……..Expecting households to find space for additional bins is stupid in the extreme and a case of not thinking through the idea before broadcasting it. DEFRA suggest that the onus of separating food waste from other household waste should be on the shoulders of  local waste collection authority. I agree.

The whole idea of having a slop bucket is a step back to the dark ages and not to be entertained; the breeding of germs  is acceptable at the bottom of the garden in a bin store, but not in close proximity to the home.

Some politicians obviously have too little to occupy their time, when the best they can come up with is crackpot ideas.

… and I just counted 93 flying over to their roosts at the woodland half a mile away, on Warsop Estate plantation.  I don’t know where they spend their day, but it could be in fields 3 miles away in Sutton-in-Ashfield; I’ve seen huge flocks there picking up a meal.

Birds are a joy to watch, although the day a hawk came down in my garden to catch a blackbird is not high on my list of moments to savour!

…….Residents of a Belgian town are to be offered chickens as part of a campaign to reduce household waste.

The town of Mouscron has 50 pairs of chickens that it will distribute to families with sufficient space to keep the birds in their gardens.

Those who take part in the scheme must agree not to eat the chickens for at least two years, or to give them away. As a committed veggis, mine would die of old age! Local officials are stressing that applicants could gain a supply of free, fresh eggs. The aim of the project is to publicise alternative methods of waste management.

Residents included in the project will be given basic instruction on chicken-keeping.

This is the type of project that really grabs my attention; give me some chickens!

….board meeting was held yesterday and as a  member of the board, I am dismayed at the cuts to the funding of the projects in the pipeline for 2010/11. County Council cuts have a never-ending effect on all areas of life in the county as we witness daily.

The Conservatives at County Hall lay all the blame on the cuts at the door of the previous Labour administration. It is hard to believe that these swingeing cuts are necessary; it’s a little like visiting a new hair stylist who asks ‘who has been cutting your hair?’……always playing the blame game. 

….There is a reported  rise in food poisoning at care homes, in particular and the cause may lie with eggs imported from Spain. The rise in cases has been noticed since mid-August, the FSA said.

Salmonella is one of the most common causes of food poisoning in the UK and is sometimes found in unpasteurised milk, raw meat and poultry, as well as eggs and products containing raw egg.

The FSA said there was “a very low incidence” of salmonella in UK eggs. As I drive around the local area there are free range chickens in fields and added to this there are farms producing barn eggs, so surely we could avoid the need to import eggs.

I buy locally-laid free range eggs and although a little more expensive, they are all that an egg should be; tasty, fresh and I even get the occasional ‘double-yolker’ which is an added bonus!

…. My neighbour  is having a dead ash tree removed today - the chainsaws are busy and the tree is falling to man’s supposed superiority. The ash tree was a beautiful specimen until works were done to improve the property, resulting in the death of the tree.

Having no leaves did have some compensations, though - I could see the roosting birds in all seasons - sometimes as many as 40 goldfinches, a couple of collared doves, magpies and sparrows, all waiting for me to top up my bird-feeders.

I wonder where will they await their breakfast now? They will no doubt be confused for a while after their tree is gone, but I hope they will still visit my garden.

Man plays such a huge part in the eco-system’s chances of survival and our every move has a knock-on effect on the earth’s wildlife. We sometimes forget that this planet has a finite lifespan and we should do so much more to safeguard our future.

………the window? The idea of giving everyone a covered caddy for the disposal of food waste is a backward step in my opinion. There are already complaints about an increase in the rat population and the unpleasant smells emanating from bins emptied on a fortnightly basis, so to have food waste in ‘caddies’ in the home or garden is surely an open invitation to vermin. The Local Government Association spokesman for is quoted: “We would need to see more detail about what landfill bans might really mean for householders and their bin collections. Town halls need to have the freedom to operate bin collections that work for people in their area.”

I appreciate that there is a need for less food waste going into landfill sites, but is this a step into the future or back to the past?

The bi-weekly emptying of bins has resulted in some proliferation of maggots in bins, but the reaction of waste operatives working for Warwick District Council is sublime in its stupidity.

Warwick District Council has apologised after binmen refused to take a resident’s recycling away because a single maggot had crawled in, and the refuse contractors said they could not handle livestock.

The answer is to wash out the bin after emptying or use an anti-bacterial agent in the bin; in my experience flies don’t like the smell of cleanliness.

…and visited Peafield Park. Children from year 2 of Peafield School came out to meet the judges and showed a portfolio of their work relating to the bulb planting they undertook last autumn and the work they had done, measuring  and paintings  the flowers.

This was followed by a short walk in the park. I was introduce to the judges and told them about the hard work put in by members of Friends of Peafield Park to keep it clear of litter. We talked of the improvements to the park and Whinney Hill woodland and then they were on their way to look at other projects in the district - such as entrants for Best Kept Garden.

We shall all keep our fingers crossed for a good result.

……..Britain’s honeybees are disappearing at an “alarming” rate, yet the government is taking “little interest” in the problem, a group of MPs has said.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) says bees, vital for pollinating crops, are worth £200m a year to the economy.

It wants Defra to spend more money on research into bee health and make registration compulsory for beekeepers.

Environment Secretary Hilary Benn said £10m had been earmarked to analyse the decline of pollinators, including bees. Disease, climate change and pesticide use have also been blamed for the decline.

But the PAC wants the government to ring-fence that money for honeybees alone and not allow it to be diluted by looking at other pollinating insects.

‘Colonies lost’

The government says bee numbers have fallen by up to 15% in the last two years, in part because agricultural changes have reduced the availability of the wildflowers they depend on for food.

Peafield park has a large wildflower meadow, but more must be done to save the honey bees.

…gave funding to Friends of Peafield Park and Hornby Plantation to replace wooden fencing with galvanised metal knee rails, lay tarmac paths to allow access for disabled visitors and install an interpretation board in the Whinney Hill Woodland.

The improvements enhance a beautiful area of the park and today there was a press call for members of FOPP and District and County Councillors.  Richard Butler, NCC Portfolio holder for Environment and Sustainable Communities  was impressed by the beauty of Whinney Hill Woodland. Teresa Morgan, MDC Engineers officer, who managed the project to improve the pathways, etc came along to look at the finished work.

