Pioneering Biomass Deal Continues Comprehensive Council 'Greening' Process
While debate continues elsewhere over the Prime Minister's claims of leading the 'greenest government ever,' the process of 'greening' Bedford Borough Council continues locally with the latest development in this area being a pioneering deal which will see many Council buildings, including schools, use electricity generated by organic, plant-based biomass.
Working in partnership with business electricity supplier Haven Power, we have secured a ground breaking deal which will dramatically reduce the Council's effect on the environment as well as securing energy at an excellent cost for local taxpayers.
As a Liberal Democrat and someone who has campaigned on environmental issues for many years, as Mayor I have been determined that we take real action on the environment and make a genuine difference. Measures we have taken range from the free loan of energy metres from our libraries to the £150,000-a-year Mayor's Climate Change Fund, which has helped fund a huge range of renewable energy projects at community buildings across the borough. Meanwhile, our comprehensive Carbon Management Programme will cut the Council's carbon emissions by a massive 40% by 2015 and, crucially, will save local taxpayers a remarkable £8 million over the same period.
So, I'm delighted that we have signed this deal to use a 100% renewable energy source in the form of Biomass. Biomass is the world's fourth largest energy source. It is organic, plant-based material such as wood chips and has been used as an energy source for many years to produce heat. As a 100 percent renewable source, it is exempt from the Climate Change Levy and therefore represents a good deal for the Council.
In addition to securing energy from 100% renewable sources, the Council is also leading work across Bedford Borough to identify further opportunities for the local use of biomass technology. A conference recently held at the Marston Vale Forest Centre aimed to find new ways for local biomass material to be utilised and developed for biomass boilers, encouraging schools and other building owners to consider biomass as an opportunity to reduce energy costs and reduce CO2.
In addition to the huge environmental benefits of using biomass, this new deal is great value for local taxpayers, which is of course vital at this time of rising energy prices. We are also working with schools and other groups in Bedford Borough to assist them in finding their own alternatives to using costly and damaging fossil fuels.
This deal follow on from other important energy procurement developments such as our use of 100% renewable energy for the Borough's streetlights, and continues our commitment to protecting local taxpayers' money while ensuring the borough remains at the forefront of renewable energy developments.
The following sites are receiving energy produced from biomass as part of the new deal:
• Borough Hall
• Town Hall
• Bedford Central Library
• Oasis Beach Pool
• Bedford International Athletic Stadium
• Bedford i-lab
• Bedford Corn Exchange - Harpur Suite
• Bunyan Sports Centre
• Biddenham International School & Sports College
• Bedford Academy
• Wootton Upper School & Arts College
• Sharnbrook Upper School & Community College
• St Thomas More Catholic Upper School
• Mark Rutherford Upper School & Community College
• Hastingsbury Business & Enterprise College
• Grange School