Willow heat for award winner (From Gazette & Herald)

Willow heat for award winner

A FARMER'S futuristic conversion of traditional stone barns into a business centre, heated by willow grown on his farm, was one of four Yorkshire winners of Britain's top rural architectural awards.

Environment Minister Michael Meacher presented the CLA's Farm and Country Building Awards at a special ceremony staged to co-incide with the harvesting of willow at Gareth Gaunt's Sicklinghall farm, near Wetherby.

Other major winners were a new estate office at Escrick Park, near York, where rainwater is collected and treated for use as drinking water by staff as there is no mains supply; the conversion of derelict and redundant stables into offices at Aske, near Richmond, creating up to 100 new jobs; and a sensitively-built new development to extend the Bolton Abbey estate offices.

Mr Gaunt, owner of the Carlshead Business Office Complex, is a farmer and vice-chairman of the Renewable Energy Growers' Group.

The heating system for the offices and two farmhouses cost around £25,000. The special 150kW boiler uses 100-120 tonnes of willow woodchips (known as billets) a year. It is fed from a hopper that has to be refilled weekly.

Future plans include the on-farm production and sale of 'green' electricity.

Updated: 09:53 Wednesday, February 26, 2003