Daisy-May and her owner, Sue Wills, a stalwart of FOPP, enjoyed the walk in the woods.  Sue was responsible for the funding application - a mammoth task!

 …..They are an abomination according to English Heritage, who  yesterday threw its weight behind the Daily Mail’s campaign to stop the march of wheelie bins. The organisation - which manages some of Britain’s most important historic buildings - said the bins were an ‘abomination’ that blighted our streets.

Personally, I think they are far superior aesthetically than the old metal bins, rotting away with holes in them and I remember people having to wait an eternity for a replacement, when the only thing the old one was good for, was upturning over rhubarb crowns to force them into growth! The smells from the new ones are not as pungent either, as they have well-fitting lids.

….Not in UK. The Local Government Association claims that householders could save more than £600 million a year if Britain’s recycling facilities were up to scratch, as  revealed by recent figures.  Each Briton sends a staggering 19 times more refuse to landfill than the Dutch.

So all that time we spend washing and sorting our rubbish into different containers is not producing the desired effect, after all. All that extra packaging, that we don’t need, is adding to the pile of rubbish we recycle. Until superstores reduce the amount of wrapping on products, there will be no end to the circle of buying, unwrapping and recycling.

…….Even in death, the EU limits our freedom to choose how we are dispatched. Anyone choosing to wear their wedding dress, or the football strip of their favourite team or favourite outfit will be banned from doing so - because of pollution fears.

Grieving families who  hope to fulfill the final wishes of their loved ones will now have the added distress of having to deny the deceased their wish of being cremated in the outfit of their choice. Adding insult to injury, the family will be forced to purchase a shroud of natural fibres, costing approximately £60. And there will be no room in the coffin for personal mementoes, either. 

Perhaps more people will choose burial, rather than cremation, so that they can wear what they choose on their last journey. Until the EU issue a directive outlawing that.

Compared to the mass pollution by some big businesses, I suppose the cremation of a few  bodies per week is an easy target for the EU! Far easier to bring in a directive on cremations, isn’t it?

……This story from the Local Government Association highlights the cost of throwing away unnecessary packaging, a cost which they propose should be put on retailers and manufacturers to help save shoppers money, say council leaders.

At a major conference on the future of waste, town hall chiefs on 9th June said that councils are paying an estimated £100m to get rid of packaging and producers should be picking up more of this cost. Councils say that making retailers and manufacturers pick up the bill for disposing of unnecessary wrapping would give them a real incentive to cut back and help save shoppers money at the tills.

Town halls fear that a new government strategy on packaging, expected to be published this week, will not go far enough in setting tough targets for retailers and manufacturers to tackle problem packaging. As well as tougher recycling targets on the producers of packaging, councils want to see retailers commit to using more recycled material in their packaging and to improving labeling on which packaging can be recycled.

……..Every home could be forced to use slop buckets under government plans to cut waste, by banning councils from dumping food scraps in landfill. Almost one in four councils has already introduced separate food waste collections and there is pressure from the European Union for more.  

I remember as a child, accompanying my Grandmother as she went around a circuit of regulars to collect food scraps to augment the diets of the pigs she bred. These scraps were boiled to a pulp in an old copper and fed to the pigs, who squealed with delight to be fed such fine swill.

I imagine residents will squeal with horror if they have to store weeks’ worth of rotting food until it is collected by council operatives. And then what? Where will the councils tip this mountain of germ-laden food scraps? How will it be re-cycled, if it is not taken to landfill?

Maybe it will be composted and sold back to us….so we pay our Council Tax to have it taken away and then we buy it back - sorted!….

….and you can access it by clicking on the following link. http://extranet.iceberginternet.co.uk/greenwood/httpdocs/map_friends.php

It has a map of  all the parks and green spaces that are in partnership with Notts Greenwood Community Forest and info on the guide walks. There are numerous ways to enjoy the wonderful greenery in our region and as you walk the various nature trails and parks you can commune with nature and get fit at the same time. You could join a Friends Group and help with the planting of trees or helping to keep sites free of litter. The picture  shows me leading a group of Friends of Greenwood members around Whinney Hill Woodland.

 …following a 10-year campaign by a Notts man.

On Tuesday 5 May 2009 the European Parliament voted to ban the import of all seal products into the European Union.

This represents a victory for Mark Glover and the Nottingham-based group Respect for Animals who have spent the last ten years campaigning against the trade in seal fur. 

The animal welfare campaigner from Carlton has travelled to Canada to record the annual seal hunt for the last five years in an effort to keep the cull in the public consciousness.

Mark, who has also taken several political guests across the Atlantic to witness the event, says he has been threatened, physically attacked and arrested in his pursuit of pictures.

“The Canadian seal clubbing every Spring is the largest slaughter of marine mammals on the planet… killing over a quarter of million seals a year.

“Those images were the key to show the rest of the world what was happening.”

The ban, which was voted in by a huge majority of MEPs in Strasbourg (550 to 49) will be implemented over the next year. I am happy to tell you that my MEP, Bill Newton Dunn, voted in favour of this ban. He will certainly get my vote in the forthcoming European Parliamentary Election.

….has been finalised and they will be looking at the park from 9.45 to 12.15 on May 18th, so if you are able to be there to support friends of Peafield Park & Hornby Plantation, it would be good to see you.

We shall be providing refreshments at 11.15 at Calver Street Community Centre, so if you are handy with a kettle we NEED you. We are keeping fingers crossed for fine weather to show the park to best advantage. No doubt we shall be out in force to pick litter and make sure that any pockets of debris are removed.

…….on 18th May and we are hopeful that the improvements to the park over the past year will result in a second successive Green Flag award. Peafield Park won its first prestigious flag last year and so much has been achieved over the past year, by the joint efforts of the Friends of Peafield Park & Hornby Plantation, MDC Parks Department and the pupils of Peafield Infant and Primary Schools. New paths, stiles and planting will, we hope, impress the judges. The time of the judging is still to be advised, but we shall be out in force on the morning of the 18th to ensure that the park is in excellent condition. 

 …..Rats are developing near immunity to standard poisons, pest control experts have said. The British Pest Control Association is calling on the Government to allow the use of more powerful pesticides to contain the country’s growing rodent population.

I have received complaints about rats running up and down High Street, Mansfield Woodhouse but we don’t yet know where their nests are, so it is proving difficult to eradicate them.

