Why Carol Wants Us All To Get Smart
Carol Vorderman is encouraging everyone to get a smart meter installed and explains why going coal free is so key: “Many years ago I worked as a civil engineer in an enormous hydro-electric station. It started my fascination with renewable energy. We have been transitioning from fossil fuels making our electricity, to renewables. A critical part of that is predicting how much energy will be needed and when. New tech, like smart meters, will help to do this and update our energy system.
“The easiest way to see how far we’ve come is to look at our recent 67 days without the use of coal fired power stations. A brilliant new record! And while there was low energy demand during those days, the record could not have been achieved without renewable energy – a huge feat that I’m very proud of”.
Smart Energy GB has worked with Energy Saving Trust and Carol Vorderman to offer some tips on why small actions matter…
Get Smart
Getting a smart meter helps bring our outdated energy system into the 21st century. This is because the near real time data smart meters provide will tell the smart energy system how much energy is being used, when and where across Great Britain. This will help us better manage the supply and demand of energy to reduce waste, and also shift energy usay
Less Is More
By using less water, we’re reducing the amount of energy used in the pumping of water.1
Waste Not…
When food waste is taken to landfill, it isn’t exposed to enough oxygen to allow it to naturally biodegrade. This means it rots and decays – allowing methane into the air.2
Go Electric
Although the exact reduction in carbon dioxide depends on the electric vehicle, rather than using petrol which is a fossil fuel, EVs are powered by electricity. Therefore, as we switch to using more and more renewable energy, EVs will cause fewer carbon emissions.3
All Aboard
Public transport moves more people with fewer vehicles which requires less energy and therefore less fuel. It also allows other drivers and their passengers to get to their destinations faster and use less fuel. As most vehicles are powered using petrol or diesel which are fossil fuels, reducing the number on the road limits the amount of greenhouse gases produced.
Super Efficient
Energy efficient lightbulbs and appliances use less energy – simple!
Switch Off
When TVs or lights are on stand-by they’re still using a small amount of energy – over time this adds up. In fact, you can save around £30 a year just by doing switching things off which aren’t in use.5 As we still use fossil fuels to produce electricity, turning these items off reduces the amount of greenhouse gases produced.
Makes Sense
Switching to a renewable energy tariff or supplier will ensure that you use a sustainable supply of energy that produces a significantly lower carbon footprint over its lifecycle.6
The Lowdown
Meat and dairy products have larger carbon footprints per calorie than grain or vegetable products because of animals are inefficient at transforming of plant energy into animal energy. Additionally, methane is released from manure management and by the digestive processes of animals such as cattle and deer.7
Audrey Patterson
Having started my career at My Weekly on Real Life stories, for the past 8 years I have been Beauty and Fashion Editor. I also write Travel and Homes features, plus the odd book review. We’re a flexible team! I also write features for Your Best Ever Christmas covering a variety of topics.
