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We live in a beautiful environment in Galloway and we aim to keep it that way. Our own environmental policy includes the following:
- optimising energy use: all rooms have radiator thermostats, the boiler has a three-period contoller and we are investigating the possibility of changing to a heat pump system.
- paper and glass are recycled through the Dumfries & Galloway Council scheme. Other types of waste will be diverted to that scheme as soon as facilities are made available.
- organic waste is composted for use on the garden.
- tree and shrub prunings are shredded for use on the garden.
- the only waste going to landfill is the ridiculous quantity of supermarket plastic packaging that is hard to avoid.
- where possible we source food items on local producers, especially smoked and fresh fish, milk, cheese and meat.
- we normally use Fair Trade coffee, tea and whatever other items such as bananas are on offer from these sources.
- water for cooking, for tea and coffee (and a drop for the whiskey) is specially filtered to get rid of the peaty fragments and taste in our local water supply.
- in season, some vegetables are from our own garden.
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We believe that global warming is a problem. Whether or not this is due to human activity or external influences, we believe that it is important to limit any further effects of human activity as far as possible. We need to avoid, or at least delay, the "tipping points" or trigger situations that might influence feedback loops in the climate system and exacerbate present problems (eg aridity in Africa and southern Europe) or cause new problems such as a reversal or southerly diversion of the Gulf Stream. We therefore support the search for non-fossil fuel energy sources. We do not believe that it would be necessary to cover the landscape with wind farms although they do have a place in the scheme of things, but feel that more attention should be paid to wave and tide energy and that there is more scope for the development of micro-hydro power in this land of sparkling rivers and gushing burns. This planet will not last forever but it should be good for the next half billion years if we look after it. |
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