…You can report the incident anonymously to Mansfield District Council on 463463,  or by contacting Grimebusters.

(email: grimebusters@mansfield.gov.uk)

There really is no excuse for people littering the district; there are various ways to get rid of rubbish. If something is too big for any of the three bins provided by MDC, then there are recycling sites at Oakfield Lane, Warsop and Kestrel Road, off Hermitage Lane.

If you don’t have transport, then for a small fee MDC will collect bulky items. Mansfield district is now re-cycling over 30% of the total household waste, so thank you for helping in the effort to divert more waste away from landfill sites.

….no, I thought not. 

The EU is considering proposals which could force thousands of extra bin collections on British householders, council leaders have warned.

The European Commission recently unveiled a series of ideas for reducing the carbon emissions that are created from people’s left over food and garden waste. These include measures which would force new targets on councils for collecting so called ‘bio-waste’ and result in extra bin collections for thousands of householders.

Town halls say they must not be forced to impose separate bin collections on people. It should be up to councils to decide what rubbish collections people need based on local circumstances. How true! Maybe if we all wasted less, we would need one less bin. The organisation WRAP advocates less waste, both waste of food and packaging and encourage recycling. Their website has some useful info’.

….were unhappy with the works done to the hedgerow on New Mill Lane. The elms in the row were diseased and a good number of the hawthorns were in need of ‘laying’ as they were growing spindly, with little fullness at the base of the shrubs. MDC parks department operatives, under the advice of the arboriculture officer, removed the diseased elements of the hedgerow and laid the hawthorns. The result has been that the previously enclosed SINC (site of importance to nature conservation ) was exposed to vandalism.

Leeming Ward Councillors, Phil, Jill and I have decided to use the remainder of our 2008-09 ward allowance to pay for new trees and shrubs to fill the gaps. Men from the parks department were working on the site on Wednesday of this week and already the improvements are looking good.

….making all that hard work well worth it!

Back in November your local LIb Dem Councillors met up with children from Peafield Lane School to plant Daffodils in the hedgerows and around the trees. I have been today to have a look at them and they are ‘blooming’ lovely.

The children have taken an allotment on Whinney Hill and are working hard to create a garden of which they can be proud. The parks team of Mansfield District Council works very closely with the pupils and I have taken delivery today of a load of gardening gloves and litter pickers, funded by a grant from NCC Building Better Communities.

Getting into the garden after a dreary winter is so beneficial to the soul and gardening with the children is a joy. The Headmaster and Staff at Peafield School encourage joint working with the community and these joint efforts will hopefully give us a generation of children who enjoy their surroundings, rather than turning to vandalism.

…magpies are nesting in my neighbour’s garden, so I am always assured of seeing two magpies together.

I know they are not to everyone’s liking but they appear to me to be our very own parrot species, with their colourful, irridescent plumage and long tails. I am hoping for baby magpies feeding in my garden, but hoping that other birds don’t nest too close to them. Magpies are notorious egg stealers.

Mr and Mrs magpie have been choosing twigs for their nest, rather like a shopper in the market. They hop from branch to branch examining the wares, find a suitable twig which they then remove and carry to the nest. They are a delight to watch.

………I recalled a time when we all took a pride in our own frontages and kept it clean.

Now there is an official call for a revival of traditional Saturday morning community ‘litter picks’ and 1950s-style penny-for-a-bottle schemes  to help prevent Britain’s countryside from an unprecedented rubbish epidemic, according to heritage campaigners. The call has been made as a report revealed that the amount of rubbish on the streets had grown by 500 per cent since the 1960s and costs local taxpayers £500 million a year to tackle…..that’s an awful lot of litter. Just imagine how those amounts of money could be spent.

……….I wanted to share this with you. It’s just come to me from the Earth Observatory and shows a picture of Earth taken by Apollo 8. Isn’t it beautiful? We Liberal Democrats are pushing the Green Agenda and if you have similar sentiments, then do please join us by clicking on the link to the left of this column or give me a call.

….took place on 27th September. The Keep Britain Tidy campaign group provided the bags, overalls, badges, stickers and posters and today a small group of us went into Peafield Park and the Flood Dykes to clean up the litter. It never fails to amaze me that people sit on a bench next to a litter bin and yet throw down their sweet wrappers, crisp bags and bottles all around the bench. Why do you suppose that is? Laziness, cocking a snook at authority or plain bloody-mindedness?

Anyhow, we cleared up their debris and gave Mother Nature a clean face for a few hours, at least. The picture above is of our youngest volunteer who ran around with gusto picking up crisp bags and bottles, complete with his own litter-picker tool.

…………Conservation is a harmony between men and land.

As part of the initiative by Encams (Keep Britain Tidy) I have signed up to the ‘Big Tidy Up’ and have pledged my time to pick litter along the flood dykes and in Whinney Hill Woodland. If you would like to help, please let me know or turn up on September 27th about 10.30 and give me a hand. I have badges and bags for the litter.  Bring your own gloves!

………..for the  meeting of Friends of Peafield Park and Hornby Plantation yesterday and thankfully the weather was kind. We enjoyed a walk in the woods and what a delightful place it is!

Sue Parkin led the walk explaining the projects undertaken by members, which included the planting of hundreds of violets, teasels and holly bushes by Alan and Barbara Eames, stalwarts of the group. There is an area of wetland where golden kingcups and purple loosestrife flourish around a small pool. In the wood there is the biggest hawthorn I have ever seen and I found a magnificent parasol toadstool, which I am sure is the perfect place to spot elves and fairies - only if you believe!

Hornby Plantation is a hidden gem for those who like nature in the raw, as opposed to pretty municipal parks. Mansfield district has such a variety of green spaces that no-one can fail to find something to suit their particular taste in nature.

……The Highways Agency is launching a campaign to fight the problem of litter on trunk roads and motorways across the East Midlands. As part of The ‘Bag it, Bin it’ campaign, drivers are being encouraged to pick up a Highways Agency litter bag to put rubbish in and dispose of it in a bin when they reach their destination - rather than throwing it from a car window. Not only is litter unsightly and a threat to the environment, but clearing rubbish from roadside verges and central reservations puts the workers at risk of injury from moving traffic and diverts resources away from road maintenance and repairs. Highways Agency “Bag it and Bin it” litter bags can be found in service stations across the country.

