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A biomass boiler, fuelled by local wood chips, provides heating and hot water for 27 homes, a barn, a community hall and kindergarten, a sculpture studio and pottery room. The final buildings were connected to the boiler this month following a year's installation period.

The wood chips are harvested from local woodland and sawmill on the Balcombe Estate. Using the new fuel will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 200 tonnes each year and cut total fuel costs from around £30,000 to just over £10,000.

The £400,000 project was funded by EDF Energy's Green Fund, the High Weald Sustainable Development Fund, SEEDA, a Bio Energy Capital grant and the Community Renewables Scheme through the Energy Centre for Sustainable Communities.

The day's event included the Hoathly Hill kindergarten children and their parents providing lunch and some music, before Mr Soames cut the ribbon to the boiler room, declaring the installation officially open.

Marion Briggs, who co-ordinated the project on behalf of the community, said:
"I feel something between relief and sadness now the project is complete. The people involved have almost become part of the community and we will be sorry to see them go.

"It has gone remarkably well and is quite an achievement. We have all gone through a big transition during this project. It has pushed us into considering generating our own electricity on the site as a next step and we are going to go plastic bag-free."

Peter Hofman, EDF Energy's Director Sustainable Future, said:
"This is one of the first communities on this scale in Sussex to switch entirely to a biomass boiler heating system. The scale of the project has sparked interest from developers working towards carbon reduction standards in new buildings. The project also showcases the potential to modernise existing housing stock, as opposed to new-build, to create a low carbon lifestyle."

EDF Energy has awarded £3 million to nearly 170 renewable energy projects since the Green Fund was launched in 2001. Its purpose is to showcase renewable energy projects which produce power from the sun, wind, water and geothermal sources that reduce the greenhouse gases linked to global warming.

Awards of up to £30,000 are available for projects in England, Scotland and Wales and such funds have helped schools, charities, local authorities, churches, water mills and other non-profit organisations to generate clean, green energy in their own community. Larger grants of up to £50,000 were available previously for more exceptional schemes.

EDF Energy has supported the installation of a wide range of technologies, including wind turbines and solar panels, along with less well-established technologies such as biomass boilers, ground source heat pumps and micro hydropower generators.

The awards are provided by EDF Energy in partnership with customers who choose renewable energy for their home through its Green Tariff. This tariff gives consumers an active choice in driving demand for renewable energy as EDF Energy purchases renewable energy to the value of their consumption. Customers who join the tariff pay an extra 0.4p per unit of electricity they use, which is less than £15 a year for the average household. This money is matched pound for pound by EDF Energy to provide the grants awarded by the Green Fund.