Eco-Congregations Ireland

In late 2008, Sr Catherine Brennan, chair of Eco-Congregations Ireland talked to the Clonard Fitzroy Fellowship about the Church and Caring for the Environment.  Below is some information about Eco-Congregations, followed by some practical steps we can all take in our own homes and in church.

Eco-Congregation is an environmental programme for churches, available to all Christian denominations throughout Britain and Ireland. It developed through a partnership between the Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI) and the environmental awareness charity “Going for Green” (now ENCAMS).

Eco-Congregation Ireland has been developed in co-operation with four churches – the Church of Ireland, the Methodist Church in Ireland, the Presbyterian Church in Ireland and the Roman Catholic Church – whose ecological representatives are in touch with the many groups operating in Britain and Europe. The programme is available to all parishes with a keen interest in environmental issues and offers resources and support to help them to take practical action in the context of their Christian faith.

A simple environmental audit is provided to help congregations assess what they are already doing and to determine future priorities. They are then encouraged to download the appropriate resource modules which aim to integrate environmental care into different areas of church life. Each church will normally choose three modules on which to concentrate for the year from a list including: Worship and Teaching, Children’s and Youth Work, Property and Grounds Management, Finance – Purchasing and Waste, Personal Lifestyles, Working with the Local Community and Thinking Globally.

Eco-Congregation Ireland is an internet initiative and therefore all resources are free and can be downloaded from this website. The modules are designed to enable congregations to become self-sufficient and monitor their own progress. Just register your interest with us and we will send you a starter pack, which includes a special Eco-Congregation Ireland folder and Module One – an environmental audit. Once you have completed this audit, you are on your way to becoming an eco congregation!

For further information check out www.ecocongregationireland.com 

In September 2012, an Eco-Congregation Ireland conference was held at Dromantine. Below are links to write ups of the talks, in pdf format.

Money, Consumerism and the Spirituality of our Times by Alastair McIntosh
Is the Bible Green? Reading Scripture Ecologically by David G Horrell
Oneness and Cultivating Unity by Anne Primavesi
Theology of Creation by Professor Stephen Williams
A New Humanity: The Quest for Well-Being in the 21st Century by Rev Peter Owen-Jones

Web resources
www.arochalivinglightly.org.uk
 

Clonard/Fitzroy - Caring for the Earth – Doing Our Bit

by Kerry Nicholson

What we could do at Clonard / Fitzroy

Set up a group to explore how to take forward the Eco/Environmental agenda in Clonard & Fitzroy.

Below is a list of practical suggestions that we as a church and personally could look through to make our carbon footprint a lot lighter:

Paper:Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Reduce

· Do we have to use a paper printed Order of Service when we have a digital projector available in the services with words, etc?

· Do we have to print out all our announcements? Can we not just put everything onto our website and ask people to check it regularly with some paper copies available on request?

· Can I email or telephone rather than send a letter?

· Photocopy or print using the double-sided option or share 1 copy between 2 people as often as possible to reduce paper usage.

· When running hospitality events, try not to use disposable items such as paper cups, paper plates, plastic knives, etc if possible. If you must, try to use products made from renewable or recycled resources or products that will biodegrade easily.

ReUse

· Scrap paper can be used for internal printing. Old Envelopes can be used for internal mail.

Recycle

· Purchase Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) approved paper or Recycled paper containing a reasonably high percentage of post consumer waste.

· Recycle all your used paper (except shredded).

Recycling

· Generally you can recycle paper, card, plastic bottles, glass and cans in your bin and a host of other items when you visit a recycling centre.

· If you or your church currently isn’t recycling, you could approach Belfast City Council or Bryson House to set up a recycling collection. There will probably be a cost to this service depending on how your building is classified. If your church is classed as a domestic user you could probably have a blue bin for free, but if your church is classed as a commercial enterprise you may have to pay for collection of recycled items.

· Why not initiate weekly or monthly recycling collections yourself and make a rota between a number of interested members to take it in turns to drop your recycling off at a recycling centre on a weekly or monthly basis.

· Most printer cartridges can be recycled or posted back to the manufacturer.
 

Water

· Install Hippo Bags in older toilet cisterns that don’t have a dual flush control. This saves about 3 litres of water per flush.

· Don’t leave a tap dripping. Get it repaired immediately. Each cubic meter of water will cost you nearly £2 in water metre charges.

· Install urinal controllers to any urinals that would flush automatically when the tank if filled. These usually detect when people are using the room and increase the number of flushes in proportion to the number of users.
 

Electricity:Lighting

· If your church is on a domestic tariff, then consider changing to NIE’s Green tariff. If your church is charged as a commercial business then consider changing supplier to Airtricity who generate their supplies from wind turbines.

· Do not use standby mode. Try to ensure that all electrical items, such as computers, projectors, hot water boilers, cookers, etc., are turned off at the wall after use.

· It is a popular myth that it is cheaper to leave a light on, especially fluorescent tubes. Turning them off saves money.

· Use daylight where possible. It’s free and more pleasant than artificial light.

· Only use required lights. For example corridors need less lighting than meeting rooms.

· Use low wattage lights. Slim line fluorescent tubes can often be used as direct replacements for older tubes, and use 25% less electricity. Compact fluorescent bulbs use 80% less energy than a tungsten bulb (ordinary bulb) and last ten times longer.

· Ensure outside lights are only on when required. Regularly check timers so that lights aren’t coming on as the days get longer.
 

Electricity:Heating

· Ensure temperatures are set at no more than 19°C in office areas. Thermostatic radiator valves should be installed to regulate the temperature in different rooms. They should be at position 2-3, where they will modulate to maintain comfort levels.

· Keep doors and windows closed while heating is on. Open doors and windows allow heated air to escape and cold air to come in.

· Ensure radiators are not blocked with furniture as this affects the heat available to the room.

· Avoid heating unused spaces such as corridors and storerooms. These areas should be set to a lower temperature.

· Make sure that changes in building occupation hours are updated within the controls. Buildings may be heated during periods they are no longer occupied.

· Ensure doors and windows are well insulated against draughts. A simple repair could save energy and improve user comfort. Make sure external doors and windows are draught-proofed.

· Regular maintenance of your heating system can improve efficiency. Insulate pipe work and hot water tanks.
 

Electricity: Electronic Equipment

· Ensure in-built energy saving software is activated in computers. A screen saver is not a power saver. Even switching a monitor off over tea and lunch breaks prevents excessive heat build up in a room.

· Set your computer energy saving timers – turn your monitor off after 10 minutes and your hard disk off after 30 minutes.

· Don’t leave equipment such as TVs, digital projectors, videos, or computers on standby mode. They continue to use up to 70% of normal power consumption at no use.

· Check your electricity provider – are you on a green tariff or getting your supply from a green provider. Green suppliers are cheaper as you don’t have to pay the 5% Climate Change Levy that other non-green suppliers have to charge.

· Purchase energy efficiency rated equipment when replacing items. Consider energy-efficiency when purchasing new equipment. Give preference to equipment with low power stand-by or sleep features.
 

Events

· Consider encouraging members of your congregation to get involved in doing one thing to help the environment with feedback at a Sunday service.