Energy Efficiency Stall sheds light in Surrey Street Market

ENVIBE’s energy partner Croydon Energy Network provided free advice about how to cut household bills by saving energy around the home to more than 200 enthusiastic punters who visited the stall during the early part of April 2005.

The stall featured a model energy-efficient house with information about government-funded discounts towards energy efficiency.  Also, a range of eco-products from Natural Discovery, including wind-up mobile phone chargers, solar-powered radios, kitchen composters, detergent-free cleaning products such as aqua balls and E-cloths, and re-useable cloth shopping bags.

While looking like a typical market stall, the pitch was set up to include environmentally-friendly features. To encourage other traders to make the change, the display of low-energy fluorescent bulbs used to light the stall exhibits the range of colours, shapes and sizes available. Stallholders often require more than 15 lamps which usually need replacing every two to three months. Using low-energy bulbs, which can last 12 times as long, could reduce spending by half in the long term.

The stall follows on from other promotions in the market to encourage people to make environmentally-friendly choices. In 2004 more than 800 reusable fair-trade cotton shopping bags were given out to market-goers.