Recently by Esther Boyd

Instead of competing for funding, SusMo and Balsall Heath is our Planet (BHIOP) and Kings Heath Transition Initiative (KHTI) Birmingham have secured a £90,000 grant to undertake work in Moseley, Kings Heath and Balsall Heath that will combat rising fuel prices and help homes to become more energy-efficient. This is vitally important for households in "fuel poverty", who cannot afford to keep their homes warm enough.

Many older homes have solid walls and badly-fitting windows which can leak heat. The project aims to show how such hard-to-treat houses can be insulated. It will also show how the work can be financed and delivered.

The date for applications for households to have an energy assessment has been extended to this Friday, 24 Feb, so if you live in the area, and your home needs more insulation and is draughty, get in touch with Angela Cooper, Project Manager, as soon as you can - transitionkh@gmail.com - or on 07587089191

Angela says "This scheme is all about cutting carbon emissions and improving home insulation to cut fuel bills and make your home more comfortable. The money we are getting has really given us a kick start."

The project will also include studying local renewable energy sources and may incorporate the building of wind turbines. The project will create jobs and will employ local people.

The money comes from the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) . The government has signed up to cut its carbon emissions by 29% in homes and community buildings, and 13% in workplaces by 2022.

This means that everyone will be asked to take small steps such as turning down heating, switching off lights and computers when not in use as well as energy efficient improvements to buildings.

The government will help by identifying low-cost forms of credit, and ways of enabling people to defer the cost of the work and pay it back over 10 - 20 years.

Other partners include Birmingham Friends of the Earth and the Jericho Foundation.

If you live in another part of South Birmingham, and wish to take advantage of a free energy makeover, the Northfield Ecocentre has partnered with the Energy Saving Co-op for this project. Check the Northfield Ecocentre website for details.

The unusually warm new year means that new year resolutions to lose weight, get fitter and save the planet can begin at once.

Support for new cyclists, and those who have not cycled for many years, is widely available. In Birmingham you can get encouragement and support from the local campaigning group - contact Graham Hankins - secretary@pushbikes.org.uk - for details.

Don't fall into the trap of putting off using a bike for the short journeys that you usually make in the car, or heading out for a longer ride when the sun is shining, because you think
<> "it is too dangerous";
<> "there is no secure cycle parking there";
<> "there are no cycle tracks near my home".

If you wait until other people improve cycle conditions for you, then before this happens
<> global warming may cause irreversible problems;
<> the price of diminishing fossil fuels may make current prices seem unbelievably cheap;
<> you may become too frail to cycle.

Conditions for cycling are not likely to be perfect, but in most places you can find routes that are good enough
1 - to improve your fitness and general wellbeing;
2 - to save you a considerable amount of money;
3 - to help your area to reach the required CO₂ savings;
4 - to conserve the remaining reserves of fossil fuels.

OK your contribution from riding a bike instead of driving a car won't make a significant difference to the last two points, but your enthusiasm about the first two points may change the behaviour of people you know, and their enthusiasm may affect others and eventually a large group of people can make a significant difference in your area.

I have quoted Margaret Mead before: "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."

In 2012 you can make a difference!

In Moseley this Saturday, in addition to:

> the wonderful produce at the Moseley Farmers' Market,

> the art and craft work at the Moseley Arts Market,

> "freetail" at the Moseley Swap Shop at the Prince of Wales,

there will be the chance to talk to SusMo members at

> the SusMo stall near the steps to St Mary's Church in St Mary's Row.

At the SusMo stall you may receive free "Heatkeeper" radiator panels, get your questions answered about living more sustainably and hear about new opportunities for reducing fuel bills in your home.

SusMo members work with local residents and organisations to reduce our CO₂ emissions in homes and community buildings in Moseley and by using low carbon transport options where possible.

Read Birmingham City Council's consultation document "Low Carbon Transport Strategy 2011+" and send your comments by Friday 18th November 2011.

If you have previously rejected the idea of cycling into the centre of Birmingham, you are invited to join a "Bike Train" on Thursday Sep. 22nd to find out the advantages, and pleasures, of cycling - compared to driving and to taking a bus.

See map of the routes starting in Cotteridge, Fox Hollies, Kings Heath (Cocks Moors Woods), Quinton and Sutton Coldfield.

If you are already aware of the advantages and pleasures, you are invited to join the "Train" to give support, both moral and physical, to less experienced cyclists. To date, fewer experienced cyclists have joined the Fox Hollies route than the other four routes - so please consider joining Graham Hankins and others at the Fox Hollies Leisure Centre on Shirley Road.

The rides start at 07:30 to give people time to have a sociable breakfast, in front of the Council House in Victoria Square (hosted by the Council) before going to work, to the shops, to the Library, or wherever you like.

Why should you join the ride? Some good reasons are listed here.

Register online here.

The event is organised by Birmingham Friends of the Earth, Sustrans and Push Bikes to celebrate In Town Without My Car Day on 22nd September. ITWMC is European Union campaign for an increased use of other vehicles than the car. It has spread beyond the EU and, in 2008, 102 municipalities in 39 countries took part - no figures available for more recent events.

Download Bike Birmingham, Birmingham's Cycling Strategy 2011-2015, read about Birmingham City Council's new commitment to encourage more people to cycle more often, and try cycling yourself!

If you need advice or more encouragement, get in touch with Joe Peacock at Friends of the Earth (joe @birminghamfoe.org.uk), Yvonne Gilligan at Sustrans (yvonne.gilligan @sustrans.org.uk) or Graham Hankins at Pushbikes (g8emx @tiscali.co.uk) or contact me - Esther Boyd - at SusMo (sustainablemoseley @gmail.com).

I'm looking forward to the ride and to meeting lots of people at in Victoria Square for (my second) breakfast!

At last I can report that St Mary's Church has received full planning approval, the PV panels have been installed and they are producing electricity for the Church plus the Feed In Tariff.

I visited the Church today and, in spite of a cloudy sky, the meter on the back wall of the nave recorded an input of 2.640 kw. SusMo will check the reading again on a sunny day.

The predicted output for a year is 7000 kWh - 19 kWh/day.

British Gas installers are now working on the roof of Hamza Mosque. The installation should be complete well before the start of Ramadan (Aug 1^st) so a significant saving in their electricity bill should be noticed straight away.

If you are interested in detailed information about PV, check an online excerpt of a book by Hemmerle Weller and Unnewehr Jakubetz.

Regular readers of this blog may have noticed that blog posts have been less frequent recently, and that I have not posted a blog for eight weeks. I returned from holiday in mid-June - very fit from cycling in the Hebrides - but since then I have been focussing my time on family matters.

This blog will soon cease to be "Esther Boyd's Lighter Footprints and will become "SusMo's Lighter Footprints".

The SusMo core team: Phil Beardmore, Maggie Fennell, Kathy Hopkin, Sarah Napier, our Chair Claire Spencer and I will take turns in contributing blogs.

I look forward to reading their contributions.

The predicted sunshine this summer will significantly reduce CO₂ emissions in Moseley with the installation of 48 Photo Voltaic panels on St Mary's.

This is programmed to start on June 13^th and will provide an income from the Feed In Tariff for St Mary's Church and to the wider community. A funding application for the portion of the installation not covered by the British Gas Green Streets project has been submitted and, if this fails, the Church has underwritten the shortfall.

Planning applications have been submitted for the Green Streets installations on the Hamza Mosque, Moseley CofE School and on the pavilion at Moor Green Allotments.

Five houses in the Green Streets project have solar panels, one PV and four Solar Thermal.

My house has one Solar Thermal panel (installed without a grant a few years ago) and in sunny weather we do not use our gas boiler at all. I'm a member of the SusMo Carbon Club and record our fuel use each week on the "imeasure" website. This is a Home Energy Monitoring Calculator.

Our house is usually ranked 4^th or 5^th in the Carbon Club, but we are 1^st in the current ranking. I'm not usually a competitive person so I was surprised to feel really pleased by this achievement.

If any Moseley resident wishes to get some extra motivation to "save money and save the planet", I recommend joining our Carbon Club. Free energy saving items, provided by the British Gas Green Streets project, are available to Moseley residents who sign up to imeasure - ACT QUICKLY before the stock runs out! Contact sustainablemoseley@gmail.com for details.

Residents anywhere in the UK can join, monitor your readings and learn how to reduce your bills from encouragement and advice in the "imeasure" newsletters.

After excessively long negotiations, the plans to generate electricity using Photo Voltaic panels on the roofs of St Mary's Church in Moseley, the Hamza Mosque, St Mary's CofE School and the pavilion at Moor Green Allotments, funded by the British Gas Green Streets award, are progressing.

All installations have finally been agreed in principle by the owners of the buildings.

The negotiations about the installation on the church with the Birmingham Diocese began after winning the planning appeal against the planning refusal by the City Council Planning Committee. The negotiations lasted for six months and there was much rejoicing when permission was granted this month.

The negotiations for the two buildings owned by the City Council: St Mary's CofE School and the pavilion at the Allotments, had to be completed before planning permission was applied for. The deadline set by British Gas for agreement by the building owners was originally during the autumn of 2010. This was extended and extended and extended. Permission was finally granted for the last building, the pavilion at the Allotments, last week, 37 minutes after the very final deadline.

I'm glad to report that British Gas was flexible about this delay and Lee Barlow, the British Gas Project Manager, wrote to say "Fantastic News!!! I will set the ball rolling at our end."

