Kent woods under threat in sell off ?

The United Nations has declared 2011 as the International Year of Forests,

It has invited governments, organisations and individuals to do all they can to raise public awareness of the key role of forests and sustainable forest management in building a greener, more equitable and sustainable future.

How ironic when our Government plans to sell off as much as 150,000 hectares of forest and woodland in England in the biggest sale of public land for nearly 60 years.

Local Woods and Forests that could be under threat in Kent are Clowes Wood, part of The Blean near Canterbury, Kings Wood near Challock and Bedgebury National Pinetum & Forest near Cranbrook.

The Forestry Commission has done an excellent job in recent years in making woodlands much more accessible to all of us; whether we are walkers, mountain bikers, wheelchair users or horse-riders. Currently all Forestry Commission land is managed to Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) standards - well above the standards required by law. Higher standards of stewardship mean that even those publicly owned woodlands that deliver substantial profits for the taxpayer through timber are also havens for wildlife. This would not be compulsory with privately owned forests. New owners could fence our forests and would not be required to maintain access paths as they do now. 

If you wish to protect our woods and forests for future generations write to your local MP and sign the on-line petition at www.38degrees.org.uk

Victoria's Green Matters - 20th Jan 2011

Deal With IT's Secretary Victoria Nicholls writes a regular column in the East Kent Mercury:

How is your campaign against plastic bags coming along? Maybe you don’t have one. As I go through the checkout at the local supermarket, I am often quite shocked by the number of people who have a trolley full of goods packed into numerous new plastic bags.

While the retail trade has made much of using disposable plastic bags which they advertise as ‘biodegradable’, there are many millions of discarded plastic bags around the world which cause a danger to wildlife everyday. When the bags biodegrade, they do so into tiny balls of plastic, which end up on the seabed, can be swallowed by marine life and cause death. The UN estimates they account for the deaths of 100,000 marine mammals each year.

A better approach is to buy an ‘everlasting’ bag from the supermarket, which will be replaced free of charge when it wears out. Another option, for the ladies anyway, is always to carry a thin cotton bag in your handbag when you go shopping. And no excuse for you, gentlemen, one will fit into your coat pocket quite easily! If you shop by car, it is easy to carry bags with you – just don’t forget to take them into the shop!

At New Year, the Italian government took the forward-looking step of banning all retailers from handing out plastic bags to customers. A group of supermarkets are having biodegradable plastic bags manufactured for them but most shops will opt for the re-usable bags. Stylish Italians are not keen on old-fashioned shopping bags and some are opting for modish shopping trolleys.

As resources become scarcer and oil is less easily available to be used to manufacture plastic bags, we will have to get accustomed to using bags made from durable but far less dangerous materials than plastics.

Canterbury Green Economy

A greener economy: time for change?

From our colleagues in Transition Town Whitstable:
C4B and the Canterbury Partnership Environment Group are jointly holding a ‘green’ conference and exhibition at Augustine House, Rhodaus Town, Canterbury, on Wednesday, 23 February, from 8.30am to 1.30pm. The event, entitled ‘A greener economy: time for change?’, will include presentations on sustainable transport and development, tax breaks for businesses, and building a greener economy in the district.
Seats are limited and will be allocated on a strictly first come, first served basis, so if you are interested in attending, please email events@canterbury.gov.uk to reserve a place.
For further information please see the flyer or visit the website at www.canterbury.gov.uk/canterburypartnership.

380 degrees petition against the Forest Sell off

The government is planning a massive sell off of our national forests. They could be auctioned and fenced off, run down, logged or turned into golf courses and holiday villages.

We can't let that happen. We need to stop these plans. National treasures like the The Forest of Dean, Sherwood Forest and The New Forest could be sold off. Once they are gone, they will be lost forever.

A huge petition will force the government to rethink its plans. If we can prove how strongly the public are against this, they will have to back down. Please sign the petition now.

Find out more: Visit the save our forests action centre to find out more about the forest sell off and download campaign leaflets and posters.

