Manchester City's Carlos Tevez has "signed for the greens", according to the Daily Star following his move into "the country's most environmentally friendly superhome".

A claim in the article that this makes him "probably the greenest footballer in the country" overlooks  David James' long-standing interest in carbon reduction. But news of his enthusiasm, and that he has been telling all his new team-mates about it, can only be good.

The house is heated by an underfloor system with a ground source heat pump. The developer claims that this cuts fossil fuel use by up to 75% (although doesn't specify what he's measuring against).

It is also fitted with a state-of-the-art ventilation system that guarantees high-quality fresh air at all times, and water consumption is reduced by a rainwater harvesting system for all toilet cisterns and garden irrigation.

But of course, reducing energy use is as much about how you use the house as by how many gadgets you put into it. The fact that the house is a huge 8,000sq feet, has five reception rooms, five bedroom suites and "a stunning leisure suite complete with 12 metre swimming pool, gym, cinema, custom-built wine cellar – and even a wine tasting area" makes me think that Tevez' personal carbon footprint is still going to be somewhat bigger than the average citizen's.

So while it's good news that he's demonstrating that overpaid footballers can tread less heavily on the planet (and let's hope others follow suit) it's probably not propelled him to green god status.

Photo by dullhunk

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