Counting On … – Page 77

Counting on … day 1.068

11th March 2023

“ Haweswater’s wildlife is … being given the chance to make a full-throated comeback, thanks to interventions made by the RSPB, in collaboration with its landlords, the water company United Utilities. The project partners have reduced sheep numbers by 90%, from more than 3,000 two decades ago to about 300 today. They have also planted more than 100,000 trees, restored 400 hectares (988 acres) of peatbog, and “rewiggled” a valley bottom stream so it can reoccupy its natural flood plain. Webb resists the idea that Haweswater is a “rewilding” project, however. “It’s still a working farm,” says Webb of the site’s two farmsteads in the valleys of Naddle and Swindale. “We’re just doing it less intensively.”” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/mar/10/haweswater-project-lake-district-rewilding-farming-jobs

A different world is possible!

Counting on … day 1.067

10th March 2023

“Livestock produce manure which, when mixed with urine, releases ammonia, a nitrogen compound. If it gets into lakes and streams via farm runoff, excessive nitrogen can damage sensitive natural habitats by, for example, encouraging algae blooms that deplete oxygen in surface waters.”

This is a particular problem in countries and regions where there is a high concentration of farm animals such as in the Netherlands. In December 2021 the Dutch government “launched 13-year multibillion-euro plan,[ which] includes paying some Dutch livestock farmers to relocate or exit the industry, and helping others transition to more extensive (as opposed to intensive) methods of farming, with fewer animals and a bigger area of land. It will start as a voluntary programme, with compensation offered to livestock farmers asked to leave. “In the end, it might be necessary to stop negotiating as a last resort, but the basis is voluntary,” said de Groot. The end result is expected to be close to a one-third reduction in the numbers of pigs, cows and chickens in the country.” https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/dec/15/netherlands-announces-25bn-plan-to-radically-reduce-livestock-numbers?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Counting on … day 1.066

9th March 2023

In Scotland a local community has bought land from the Buccleuch estate in order to rewild the land restoring its habitat to support enhanced biodiversity.

THE STORY SO FAR

Who: Langholm Initiative: Margaret Pool (former Chair); Jenny Barlow (Estate Manager)
Where & when: Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, from 2019
What: Community buyout of former grouse moor to be managed as a nature reserve
How: Clearing conifer plantations; creating new woodlands; conserving precious habitats and fostering nature recovery, planning new sustainable economic activities
Future potential income: Tourism, educational and research activities, regenerative farming, possible renewable power
Ecosystem benefits: Nature recovery on over-grazed hillsides; conservation of rare valley woodland; peat restoration; wetland conservation; soil recovery; flood prevention. https://www.rewildingbritain.org.uk/explore-rewilding/meet-the-rewilders/meet-the-rewilders-langholm

A different world is possible!

Counting on ….day 1.065

8th March 2023

34% of the world’s mammals (by weight – biomass) are humans, 4% are wild animals and a staggering 62% are livestock – cows, pigs, sheep etc. ie most of the mammals on earth are there because we are going to eat them. (Of course a small number of those animals will be draught animals and some breeding stock, but equally the numbers don’t include poultry). It would be logical to think that we should be reducing the proportion of livestock we keep so as to maintain space for wild animals – and that would be a boost for biodiversity.

Counting on… day 1.064

7th March 2023

Out of a total of 42 Church of England dioceses, only seven now still maintain investments in the fossil fuel industry – Chichester, Guildford, Hereford, Peterborough, Southwark, Southwell and Nottingham, and York. Change is happening. Bright Now reports ‘Since the start of 2023, the Church of England Dioceses of London, Lichfield and Rochester have all announced their divestment from fossil fuel companies.’

A different world is possible!

Counting on … day 1.063

6th March 2023

Euronews reports: “A housing block in Wales has been fitted with a ‘world-first’ solar system that connects all the flats to the same rooftop panels.

The residents of Odet Court in Cardiff are set to save 50 per cent off their energy bills thanks to the new technology, which can meet up to 75 per cent of each flat’s electricity demand.

Australian manufacturer Allume Energy claims that its ‘SolShare’ model is the only technology that enables solar energy from a single rooftop system to be shared by multiple homes in the same building. Allume Energy General Manager for Europe Jack Taylor says he hopes the Welsh project “will serve as a template for governments and social housing providers in the UK to [upgrade] multi-unit residences.” Odet Court has 24 flats, so without a way of connecting them, developers would have had to install 24 separate sets of panels, inverters and batteries. As well as saving money on hardware, the company says that SolShare has boosted solar use by more than 25 per cent. The new system is suitable for retrofit projects as well as new builds, as it does not require any changes to existing supply and metering infrastructure.” https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/02/18/live-in-an-apartment-this-new-solar-technology-cut-could-your-bills-in-half

A different world is possible!

Counting on …. Day 1.062

4th March 2023

Streets can be places of plants, trees and biodiversity when they include planters and green verges, trees and parklets. Such streets are cooler in the summer and help absorb heavy rainfall. Meristem Design who design street features such as parklets and rain gardens, comments ‘In urban areas, we use many non-permeable materials (such as our roads). This means that water cannot drain naturally through the ground. In order to manage this, we have developed drainage systems that use pipes and sewers to redirect water. Sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) modify surface water flow at more natural rates, reducing the impact of urbanisation flooding by allowing vegetation and plants to absorb the majority of the rainwater. Too much surface rainwater in our cities often leads to a rising water table, causing our riverbanks to overflow and leads to devastating floods and damage to nearby properties. With climate change creating wetter winters and more frequent rainfalls, the level of surface water available will only increase, making the traditional drainage methods less and less effective. Creating rain gardens across our cities and towns is one part of the solution to this problem~~:https://www.meristemdesign.co.uk/suds-planters-rain-gardens~~

Counting on …. day 1.061

3rd March 2023

The Guardian today reports ‘UK droughts already threaten disastrous breeding year for frogs….Fortunately, wildlife groups and suburban gardeners are increasingly aware of the declining populations of frogs, newts and toads and are providing new habitats – the most important being our garden ponds.’

We can make a difference!

Counting on …day 1.060

2nd March 2023

Pedal power for delivery vehicles is already happening. Cycle courier services have been around for many years now as bikes are often far quicker than any other vehicle for short urban journeys – and of course have been used by Royal Mail for centuries. Likewise Co-op’s use of bikes for grocery deliveries is not new. Freddie’s flowers – a weekly flower delivery service is also fulfilled by bike. Cycle delivery services such as Peddle Me, carryout same day deliveries for a variety of clients including coffee roasters, breweries, flower suppliers, film companies, local authorities, community kitchens, charities, restaurant chains and numerous food suppliers – “You name it, we deliver it”! They also offer a taxi service for people too!

Hammersmith and Fulham Council have set up ‘Parcels not Pollution’ – a delivery service that uses an e-cargo bike for business deliveries in Hammersmith and Shepherds Bush town centres.

Tradespeople people carrying out repairs, redecorations, window cleaning, laundry services etc are also making use of cycle power.

Counting on …. Day 1.059

1st March 2023

Shop local. When we walk and cycle more and drive less, it is local shops and businesses that benefit!

The Living Streets report, The Pedestrian Pound (updated 2018), noted that If more space is given for walking and cycling and less to cars, the absence of customers arriving by car is more than compensated by people arriving on foot or by bike. For example, in San Francisco, the first trial ‘parklet’ increased pedestrian traffic in the area by 37% on weeknights and increased people walking with bikes at the weekend by 350%. A similar scheme in Shoreditch, London, increased takings in an adjacent shop by 20%.

A different world is possible!