• Contact Us
• A - Z
• About Us
• News
• Jobs
  

• Volunteering
• Affordable Housing
• Information for Farmers and Land Managers
• Information for Tourism Providers
• Sustainable Exmoor
• Carbon Neutral Exmoor
• Local Energy Assessment Fund
• Low Carbon Communities Challenge
• Carbon Neutral Programme
• Other Carbon Neutral Activity
• Renewable Energy
• (( Low Carbon Festival ))
• Sustainable Communities
• Environmental Economy
• Sustainable Construction
• Sustainability Case Studies & Reports
• Grants and Funding
• Community Links
• National Park Authority Information

What is Carbon Neutral Exmoor?

Carbon Neutral Exmoor (phase 1) is a 3 year project that has been instigated by Exmoor National Park Authority which aims to transform Exmoor into a low carbon community with a view to achieving carbon neutrality by 2025. The majority of the revenue funding for this project has been put forward by Exmoor National Park Authority. Additional funding has been secured through the Rural Development Programme for England Local Action for Rural Communities Programme from the Torridge and North Devon Local Action Group and the Western Somerset Local Action Group. Capital funding of £400k for projects has been secured through the Department of Climate Change’s ‘Low Carbon Communities Challenge’ and we are actively exploring other potential funding streams to help get projects off the ground.

Through Carbon Neutral Exmoor, we are seeking to accelerate the pace at which the community of Exmoor can make the transition to low carbon living through:

• Developing a knowledge sharing framework (exemplar projects, case studies, study tours, encouraging innovation)
• Focusing the activity of a range of supports covering low carbon themes through partnership working onto Exmoor so that a holistic approach can be taken (e.g. working with waste partnerships, water companies, developing opportunities for the provision of local food etc)
• Securing finance for projects and increasing our knowledge in that regard.

We are supporting communities in particular with a view to encouraging wider ownership and benefit from community low carbon schemes.

The Low Carbon Communities Officer (Ben Eardley) has been employed by the National Park Authority to support communities, farmers and other land managers in developing and implementing low carbon projects. For example, a community may wish to give its village hall a renewable energy “makeover”, start up a community-owned shop or develop a community-owned hydropower project. Ben can support the community in developing its project, identifying potential funding streams and in project delivery. Similarly, a farmer may wish to have an energy audit undertaken of their farm – again, Ben can help by providing a free survey with recommendations.

Want to get involved?

If you or a group to which you belong would like to get involved in Carbon Neutral Exmoor, please give us a call on 01398 323665 and ask to speak to Ben Eardley or Tim Stokes. If you have a project idea, we may be able to help you to develop it and if appropriate, link you with other people in your community that have a shared interest. A list of the type of services we are able to provide through Carbon Neutral Exmoor is set out below:

• Energy audits for community buildings
• Project development for community projects
• Assistance with project delivery
• Case studies
• Facilitating networking events for people interested in low carbon living
• Organising study tours and events to promote low carbon living
• Farm energy audits
• Farm low carbon audits considering a range of greenhouse gas emissions
• Identifying and pulling in supports relevant to low carbon living that are available from a variety of sources

Householders seeking advice regarding renewable energy and other aspects of low carbon living should contact the Energy Saving Trust energy advice centre network on 0800 512012. We regret that we do not have the capacity to provide such a service.