Carbon Co-op events

Community Renewables Finance SchoolWeds 24th November/1st December/8th December 2010, Manchester

Do you dream of installing a small scale hydro project or wind turbine where you live, but don't know where to start? Is your community building crying out for a biomass boiler or a set of solar panels? Have you heard about feed in tariffs, heat incentives and paybacks and wondered whether your voluntary organisation could benefit?.



This winter, Carbon Co-op and Carbon Leapfrog are running a series of masterclass sessions, practical, how-to guides for people interested in low carbon projects that will transform their communities and their environment. Each session features advice from a panel of professional experts from around the North West and the City of London. The emphasis of the programme is on sharing knowledge and experience and on practical solutions.

1. Inspiring Communities - engagement and planning
10.30-4pm, Wednesday 24th November 2010
Featuring a series of case studies, identifying key pitfalls and looking at monitoring. Featuring: getting going, communications, footprinting and engagement, renewables assessments, finance planning for communities and legal structures.

2. Finance and legal issues
10.30-4pm, Wednesday 1st December 2010
Governance issues, tax advice, options for investment, benefiting from incentives such as Feed In Tariffs and Renewable Heat Incentives, the co-operative way, community finance options and project planning for finance.

3. Installation and maintenance
10.30-4pm, Wednesday 8th December 2010
Practical advice on low carbon technologies. Running and sustaining a project long term. Featuring a series of case studies/pitfalls/monitoring
Followed by Fuelling Manchester - a social event for renewables projects in Manchester at a venue tba.
Location
The masterclasses will be held at Manchester Digital Laboratory (MadLab), 40 Edge Street, Manchester M4 1HN.

How to book
Places are free but limited and demand is high.
To book a place email events@carbon.coop or call 0161 408 6492 .

You can book onto one or all sessions. Lunch is provided free of charge.

To confirm your place we require a returnable cheque for £40 dated after 8th December 2010 and made out to Carbon Co-op as a deposit. When you attend the workshop the cheque will be returned to you.

Bursaries
A limited number of travel bursaries are available to subsidise travel from outside the Greater Manchester region. Contact us for more information.

More information on the events and the latest experts: www.carbon.coop/blog

Smile please !

Over the next few weeks Torrs Hydro will be working with our friends at the Environment Agency to look at the feasibility of putting cameras in the fish pass to take images of fish as they migrate up river to spawn - watch this space for more details.

Archie meets the Minister for Climate Change

What a busy day - Ministerial visits, TV crews, radio interviews, cameras - you name it and Archie did it !

We were honoured to host a visit by Greg Barker (Minister for Climate Change) and the Regional Director for the Environment Agency - as well as visiting Torrs Hydro they visited the Co-op before moving on to New Mills Town Hall for the Minister to formally announce ways in which the Government are going to help support schemes like Archie.

Check out the evening ITV news and tomorrows papers as we get a really good mention.

300,000 and counting

With the long hot summer almost over and the rivers Goyt and Sett flowing nicely again Archie has been spinning away over the last few days and has produced as much renewable energy in 4 days as was produced in the previous 4 months - long may it continue

PS Is there still a hosepipe ban ?

New Mills Festival - 10 to 26 September

New Mills Festival takes place from Friday 10th to Sunday 26th of September with events and activities to suit everyone, including the amazing lantern procession and a Torrs Hydro Open Day - please take a look a look at the program and make sure you get some of the events in your diary

Worse than 1976

Even though we have had some good rain fall this week in New Mills the drought continues and in areas is said to be worse than 1976 - one stretch of the Leeds - Liverpool canal is set to shut for the first time since 1929 with reservoir water levels at only 10% of their seasonal levels.

Long overdue

With the first 'real' rain for weeks and weeks this week looks like it could see Archie back in action by Friday.

If the forecast is anything to go by then we are in for 3-4 days of heavy rain, which isn't enough to fill the reservoirs or end the hose pipe ban, but should possibly see renewable energy being produced in New Mills again.