King Charles turns down heating of Buckingham Palace's pool in bid to conserve energy

The United Kingdom's King Charles has set out to cut costs and save energy less than a month after being coronated in a lavish ceremony worth millions. His latest target is Buckingham Palace's grand swimming pool, where royal swimmers have noticed a steep drop in temperature. 

"A few people using the pool have noticed that the temperature has dropped. They have been told the King has had the heating turned down," a source told the Sunday Times. The King has reportedly turned down the thermostat of the pool, possibly because he believes it "is environmentally unsound". "It doesn't fit with his exercise regime or his worldview," the unnamed source said. 

All you need to know about the royal pool

The Buckingham Palace pool was commissioned way back in 1938 by George VI for Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret, according to the source. From King Charles to his sons Princes William and Harry, several men of the royalty have taken their swimming lessons at the pool.

It was also frequently used by his former wife, Princess Diana. The pool comes with its own set of royal protocols that urge members of the royal household to check beforehand if the space is being used by a member of the royal family in order to avoid an awkward encounter. 

While the move may come as a surprise for some, the King has been an environmentalist all his life, even though the utility bill for the royal palaces was a whopping £ 3.2 million last year. He has also been eager to reach the net zero emissions target in the royal household way before the government aims to do it by 2050. In a bid to achieve this, the monarch has already installed solar panels on the rooftop of Clarence House, his London residence. The panels have also been installed at Highgrove, his country estate in Gloucestershire.