Introduction Ashton Hayes is aiming to become England’s first carbon neutral village. Carbon neutrality will be achieved when sources of carbon dioxide from the village are balanced by activities that absorb carbon dioxide (i.e. when sources of carbon dioxide are balanced by sinks of carbon dioxide). The University of Chester has a five year commitment to the project, dedicating resources and students in order to carry out the annual baseline survey. Methods Baseline Survey A preliminary survey was conducted in order to determine the total number, and type, of homes within the village. The baseline survey was then carried out by students beginning on May 8 th. The survey asked questions about the home, home energy use, travel and transport and also some more general questions. The questions were asked in order to be able to calculate the carbon dioxide outputs from a household, and also to gather information on a households energy efficiency. Initially all surveys were carried out door-to-door, but due to many people being out during the day surveys were posted through doors. Land cover Survey The land use of the parish was classified into three categories; arable, grassland and broadleaf woodland. Hedgerow Survey A hedgerow survey carried out by the Women’s Institute in the village in 1977 was repeated. Species within 30 feet sections of the hedgerows were recorded. Calculation of carbon footprint The carbon footprint of each household was calculated using the answers from the surveys. The carbon footprint of the village was then determined using information on the total number, and type, of houses as well as the average carbon footprint for each house type. Results Figure 4: Frequency of car usage. Over 75% of the households use their car on a daily basis (figure 3). It was also found that two occupants per household with two cars was the most frequent occurrence. Improvement of public transport was expressed as the most important issue for the residents in the village. This suggests that car usage might decrease if public transport services were improved. Ashton Hayes Going Carbon Neutral Figure 1: Percentage of respondents for each house type. Overall, 40% coverage of the village was obtained. Higher response rates were found with the door-to-door surveys rather than the posted ones. There was also a large variation in coverage for the different house types with semi-detached houses having the highest percentage, and end-terraced houses the lowest (figure 1). It was also found that 72% of the village homes are detached, which is likely to increase carbon footprints. Figure 3: Loft insulation of surveyed homes. The majority of homes surveyed did not know the thickness of their loft insulation. Of those who did, 4 inches was the most common (figure 3). The Energy Saving Trust recommend a thickness of 270mm. Figure 4: Carbon footprints of different house types. The anomalously high results (figure 4) are probably due to a few households with a large number of flights. The detached bungalows have a small interquartile range, which may be due to the fact that most of the bungalows are of a similar age. Conversely, the detached houses have the largest interquartile range, which may due due to the wide range of ages of the houses in the village. Figure 2: Age range of the homes. The majority of the homes in the village were built between 1945 and 1974 (figure 2). This may have an impact upon the insulation characteristics of these homes compared to the newer homes. The overall carbon footprint of the village was then calculated by multiplying the average carbon footprint of each house type by the total number of that house type in the village (table 1). Table 1: Average carbon footprint for each house type, and total for the village. House type Average Carbon Footprint Number of Houses in the Village Detached Bungalow Detached House Semi-detached House Semi-detached Bungalow End-terrace House Mid-terrace House Total (tonnes CO 2 / year) The total output for the village was calculated at tonnes CO 2 per year. Between the launch of the project and the survey some residents had already implemented energy saving changes (e.g. installing loft insulation, using the tumble dryer less and more energy saving light bulbs). All of the changes amounted to a saving of tonnes CO 2 / year. The hedgerow and land cover survey were both successfully carried out. Initial analysis of the hedgerow survey indicates that biodiversity has not changed much. The land cover survey will be used to quantify the size of the carbon sink within the parish (i.e. how much carbon dioxide is being absorbed). Comparison of this carbon sink to the carbon source calculated from the village will tell us whether the village is a net emitter or carbon dioxide or not. A large proportion of the surveyed residents said they had become more ‘energy conscious’ since the launch of the project, although many had been so before. Residents were keen to install solar panels, wind turbines and wood stoves, but concern was expressed over the initial costs of these. Almost all recycle on a regular basis. Conclusion Most respondents were very supportive of the project in the village, with most keen to reduce their energy consumption within the home if it was not of any detriment to their current lifestyles. The responses from the survey were also useful in providing individual household feedback on ways to potentially reduce their carbon footprint.