Top 10… ways to eat fish sustainably

Great article from By Katharine Helmore from the Ecologist

Support Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's Big Fish Fight by making sure that the fish you eat is ethically caught and sourced from sustainable fisheries

Fish - the way we consume it and the way we catch it - is a hot topic right now. Horrified by the way that the Common Fishing Policy (CFP) has resulted in around half of all fish caught in British waters being thrown back dead or dying, TV chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and a host of celebrity supporters have begun a campaign called Fish Fight to end the waste.
But the effects of bycatch are just a small part of the problem. Overfishing has seen cod stocks decline by 86 per cent over the last century and bluefin tuna placed at risk of extinction. Between 20 and 100 million sharks are killed each year thanks to increased demand for shark fin soup and thousands more die in the purse seine nets used by tuna fishermen. And that’s not all. Aquaculture is one of the worst marine polluters and requires thousands of tons of fishmeal – mostly anchovies, herring and sprats – to sustain its farmed fish. Other species are transported long distances – snow crab from Alaska for example, or tilapia from Vietnam – creating an enormous carbon footprint.

Despite this, fish remains one of the world’s most popular foods. So can eating fish ever be sustainable? Here are our top 10 ways to make sure the fish you eat comes without a side order of guilt.

1. Choose your species carefully
The Marine Conservation Society website regularly updates a list of fish to avoid and fish that are fine to eat. Fish that are safe to buy include dab, pouting, organic, farmed salmon and hand-picked cockles, while conger eel, swordfish and plaice are all off the menu. If you must eat cod, make sure it comes from the north-east Arctic or eastern Baltic, where stocks are healthy.

2. Try something different
Buying a wide range of fish is crucial for maintaining current fish stocks and protecting dwindling species. Food writer and fishmonger, Mitch Tonks, warns that if everyone switches from one species to another, the marine balance will be further upset. ‘Gurnard has been championed for a while now,’ he says, ‘but in reality the landings of it are small in comparison to other species and its yield is very low. It is one of the most delicious fish in the sea but perhaps it should join the ranks of other good fish like sole rather than become the next big thing that we should be eating.’ Bruce Rennie, head chef at The Gurnard's Head in Cornwall also recommends buying bigger fillets, as smaller ones tend to come from immature fish. 'As a rule of thumb, if the fish are not big enough to have reproduced and contributed to their species, they should be avoided,' he says. 'It is negligent to eat fish that haven’t had a chance.'
3. Buy local, seasonal fish
Support your local fishermen. Not only does local have a smaller carbon footprint, it’s usually cheaper too. Mackerel is readily available throughout the year and isn’t endangered. Sardines and pilchard are abundant in the seas off the coast of Cornwall while sea bream and sea bass are available in the English Channel. Markets offer a wider and fresher variety of locally sourced fish than supermarkets. ‘Cod and skate are mostly caught this time of year,’ says Jonny Dunhill of Ramsgate fishmonger, Eddie Gilberts. ‘In the warmer months bass, mackerel, plaice and Dover sole are landed in large quantities.’

4. Find a good fishmonger
Your fishmonger is the best source of information on what’s in season and how the fish has been caught. Most good fishmongers will source their fish from sustainable fisheries and will be able to recommend different species to try. (PS Both our Fishmongers in Deal are supporting the campaign Ed)

5. Make sure it’s line caught
Poor labelling on supermarket shelves can mean finding line-caught fish can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Ask staff at the fish counter and leave it if they can't tell you exactly how the fish was caught. Avoid bigeye and bluefin tuna, both of which are endangered and opt for line or poll caught albacore or skipjack tuna.  Greenpeace has released a supermarket league of the most ethically sourced tinned tuna with Sainsburys, Marks and Spencer and Waitrose at the top. Line-caught pollack, lythe, black bream, porgy and sea bream are among some of the best white fish alternatives to cod.

Climate Change conference at our German Twin...

From colleagues in the Deal-St Omer Twinning association - Deal has exchanged a letter of friendship with Detmold - and deal's twin town Saint-Omer will be represented at this conference we understand as will the very green belgian municipality of Hasselt ... Contact Sarah for further details

"The city of Detmold wants to organise a climate protection conference in autumn of 2011. The conference shall happen 29th of September until 2nd of October or 13th until 16th of October 2011.

