CHELMSFORD is the first cathedral in England and Wales to gain eco congregation status.
Announcing the award, David Hughes says the Groundwork Trust assessors gave the thumbs up on April 29.
He was very impressed "by the amount of work the cathedral is doing to make the entire estate of buildings so much greener.
"This is often a very valuable witness to the community that the church takes seriously our call to be stewards of God's creation."
The eco community status means that the regular congregation will be encouraged to improve the facilities and to progress in mission as an eco congregation green church.
David Fifield, the cathedral administrator, heads up the day-to-day running of a team of enthusiasts in a community where the regular worshippers already enjoy Fair Trade status.
Elizabeth Marshall, chair of the cathedral's ecocongregation committee, thanked David for his input
to the project.
She said: "David has done a huge amount to reduce the cathedral's carbon footprint.
"He has encouraged the use of recycled paper, as well as arranging an eco-audit of the cathedral
chapter house.
"The cathedral is now planning to have an extra lighting circuit of low energy bulbs installed for day-to-day use.
"The boilers will be replaced with more efficient ones when they come up for renewal. The cathedral is also looking at insulation and a more efficient heating system in the chapter house.
"The new house for the canon precentor already has solar panels."
The Dean, Very Revd Peter Judd, revealed the eco status award to the cathedral annual meeting.
Treasurer Caroline Robinson congratulated the congregation on its stewardship and the £7,000
of new money pledged by members annually.
Judith Allen, Andrew Duke and Peter Kendal were re-elected as church wardens. Keith Baggs,
Philip Goodman and George Yates are the new cathedral wardens.
Mervyn Marshall, a retiring church warden, was re-elected to the Cathedral Chapter, the governing body of the cathedral.
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