…….growing on the park took place on Wednesday and BTCV found a total of 21 species (excluding grasses) in the wildflower meadow at the top end of Peafield Park.

Friends of Peafield Park are planning to plant species that are not evident in the meadow to increase the variety of  flowers. We shall be taking instructions from Flis, MDC’s Parks Conservation Officer who is very ‘clued up’ on these matters. It’s amazing to think that so many species are thriving in the wild; they have not been planted but are Mother Nature’s contribution to the surroundings that are enjoyed by so many residents.

…because it’s Mansfield in Bloom Day. The judges are touring the whole of the District to assess the floral displays and the Best Gardens and parks. I am attending in my role as a member of Friends of Peafield Park, to show the judges how much our park means to us and to prove our involvement.

I was out litter-picking today in readiness for the visit and it was encouraging to see so little litter around, both on the estate and in the park. Perhaps the message is finally getting across, that litter is an eyesore and spoils the estate and park for others. We must keep our fingers crossed that Mansfield will win the ‘Small City’ award, which is to be announced next month at a ceremony in Chester.

….and Britain is still a tip, according to the Express, which claims that councils are ‘either unable or unwilling to get to grips with fly-tipping and littering’.

Here in Mansfield we have a special project to address the issues of litter and fly-tipping; to report fly-tipping, graffiti, abandoned cars or other environmental crimes, call the Grimebusters hotline on 01623 463463.

There have been a number of prosecutions this year, with fines upwards of £500 in some cases.  

All I can say is ‘Thank Heavens for MDC’s Grimebusters initiative’

Whenever the grass mowing teams arrive to mow the grass verges in Leeming Ward, they seem to pay litttle heed to the litter including beer and pop cans, plastic bottles and the like. They ride their mowing machines over the whole lot and leave sharp shards of metal and plastic around on the play areas with, apparently, little thought for children who might play there.

The following story picked up from The Mirror by way of the LGA website tells a vastly different story.

‘PLASTIC FLOWERS BANNED FROM GRAVEYARD  - A council has banned plastic flowers from a graveyard on health and safety grounds. Keynsham Town Council officials say it could be dangerous if they get caught in lawnmowers and spray bits of plastic around.’

What happened to the ‘happy medium’? Why is there no middle ground?

….This is scarey stuff!!

Commenting on today’s publication of the Government’s siting assessment for new nuclear power stations, which says that they could be built in areas at risk from flooding, tsunami and erosion, Liberal Democrat Shadow Environment Secretary, Steve Webb said:

“The Government appears to have abandoned common sense when it comes to new nuclear power.

“Ministers are so desperate to get new nuclear plants going, they are willing to look at sites at risk of falling into the sea.

“This irresponsible approach has all the hallmarks of a Government in a hurry.

“They are sweeping aside any local accountability in the planning system, and now they are willing to consider nuclear plants even in areas at risk of storm surge, tsunami and coastal erosion.”

….is, I am sad to report, on the verge of closure. Wendy Radford, an artist who runs the rescue centre, is unable to carry on her sterling work in raising and freeing wildlife due to a lack of funds.

You may recall that the starling that I raised from a chick was taken in by Wendy for her to continue the care prior to his release. The Cedar Wildlife Centre is kitted out with huge aviaries and the work Wendy and her family have done in rearing bird species as diverse as magpies, sparrows and swans is recognised by the RSPB.

I gave her a donation to help her work, but without further donations from supporters, the wildlife of Ashfield and Mansfield will suffer a sad fate indeed. People such as Wendy are few and far between and the demise of Cedar Wildlife Centre will be detrimental to injured and homeless birds and animals.

If you can, please help to keep this wonderful facility open. The centre is at 25 Cedars Avenue, Kirkby-in-Ashfield. Tel:01623 468112

Thanks.

…………was very satisfying and enjoyable. There were upwards of 30 people from various Friends Groups from across Nottinghamshire and it was great to host the event in this year of the Green Flag for Peafield Park.

The company was good, the groups’ news updates were informative, the lunch was tastey and the walk around Peafield Park was health-giving and rewarding. The sun shone for us,   Ludborough Walk Community Centre was the perfect venue and everyone said they had enjoyed it. 

I must give particular thanks to Councillor Jill Usher who manned the tea-pot and the coffee cups with aplomb and even did all the washing up. Thanks also to the Greenwood Team for their meticulous planning, making the event go smoothly.

…….A team of youngsters undertook Restorative Justice yesterday on the park, picking litter in lieu of fines for various offences. In the company of two Neighbourhood Wardens they repaid their fines by way of litter-picking.

A good scheme, which has the added beneficial effect of teaching kids the error of their ways, whether it is under-age drinking, littering or other misdemeanour.

Friends of Peafield Park are hosting the Greenwood Friends Forum tomorrow so this litter pick in the park is well-timed; when we take our walk in the park, it will be good to show off how clean and tidy it is, so ‘thanks’ to the team of workers.

….wind farms would be capable of providing up to 15% of the world’s future energy needs.

Once windmills are installed, wind can be converted to electricity inexpensively. But not everyone likes wind farms.  Some feel that the giant blades mar scenic views; they can kill birds and bats, particularly if they are located on a ‘flight path’. To minimise these risks, one solution would be to place wind farms in the ocean rather than merely off-shore. Winds tend to blow more strongly over the ocean than over land.

This could be the perfect answer to the planet’s dwindling resources. There is, after all, a finite amount of natural energy available to mankind and I really don’t like the idea of nuclear power plants springing up all over the world. Apart from the problem of disposing of nuclear waste, we have to beware the threat posed by some powers that have nuclear capabilities.

Wind farms are so pure, don’t you agree? There is something so graceful about the windmills and they cause so little spoiling of nature. Some people argue against them, but if we don’t move forward we shall end up without power.

What if we had refused to acknowledge and embrace the internal combustion engine? ……. OK, I have to agree that horse-drawn loads are so much more pleasing to the eye then the endless trains of heavy haulage vehicles on our roads. (The waste product was also rather more useful than nuclear waste!)

There must be a solution to the world’s eternal need for power supplies and until a better answer is found, I will go with the wind farm.

