LETTER: Preston Library: Brent Council Demolishes and Residents Pay

 Dear Editor,

Brent Council’s real climate change policy was evident last month when the Council justified the demolition of Preston Library by saying ‘the current building is considered inadequate in terms of energy use’.

 

(Kilburn Times 7^th December 2021 - https://www.kilburntimes.co.uk/news/local-council/wembley-anger-as-council-begins-preston-library-demolition-8546130)

 

Days later residents received an email from the Council promoting its ‘Green Grants to help fight Climate Change’ and asking for applications for ‘energy efficiency improvements’. See Pot 1 at https://www.brent.gov.uk/your-community/climate-emergency/carbon-offset-fund/

 

Thus a few days after tearing down a perfectly good building and unnecessarily pumping 600 tonnes of Carbon into the world – the Council asks residents to insulate their homes and invest in low carbon heating – ‘to make a real difference locally to tackle the climate crisis’?

 

Where residents’ homes are ‘inadequate in energy use’ residents must apply for grants and use personal funds to top up the cost of the measures needed to save the planet. When Brent has a building that is ‘inadequate in energy use’ - it is demolished helping to destroy our climate.

 

In 2012 – some time before Brent Council realised there was a climate emergency - SKPPRA (South Kenton Preston Park Residents Association) completed a pilot project on energy and carbon savings in our 1930s solid wall houses.

 

These are ‘entirely inadequate in energy use’ as there is no cavity to insulate but surprisingly no-one suggested demolition as residents do not have the funds available to Brent to demolish perfectly good buildings.

 

In 2012 all residents in SKPPRA were able to participate, and two houses were chosen at random to have the work done to their house at no cost to the occupants. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) provided the funding through the Local Energy Assessment Fund (LEAF) and monitored the outcome for savings in energy consumption and carbon emissions.

 

Typical SKPPRA 1930s Semi - All external walls were insulated in LEAF 2012 scheme

 

In 2012 the project cost twice as much as Brent Council are now offering homeowners in a maximum grant through the Council’s Carbon Offset Fund. Any resident who applies will therefore need significant personal funds to reach the energy and carbon savings of the SKPPRA 2012 LEAF project.

 

If 480 homes are improved under Brent’s scheme residents will have to invest £4.8m of personal funds to deliver the performance of the SKPPRA 2012 pilot - just to offset the avoidable climate abuse and carbon emissions caused by the Preston Library development.

 

Quite a transfer of cost and resources from the climate abuser to the residents of Brent.

 

The destruction of the Preston Library building was not just the loss of a cherished community resource - it helped to destroy the planet.

 

Happy New Year?

 

SKPPRA – South Kenton Preston Park Residents Association