Information: The conference will be made for Mayors, experts in the communes, public services for electric, gas and water,
factories and organisation which are working in “Climate protection” an interested citizen or volunteers. To reduce expenses Detmold will make an application to get money from the EU-Citizen-Program 1.2 Network at the EACEA - Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency in Brussels. Deadline is: 1.of February. If your city wants to take part, I must get your answer and the dates until 12th of January. To: c.thomalefriesenhan@ detmold.de.
 
In the program there are speeches and workshops and visiting factories: The different activities for climate protection in the twin towns.

Climate protection from industries and craft producer in the commune, Mobility in the city for example: local public transport in Hasselt (Marc Verachtert)

(Energetically) improvement of accommodation – centre of gravity are difficult faces of buildings.

Speech: renewable energy / public services From intention to conversion – The way from the political decision to action?
Excursion (intended): fermentation plant, wind energy plant, wood-fired power station (Pellets), sports hall build as a passive house.And please tell me something abour your climate protection activities. 


Viele Grüße / Kind regards
Charlotte Thomale-Friesenhan
 
Stadt Detmold
8.4 Städtepartnerschaften
Marktplatz 5
32756 Detmold
 

Deal Cycle Forum 31st Jan

You are invited to an open CYCLE FORUM MEETING at the Royal Hotel (Map Room) on Monday 31st January 2011 starting at 6.15pm (ends 8.00pm).

Anyone can come -  we need the Cycle Forum back again - this time as a voluntary group, an independent voice for local cyclists of all sorts in the Dover, Deal and Sandwich area.

We aim to lobby KCC Highways and other local councils, to improve and maintain our safe cycle routes, get better facilities for cyclists, and generally encourage people to use their bikes.

The Dover District Cycling Plan, produced in 2008 after lots of consultation, points the way forward.

Good progress has been made on some aspects:  

- the River Dour Cycle route in Dover is underway, 

- the growing popularity of Fowlmead  Country Park, 

- increased usage of the coastal cycle route in Deal and Sandwich

But there remain big gaps in our local network of safe cycle routes, and progress has stalled on inland routes generally. We need family-safe cycle routes to Fowlmead, into Deal town centre, and an off-road inland route between Deal and Sandwich - you can probably add to the list.

And we need to lobby vigorously for proper maintenance of cycle paths - in fact, generally revive the momentum of progress. 

KCC Highways offer to attend the meetings, so we can keep up to date with their plans and feed in our comments; they'll be there on Mon 31st.

RSVP

Please let me know whether you can come to help get the new Forum started on Monday 31st, and whether you will represent an organisation (if any) - and do pass this on to anyone else who may be interested. 

There's more about the Forum at this temporary website, http://tinyurl.com/cycleforum

best wishes,

Ian Killbery earlystart@me.com
Tel: 01304-362569
PS please reply if you can come, so we can plan for numbers. The Royal Hotel on Deal seafront has kindly offered us use of their Map Room FREE on this occasion. Coffee will be served half-way through the meeting, and of course the Royal's bar is open. There should be space to lock up bikes safely at the back.

Support Hugh's FishFight here in Deal

Why not get a poster up at home or ask you local cafe or Chippie to take one ?

You can download the PDF from here

International Women's Day at the Pines Calyx - March 8th

This event has been cancelled ... sorry


Come to the Pines Calyx and Gardens on March 8, and be part of history.

Celebrate women and their achievements - March 8 is the centenary of International Women's Day


Just some of the women who will be there: -

Trudy Thompson, Bricks and Bread - Trudy is an ex racing driver. She has designed and built her own Eco-houses, and then created a Sustainable Living Centre in Aldershot, which is a one stop shop for people from all backgrounds to come and find out about Sustainable products and services. She has 18 franchises across the country, and growing. www.bricksandbread.com

Chiara Vagnarelli - Regional Director of "Fresh Ideas" www.freshideas.org.uk. Fresh Ideas helps organisations, communities and individual set up and run their own food initiatives.

