: Monique, a Leaf fan, originate this plumb earnestly to believe. Now, let me core out that this was in no way an crack to articulate [...]
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Urban paradise: ‘A place for everything’ by Justin Coombes
All residents of proposed new eco-towns should have access to land where they can grow their own food, according to new guidance drawn up by the Town and Country Planning Association (TCPA).
The guidance, just published in the TCPA’s latest worksheet ‘The essential role of green infrastructure’, makes [...]
An online simulation game has been launched to help families understand the risk of flooding, and the policy decisions needed to make sure the UK is protected against floods.
Floodsim.com, developed by London-based computer game company PlayGen, puts the player in charge of all flood policy decisions.
In the game, floods hit the UK each year, and [...]
The East of England Regional Assembly has voiced concern over proposals for four eco-towns in the region, involving nearly 50,000 new houses. The body is worried that the planning system will be bypassed and that the schemes themselves are unsustainable.
Responding to the eco-towns public consultation, the Assembly raised concerns that the new homes are not [...]
Following on from an interesting conversation about Peak Oil and manual tools started by Earthpal over at The Coffee House (’Renewable Energy: the power of the human body‘), I started thinking about how I could reduce my use of powered tools around the house. At this time of year, one of the most frequent routine [...]
Fellowtravellers is a radical new concept in mass transport which claims to offer an environmentally-friendly, economical and reliable alternative to the stresses and strains of traditional public transport and a genuine non-car travel option. It is an alternative, local, and responsive public transport system which puts the needs of the traveller at the heart of [...]
Back from our traditional Whitsun break, and time to take stock. After a surprisingly small amount of soul-searching I’ve decided to put Change Alley out of its misery. There are other projects that are more deserving of my attention right now.
The Change Alley brand may make a reappearance in a new form in the future, [...]
Photo © Jorge Sanz
Every summer here in the People’s Republic of Suburbia, we’ve grown used to being entertained by the aerobatic antics of flights of swifts who’ve made the long journey from Central and Southern Africa to breed. London’s Swifts reported the first London arrivals on May 2nd, but here in Bromley the skies are [...]
It’s that time again, and the Chelsea Flower Show, “the ultimate event in the gardening year”, is in full swing. The show, flagship event of the Royal Horticultural Society, is being loudly promoted as the ‘greenest’ ever. Mind you, they seem to say that every year. They’re certainly placing a great deal of emphasis on [...]
Economics, Food & Agriculture Comments (1)
A scary article in last Saturday’s Guardian outlines the extent to which rich nations are flexing their financial muscles around the globe to secure their food supplies. This week, Daewoo Logistics of South Korea has announced plans to acquire a 99-year lease on 1 million hectares of land in Madagascar. South Korea now owns 2.3 million hectares of land around the world, predominantly in Madagascar, Mongolia and Sudan. Against a background of fears over rising food prices, globalised greed and local corruption are riding roughshod over environmental concerns and the livelihoods of indigenous populations.
China is a close runner-up to South Korea in the land imperialism stakes, with over 2 million hectares worldwide in Australia, Laos, Phillipines, Russia, Cameroon, Uganda,Kazakhstan, Mexico and Cuba. While on the face of it China has plenty of land, desertification, soil erosion and water shortages are threatening its ability to feed its population thrugh domestic agriculture. According to a report from China’s bio-environment research team, erosion has cost the economy 200 billion yuan ($29 billion) since 2000. Each year 4.5 billion tonnes of topsoil are lost, at which rate harvests in China’s north-eastern breadbasket could fall by 40% in 50 years.
While here in the UK the idea of local food is gathering momentum, other nations think nothing of sourcing their food supplies from halfway round the world.
Sphere: Related ContentPete Smith @ November 23, 2008
Well, not quite all. The London Borough of Bromley’s (LBB) trial of weekly kitchen waste collections continues its lumbering progress. The Composting For All trial has been running since September 2007, with 4,500 participating households (or 5,000 depending on which piece of LBB propaganda you happen to read). Its original remit was to evaluate the practicalities of a weekly kitchen waste collection for “smelly and potentially contentious” non-compostible food scraps.
In September 2008, the scope of the trial was extended. The existing ‘plastic bottles only’ rule was suspended and LBB began to collect all plastic containers from households in the trial as part of the ‘green box’ recycling scheme. Eligible items include all types of washed plastic containers such as food trays, yoghurt pots, margarine and ice-cream containers, though not plastic film or bags, toys, polystyrene or electrical items. This is a welcome move, as it addresses the nonsensical situation where bottles made of all kinds of plastics were accepted for recycling, while other types of packaging like pots or tubs made from identical plastics were not.
LBB claims that , with more items than ever before being recycled, the contents of the typical household bin have been drastically reduced, to the extent that a fortnightly refuse collection is now being trialled. Kitchen waste collections have increased to 3 tonnes per day, ‘green box’ recycling (glass, plastic and cans) has doubled, while the amount of household refuse has halved.
It’s ironic that, as recycling is really starting to take off, global prices for waste materials have been badly hit by a recession-led slump in demand.
Pete Smith @ November 21, 2008