Wales launches new resource efficiency advice service

Wales’s Natural Resources Minister Carl Sargeant has officially launched Resource Efficient Wales, a new service to provide individuals and businesses with ‘information, advice and help’ on reducing waste arisings, and energy and water use.  

The service has been launched after the government found that using resources more sustainably would help save money, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by three per cent a year, and achieve ‘at least a 40 per cent reduction in greenhouse gases by 2020’.

It seeks to fulfil the commitment in the Welsh Government’s Programme for 2011 for more support for efficiency measures that are better integrated with, and built on, existing service provision across the Welsh Government.

Service details

Set up as a ‘single point of contact for support on using resources (energy, materials and water) more efficiently’, the service lists details of all the Welsh Government’s programmes for improving resource efficiency (such as the Collaborative Change Programme, which seeks to help local authorities achieve the outcomes of the government’s waste strategy) as well as a range of wider, non-governmental programmes.

Users can also call the service for information and guidance on resource efficiency measures. Once received, the call handler will explain the services that are available, find the ‘most appropriate solution’ for the issue, and provide contact details of a relevant service provider. The handler will later follow up with the user to assess the outcome.

Speaking of the launch of Resource Efficient Wales, Sargeant said: “I want people to be reassured that if they phone the Resource Efficient Wales service, they will get help they can trust from the Welsh Government, such as information on what we fund, and on the questions to ask in order to make an informed decision. 

“However, Resource Efficient Wales will offer much more; it will draw on the expertise of 73 organisations to provide professional advice and support to householders, communities, businesses, third-sector organisations and public sector bodies on all aspects of resource efficiency, including renewable energy generation.” 

Resource Effficient Wales emulates Resource Efficient Scotland, a similar service launched in Scotland last year that aims to ‘save billions and protect [the] environment’.

Watch a brief video about the new service below, or visit the Resource Efficient Wales website.