Efforts to cut down on carbon emissions at the town council offices in North Square, Dorchester, may be less ambitious than hoped – because of the costs involved.

The council had proposed linking its office heating system to a bio-mass boiler it operates in the nearby Municipal Buildings.

But the estimated costs of making the connection, of less than 200 metres, has come back at a staggering £40,000, mainly because of the need to dig a path for a pipe between the two buildings.

Other ideas still being considered to make the old, draughty offices more energy efficient include better insulation, a new stand-alone boiler system, low-power lighting, an air source pump and solar panels for the roof area where they will not be seen.

Cllr Les Fry welcomed the ideas, many of which have been suggested by the Low Carbon Dorset advisory group.

"We should be doing all we can to help ourselves, we ought to be investing to save," he said.

Cllr Fry suggested that, at least for part of the year, the town council office electricity bill might be negligible if the authority also invests in a battery system to store excess power it is likely to generate from solar panels.

The Mayor of Dorchester, Cllr Alistair Chisholm, said he approved of the measures to improve energy efficiency and cut down on carbon use, adding: "It is our policy to respond to the climate emergency – it should be done as soon as possible."

The council will also investigate the feasibility of introducing secondary glazing where double glazing is ruled out because of the building's listed status.

The town council had previously planned to move its staff into new offices built to the rear of the Corn Exchange complex, selling the old offices for housing – but has since ruled the idea out, at least temporarily.

The new offices are now being used by staff from Dorchester Arts, which manage the Municipal Building on a day-by-day basis.

Pic – The Dorchester Town Council offices in North Square.