How does alternative power fit with Keltica's theme?

Keltica Iron Age Village is a proud promoter of alternative power. Our Visitor Centre will be designed to use a hybrid system power source.

A hybrid system uses both solar array panels and wind power to provide all of our electrical energy needs. The wind generator charges a bank of batteries when the sun isn't shining. This means that as long as the batteries have stored power, we can depend on energy at any time of the day or night.

In Europe, whenever one excavates an iron age settlement, there is evidence that the Celtic people, perhaps more so than the Romans at the most basic level, were in tune with their environment.

Celtic settlements show that woodland management was practiced. We know that charcoal was the fuel for their fires and not big logs. If logs were used, then even the smallest 30 acre village would rapidly deplete it's forests. Charcoal burning was a controlled occupation and it left woodland management for building materials. For example, through woodland management, a tribe could provide hard woods of oak and ash or soft woods like elm, yew or pine as required. An ancient version of going to your local building supplies shop.

They also viewed lakes, rivers and springs as integral to their survival even to the point of giving it supernatural powers. No matter how technological we get, the human body will still rapidly break down and die without clean water.

One aspect of Roman society which never made sense to the Celts was the concept of landownership. The Celts saw themselves as caretakers of the land. The Romans sold land as required, for money.

Therefore, we feel that by using alternative energy, Keltica Iron Age Village is simply confirming that by working with the natural elements, we can still benefit from a standard of life cheaper than if we took on the 'civilized' mindset of paying huge amounts of money for 'man made' electricity which has been generated by flooding valley's.