Carbon Net Zero 2030

 

The Church of England (nationally) has set a target for churches to achieve Carbon Net Zero by the year 2030. This is a big challenge and means moving away from heating the building by gas. In May 2023 Otley Parish Church set up a small group - six people plus Churchwarden - to draw up a roadmap and take action towards this goal.

Progress so far (the blue links go to the relevant documents):

1. The Group undertook research to learn what other churches were doing and to understand our own Carbon Footprint (35 tCO₂ in 2023) and the potential for its reduction.
2. Six months of research led to the presentation in November 2023 of the Otley Parish Church ‘Roadmap To Carbon Net Zero’ as a focus for action.
3. A Feasibility Study into replacement and insulation of the Church roof has been completed: more details below.
4. We now have an Environmental & Sustainability Policy (authored chiefly by Martin Hird) which underpins the work of the Carbon Net Zero group. We will draw up an action plan now for us to begin implementation of this policy, in which we hope the whole of the Church community will become involved.
5. The CNZ Group have produced a Presentation covering its work so far, the next steps to take and the challenges still faced.
6. We are now exploring grant funding options for the roof replacement and insulation.

Heat Loss From the Building

Understanding this is key to reducing our energy use, and hence our carbon foorprint. Analysis from gas use data, combined with a spatial model of the building (derived from earlier 3-D imaging) gives an estimate of the likely heat loss routes as shown in this pie chart. This indicates that simply insulating the roof would bring significant benefits.

This conclusion is supported by thermal imaging taken on a frosty day in April which shows the north wall and roof from the outside. The lighter colour of the roof, and the associated temperature figures, indicate that the roof is the greatest point of heat loss from the church, with it being about 6 degrees hotter than the walls.

The nave and aisle roofs which were installed in 1867 (at a cost of £347) are now in a poor state and require replacement. In principle the PCC accepts that the sensible way forward is to use the opportunity of roof replacement (and potentially the ceiling) in the main part of the church building to incorporate insulation to reduce significantly our energy consumption, energy bills and carbon footprint.

Roof Insulation

In June 2024 the PCC commissioned a roof replacement Feasibility Study by the Church Architect and this was presented to the PCC in November. In the study, the church architect has suggested how insulation could be fitted between the existing roof beams, as illustrated here:

The Feasibility Study gives us an indicative cost approaching £600,000 to replace & insulate the Church roof. This would be a first step towards achieving Carbon Net Zero but obviously will require some major fundraising. A small group of parishioners are working with the CNZ group and the Diocese on a Fundraising Strategy but if you have knowledge or experience in this area, please do get in touch with us via the church office.
 

Achieving Carbon Net Zero by 2030

Roof insulation is one of the major steps but there are others. The timeline below lists the main actions and when we think they could happen. Note that the timing is speculative and may change as we work through the project:

How much will it cost?

At a rough estimate, replacing the Church roof and insulating it will cost in the region of £600,000. As a Church community we would fund raise and look for grants to support this work. The steps which follow-on would not be as expensive, as we are considering solar panels and changing from gas boilers to an air source heat pump (ASHP). Installing insulation will reduce the energy consumption, solar panels can provide an income stream and will contribute to the running costs of the ASHP. The ASHP delivers the main progress towards Net Zero and solar photo voltaics can be used to achieve the Net Zero target.

We are working with other local bodies, such as Otley 2030, Otley Energy, Otley Town Council, Leeds City Council and the Diocese of Leeds to share benefits and expertise.

What else can we do?

There are some small steps, “quick wins” which can help to reduce the church carbon footprint. Some can be done by volunteers at zero or very little cost. Slightly bigger steps may require professional work.

Already some work has been done by volunteers on cleaning the Parish Room heaters and the ventilation system with its heat recovery unit to improve their efficiency. The heaters are now much more effective and quiet running.

To better understand the heating profile of the church building, we have installed small temperature and relative humidity sensors in the Nave, Chancel, Parish Room and mezzanine. These feature continuous logging and remote monitoring. If you look carefully, you may be able to spot the sensors. The data from the these will be informative, particularly now that colder weather is here and we are using the heating system again.

Additionally, work in the churchyard on the south side has allowed more sunlight into the church and reduced dampness in the walls. You can read more about this in our Churchyard Management page.

Some of these steps towards net zero may seem small, but all help to improve the current efficiency of energy use by, for instance, filling in gaps to reduce draughts and regular maintenance of air circulation, ventilation and heating systems, windows, gutters and Churchyard.