Planning approval has still to be granted for these two buildings, and for the installation on the Hamza Mosque. The Mosque committee was the first building owner to confirm their wish for the installation, but the planning process could not begin until the Birmingham Diocese had confirmed their agreement for the installation at St Mary's. If they had refused the money allocated to the church would have been divided between the other community buildings.

I hope that only good news will follow about progress for the installation of PV panels on these buildings.

After excessively long negotiations, the plans to generate electricity using Photo Voltaic panels on the roofs of St Mary's Church in Moseley, the Hamza Mosque, St Mary's CofE School and the pavilion at Moor Green Allotments, funded by the British Gas Green Streets award, are progressing.

All installations have finally been agreed in principle by the owners of the buildings.

The negotiations about the installation on the church with the Birmingham Diocese began after winning the planning appeal against the planning refusal by the City Council Planning Committee. The negotiations lasted for six months and there was much rejoicing when permission was granted this month.

The negotiations for the two buildings owned by the City Council: St Mary's CofE School and the pavilion at the Allotments, had to be completed before planning permission was applied for. The deadline set by British Gas for agreement by the building owners was originally during the autumn of 2010. This was extended and extended and extended. Permission was finally granted for the last building, the pavilion at the Allotments, last week, 37 minutes after the very final deadline.

I'm glad to report that British Gas was flexible about this delay and Lee Barlow, the British Gas Project Manager, wrote to say "Fantastic News!!! I will set the ball rolling at our end."

Planning approval has still to be granted for these two buildings, and for the installation on the Hamza Mosque. The Mosque committee was the first building owner to confirm their wish for the installation, but the planning process could not begin until the Birmingham Diocese had confirmed their agreement for the installation at St Mary's. If they had refused the money allocated to the church would have been divided between the other community buildings.

I hope that only good news will follow about progress for the installation of PV panels on these buildings.

The weather is warmer now, so your fuel bills may not be a real concern for you at present, but you could - should? - act now to get help for the future.

If you live in Moseley and have not received energy efficiency improvements through SusMo's British Gas Green Streets 2010 prize, there is still time to get some small energy saving items. This could lead to getting significant energy efficiency improvements for Moseley, including your home, in the future.

SusMo - Sustainable Moseley - is competing against the other 13 Green Streets 2010 winners for a £100,000 prize for more energy efficiency improvements for Moseley. Your interest and action to reduce your fuel bills will help SusMo's chances of winning this prize, and may mean that your household receives part of the award.

Birmingham City Council invited SusMo to a workshop about the "Birmingham Energy Savers" programme. BES Phase 3 aims to invest £100m in improving the energy efficiency of 10-20,000 homes, including the installation of solar panels. SusMo plans to play a part by helping BCC to find the households in Moseley which wish to benefit from this investment - does this include you?

Your best first step is to ask for some energy saving items which are available free to Moseley residents who sign up to imeasure and join the SusMo Carbon Club. Electricity energy monitors, radiator panels, standby savers, cylinder jackets, pipe lagging and EcoKettles are available - ACT QUICKLY before the stock runs out!

imeasure is a "Home Energy Monitoring Calculator" on the internet.

Go to www.imeasure.org.uk/
Register your details
Join the SusMo Carbon Club
Enter your meter readings every week (if possible - but if you miss a week sometimes that's OK).

You receive details of your carbon footprint, as well as handy hints on how to reduce your energy use.

You will be able to see how many other people in Moseley are monitoring their fuel consumption - data on the website is anonymous for those who don't wish to be identified, so you need to tell sustainablemoseley@gmail.com when you join.

If you have a Smart Meter it is much easier to check your energy use. By 2020 all homes in the UK should have smart meters - ask your energy company if you can have one now. Some energy companies charge extra for Smart Meters, others do not - tell SusMo what your energy company says.

Contact sustainablemoseley@gmail.com to find out more.

When we are sitting down we usually close doors close to us. This prevents draughts and helps to keep a room warm in cold weather - it reduces energy waste.

The scale of energy waste is greatly increased if external doors are left open. Research has proved that in the case of shops, 50% savings in fuel use is gained if doors are opened when customers enter the shop instead of being left open. The research found no conclusive evidence that footfall, or transactions, were affected by closing the shop door.

Keeping doors open and the heating on full is estimated to be costing the UK's retailers £1billion a year.

The close the door against energy waste campaign started in Cambridge and has now spread to seven other cities in England.

Closing shop doors is an easy, cost effective way of cutting CO₂ and contributing to the targets set for 2026.

Birmingham City Council's target is a 60% reduction. Birmingham Friends of the Earth has posted information about the campaign on their website and encourages us to Take Action: "The next time you're out for some retail therapy and see a shop door wide open, politely ask them to close the door. Simple! Or come along to our campaigns meetings."

Contact Robert Pass - birmingham@closethedoor.org.uk - for details of this campaign, or Joe Peacock - joe@birminghamfoe.org.uk - about FoE campaigns.