MOST of us want to do our bit to prevent climate change but sometimes it is hard to know where to start and how to make a difference. Climate Action Stokesley and Villages (CASaV) is a friendly group which aims to enable individuals and organisations in the area to tackle climate change by acting locally while thinking globally. This includes local activities such as tree planting and working with other groups across the region on the best routes to net zero.

One of areas that CASaV focuses on is waste in all its forms. Reducing carbon dioxide emissions may be the first thing you think about climate change, but waste of energy and waste of materials result in huge unnecessary releases of carbon dioxide. So anything we can do to stop wasting resources will help reduce our carbon dioxide emissions. One of the most effective ways to do this for long term gain is through reducing the amount of energy needed to keep your home cosy and avoid wasting energy on heating the outside air! Some of this is easy – insulation in the attic, sealing draughty windows, but it can be more complex – insulating your walls and floors, controlling ventilation. However, all these measures result in your house staying warm with less heating, saving you money and reducing carbon dioxide emissions year after year. Our website has information on this.

When we think of waste, we normally think of rubbish. Locally, rubbish typically does not go to landfill anymore, but gets recycled or burnt for energy recovery. Even with recycling and energy recovery, we still want to generate as little waste as possible, as both processes have issues with pollution and carbon dioxide emissions. The waste/resources pyramid shows that the best outcome for an item is for it to be reused for its original purpose.

The waste pyramid

The waste pyramid

Reuse is relatively easy even for small things using eBay/Vinted, Freecycle and charity shops. However, while repairing your car/lawnmower is normal, it is more difficult to find somebody who will repair the smaller items we own from toasters to mobile phones to ripped clothes, yet many of these items can be repaired with some skills and confidence. CASaV is holding its first Repair Café on Saturday, March 26 from 10am to 12pm in Swainby Village Hall. A Repair Café is an event where a local group of people with repair skills get together and advertise that you can bring along your broken items to work with the repairers to get them fixed, for a voluntary donation. Come along if you have something that needs mending or you are a skilled repairer.

Climate Action Stokesley and Villages

Climate Action Stokesley and Villages

Next month's column will focus on food.

Find out more by visiting climateactionstokesleyandvillages.org, joining our mailing list, coming to our next meeting in Stokesley Town Hall on March 15 at 7.30pm and/or following us on Facebook/Instagram. Anyone with feedback, ideas or climate related events to share, can contact climateactionsav@gmail.com.