Patio heaters ban debate hots up
Well, what a fuss we appear to have caused with yesterday’s media exposure of the environmental damage caused by patio heaters. It looks as if ‘just wear a jumper’ is going to go down in folklore, just as ‘just say no’ to drugs perhaps! Even I was taken by surprise given the amount of coverage we received given, quite rightly, the media focus on the terrible floods going on at the moment. However, it is evident that our Green Barometer report on the environmental folly of patio heaters has caused a debate in the media and in homes across the land. Not surprising really - we're asking people to change their behaviour and stop using patio heaters. A black and white issue, which has generated strong opinions both for and against the idea. The story was picked up by most of the main stream media, whether broadsheet, radio, TV, or Internet. We even made it onto the Reuters world wide media stage.[I've included some links below to some of the stories]. Quite a feat for a product that the industry says only has 600,000 adherents. It's interesting to note that this is the same figure that has been quoted the last two years. Perhaps we should have the National census, something like the gun amnesty - trade in your patio heater for a week – it’d be interesting wouldn’t it?
What was also interesting was how each individual industry responsible for environmentally damaging products blames the other – in this case the manufacturers of patio heaters claiming they are no more damaging than phone chargers or plasma TVs - as if that some how excused the environmental damage they cause. I’d be interested to hear your views on this. I was also struck by how poor the information is around some of these products, which is probably why our story was so well picked up by the media.
By the way, just one small thing, but important… the organisation I represent does not belong and is not part of the Government. We are a private, independent organisation which enables us to speak out about these issues, like patio heaters in a fashion that – were we a part of Government – we could not. All this debate around environmental impact of patio heaters happened on the same day that parts of Oxford became an island. I wonder if the irony will be lost on people.
If you want to know how to live a low carbon life, check out Chris Goodall’s new book, called “How to Live a Low Carbon Life - the individual’s guide to stopping climate change.” It's an excellent read, very practical, full of factual data about appliances, travel, aviation etc and bang up to date.
Whoops - I nearly forgot to include those media links to the patio heater coverage! Here is a selection...
My interview about patio heaters for Reuters
Articles:
It's good to see a follow up on the EST press release, aware of the upcoming news I went to the BBC website in the morning to see that it was on the news front page, noted in the most emailed and most read sections. A great result indeed. Hits to my blog under relevant search terms on google increased throughout the day, and hits came from a few international countries.
I think this shows how much of a priority is placed by news agencies on environmental issues in the face of climate change, especially in light of recent findings that the intensity of rainfall has increased marginally due to climate change.
Whilst researching patio heaters it became clear the industry is pushing "bigger is better", like that of televisions, with the energy consumption increasing gradually. The devices are published with power consumption in the title and are at extremely affordable prices, I noted leading DIY retailed B&Q had many discounted. Homeowners can now purchase patio heaters with usages of 15kWh and I am sure this will continue to grow. This is equivalent to 1250 12W CFL bulbs or 5 electric kettles, and equates to £1.70 an hour in electricity costs where I live. DEFRA figures suggest that this would convert to in excess of 7.5kg of CO2 emissions per hour.
I believe people do not realise the cost of running these devices or the damage to the environment. Highlighting this will hopefully prevent individuals, businesses and retailers from buying such devices.
My Blog Reaction
Many thanks for the link on your "Climate Change Related Weblogs", I have reciprocated and avidly await for your next update.
Energy Saver
Posted by: Energy Saver | July 26, 2007 at 03:17 PM
I would have to agree with your 'just wear a jumper' comment. In this country, most people would take a jacket or jumper for the walk home from the pub, as even in the summer hot evenings aren't all that common, so why not wear it while you're there?! You don't see patio heaters on camp sites, but plenty of jumpers!
Posted by: Hayley Jones | July 26, 2007 at 02:21 PM