….Peafield Park has been successful in its bid for the prestigious Green Flag. All the hard work and dedication by Friends of Peafield Park and local Councillors has paid off and we intend to celebrate!!!!! We missed out last year, but with the guidance of Kathryn, MDC’s Parks Development Officer, we managed it at our second attempt.

The Green Flag for parks is the equivalent of the Blue Flag awarded to beaches which  reach a level of excellence in their category. We are all so thrilled to have done it, but we have to keep up the good work - 2009 is just around the corner!

……some very happy faces.

There is a young sapling on Litton Road on the approach to Peafield School which has been stripped of all its bark, right up to its  lowest branches. (Double-click on the pic to enlarge it) If you saw who did this to this piece of Mother Nature’s art, contact me or the Police. This beautiful tree will now die and I think it is such a shame; I love trees with a passion (in fact on the quiet I am a bit of a tree-hugger!) and find it   difficult to sit on MDC’s Planning Committee and pass judgment on planning applications which involve the felling of trees. However, as a responsible member of the Committee I have to apply the planning considerations by which we are bound by law and bear in mind the rules set out by Central Government.

It’s not an easy task, I might add but it’s one that has to be done, like it or not.

Commenting on reports that biofuels have pushed up world food prices by up to 75%, Liberal Democrat Shadow Transport Secretary, Norman Baker said:

“This is extremely worrying and a clear sign that we must move away from unsustainable biofuels.

“It’s time the Government and the EU closed the loopholes that support corn-based US bioethanol over more sustainable biofuels.

“However, not all biofuels are the same and we should not overreact and abandon the entire project.

“Some biofuels have potential to reduce carbon emissions from transport without having this effect on food production, but stringent sustainability standards are essential.

“We must also be aware that estimates of the effects of biofuels on food prices vary wildly and we should not rush to judgement until a consensus emerges.”

……..of this beautiful planet? Is it a sign of global warming that in my garden there are no longer sparrows with five or six fledglings, no large family groups of blackbirds or starlings? This lack of fledgling birds is quite a worrying trend and not one confined to my garden. The only bird that appears to be  ’holding its own’ in numbers is the goldfinch, of which I have a family of seven visiting on a regular basis. This may be due to the fact that there is an abundant supply of sunflower hearts in the garden!

To encourage ground feeders I have taken to putting out mealworms and the blackbirds are slowly coming back, but they are so territorial that they generally come one at a time, or a fight ensues! It is, though, a positive age since I saw a thrush in my garden. I have seen and heard them in Whinney Hill Woodland along with other varieties of bird. It’s well worth a walk in the woods; there is so much birdlife down there.

If you are concerned about the effects of global warming, you can sign up to the petition, by clicking on the link button at right of screen.

…Wednesday I had a letter printed in Chad, our local newspaper, bemoaning the thuggery which was partly to blame for the demolition of Bath Mill, because vandals had turned an already ‘at risk’ building into one which had become so unsafe the only option was to demolish it.

Then, on Thursday at the Greenwood Awards Ceremony, I met the inspirational youngsters who were at one with nature, helping with various projects as members of Friends Groups, to protect and improve the open spaces in our area. They were no less boisterous than your average teenager, but thanks to the encouragement from older volunteers their enthusiasm for life was channelled into making a difference to our parks, riverbanks and local nature reserves.

Being able to present awards to the winners, who were aged from 9 years old to 80 years old was a genuine honour. Winners came from the length and breadth of Nottinghamshire to meet at Rufford Park and I hope to have some photos of the occasion, which I shall post later.

…microchips on waste bins…whatever next?

Some UK local authorities are piloting a scheme whereby microchips are placed in waste bins to weigh the amount of rubbish thrown away. This is so that householders can be charged for the amount of rubbish they throw away. Now we learn that there are glitches in the workings of the ‘chips’ resulting in householders paying over the odds for the removal of their rubbish. This is in addition to the Council Tax, which I thought was supposed to include the cost of waste disposal.

Well, I don’t know about you, but I only throw away in my green household waste bin anything that I can’t recycle, such as cat litter, fire ashes, non-recyclable plastics, food waste which I can’t compost and newspapers that I have used to wrap cat litter. I have a box in my outhouse with glass bottles in it, another with old clothes.

Where will it end? Don’t you just occasionally wish for a return to the days when our bin men carried a metal dustbin on his shoulder, right from the backyard to the wagon on the street? We now have larger bins which we still manage to fill; green, blue and brown ones. Upon whose shoulders do we place the blame for all this waste?  Is it the consumer? The manufacturer? The shop? What do you say when asked ‘do you need a bag for that?’

Try saying ‘No thanks, I have brought a bag with me’. See the look of shock on their faces!! It’s worth it!

….a nuclear waste site next door? Mmmmm, thought not!

According to a story in the Telegraph, councils are to be offered jobs and other “bribes” to accept nuclear waste.

Hilary Benn, the Environment Secretary, urged councils and other groups to provide an “essential service to the nation” by offering sites to bury a share of Britain’s stockpile of radioactive material. Mr Benn said communities could expect jobs and “other benefits” in return for taking on a burial site. ‘Essential service to the nation’? I don’t think so!

So far as I’m concerned, there is NOTHING on God’s Earth that I need so desperately that it would encourage me to accept a nuclear landfill site in my backyard - I trust that the Independents at MDC will be of a similar mind!

The Liberal Democrats site has a really good (and Free!) screensaver telling the whole truth about the disposal of nuclear waste. Check it out, by clicking on the Liberal Democrat site, then click on Environment….you will be able to download the screensaver from there.

    Flowers always make people better, happier and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul.

With this quote in mind, the closing date for entry into the Mansfield in Bloom competition is on Friday, 27th June. If you think your garden is worthy of the Best Kept Garden Award, then collect an entry form. They are available at www.mansfield.gov.uk or by email from kpoxon@mansfield.gov.uk (Parks Development Officer) or by telephone on 01623 463 118

Good Luck!

……….to be asked to help in presenting the awards at The Greenwood Awards Ceremony to be held at Rufford Abbey on 19th June. This annual ceremony acknowledges the hard work put in, during all weathers, by the Friends of Greenwood Groups.

These groups toil to keep Nottinghamshire’s parks and nature reserves in tip top condition and plant wildflowers, hawthorns and an unending variety of other plants. They also have regular litter picks and endeavour to involve local schools in park life and are always hoping for new recruits.