Bernie Morgan, CEO of the Community Finance Development Association www.cdfa.org.uk. I just love this one-liner on Bernie Morgan's website: "She inspires, informs and entertains her audiences by drawing on her own experiences of transforming herself from a housewife to the CEO of a sector worth £¾bn. In under eight yearswebsite" www.bernie-morgan.co.uk

Stephanie Hayman - a serial entrepreneur, who set up "Wholeschool Meals" and now supplies 21 schools, with an ambition to see this model replicated across the UK and to see all schools in control of what they feed our children as well being shareholders in the company.

Yvonne Fuchs - Co-founder of Brilliant Women www.brilliantwomen.org Yvonne is a Branding and Marketing Professional www.thebrandingworkshop.co.uk and also runs a Business Support group in both Whitstable and Islington.

The event has a cost of £49 ... more details from  stephanie@pinescalyx.co.uk

Deal Beach Clean - Sunday 30th Jan

Deal With It are supporting the Marine Conservation Society's 'Beach Clean' of Deal Beach on Sunday 30th January

Meet up at the front of Deal Pier at 9am. Equipment supplied.

Colleagues from Walmer RNLI are organising a 'Welly Walk' on the same morning

More info on the MCS's work see http://www.mcsuk.org/

Fish video

Link in case you cannot see embedded video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2fZcmjbqpA

Protect Kingsdown Beach

From the East Kent Mercury "An action plan for an important stretch of shingle beach between Kingsdown and Walmer - described as a rare gem - is due to be launched at a public meeting in the village.

The draft wildlife management proposals to conserve and enhance the shoreline has been developed by Leonie Seymour and Kirk Alexander of the White Cliffs Countryside Partnership, with the help of funding from the Kent Biodiversity Action Plan.

They say the plans highlight the importance of the site and are appealing for local people to get involved, not only for their own enjoyment but also to protect and enhance the delicate wildlife balance of the beach.

The meeting will be held at 7.30pm at Kingsdown Village Hall, Upper Street, on Tuesday, January 18, and is being organised by the Kingsdown Conservation Group.

Group acting chairman Philip Evemy said: "Kingsdown is a very special place and a rare gem on the English coastline. read further here

Something fishy....

Two very successful campaigns underway:

(1) Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall has made a plea for support for a campaign to try and stop wasteful fish discards.

Half of the fish caught in the North Sea is thrown back overboard dead due to the current quota system imposed by the EU Common Fisheries Policy.

The Fish Fight Campaign will officially launch with a broadcast of “Hugh’s Fish Fight” presented by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall in January 2011.
Thousands have already signed up to support the cause, and Client Earth is also on board.

If you are at all interested in the future of our oceans, and the future of fish as food, then please go to www.fishfight.net and check out phase 1 of the campaign.

 2) Greenpeace's Tuna Campaign. As you may have read we were all set to take action against Tesco this weekend when the unexpected happened. We have produced a league table of the best and worst offenders against tuna (fishing with fish attraction devices, seine purse nets etc) and had identified that Tesco were the worst own-brand supplier. When Tesco learned of this, and that Greenpeace were preparing a nationwide weekend of direct action against them, they agreed to change all their own-brand tuna to rod and line by the end of 2012. Good for them. But it means our campaigning has to take a different tack. We will be doing it a bit differently but will now target Princes tuna in the hope of making them see the light.

The Tesco result is great news, it really shows that we can make a difference.http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/

Victoria's Green Matters - 14th Jan 2011

Deal With IT's Secretary Victoria Nicholls writes a regular column in the East Kent Mercury:

Did you know that the cosmetics that you use are likely to have been tested on animals? Maybe you don’t think that it matters. Do you think that it is right, in this day and age, that we submit other sentient creatures to pain and distress just so that we can consider a cosmetic suitable for us to use? Something to think about.

A European law, designed to ban the sale in Europe of any cosmetics tested on animals anywhere in the world, should have come into effect in 2013. It has been delayed by anything up to four years because replacement tests not involving animals have not been developed by the cosmetics industry. Neil Parish, MP, a member of the parliamentary group on animal welfare, has demanded an end “to needless animal testing purely for the commercial gain of industry”.

