Cathedral is working hard to reduce its carbon footprint

CHELMSFORD Cathedral is keen to play its part in the fight against global warming.

Led by the Administrator, David Fifield, it has been among the first English cathedrals to put in place an Environmental Strategy.

David says: "We have begun by addressing the simple things, such as turning out lights, composting organic waste and recycling paper.

"We declared an 'office amnesty' for handing in unused stationary, felt-tip pens and staplers, and then
moved on to commission an environmental audit of all our buildings from Daniel Kenning, an environmental consultant. We also have an enthusiastic group working on our development as an ‘Eco-Congregation'."

As Chelmsford is one of the smaller cathedrals, it is spared the heat loss associated with acres of
ancient lead tiling and draughty medieval glass.

The lightning conductor has been readied for unseasonal tropical storms and extensive work is being
undertaken to improve the drainage around the Cathedral building. But there have been mistakes
as well.

When the Cathedral lighting was renewed, as recently as 2001, there was little understanding that the
system would prove wasteful and expensive of both energy and money.

Meanwhile steps must be taken to ensure that the Cathedral is ready in all respects to cope with a
climatic shift and extremes of weather such as excessive rainfall, high temperatures, periods of
drought or windstorms.

At a conference at Lambeth Palace in May, the Climate Change and Environment Minister Ian
Pearson urged all 43 Church of England Cathedrals to examine and reduce their 'carbon footprints'. Addressing deans, architects and cathedral administrators, he said "While a wind-turbine
on St Paul's might raise a few eyebrows, I'd love to see solar panels on church halls and biomass boilers in church schools.

"Maybe, in the future, micro-generation can be used by cathedrals to help produce energy as well as
use it".

"Cathedrals are monuments to the skill, ingenuity and ambition of the engineers and architects of their time: a testament to the potential of mankind to solve problems creatively and with dedication. We
need to apply this creativity to finding climate solutions today."

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