Nesting boxes, works of art, paths, seating and willow sculptures have all been built by the various groups, without whom a lot of our beautiful open spaces would disappear. I have been fortunate enough to visit a number of the sites and they are all a credit to the dedication of the Friends.

I am glad I only have to present the awards; to decide on the recipients would be a hard task indeed.

…………TWO FINGER RULE ON BIN COLLECTIONS
West Wiltshire District Council has come under fire after its waste contractor told its bin emptying staff that they should only collect bins if they could pull the wheelie bin with two fingers. How discrimating is that to anyone who has ‘heavy rubbish’?

I have heavy fire ashes and  cat litter, in addition to everyday household waste. If the refuse collector tried to move my bin with two fingers, he would probably break them! How mad is this world becoming? Take the mascot off your wagon -that’s another idea. Where’s the harm?
 

regrettably, Bath Mill is no more. The vandals have won the day and isn’t that sickening? Bath Mill was a listed building in desperate need of conservation. Any number of reasons can be cited for its demise, including age and  neglect, but the main reason is the mindless thuggery that is prevalent in our society today.

OK, so the old mill wasn’t in tip-top form (in truth it was on its last legs) but it could have lasted a while longer and with care and restoration, hopefully the plans of the owner to convert the building to apartments would have come to fruition and Bath Mill could have taken its rightful place as a landmark in Mansfield.

All this is now lost to future generations; such a waste. We need to protect our old buildings and ensure that they stand as a proud monument to Mansfield rather than become its face of shame.

Follow this link to see more of Mansfield’s old buildings.     http://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/bar-mansfield.pdf

I can’t say how many of these buildings are still in situ, but it would be good to know, wouldn’t it? I shall endevaour to find out which, if any, are still standing.

…….folks would be out tidying the frontage of their properties, whether home owners or living in rented accomodation. Nowadays, there are a good many  tenants (and to be fair, homeowners too) who seem to think that pride in their surroundings ends at the boundary to their property. The weeds are knee high and Peafields estate looks neglected and is overgrown with weeds. I have asked the relevant manager at MDC when these weeds are likely to be sprayed, but he was unable to give a definite answer.

I guess it’s up to each of us to get out and clear those persistent weeds. The weather’s perfect for such a job.

………..to look at Peafield Park and after deliberations, we shall be given feedback with regard to things we are getting right and areas where we need improvement. We shall learn the result towards the end of July…….here’s hoping for a positive judgment.

Pictured are Councillor Jill Usher (2nd R)and MDC Parks Development Officer Kathryn Poxon (L), with the Judges.

…………..but at last the work to underpin the garages at the bottom of Peafield Estate has begun, regrettably during the week of the Green Flag judging. The park and woodland path have been churned up by heavy plant equipment; however, I am informed by parks staff that this will be seen by the judges as ‘work in progress’ and will be no detriment to the aspirations for Green Flag status.

The workmen have dug out a deep trench in order to remove the roots of self-set trees which have been forcing the wall into a dangerous bulging overhang. This work really couldn’t wait any longer; it had become imperative for this wall to be given some long overdue maintenance, for health and safety reasons.   

I have put up detour signs to show those parents who use this woodland path, the alternative route to school.

    The Druids held  trees  as very sacred..………………

……………and so should we all. If they are allowed to grow they will outlive us all.

If you see anyone damaging the trees or other fixtures on Peafield park, please call the Police.

If the crime is ‘live’ and in progress, it’s 999 you must call.

………….down in the mouth. I despair for the future of this beautiful planet, when four newly ‘in leaf’ trees in our park are ripped down or torn apart by brainless, moronic youths in the early hours of this morning, when they should have been at home. Where are the parents during all this illegal activity? I am not just picking on the kids - there were witnesses to their foul deed.

Kids are taught at school that trees are the life-blood of the planet and still they take pleasure in tearing down young trees that , apart from being things of beauty to gladden any eye, but would go some way towards giving oxygen to the world in years to come.

I guess we can’t hold out much hope for youngsters when so-called adults cause the drink-fuelled fracas that occurred on London Underground, on the last day of permitted drinking of alcohol on trains. Kids go on to the park with bottles and cans of booze and we all know that when alcohol hits the brain of a youngster, all sense goes out of their ears!!!!

There, I feel better for that! I just hope that some of them were caught. Watch this space; I shall let you know..

….has been launched in Notts, to fight the epidemic of fly-tipping in the county.  

Both local authorities and the Environment Agency have powers to tackle fly-tipping. It is widely recognised that fly-tipping can be best combated through partnerships between local authorities, other enforcement agencies, including the Environment Agency. 

The EA and local authorities have agreed with the Local Government Association (LGA) a protocol that sets out the types of fly-tipping that local authorities and Environment Agency respond to.The Environment Agency investigate the larger scale incidents of fly-tipping, involving hazardous waste and incidents involving organised gangs of fly-tippers. Local authorities tackle clear-up of fly-tipping on publicly owned land, including roads and lay-bys. EA contact number: 0800 807060.   

The Nottinghamshire Local Area Agreement (consisting of, Ashfield District Council, Bassetlaw District Council, Broxtowe Borough Council, Gedling Borough Council, Mansfield District Council, Newark and Sherwood District Council, Nottinghamshire County Council and Rushcliffe Borough Council), Nottingham City Council and the Environment Agency have funded the purchase of covert surveillance equipment which will be used to tackle fly-tipping throughout Nottinghamshire.The project will run for 2 years and commenced on the 1 April 2008.  If you want more information about Operation Maid Marian please contact Peter Rutherford, Environment Crime Team Leader on 0115 846 3723.Of course, if you witness fly-tipping you can anonymously alert the Police (420999) or call Grimebusters at MDC (463463)

…..not a good idea;  this is something that has to be considered by Planning Committe members. However, according to a news story today, the Labour Government are not taking flood risk seriously.

Commenting on today’s land use statistics that reveal that 10% of new dwellings were built within areas of high flood risk, Liberal Democrat Shadow Housing Minister, Lembit Öpik said: “With 10% of new homes still being built in flood risk areas, the Government is clearly failing to take flooding seriously.”  For more on this story, follow this link
http://www.libdems.org.uk/community/story.html?id=14366

……..Supermarkets are falling behind local high street retailers and markets in reducing packaging waste, a survey has found.

