The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
Going green is an easy way to cover the cost of house tax
LOOKING for a New Year's Resolution? Just make some minor changes to your lifestyle to make it more environmentally sustainable and in the process save yourself some money!
The savings would more than offest the cost of the new property tax and if the idea sounds attractive, An Taisce have made easier, through their ' Green Home' programme. This is an extension of their very successful Green Schools project, where students look at how they deal with issues such as waste, energy, water and transport and improve their environmental performance.
The Green Home programme brings some of these concepts into the household and asks us to look at the impact we are having on the environment.
An Taisce is working with individuals and groups in Kerry to encourage people to be part of their Green Home Programme. To give you some background on the programme; Green Home was developed as a framework to support and advise householders on ways to save money on their household bills while protecting the environment. The Green Home programme focuses on the themes of waste, energy, water and transport. The average base saving for households taking part in the programme is approx. €320 and this does not include savings relating to transport or changing shopping habits which, when included, can save households close to €1,500.
Getting involved in the Green Home programme couldn't be easier. Basically, you register to become a Green Home member on the website www.greenhome.ie, where you avail of an on-line Green Home survey. The initial pre-survey that you fill out generates a graph, and this provides you with a baseline figure of your household's performance on the four themes. Using the Green Home Themes tab at the top of the page, you can access the most current and up to date tips, advice and action plans on ways to prevent and reduce waste and energy use in the home, conserve water and find out about sustainable travel options.
Participants are then encouraged to avail of the online resources which provide information and tips on a wide range of topics that are linked with the Green Home themes. Members then revisit the survey on completion of these activities (after a number of months). This provides the participant with a pre and post Green Home programme status for comparison purposes as a means to assess any behavioural change. Groups interested in learning more about the Programme and organising an information event can contact Susan Vickers from An Taisce at svickers@eeu.antaisce.org.