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Hostel has wool inside and sheep outside

Posted: 09/12/2008

YHA Eskdale, part of the national Youth Hostels Association network, has had a green makeover. As part of the energy efficiency work the YHA has installed sheep's wool insulation, which will help reduce the building's carbon footprint and enable visitors to be educated on green issues.

Situated in the picturesque Eskdale valley on the slopes of Scafell, Eskdale YHA is a 49 bedded youth hostel which specialises in accommodation for schools, families, walkers and cyclists. The centre receives over 7,000 visitors every year.

Thermafleece, a form of insulation made from British sheep’s wool, and supplied by 'Second Nature' has been installed throughout the centre’s loft spaces. The installation has been funded by the YHA’s ‘Go Green’ Fund, an initiative established by YHA members in order to support green programmes and schemes.

Thanks to the insulating properties of the thick woollen blanket and the other green technologies used at Eskdale, the hostel is well on the way to becoming a ‘Green Beacon’ centre. This means the building reaches particularly high standards in terms of environmental performance and will be used to demonstrate best practice to other sites in the YHA network.

Mick Blamires from Eskdale YHA commented: “Thermafleece appealed to us on several levels. Being BBA accredited and EST recommended, we were in no doubt of its technical pedigree and calculated that its installation would help us to significantly reduce our energy consumption rates.

“The fact that the insulation is made from sustainable sources of sheep’s wool also meant that we could build its use into our educational programme – particularly as we are surrounded by sheep. Perfect!”

Eskdale has also installed other energy saving features including low energy bulbs and a wood chip biomass heating system, and is currently looking into the feasibility of a hydro-electric plant ‘fuelled’ by a nearby fast flowing stream.

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