Grants Available for “Greening up” Tourism Businesses in Carmarthenshire

A new £1.59 million grant scheme being run by Carmarthenshire County Council’s Physical Regeneration section is offering grants of up to £10,000 to tourism businesses to help make their facilities more environmentally friendly.

The “greener tourism” grant scheme, which offers funding up to 80 per cent of total project costs, is open to micro-enterprises involved in the tourism sector in rural Carmarthenshire. The aim of the initiative is to encourage tourism facilities to improve their green credentials and achieve energy savings through the installation of “green” systems such as solar panels, waste management measures or nature trails with interpretation, for example.

The project has received funding through the Rural Development Plan for Wales 2007 – 13 which is funded by the Welsh Government and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development.

Executive Board Member for Regeneration & Leisure, Cllr. Meryl Gravell, said “The Greener Tourism grant scheme will help us to put the county on the map as a quality “green” destination by funding environmentally friendly projects in the important tourism businesses in the county which make up the backbone of Carmarthenshire’s tourist industry.”

Applications are being invited now and anyone interested should contact Denise Harries on (01267) 242396/ DHarries@carmarthenshire.gov.uk.