Up to 38% of food packaging in a typical supermarket shopping basket cannot be recycled, according to a report by the Local Government Association. Its second investigation into the problem discovered only a 2% improvement from last year.

Analysis by the British Market Research Bureau into six leading supermarkets, a local retailer, and a market, concluded that retailers still had “a lot further to go” if Britain is to meet its recycling targets and avoid landfill tax.

Marks & Spencer and Lidl were the worst offenders in terms of the proportion of packaging that could be recycled. Only 62% of a range of items bought from their stores could be recycled, compared with 76% from high street retailers and 74% from markets.

M&S also used the second-highest total amount of packaging at 807g for a basket, while Sainsbury’s used the third-highest amount by weight at 746g. Asda’s packaging weighed the least among the supermarkets at 646g, 69% of which was recyclable.

Items found to have “excessive and unnecessary” layers of packaging ranged from pizza to biscuits. Fresh pizzas were found to contain several layers, including a plastic or polystyrene base and shrink-wrap, contained within a box. Biscuits were packed in plastic tubes in seven out of eight retailers, while some also had trays, adding to the waste.

However, the report stressed there had been some improvement from last year, for instance, broccoli was sold without shrink wrap in some stores. I have noticed that ASDA now sell it free of wrapping and if Ii buy things such as peppers or buternut squash I never use a plastic bag because I always wash my fruit & veg, or as in the case of squash, I peel it. However, celeriac is still shrink-wrapped…why?

….at the Civic Centre yesterday, when I arrived for my first meeting as Leader of the Liberal Democrat group at MDC.  The welcoming committee was not there to greet me, though; they were protesting about the prospect of development of rear gardens at Clipstone Road West, Forest Town.

I avoided them ‘like the plague’ because being on the Planning Committee that was meeting to consider the applications for permission to build on these gardens, if I had spoken to the protesters I would not have been able to cast my vote on these two items.

As it was, having read the planning applications  over the previous couple of weeks I had already come to the conclusion that a site visit was called for. Even with the help of Google maps it is hard to picture exactly what these two sites look like, so I proposed  that Committee members visit the two sites and at the vote this was unamimously backed by the rest of the  Planning Committee. Once these visits have taken place we will return to deliberate and debate the applications.

………for Peafield Park has been confirmed as 5th June, at 10 o’clock. Don’t forget, if you see any litter that needs clearing call me, please.

Alternatively, call Grimebusters on  463463 to report litter or graffiti.

We abuse the land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see the land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.

We Liberal Democrats truly care about the Earth; if you want to share in that care, come and join us. The link is on left of this site, or call me. My contact details are above - right of site.

…….currently working in the park, clearing the ‘wetland patch’ ready for planting wildflowers. The British Trust for Conservation Volunteers are worth their weight in gold; they laid the pathway from the rear of Peafield School through to the Whinney Hill Woods, including steps down and up  (or up and down, from the opposite direction!) through the small dip alongside the Flood Dykes fencing.They are a very committed group who give their time and efforts freely and are always pleased to have extra helpers, so why not go and have alook at what they’re doing and maybe give a hand. When I went today they were busy clearing all the existing plants, consisting mainly of nettles and docks!

Unfortunately I couldn’t stay, because I am rearing a starling chick which fell from my loft into the cavity wall in my bedroom.  it was lucky to survive as there were 5 dead birds in there. I have to feed it every 45 minutes at the moment, but thankfully only during daylight hours. It has survived now for 9 days in my care - thank Heavens for the internet; I have been able to garner lots of infromation about rearing and releasing into the wild. That’s the little chap (or chapess) at the head of this post. Wish me luck!

…….but that hasn’t stopped someone hacking at the shrubbery on the flood dykes over the fence at the bottom of Peafield park. The trees have been massacred, chopped, just mutilated. Not only does this look unsightly but it has opened up potential access to motorbikes, which are already a problem on the park.

I have emailed Notts County Council, who own this tract of land and I await a response. I shall follow up this post when I have news. NCC environment & conservation spokesman knew nothing about this and was unable to help. He advised a call to the Police, which was made by my colleague. Police visited the scene, but the men had already left.

I am happy to inform you that I have got the work stopped after a number of calls to various agencies, so the birds and shrubbery are safe. In future, projects such as these will have to be given the OK by the Parks Development Officer (conservation) at MDC. I call that a ‘result’! .

…….to transport brussels. I am a vegetarian and love my fruit and veg, especially brussels. What a boon then to be able to buy them all year round. I bought some at the weekend and I was shocked to see that they had come all the way from Australia.

So what? you may think, but with all this talk of carbon footprints, don’t you agree that it’s beyond the realms of reason to carry brussels halfway around the world? I remember my father saying that brussels didn’t taste right until they had been touched by frost and he was right.

I am going to make a real effort to eat veg that is either in season in UK or comes at least from western Europe. I shall not miss Californian oranges, lemons or other citrus fruits, but I shall miss eating brussels in summer!

The Liberal Democrats have petitions relevant to Global Warming and Green Taxes; by clicking on the link to the left of this column, you can access these petitions and sign up to them.

………….We do not own the world and it’s riches are not ours to dispose of at will.

Liberal Democrats are very much in tune with Mother Earth and have a campaign to Stop Global Warming, which you can check out by following this link http://www.libdems.org.uk/news/lib-dem-ppb.html (Although our leadership has changed the message remains the same).

If you want to join the Lib Dems, there are links on this page and the Liberal Democrat webpage, or you can just contact me; I will happily help you to join up.

….when it comes to distributing Poop Scoop Bags. I have a network of dog-owners who rely on me to provide the MDC Poop bags. The MDC Dog Warden, Mark, delivers 2,500 bags to my home on a regular basis , which I then put out to a number of areas -  Litton News, Greyhound Public House, Community Centres and individual dog owners in Leeming Ward. I sometimes feel that I am swimming against the tide; there is still so much dogs’ mess about the ward - and tell me, what’s  worse than trampling dog mess into your home? I am aware that the vast majority of owners do  pick up after their dogs, but there appears to be a hard-core of owners who refuse to do so - I’m not sure if it is something to do with people feeling ‘too proud to pick up’. What they ought to feel is:

                                                                       ’PROUD TO PICK UP’

If you would like to be added to my ’round’ please get in touch. Details are at the top right of this site.

