East Ayrshire Council / Comhairle Shiorrachd Àir an Ear

Climate Change Update - May 2023

East Ayrshire Council sent this bulletin at 31-05-2023 05:18 PM BST

May 2023

Welcome to our Climate Change Bulletin!

What have we been up to this month?

Our Officer Working Groups met for the first time this month and discussed joint up working across services to achieve the actions set out in our Climate Change Strategy.
We celebrated a range of climate change events this month like World Bee Day and International Biodiversity Day.
Our 'Reuse to Reduce: Regrowing Scraps' campaign launched on Facebook and Twitter to encourage regrowing food at home to save costs and carbon.
We attended the Coalfields Regeneration Trust networking event in Cumnock.

Fabric First

As we move into warmer weather it's important to remember the benefits of having an energy-efficient home that will keep you cool in summer and warm in winter.

ECO4 Flex is a UK Government backed scheme, supported by East Ayrshire Council, open to households who meet the eligibility criteria and could help with free or subsidised installation of:

microgeneration such as electricity generating solar panels
replacement heating systems such as a new condensing boiler or air source heat pump
insulation measures such as cavity, loft, internal/external wall insulation

Home Energy Scotland also provide a variety of energy support. Did you know that they estimate loft insulation could save a household £355 and reduce carbon (CO2) consumption by as much as 600 kilograms annually?

Circular Economy: A Snapshot

As part of our Climate Change Strategy we're dedicated to building a circular economy in East Ayrshire - but what does that really mean?

A circular economy is one in which products, services and systems are designed to maximise their value and minimise waste.

Products last longer when they are reused, repaired, remanufactured or recycled.

There should be zero waste in a truly circular economy.

Save the Dates!

Think about the impact of your waste on climate change this June and make sure you're recycling properly:

16 June - World Refill Day
17 June - Plastic Free Beauty Day

Mission to the Moon

This month's Mission to the Moon competition incorporated World Bee Day and encouraged our young people to go on a self-led nature walk to spot bees and other crucial pollinators (whilst gaining bonus s-miles for their school).

Our young people are now well on their way to the moon (238,855 miles) having reached an incredible 201,971 s-miles in week 12 to fuel our Clean Green rocket.

Updates are tweeted weekly and can be found here.

Save the Dates!

Consider the impact of your commute as we move into warmer weather more suitable for active travel:

3 June - World Bicycle Day
15 June - Scottish Clean Air Day

Dunlop's Wee Glen Community Woodland

The Wee Glen hosted a tree planting ceremony to celebrate the extensive improvements carried out by East Ayrshire Woodlands.

The team, which included trainees and modern apprentices, worked with the local community and Greener Communities to improve the Wee Glen.

This included upgrades to the paths, steps, bridge and access points within the woodland; a revamp of the signage; removal of some trees; and installation of two rustic benches.

Save the Dates!

natural environment 30 days wild squirrel

There are lots of exciting dates to take part in natural environment actions for climate change this June!

We'd especially like to encourage everyone to take part in 30 Days Wild and join our wild team activities on social media!

Or check out these other dates:

5 June - World Environment Day
8 June - World Oceans Day
10 - 8 June - Great Big Green Week
22 June - World Rainforest Day

Reuse to Reduce: Regrowing Scraps!

Did you know that a lot of the vegetable scraps which end up in your food waste caddy could be reused to grow your own?

Place the bottom of the celery in some lukewarm water in a shallow tray
Place in a sunny windowsill (if you can)
Wait for growth of new stalks from the bottom to reach around one inch
Plant the whole base in soil (leaving the new stalks exposed)
Harvest as needed

Growing cards for a variety of veggies can be found on our Facebook and Twitter.

Sustainable Gastronomy Day is on 18 June and encourages us take into account where ingredients are from, how they are grown, how it gets to our markets and eventually to our plates.

Looking for low-carbon recipe inspiration? Download our cook book.

Clean Green East Ayrshire on the road!

We were delighted to have been invited to the Coalfields Regeneration Trust networking event at the Dumfries Arms in Cumnock.

It was fantastic to chat with community organisations about climate change and especially to discuss the support available for decarbonisation of community buildings

Further information about The Scottish Government’s Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) can be found here.

Net Zero Accelerator Programme

25 businesses in East Ayrshire are set to benefit from 12 months of Net Zero support thanks to a new Net Zero Catapult programme delivered by Net Zero Nation within the Halo Enterprise & Innovation Hub and fully supported and funded by East Ayrshire Council and Scottish Enterprise.

The programme will help East Ayrshire Council and Scottish Enterprise to shape the existing and future support they offer to all businesses, social enterprises and community organisations across the region to achieve their Net Zero ambitions.

If you are a business based in East Ayrshire and would like to be considered for Cohort 3 in June this year, please contact: