The UK’s only dedicated green directory and comparison website
EcoSwitch is the UK’s newest comparison website, comparing products by not only price, but also environmental and ethical criteria. The site also offers numerous resources for consumers such as a Directory where businesses can highlight their environmental initiatives, together with news, articles and review items for those that want to keep abreast of what is happening in the environmental space.
The site is for the majority of us who are in fact ethical consumers – for those that believe price is a key factor, but who also want to compare products and services that tick the environmental and/or ethical boxes. Lets face it, the majority of us want to ‘do our bit’ but we don’t want to pay any more and ideally want it cheaper, particularly in tough economic times.
How do EcoSwitch compare products & services?
1. Price – always the principal driver, you can sort products by price as usual.
2. Environment – in the energy sector, for example, we highlight all of the energy suppliers 100% Renewable Tariffs and you can then choose which company you want to go with from a price and/or environmental angle. Shortly, we will also be uploading products in other categories that are Fairtrade, Organic Soil Association or Energy Saving Trust certified.
3. Ethical – if you are looking for an ethical banking product or an ethical holiday for example, we will highlight the most ethical option and explain why. Many of us feel it is difficult to travel around the world but lets face it, we all like holidays. So if you are going to be going on holiday anyway and the planes are going to be flying anyway, you might as well choose a hotel or B&B that has a proper ‘green policy’. Some of the nicest places to visit are actually those in harmony with our environment – unspoilt with nature kept intact. We have already visited many of these and endorse them based upon a unique set of criteria found within the travel section which will shortly be live.
What sectors are EcoSwitch tackling first and why?
Many of us blame the aviation sector and transport sector for pollution, but the truth is they only account for 12% and 18% of all pollution respectively. In comparison, electricity generation for our homes in the UK is responsible for 35% of all pollution – more than aviation and cars combined! We are therefore tackling the largest environmental problem first – our choice of energy tariff/supplier and then we will move onto comparing cars and those that save the most money from a road tax and fuel consumption point of view.
Other sections will then be launched including Ethical Travel, Ethical Banking/Finance, A rated appliances and electronics, Carbon Offsetting through tree planting schemes etc.
But I am already doing my bit. I recycle, have insulation and my south facing roof is getting solar panels
Many of us feel we are doing our bit recycling or installing solar panels. Whilst this is good, recycling only scratches the surface and many of us can’t afford solar panels. Even with solar panels, they don’t work in the evening when we are at home consuming lots of electricity, so it makes it necessary to choose a 100% renewable tariff from one of the suppliers so that you continue to get renewable energy at night time – from hydro, wind or wherever you choose to get it from. We highlight the best suppliers in the green energy section of the site www.ecoswitch.com/greenenergy/
Just input your postal code to see who comes up in your area. We show you what each supplier in the energy sector is known for and where their energy comes from. We also show the prices so you can decide.
You can even apply online on EcoSwitch – in fact we’ll do all the work for you. Just fill in the form and you’ll be online in 28 days. Make it a New Year’s resolution to cut your home pollution by 35% and the majority will save money too in doing so.
But isn’t it just one national grid – how can the energy coming into my home be guaranteed to be 100% renewable
The supplier you pay your money to will guarantee to feed into the National Grid the equivalent amount of kWh of 100% Renewable Energy that you have consumed in kWh on your bill in a quarter. With your billing money, the supplier can afford to create more sources of renewable generation and effectively green up the grid. Without your money, they can’t afford to support more ‘green’ generators.
Is nuclear the answer and should I support it?
Although nuclear is an important part of the energy mix (without it our lights would go out) there are problems associated with this technology:
1. The CO2 emitted mining Uranium and the damage to the landscape afterwards.
2. Transporting the Uranium from New Zealand and Canada to Europe – CO2 emissions.
3. The CO2 emitted in the cement production process – nuclear power stations use vast amounts of cement as they go several stories down into the earth and require thick walls to prevent the emission of radiation.
4. The hidden cost of storage of radioactive material for 1000 years until it enters a reasonably safe state.
5. The cost of clean up if it does go wrong – Germany are so worried about what happened in Japan that they are stopping all nuclear generation. There have even been leaks at Sellafield and obviously Chernobyl in Russia was an example of the real consequences of a nuclear accident.
6. At EcoSwitch we believe that nuclear is part of the solution otherwise the lights will go out, but if possible, we need to support generation in this order – solar, hydro, wind, nuclear, gas/oil and coal.
7. Clearly, burning coal isn’t something we should support with our bills because it is dirty and pumps CO2 directly into the atmosphere. There is more CO2 emitted from coal burning than in the mining and transport of Uranium and the building of Nuclear Power stations.
Finite resources versus infinite resources
Whereas environmentally friendly and ethical products/services used to cost a lot more, with fossil fuel prices rocketing, it is often cheaper going with a product powered by nature – after all, whilst fossil fuels are finite, erratic in price and require huge amounts of energy to extract from the earth’s crust, there will always be daylight in the day for solar generation, the wind will always be blowing somewhere and a river will always be running elsewhere – day and night.
To us, it just makes sense to take advantage of infinite resources which are natural and easily harnessed. There may be criticisms about certain renewable technologies such as wind turbines which are deemed to spoil the landscape or be an inefficient method of generation. If you don’t like wind, then go with a supplier that gets a lot of their energy from solar or hydro- the latter are clean technologies and don’t leave the legacy that nuclear or fossil fuels do.
People say that the Renewable Energy industry is heavily subsidised. What they don’t realise is that the oil and gas industry receives much more in the way of subsidies. The government have also slashed the Feed in Tariff by approximately 50% so the solar industry definitely needs each consumer’s support so that we reduce our dependence upon fossil Fuels.
But what if I believe mankind isn’t accelerating climate change
We are all a bit bored with hearing the words ‘Climate Change’ and ‘Global Warming’ in the press because it makes us feel guilty of something and there is nothing worse than having some preachy person on their high horse ranting on about some green agenda.
Our philosophy is simple – regardless of whether mankind is or isn’t accelerating Climate Change (many argue changes in temperature have been seen throughout history), we know for a fact that fossil fuels are finite (there are only so many easily extractable on planet earth) and we therefore have a responsibility to manage those finite resources wisely. In other words, we need to reduce consumption and dependence upon these costly resources and increase our dependence upon infinite resources such as hydro, solar and wind.
How can I make a difference today?
1. Log onto www.ecoswitch.com/greenenergy/ and find a tariff/supplier that suits you.
2. Cut your Home Emissions by 35%
3. Wait for us to launch other sections – e.g. green cars. If you opt for an electric or hybrid car in the future (e.g. the Toyota Prius), at least you’ll have a 100% renewable electricity supply. After all, an electric car is only as green as the electricity you put into it.
4. When you go travelling, choose a green hotel, B&B or ecolodge or ecocamp. We’ll be posting this exciting section shortly. Watch this space.
5. If you aren’t sure about anything, ask us a question.
6. We plant two trees when you switch – enough to absorb 2 tons of CO2 in their lifetime. For information, we each emit 9.5 tons of CO2 in the UK per yearf
7. If you aren’t sure about anything, ask us a question.
8. We plant two trees when you switch – enough to absorb 2 tons of CO2 in their lifetime. For information, we each emit 9.5 tons of CO2 in the UK per year.
Does EcoSwitch walk the talk?
We try to practice what we believe.
Each and every one of us at EcoSwitch tries to be as environmentally conscious as possible.
Whilst it may not work for every organisation, all of our team are recruited locally and are therefore able to travel to work using either muscle power (two legs or wheels) or public transport. We live and breathe sustainability as we work to green up Britain, and we invite you to participate where possible.