 ……….to my previous post, I am just back from my walk, during which I found that some thoughtless, inconsiderate resident has dumped all the packaging from a barbecue, including lots of plastic bags and cardboard. Also old discarded plastic picnic plates all strewn around the parkland next to Peafield School. I gathered up all the plastic bags; children play on that park and apart from that potential danger, animals are quite easily killed by suffocation in  bags as they are attracted to them and curiously look inside them. There really is no excuse for this type of littering. We are all provided with a blue bin for recyclables  and cardboard is the easiest of items to dispose of in the bin. Stomp on it, squash it, or tear it up……no problem. It probably took more energy to carry the load to the park than it would have taken to BIN IT! I despair!

On my return home I reported it to Grimebusters and hopefully, a team will be out to collect it very soon. Of course, every fly-tipping incident which needs attention and each piece of graffiti  that calls for specialist cleansing equipment,  add  to Council Tax Charges which have to be budgeted to include these cleansing operations.

are everywhere, aren’t they? I always do a walk around my home estate on Sunday mornings armed with a carrier bag, picking up Saturday night’s litter and regardless of the fact that the nearest MacDonalds takeaway is in Mansfield, there is always, without exception, discarded plastic bags containing paper serviettes, empty drinks cartons (with lid & straw making their own contribution to the mess) and paper bags with polystyrene packs in them. Not to be left out, there are also KFC wrappers, pizza boxes, half-empty beer cans and crisp bags. My pet hate is the plastic 4can holder, which is a potential death trap for wildlife. Why can’t people take this litter home? We all are blessed  with 3 bins for the disposal of all types of litter. It is so frustrating that someone is too lazy and uncaring of the environment to TAKE THEIR LITTER HOME.

…and the costs involved are, perhaps, not helping the incidence of fly-tipping in our district. All well and good to talk about Mansfield’s improved recycling rates, but at what cost to the environment?

The charges for removing large items are: £10.51p for up to 3 items to be collected at the same time, excluding fridges or freezers, which are £10.51p each on account of stringent statutory disposal rulings, which have to be adhered to by Councils.  More than 3 items can be collected at any one time, but are charged at multiples of £10.51. Items for collection must be available and accessible for collection.   (Garden gates need to be unlocked by 6.30a.m) Payment must be made in advance at Civic Centre reception or Housing Offices throughout the district, and upon payment, you will receive a date when the collection will be made.

If you are receiving Income Support, Pension Credit or Jobseeker’s Allowance you will receive a 50% discount.

….and I was with a party of like-minded people, walking round the lake at Rufford Mill.

I  attended the meeting of The Greenwood Community Forest Forum, which is a collection of ‘Friends’ groups. From the Friends of Brierley Forest Park to Friends of Warsop Footpaths, we gathered to give our updates about what we are doing in our parks and local nature reserves. Some 30 people who care about the open spaces and woodland in the Notts region meet every 3 months at a different group’s venue. I am pleased to tell you that the next meeting on July 21st is to be held on our patch at Peafield Park, so if any of you fancy joining the Friends of Peafield Park and Hornby Plantation, just give me a call. We are making our 2nd attempt to secure Green Flag status for the park, so we have to make a concerted effort to ensure that our past hard work pays off.

………we all used to be responsible for cleaning the pavement in front of our properties? We all were proud to keep our frontages clean and I remember as a child, augmenting my pocket money by sweeping the pavement. Now though, we have to make our way through litter and dogs’ mess.

Would you believe that this morning I came across a whole boxful of latex ‘examination gloves’ strewn over a 10 sq. mt pleasant, green area of Leeming Ward. My immediate thought was: I’ll go home and call MDC Grimebusters to clear it up…..my next thought was: It’s ‘clean muck’- I’ll pick it up myself. So I went home, collected my litter-picker and picked them up, all bar 2 that had blown into a garden. It gave me a warm glow,  clearing that mess. If you want to enjoy that ‘warm glow’ please take care of your little patch of Leeming Ward.

April 3rd. I have been out and about in the ward and the amount of dog mess is appalling. I saw a gentleman on Litton Road who struggles to walk using two crutches and he picked up after his dog. He puts to shame those dog owners who ‘watch and walk’ as their dog fouls the pavement or grass verge.

If you see waste or fly-tipping or graffiti, please report it to MDC Grimebusters Squad on 01623 463463 or email grimebusters@mansfield.gov.uk. You will be surprised by how quickly they spring into action and clear the offending articles. The pictures here are just one example of their speedy response. If you have any household rubbish, other than that which is processed via the Green, Blue or Brown Bin System, please use one of the Waste Recycling Sites at Oakfield Lane, Warsop or at Kestrel Road, off Hermitage Lane, Mansfield. These sites are open every day, with the exception of Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years day. For bulky, unmanageable items,such as sofas, fridges, etc MDC provides a collection service. For further details of charges for this service, contact 01623 463463 

…and compost at home. Latest figures show that around a third of the contents of an average refuse bin is organic waste which could be composted. It is proven that composting at home is a great way to prevent this waste going to landfill, where it releases methane, a major greenhouse gas.

Composting at home will give you  free, nutrient-rich plant food for your garden, so if you wish to have a more hands on approach to recycling, compost bins are now being offered at discounted rates within the Nottinghamshire District. Home Composting gives you the opportunity to recycle garden and organic kitchen waste without transporting the waste from where it has arisen. Mansfield District Council is working in partnership with Nottinghamshire Local Authorities and WRAP (the Waste and Resources Action Programme) to sell home compost bins at a significantly reduced price.

Please contact the Recycling Helpline on 01623 463463 for more information or ring 0845 073 2001 or visit www.recyclenow.com/compost to place your order.

Ok, I know they are fragile, but do we really need so much packaging on our Easter eggs? The Easter Bunnies arrive safely, despite having only a minimal amount of wrapping. Do chocolate manufacturers not CARE about the Great Waste Debate?
There has been almost no change in the amount of packaging on Easter eggs despite manufactuers’ pledge to reduce the amount of card, plastic and foil they use. Some eggs on offer are so over-packaged that the chocolate makes up less than 10 per cent of the volume of the wrapping.