Fraser Hale gives an update on the leaps that the Woodbridge Tide Mill Museum has made towards becoming more environmentally sustainable.
Woodbridge Tide Mill Museum has recently retained its Gold Carbon Charter Award. The Tide Mill is proud of its environmental credentials and works hard to ensure that its use of energy is as efficient and environmentally friendly as possible.
Woodbridge Tide Mill from across the riverWe have reduced our energy consumption by over 30% during the last four years, and 100% of that comes from renewable sources. Now we have plans to go further. Thanks to a generous grant from Suffolk Coast & Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Sustainable Development Fund, the Tide Mill is commencing a project to install a micro-hydrogeneration plant at the Museum. The plant will harvest the energy from the tidal pond that the mill waterwheel cannot access. Connected to an inverter and battery storage facility, this could reduce the Tide Mill’s dependence on the national grid to zero! The early stages of the project will involve detailed engineering design work, the AONB grant will allow the Museum to use the results of this work as a basis for new Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts & Maths (STEAM) educational packages. These packages will be offered to visiting school groups as well as through digital outreach platforms. Through this project the Tide Mill Museum aims to become an exemplar of green energy management as well as an educator of and advocate for environmental responsibility.