Utility Week

Community Well grounded ideas There's too much doom and gloom in the world these days, what with Trump gas- sing migrants on the Mexican border and Theresa May being flayed daily in the Commons. It's not edifying. So Disconnector has decided to start injecting a little cheer into readers' lives in the run-up to Christmas by bringing some feel-good stories to the fore. First up is a project to bring some much-needed sanitation to parts of the world desper- ately in need of toilet facilities – and some renewable energy into the bargain. A group called Spark – which describes itself on its website as an international "team of designers and think- ers working in the disciplines of architecture, urbanism, interior design, landscape design, research and branding" has come up with the concept of the Big Arse toilet. This is chiefly because the above- ground bit looks like some- one's backside. It's a bold concept, and one that ticks all the buzzword boxes. The idea is to have a mass-producible 3D-printed toilet with a biogas dome underneath that can take human waste and convert it into gas to feed a mini-CHP plant overhead, thus providing sanitation and free renewable energy. The whole thing will use locally available bamboo fibres rather than plastic (more sustainable) and can be assembled by drones, so it can be deployed in environments otherwise impossible to reach. The whole Big Arse concept is being brought to the world's attention under the catchy slo- gan "Spark gives a sh*t". Well, you'd expect no less from an organisation that lists branding as one of its key skills. Unfortunately, one of the skills Spark doesn't possess is engineering, so there's no actual prototype to speak of. Perhaps this is one to list under "concepts". The only way is up A story of less global signifi- cance – but real and measur- able success – was the news that Jamie the hamster had been rescued from a water pipe by the RSPCA by means of a specially fashioned wire mesh ladder. The drama took place in Bridgwater, Somerset, where the hamster was being looked aer by a friend of the owner and escaped down a 4in water pipe with a 3 vertical drop. The householder managed to keep the critter alive by dropping food down the pipe (they could hear it eating) and dropped a thin rope down the pipe for it to climb out, but to no avail. Enter RSPCA animal welfare officer Alison Sparkes, who made a miniature wire ladder and dropped it down the pipe. "That evening he emerged. Very thirsty, but okay," she said. No photograph of Jamie was available at the time of going to press, so Utility Week has commissioned a no-expense-spared mock-up of what the hamster might have looked like. But this is the actual ladder. Disconnector Publishing director, Utilities: Ellen Bennett, t: 01342 332084, e: ellenbennett@fav-house.com; Acting editor: Suzanne Heneghan, t: 01342 332106, e: suzanneheneghan@fav-house.com Acting content director: Denise Chevin, 01342 332087, denisechevin@fav-house.com; Deputy editor: Jane Gray (maternity leave); Features editor: Lois Vallely, t: 01342 332080, e: loisvallely@fav-house.com; News editor: Katey Pigden, t: 01342 332082, e: kateypigden@ fav-house.com; Energy correspondent: Tom Grimwood, t: 01342 332061, e: tomgrimwood@ fav-house.com; Policy correspondent: David Blackman, e: davidblackman@fav-house.com; Reporter: Adam John, t: 01342 332069, e: adamjohn@fav-house.com; Production editor: Paul Newton, t: 01342 332085, e: paulnewton@fav-house.com; Business development manager: Ben Hammond, e: benhammond@fav-house.com. t: 01342 332116; Business development executive: Sarah Wood, e: sarahwood@ fav-house.com. t: 01342 332117 Conference sponsorship manager: Sophie Abbott, t: 01342 332062, e: sophieabbott@ fav-house.com; General enquiries: 01342 332000; Membership enquiries: Peter Bissell, t: 01342 332057, e: peterbissell@fav-house.com. ISSN: 1356-5532. Registered as a newspaper at the Post Office. 2,500 Average circulation Jan–Dec 2017 Membership subscriptions: UK £769+VAT per year. Overseas £781 per year. Contact Peter Bissell on: 01342 332057 Utility Week is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (which regulates the UK's magazine and newspaper industry). We abide by the Editors' Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think that we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint please contact the publishing director, Ellen Bennett, at ellenbennett@fav-house.com. If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you would like more information about IPSO or the Editors' Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk UTILITY WEEK | 30TH NOVEMBER - 6TH DECEMBER 2018 | 31 William Marchant @richonlyinname It looks like we now have at least two suppliers offering pay for a year of energy in advance tariffs. The implications of that kind of model if suppliers go under is alarming. Individual customers might have credit balances in the thousands. Safety net wasn't designed for that. Jeremy Gordon @jrmygrdn Great weekend: * Poland to replace coal with nuclear, about the best thing you can do to stop climate change. * Taiwanese people vote to keep their 20% nuclear going. Both just before COP, as if we have collectively realised we do not have time to mess around any more. Rebecca Long-Bailey @Rlong_Bailey Great to see the world's first Energy House @SalfordUni on @BBCBreakfast this morning. The house allows scientists to test the impact different climates have on a standard terraced home, so to identify what improvements can save energy in the future. Phil Graham @mrphilgraham Happy birthday CCC! If @NatInfraCom can look back at the end of a decade and see as much to be proud of as @theCCCuk then we will have done pretty well. Hope the celebrations are fun and the next ten years just as groundbreaking as the last! Adam Boorman @AdamBoorman Sobering realities in the NAO smart report - but ones which will surprise no one involved in the rollout - question is one will this give BEIS/Ofgem an excuse to break their bunker mentality over the rollout and start to make changes? Duncan Carter @Duncan_E_Carter In shocking news to absolutely no one involved with #smartmeters the NAO reveals not everyone in Britain will have a smart meter by the end of 2020. Ofgem know suppliers have only committed to 70-75% completion. It's time for some realism. Top Tweets Not actual hamster

• Cover