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< CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme will be a PR disaster for water companies, says Pinsent Masons | Welsh government moves to combat fuel poverty >
Public warms to local 'green utility' initiatives
Small-scale: BedZed remains one of the few community schemes around
Most of the UK public supports the idea of neighbourhood "green utilities" to deliver district heating, energy from waste and water harvesting, according to research just published by the UK Green Building Council.
Polling carried out by Icaro Consulting revealed a public appetite for so-called green utilities delivered at a community scale.
Seventy-one per cent of the people polled thought that district heating would be better than the current individual heating systems in their homes. Respondents were also in favour of sustainable community water systems, with almost 90 per cent positive towards using filtered rainwater for flushing toilets and watering gardens.
Nearly as many supported the use of waste as a resource to produce energy.
Marco Marijewycz, a Green Building Council member from Eon UK, said: "This research has dispelled the myth that people don't want heat networks or community energy schemes."
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