In 2004 the European Cosmetics Directive banned the testing of all ingredients on animals. Contrary legislation in the European Union has meant that chemicals that have been tested on animals for safety under one set of regulations have ended up being used in cosmetics that should have been subject to the 2004 legislation. We cannot now be sure that products with the relevant labelling can be trusted. It is also true that many animal tests do not correctly predict the action of chemicals on human beings. The European commission has great hope that advances in molecular and cellular biology will produce alternatives to animal testing and provide safer, more accurate and kinder results.

Until the legislation becomes law, we can only strive to take as much trouble as possible to ensure that we are not contributing to animal suffering. We must not buy products that we know to have been tested on animals. Unfortunately, most mass produced cosmetics are made by the most unscrupulous manufacturers.

Mayor's Transition reception...

Deal Town Council's Mayor Ben Bano hosted a reception on Monday 10th January on 'Transition Deal'.

About twenty attended the networking event. They listened to Rosie Rechter describe how important it is for the local community and economy  to develop a sustainable vision for the town.

The Mayor invited 'Deal With It' to address the full council later in the year.

Thanks to Ben and the town hall staff for organising the event.

Transition Training...

The transition movement runs a two day course on the transition process.

Next dates are 5th & 6th March and 17th & 18th September - both would be in London.

Details are at http://www.transitionnetwork.org/support/training/training-transition

Canterbury Climate Fair 14th & 15th May 2011

The second Canterbury Climate & Fair Trade Market will be held in St George's Street, Canterbury on Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th May, 2011

This year's theme is climate chnage & Fair Trade full details at http://www.canterburyclimatefair.org/ 

They are taking bookings now for stalls and Deal With It with hopefully the Deal Bicycle Generator will be there in a 'Transition Village'

DWI Letter to DDC - No to Sholden development

Dear Dover District Council,

I am writing on behalf of all the members of our group to express our profound dismay over the plans for development of land in the Sholden area, as referred to above.

It is difficult to believe that any council would even consider developing prime agricultural land for housing when we are entering a period of uncertainty with regards to the changing climate and the arrival of peak oil. We will need all our agricultural land to feed our population during the coming years.

While questions have been raised about flooding, traffic congestion and the lack of new infrastructure, Dover District Council still continues to consider these plans.

Despite objections from many people, via petitions and public meetings, and the plans being turned down by Deal Town Council, Dover District Council still continues to consider them.

We can only hope that by persisting to object to these developments and illustrating all the drawbacks, notice will be taken and planning permission refused.

Yours sincerely,

Victoria Nicholls.
Secretary, Deal With It.

Cycloutourism week in Saint Omer - July 2011

Deal's twin town in France - St Omer has a Cycloutourism week between 17th to 24th July 2011. There are several events covering family to more competitive Sportive events from 30km to 120km rides.  See link for details:

http://scr-saintomer.herobo.com/crbst_8.html

Victoria's Green Matters - 6th Jan 2011

Deal With IT's Secretary Victoria Nicholls writes a regular column in the East Kent Mercury:

Have you re-fuelled your car recently? Quite a shock, isn’t it, to see petrol and diesel prices rising on what seems to be an almost daily basis? The threat of the ‘£5 gallon’ seems a distant memory with prices for diesel, in particular, well above this. There is an increase in fuel duty and VAT to come by 4 January 2011 that is set to add about 3.5p per litre to your chosen fuel. These increases reverberate through all of life as increased fuel costs put up the price of goods we need to buy.

So, whom do we blame? It is a difficult mix of lots of things that can alter the price of oil. The failing global economy has a lot to answer for; the pound has hit a three-month low against the dollar and inflation has risen to 3.3% while, in the US, a second round of economic stimulus packages has strengthened demand. The old economic adage of ‘supply and demand’ has done its job and oil prices have soared.

Perhaps we should look at this another way. We know that we have reached peak oil – in other words we have come to the end of the era of cheap oil and so we must get used to there being less oil available for the many uses that we accept as normal. If we determine that we will use less oil in our everyday lives, then the oil that is left will last longer. Using less of all the fossil fuels will also help to slow the inexorable rise in global temperatures that threaten the lives of so many people.

So, if you use your car less, you will not only save yourself some money but you will help to reduce the production of carbon dioxide and maybe the climate will not change quite as much.