More than 80 householders, architects and builders from across the Borders gathered in the Heart of Hawick on Jun 25th to hear Sue Roaf give an inspiring talk on The Ecohouse. Dr Roaf is Professor of Architectural Engineering at Heriot Watt University, and a leading authority on green issues within the construction industry. She began with a warning that climate change and the oil crisis will only get far worse… and mercifully went on to describe what we can do about it. The ecohouse she designed herself takes advantage of massive materials, heavy insulation and the latest low-energy appliances to cut electricity bills to £5 a year. She acknowledged that experimental architecture could not solve the problems of Scotland's existing housing stock and that better insulation should be a high priority. The problem of buildings on flood plains in the Borders was also a hot topic, especially given Hawick's flooding misery in 2005. The talk was followed by lively discussion among the audience members, and it's hope this event will lead to others. The evening was organised by local artist Rob Hain, who contacted Sue Roaf after reading an article in the Scotland on Sunday. Anyone with an interest in ecohousing in the Borders (or the turbobothy below!) can contact Rob via his website: http://www.robhain.com/ 
2 comments:
It was a really good talk and attracted huge interest. The immediate feedback I got was that it would be good to have someone take us through actual construction processes; perhaps several speakers?
Any ideas?
Rob
The biggest issue, as was voiced in the meeting, is how to improve our existing housing stock. I have taken our 1964 ex-council house from energy band E to band B/C in the last year or so. Many of our extant houses leak heat at phenomenal rates.
I am willing to help people assess their buildings and possible improvements. So far, very few are really interested in reducing their footprint but that will change as fuel prices continue to rise.
Andy
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