Swanley Heritage No 14 - Renewable, Sustainable or Green Energies - No 1 (Update 1- 15 December 2011)

Swanley's heritage of renewable or green energies is entering a new era. Hitherto it has been restricted a limitedvand changing pattern.

Pre-history:  In pre-history renewable energy was largely based upon woodfuels from local trees and bushes. Warming the family and cooking food was exclusively by burning timber or using charcoal in open fires on the ground or in simple stone or clay hearths. To the extent that peat and coal were used it might not now be regarded by some as being "green".

Wind energy might have been used to move rafts and boats by sail. Similarly, tidal energy might have been used to travel up and down rivers on the tide. 

Roman Era: The Romans introduced several renewable features to Romano-Britain, including:

• geothermal springs to provide hot water to baths, eg at Bath's spa (but not in the Swanley Hills);
• underfloor warm air heating in the hot rooms and bathrooms of villas, eg Lullingstone Villa;
• aquaducts based on water movement under gravity's influence (perhaps not in the Swanley Hills);
• renewable sources energy for carts and wagons, ie drawn by horses.

Anglo-Saxon / Norman Eras: 
Watermills: William I's  Domesday Book mentions mills at or near Crayford - it has been suggested that these were likely to have been watemills (rather than windmills) - using perhaps the waters of the River Cray.

Later Periods:
Windmills: The Swanley Hills have lent themselves to windmills. Two old mills are known to remain standing and the sites of another has been identified on an old map of Dartford. Examples of windmills include:

• Meopham Windmill at in the village at Meopham Green;
• West Kingsdown Windmill south east of the village, just 150m or so off the A20;
• windmill sites located on a) a map of Dartford - very approximately near the round-about above the M25 and Princes Road, and  b) an engraving - near the border of Crayford and Bexleyheath (Crayford area);
• Cobham, Edenbridge, Frindsbury, Higham, Sheerness, and Shorne have remnants of windmills.
• See http://www.windmillworld.com/uk/kent.htm

Wind Turbines and other Energy Initiatives:  Swanley is slowly developing a new green energy heritage to meet the rigours of the world's climate change. The following are examples:

• Orchard Academy in St Mary's Road has a wind turbine producing electricity for its own needs and the national grid;
• several of the Swanley Town Council's (STC) buildings have or will have solar panels arrays for generating electricity;
• several of STC's vehicles are powered by recycled cooking oils;
• several private residents have installed solar panels but the numbers or the rate of growth is unknown;
• one new estate house has solar panels and other "green" features;
• (I suppose) all new houses built from now will graduate as relatively carbon-neutral under curent government policies;
• the Premier Inn and Beefeaters (Bull Inn of former times)  is built to a higt "green" standard.

Swanley, like other towns and settlements, is doing its bit to meet the challenge of the new energy heritage. (Will it be enough?)