Motorists in Bishop’s Castle, in South Shropshire, look likely to be the first in the country to be able to fill up with locally produced biodiesel at their local garage. An extra tank has been in-stalled in the Union Street Garage to hold 100 per cent biodiesel, made from recycled vegetable oil, which will both be sourced and refined locally.
Some diesel cars can use the new fuel as a blend with normal diesel with-out making adjustments to their engine. With a modification kit, some diesel cars can run on 100 per cent biofuel.
Locally produced biodiesel is just one of the steps in the grand plan of the town’s groundbreaking, Wasteless Society, which claimed another first for Bishop’s Castle when it organised an ecological footprinting exercise.
Volunteers talked to local people at home and at work to find out how much energy they used and then calculated the community’s total carbon emissions. The result was the Bishop’s Castle Community Climate Change Strategy, designed to cut carbon emissions in the town by 85 per cent by 2050.
The biodiesel venture was one of the results. Other groups from the Wasteless Society are looking at different ways to cut energy use, including the possibility of a Community Land Trust, which could provide affordable housing alongside a Community Supported Agriculture Scheme. Due to a grant from the Energy Savings Trust, the Society has been able to create a number of part time jobs in bringing renewable energy to the town.
Michael Whithouse said: ‘The great thing about what the Wasteless Society are doing here in Bishop’s Castle is that the whole thing has come about because ordinary people wanted to do something constructive about climate change. It’s amazing what people can achieve when they feel passionately about something and decide to get together. We think what we are doing could be a model for towns and villages in other parts of the country.’

Tel: 01547520304
Email: s.​bennetdavies@​yahoo.​co.​uk
Website: www​.wasteless​.co​.uk