A TOWN'S leisure centre and council offices are being fuelled by green energy.

Chester-le-Street District Council is running the Civic Centre and its leisure centre partly from renewable energy sources, including wind farms and hydro-electricity stations.

The council is a member of the North-East Purchasing Organisation, which has been negotiated the supply of green energy for its members.

By buying 837,000kWh of electricity from renewable sources, the council will have stopped enough carbon dioxide to fill 74 hot air balloons being produced.

Durham County Council and Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Brigade use ten per cent green energy