Greenwash anyone?

You have to feel sorry for Bolosver Council’s PR team. Tasked with explaining to staff why the Council is moving to Clowne they recite the mantra that the Council faces cuts, something has to be done, and moving to Clowne is something, so we are going to do it. Never mind the other, easier, “somethings” such as cutting members allowances.

The second line of defence is the wonderland logic that says Sherwood Lodge is too big so the Council is moving to a site that is larger. I’m trying not to be disrespectful to the Council so I have nothing to say about this.

When both these justification fails the PR team get all eco-conscious and say the Council cares so much for the environment that they are moving to a building that is more energy efficient. Given that Bolsover’s current climate change strategy expired last year, their climate change office group has been suspended,  the Cabinet appears to have given up on providing PV panels on council houses and the Council thinks nothing of uprooting a few mature trees to make way for a Morrison’s filling station, this claim seemed to warrant closer inspection.

Fortunately all public sector buildings are required to declare their energy efficiency.  The Council’s current HQ, Sherwood Lodge, was grade G, the lowest grade possible, in 2009. In 2010 it improved so much it just squeezed into grade E, but in 2011 it fell back to grade F. Clowne Campus has two certificates one for the main building and the other for the engineering block. The former is grade C but the later shares the same energy efficiency as Sherwood Lodge, it is grade F, indeed its precise rating is worse that of Sherwood Lodge.

Given that the Council was able to improve from grade G to grade E in just one year it would surely be more environmentally sustainable to have continued to invest in energy efficiency in Sherwood Lodge and let someone else, another college perhaps? use the main site at Clowne.