As part of diversification and reducing our carbon footprint, the Estate has invested in and uses energy generated by roof mounted solar PV.
In the summer of 2014, the Estate installed a district heating network at the Home Farm yard to heat Farleigh House, and neighbouring houses, cottages and commercial premises. Two 200kW wood chip boilers power the system by heating water, which is then pumped into heat exchangers located in each property.
Throughout the year, the Estate uses contractors to convert 120 metres of low grade softwood timber into 290m3 of wood chips. The timber is fed into the boilers from an adjoining converted Dutch barn via augers. The efficiency of the combustion process is such that the resulting ash residue can be removed in just a small bucket once a month. Timber is stacked for drying on the Estate near to where we fell it, a process which takes approximately two years.
The hamlet of Farleigh Wallop is sustainably heated using estate biomass in a carbon neutral way.
Wood for the district heating system comes from the annual thinning programme, which is part of the 20-year Estate woodland plan to enhance biodiversity and produce commercial timber. In addition, some small areas of conifer are clear-felled for replanting with appropriate species.
The Estate is also the landlord to a Biogen operated anaerobic digestion plant, situated on brownfield land that was the site of a former dairy.
The plant takes in food waste that would otherwise be destined for landfill, captures the methane gas emitted by anaerobic digestion of the waste and converts it to electricity via a (combined heat and power) unit. The electricity generated is sold to the National Grid. The by-product of the digestion process, known as digestate, is used as a fertiliser and is spread on arable land on the Estate and other local farms.
Environmental sustainability is important to us, hence the multi-channel of energy we produce and use.
Our solar panels, mainly located across our agricultural buildings, produce around 220,000kWh of electricity per year, which could run approximately 45 homes.
At full capacity, the anaerobic digestion plant produces enough electricity for 1,500 homes.
+44 (0) 1256 321 026
enquiries@wallopgroup.co.uk
