Wilton Windmill is an excellent example of green energy - driven solely by wind power, this amazing feat of engineering captures the wind in the sails and turns the energy from the vertical sails into the horizontal plane of the millstones where the wheat is ground to make flour.
Wilton Windmill is open every Sunday from 2pm to 5pm for guided tours and refreshments from Easter until the end of September.
With caring for the environment and sustainability being so important, many of our local businesses are going greener too - here's a taste of some of the changes our businesses are making:
At Brail Barn in Great Bedwyn, you will find a ground-source heat pump as well as solar panels and batteries for storage powering your stay.
To support sustainable tourism, Wild Camping Wiltshire encourages travelling by public transport and you can arrive at Bedwyn station and walk or cycle along the Kennet & Avon Canal to get there. They are fully off-grid and so power is provided by solar, loos are compost loos and water is provided from a borehole.
At Honeystreet Mill Farm Shop, they are not only Fairtrade but also source as many local products as possible to reduce food miles.
If you visit The Swan Inn in Wilton, their list of beers and ciders shows you how far they have travelled so you can see how local they are, with an aim to reduce drink miles.
At Equilibrium Clinic & Wiltshire Skin Solutions in Woodborough Yard, they are proud to be running the Environ recycling scheme, which aims to reduce the amount of beauty and skincare containers that end up in landfill sites. Many councils are unable to recycle beauty packaging because it often contains mixed materials and elements that cause contamination but by bringing your empties back to Equilibrium, they can be returned to Environ who pass them to a specialist recycling firm who will then turn them into secondary products. You can take ANY beauty empties to them, not just the brands they sell, and they will send them all off together so you can be sure they’re being recycled properly. However, if you return an empty Environ container, Equilibrium will give you £1 off your next purchase of the same product. The recycling bin is near the reception desk – pop in with your empties when the desk is manned (weekdays 9am-3pm) or when you come for your next appointment. If you’re returning Environ packaging, make sure you speak to someone to receive your credit, but any other brands’ packaging can go into the bin any time.
These are just a small selection of some of the green initiatives our local, independent businesses are doing to help make tourism more sustainable.
