Who: Jackson Moulding and Anna Hope

Where: Bristol

What: Solar PV

Size: 1 kW

Makes: 880 kWh per year

Average equivalent saving: 0.4 tonnes of CO2 per year

Earns: around £130 per year

THE AVAG STORY

Jackson, Anna and their baby daughter, Sylva, live in Ashley Vale, Bristol, where Ashley Vale Action Group (AVAG), a community of self builders, has turned a brown field site into sustainable homes for over 40 families. Many in the community have chosen to use high levels of insulation and environmentally friendly building materials, and to incorporate solar thermal technology to heat their water and Solar PV panels to generate their electricity.

Jackson said, “We began building here in 2001 and our mission behind the project was to build homes that would benefit the community and the environment. Being able to produce our own energy was high on the agenda and collectively we have installed over 20 kW of Photo Voltaic (PV) solar panels to generate electricity. Many of the homes here are signed up to Good Energy which pays us 15p for every unit of electricity we generate.

About a third of the UK’s carbon emissions come from our homes - we can dramatically reduce our impact on Climate Change by building better houses. The homes here use less energy because solar power produces our hot water and electricity and they need less energy thanks to their architectural design and high insulation. These are great homes to live in that are helping to protect tomorrow’s environment.”

For more information about AVAG, visit their website