Sustainability at SHARP: The first step
At the end of November a small number of team members were busy onsite. Despite the cold, short daylight hours, and a very damp day, we jam packed the visit with several meetings with different groups and individuals involved with the works to make SHARP sustainable. It all begins to feel very real, and the team is more than a little excited.
The first visitor to the site was probably the most important visit, Simon from SAEnergy. He is going to be working with us to set up a solar array and system that will hopefully mean we will no longer have to rely on a generator. So no more noise or fumes, just a much more environmentally friendly and greener SHARP. We are getting a system that should provide all the power we need for site, kitchen, cabins and vital pieces of equipment, and there will be enough power to charge everyone's phones! We also plan to install a public Wi-Fi on site, that will be open to team and volunteers.
To make this work we will need to construct a frame for the panels and so that we don't lose the space on the field, we are going to combine this with a brand-new Environmental Cabin, with dedicated drying area and more desk space for volunteers. We also hope to bring the rest of the environmental wet sieving equipment closer. Old Enviro will then be kitted out to become our new paper archive and research space, which will be better placed to be used in and out of season (especially when working on the main archive). This will free up space in the information hut so that it can be set up as a full-time museum space.
The next visits all related to the work to provide us with our own onsite toilets and showers. Our preferred location would be just inside the woods, opposite the other cabins. We are hoping to take advantage of the archaeology carried out here by using the partially backfilled trench for the composting bins which we hope, will allow us to lower the toilet block closer to ground level to ensure that it is more accessible. During the visit we welcomed the local company doing the groundworks, portable spaces who are providing the containers, and the Estate team who including someone to look at the trees. The toilet block will have 4 compostable toilets with a sink each and one designed for disabled access. The visit also allowed the team to discuss where and how we would get power and water to the site, and other aspects of the build.
The aim is to have the solar array and, if we are lucky, the toilet block at least partially functioning for the upcoming 2025 season. We do have contingency plans in case any last minute complications get in our way. The shower block will be in place but will not be ready for this season so our goal is for this to be ready for 2026.
There will be more site visits and work sessions from early spring to the summer season so we will keep you updated with progress as it happens. Much of the work will be carried out by the SHARP team on a voluntary basis so if there are volunteers who would like to help us with this project, please do let us know and we can let you know as we start to set dates. We would particularly appreciate any offers of help from carpenters, plumbers, and other tradespersons but there will be a huge range of jobs including gardening, digging holes, moving and building furniture, holding ladders etc. so any volunteers who are interested would be more than welcome.
If you haven’t yet donated to our fundraiser please do consider a donation to us, as every little bit really does help and will mean we can ensure that the build is the best quality we can afford.
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