Eco festival promotes green living
A group of pupils from St Mary’s Episcopal Primary School got a foretaste of the opportunities that will be on offer at the Dunblane ECO fest this weekend.
They were visiting the Dunblane home of local environmental enthusiast and author of Carbon Choices, Neil Kitching.
Neil explained to them the benefits to the environment of his use of solar panels, a heat pump and storage batteries, as well as the amount of money these devices can save.
The three Dunblane primary schools, St Mary’s, Dunblane and Newton are all contributing to the Dunblane ECO Fest, which takes place tomorrow (Saturday).
The pupils will have displays of the work they have done to promote an awareness of the positive steps that can be taken to protect and improve the environment, including saving energy at home, looking after wildlife and recycling and re-using materials.
Building on the success of last year’s ECO Fest, a consortium of St Mary’s, Dunblane Development Trust and the Bridge of Allan and Dunblane Rotary Club has combined to extend the scope of this year’s Fest to include exhibitions and activities at St Mary’s, Holmehill and at the Dunblane Development Trust’s premises at Braeport.
Themes at St Mary’s will include energy saving, protecting the environment and helping to create wildlife-friendly areas, recycling and reuse of a variety of materials.
Those present will include Home Energy Scotland, solar panel experts FES, wildlife organisations, and a Rotary Club stand promoting wildlife friendly gardens and offering free wildflower seeds.
Alongside these will be a visiting jazz band and activities designed to engage younger visitors. A woodland trail through Holmehill will lead from St Mary’s to Braeport where there will be an opportunity to try out electric bicycles and learn about the benefits of electric cars. Further attractions will be the Bike Doctor, who will give a free assessment of visitors’ bicycles, and a display by RSPB.
Teas, coffees and cakes will be available at both venues.
The exhibitions at St Mary’s will run from 10am to 4pm; those at Holmehill and Braeport from noon to 4pm. Admission is free.