Who is Jim Hume MSP?  
Jim Hume is a born and bred Borderer. He's a sheep farmer in the YarrowValley and runs the family, conservation-minded farm with his two sons.He's married with three children and has a variety of animals includinga dozen peacocks! 

Why is Jim taking part?  
I'm delighted to be one of the participating MSPs in the Friends of theEarth Scotland home energy challenge. I commend FoE on their innovativeand hands on project. It'll be interesting to see the results of myhome energy survey and I look forward to finding out what changes myfamily and I can make over the year to improve our energy efficiency.

"Ourplanet's Sustainability is top of the agenda, we can all do our bit.Often people speak in terms of environmental issues versus economicdevelopment, well, I know the two go hand in hand. If we deplete ourenergy supply, then economic development will grind to a halt.

How is Jim's home at the start?
Jim Hume’s house, an old detached farmhouse near Selkirk. Jim's housecurrently has the potential to produce 21.6 tonnes of carbon dioxideper year, equivalent to 80 kg of carbon dioxide per square metre peryear.

What challenges will Jim face?
Jim's house has an oil-fired boiler (as many rural homes do) for heating
and hot water. Were he to use a ground source heat pump to provide his
heating instead, he could reduce the carbon dioxide emissions from his home
by almost half. Also, if his area was suitable, he may be able to install a
wind turbine that could provide some of the electricity to drive the heat
pump; saving even more carbon dioxide. Another option for heating and hot
water for Jim’s house might be a biomass boiler, which can burn wood. This
could reduce carbon dioxide emissions by just over 70%. There are grants
available to help with the cost of installing micro-renewables such as
these.

• How are the contestants doing?
• Climate-friendly living: how to cut your own emissions