Homing in on green!

Jun 1 2009 by Kelley Price, Evening Gazette

SHADOW Minister for Teesside, Greg Clark, says it’s vital for people to become more eco-aware on the home front as he visited an energy project that has green-proofed thousands of homes on Teesside.

Support services provider eaga, which operates the Warm Front scheme, employs around 200 staff in the Tees Valley and County Durham and 1,500 region-wide.

Mr Clark, who is also Shadow Minister of State for Energy and Climate Change, visited eaga’s headquarters in Newcastle on a fact-finding mission.

The project has helped almost 13,000 households on Teesside cut carbon and lower their fuel bills through grant-funded schemes such as Warm Front.

Its work on Teesside represents funding in excess of £18m.

Working with central and local Government, energy suppliers, social housing groups and the general public, eaga installs energy efficiency solutions from loft and cavity wall insulation to central and solar heating.

Mr Clark said although the challenges from climate change and maintaining a secure and sustainable energy supply were great, they also offered opportunities for the UK to lead a green revolution if tackled in the right way.

“Our homes account for more than a quarter of all carbon emissions, so we must make them as energy efficient as possible,” he said.

“It’s important that we increase the investment in making every British home as energy-efficient as it can be to save money on fuel bills, create jobs and cut our carbon emissions.”

Paul Varley, eaga’s divisional managing director, said: “Making the switch to low and ultimately zero-carbon living is incredibly important.

“At the same time it provides the opportunity to create new jobs and provide the UK with better energy security.”

By introducing energy-efficiency improvements, the annual carbon emissions from an average family home can be cut by more than a tonne, while at the same time saving hundreds of pounds a year on heating bills.