Living on Britain’s inland waterways is becoming increasingly popular for the freedom and sustainable lifestyle it offers – but the humble narrowboat could also pave the way for greener shipping. Jimmy Lee Shreeve reports.

“Living this way forces you to be environmentally conscious,” says Bruce Napier who, with his wife Sheila, has lived on a narrowboat since 2004. “We don’t leave taps running, washing up is done in the minimum of water, the washing machine is always filled before running, and we never leave lights on.”

Bruce and Sheila, both of whom are now retired, had taken boating holidays since the Seventies. But after a six-year spell of shared ownership of a boat, they decided to sell their house and invest £80,000 in their own 60-foot narrowboat.

They called it “Sanity”, which is something of an in-joke as Bruce used to be a clinical psychologist. The two now chronicle their travels on Britain’s inland waterways on a blog called Living in Sanity.

The Napiers are not alone. Growing numbers of people are opting to live on narrowboats, which brings a simpler, more natural way of life. Currently, there are around 15,000 “liveaboards”, as they are known – a community the size of a small town.

Living on a narrowboat has an almost Zen-like minimalism about it – and this is where the inherent eco-friendliness comes in. As Bruce puts it: “You have to think about the ordinary tasks of daily living. You can’t take water, power, washing [body and clothing] or even toilet arrangements for granted.”

Nick Corble, a waterways enthusiast, who co-authored “Living Aboard” with Allan Ford, echoes this point: “When you’re a liveaboard, the first thing you have to recognise is that your home is literally your mother ship – your life support mechanism.

Everything you need to stay alive and be comfortable is on the boat. So you need to know how much electricity you’ve got – you can’t just plug something in and expect it to work. You also have to know how much fuel, gas, wood and water you’ve got on board.”

All this brings into stark view the sheer dirtiness of burning fossil fuels.

“Unlike driving a car, when you live on a narrowboat you can’t help but be aware of the smell and smoke that diesel produces,” says Corble.

“This is why many boaters look to give something back to nature – perhaps by filling up with biofuel that’s been made from used chip fat.”

The Napiers haven’t moved to biofuels yet, simply because the availability is still patchy, and so fill up with standard red diesel.

But despite burning around 1,700 litres a year, their carbon footprint remains negligible compared to the average home-owner and car driver.

Full Story: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/greenerliving/3526321/
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