Surya, the UK’s first eco-friendly, energy generating nightclub with water-less urinals, a wind turbine, and solar panels, launched in Islington last night, with a pledge to donate any surplus energy to surrounding homes.
The dance floor, which is made from wooden floorboards, has a layer of crystals underneath which generate a current of electricity whenever they’re danced on. This ‘piezoelectricity’ then supplies up to 60 per cent of the club’s energy.
Surya is also decorated entirely with recycled materials, including a sofa made out of a bath, with seat covers made of hemp. The toilets flush with rainwater and the urinals with compressed air. The bar is big on selling organic wines and bio-beer
The club is the brainchild of Andrew Charalambous (or Dr. Earth as he likes to be called), the quirky former MP and head of eco-group Club4Climate, who has injected £1m of his own cash into the venue.
The launch party last night was attended by an array of celebrities, including former Big Brother contestant Nikki Graham and ex-Sugababe Mutya Buena. Jade Jagger, an ambassador of the project, was also on hand to provide some energetic music with a lively DJ set.
Charalambous also plans to open the Club4Climate island at an as yet undisclosed location in 2010, where it`s claimed holiday makers can save the planet by sunbathing.