As part of our environmental mandate, our goal is to encourage lower energy consumption through increasing efficiency. Through the CPRE Gloucestershire Award Scheme we have raised awareness of good practice.

For example, the Brockweir and Hewelsfield Village Shop and Cafe (CPRE Gloucester awards 2008), opened by HRH Prince Charles in 2004, was designed around a heat pump and solar voltaic cells to generate electricity. The shop is of green oak construction, insulated with 10 inches of fibreglass, an infrared reflective layer and plasterboard. Heating pipes are embedded in the insulated concrete floor and almost all the heat energy comes from a neighbouring field via heat exhange pipes buried underneath it. The shop is run by volunteers for the community and enables people to shop locally, which reduces the need for car use for grocery shopping - also a key CPRE Gloucestershire campaign (see Transport in Gloucestershire).

As well as encouraging good practice through our Awards, we have a policy on Energy, which is regularly reviewed and updated and have also funded work to produce good practice guidance on photovoltaic installations on buildings.

Future energy landscapes:a new approach to local energy planning is a new report by the Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) and national CPRE. It aims to bring communities together to share their passion for local landscapes with their vision for a more sustainable future.