken a lot of work over the past year to reduce our energy consumption. We have identified key areas where we can reduce our energy use, and work is underway to make all our buildings mor...

With colder winter temperatures approaching & ever increasing energy prices, tackling the issue of energy efficiency in the home is more important than ever. The New Zero Carbon Future initiative is launching a campaign to help people in the Carmarthen and surrounding areas to tackle high fuel costs in their homes through energy efficiency advice. Paul Thomas has been appointed by Menter Cwm Gwendraeth to take this initiative forward and he will support & advise householders on energy efficiency measures. He said: “We will be working with householders to provide them with specific information on the best measures to reduce their fuel bills. We also want to target a small street or cul de sac of around 12 homes. Individual household energy surveys will be carried out and a report presented on what measures and grant support is available to improve energy efficiency usage." With around 40% of the UK carbon emissions coming from homes & buildings it is an important way of...

Surveys are underway at several of Carmarthenshire council’s Sheltered Housing Schemes to look at ways of improving energy efficiency. Carmarthenshire County Council’s housing officers have teamed up with the Energy Savings Trust to look at Llys Glanymor, Clos Llanfiangel, and Llwyn yr Ynys Sheltered Schemes. The aim is to identify ways of making the buildings more efficient to run, reducing their carbon footprint and also helping to reduce fuel bills for residents and the council. Officers have already identified smaller scale improvements, such as upgrading internal and external lighting to LED or movement activated lighting in communal areas, which will switch off when the area is not in use. They will also look to ensure all radiators have valve controls so that those in stairways and corridors can be turned down, and also at loft insulation for communal areas to improve their thermal rating. Larger scale improvements could include looking at boiler systems and installing sola...