Sustainable

I have succumbed to the recent trend of choosing a word to inspire me during the course of the year ahead.  I pride myself on not jumping on bandwagons but on this occasion I think it makes sense.  Traditional new year's resolutions can very easily, or at least in my experience, become hostages to fortune.  A word is so much more forgiving, especially if it's regarded as being more of an aspiration rather than a fixed goal post.

Anyway, my word for 2016 is 'sustainable'.

It has been prompted by recent events including the Paris Climate Change Conference and the floods in the north of England and Scotland.  The environmental aspect of it is fairly obvious but I'd like to extend it to other areas of my life.  Here are some of the ways in which I'd like to see it work out in practice:

• I'd like to eat less meat and more plants
• I'd like to cut down even further on my energy consumption
• I'd like to get rid of more 'stuff', preferably to other people rather than landfill
• I'd like to get more sleep
• I'd like to redress my work/life balance
• I'd like to make more time for people
• I'd like to grow more of my own food and prepare more meals from scratch
• I'd like to push sustainability higher up on the agenda during the coming electoral campaigns

There's plenty to be getting on with!

When will we learn?

Allow me to set the scene ...

My elder daughter, approaching her finals at Glasgow university, can't spare the time to come home at Easter.  So I decide to visit her instead.

I check the fares and discover that it will cost me £122 by train and £65.98 by air.  A no brainer?

Except I opt for the train.

Why?

Well, partly because I love train journeys, especially long ones.  But also because the return journey by train will generate 72 kg of carbon, roughly equivalent to a third of the 231.2 kg produced by the flight, and I firmly believe in the principle of making the change I want to see.  How else can I live?

Our country has just witnessed the worst flooding in decades, widely suspected to be linked to man made climate change.  Politicians of every persuasion declare their commitment to reducing carbon consumption.  And yet those who choose low carbon travel options continue to be financially penalised.

It just doesn't make any sense.

RPSs

WARNING: Controversial post!

Our newly elected mayor, George Ferguson, has announced the introduction of Residents' Parking Schemes in 7 new areas across the city (including mine).

His decision has sparked a flurry of protests in the press and across the social media sites.

I've taken some time to read the details and, when consulted, will have no hesitation in voting for the proposal.

Our nation has become over dependent on the motor car.  I'm not denying the benefits it brings in terms of personal freedom and independence, nor the lifeline it offers the disabled, the elderly and those who live in remote locations.  However there is a price to pay and we are all (motorists and non motorists alike) paying it.  Our motorways and city centres are rapidly becoming gridlocked, air pollution has reached unacceptable levels, parents do not consider it safe enough to allow their children to play out in the streets, high streets are being deserted in favour of out of town shopping centres, the population is increasingly obese, the temperature of the earth's atmosphere continues to rise and we risk sparking catastrophic changes to the planet's climate systems.

So it seems to me, that a scheme whose aim is to reduce the number of cars on our city's streets, is well worth careful consideration.

As I understand it, it works like this.  Residents pay £30 a year for the right to park their car in their RPS area between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday.  No permit is required by residents to park in the evenings or at weekends.  £30 a year works out at 58 pence per week or 8p per day.  Hardly a king's ransom.  Second cars are charged the slightly higher tariff of £80 a year (£1.54/week, 22p/day).  Third cars are considerably more expensive at £200 a year, but then again, I can't imagine there are many city streets that could accommodate 3-car households.

Each household can apply for 100 visitors' permits a year (the first 50 free of charge and the remainder at £1 per permit).  Given that visitors do not need a permit to park in the evenings or at the weekends, when I assume most visiting takes place, this allowance would enable you to have an average of 2 daytime visitors per week.

All other motorists will be restricted to pay and display bays, where they can park for up to 15 minutes free of charge and £1 per hour thereafter, to the maximum of 3 hours.

There are concessions for businesses, landlords, contractors, blue card holders and people with long term care needs.

The bottom line is that our present system is unsustainable and something has got to be done before  it is too late.  Sacrifices may need to be made but, rather than focus on the negatives I urge the people of Bristol to embrace the positives:

Reverse car dependency
Emptier streets
Shorter journey times
Cleaner air
Safer environment for pedestrians and children
People friendly city centres
Revival of local high streets
Encouragement to walk and cycle
Incentive to public transport providers to increase their routes and lower their fares
Reduction in carbon dioxide emissions

So go for it George.  This is exactly the sort of policy I hoped you would implement when I voted for you.

I would, however, make two suggestions.

I believe that these charges only apply to residents who do not have a driveway.  If the aim of the scheme is to reduce the number of vehicles on the roads then it shouldn't matter where your car is parked.  It's still a car.

Secondly, I'd like to see at least some of the revenue raised used towards providing a more efficient, less expensive public transport system as a credible alternative to the car.

So, if you live in Bristol what do you think of the scheme?  If you live elsewhere, do you have a similar scheme?  How effective has it been in creating a better environment?

No Impact Week - Day 7 - Giving Back

I've taken stock of the ways in which I 'give back' to my community. These include working for the public sector, through regular monthly giving to charity to being involved in the work of voluntary organisations.

I consider myself to be a very fortunate person and feel compelled to donate at least some of my resources to make this world a better place for everyone to live in. Even so I am still rewarded with the satisfaction I feel and the friendships I make. There are a lot of generous people out there and it's a privilege being associated with them.

Today I feel grateful for:

The weekend

The prospect of a reunion of college friends next month

Dinner cooked for me by my husband

A good film on the telly

A text from a work mate

The photo's one of me taken at a Climate Change Demonstration in London last year. We travelled up from Bristol in a couple of coaches and met up with an old friend. It was a lovely day.

Bristol Against Sainsburys Insane Colossal Superstore

Those of you who live in South Bristol probably already know all about this proposal but, for those of you who dont:-

Bristol City Football Club wish to relocate their stadium to a greenbelt site just outside Bristol. To finance this move they need to sell their old ground. Sainsburys have offered them a substantial sum and have submitted a proposal to build a new 9,300 sq m superstore, with an 850 space car park, on the site. This will replace their existing store half a mile down the road.

There is strong opposition to this proposal and I have today submitted my objection online, the text of which I reproduce below.

I would like to submit my objection to the proposal, for the following reasons:

1 The construction of a superstore at Ashton Gate will have a detrimental effect on the local environment.

Sainsburys move from Winterstoke Road to Ashton Gate is being billed as a relocation but is much more than just that. The store will almost double in size, and will increase and expand the range of goods for sale. It will not be the kind of store local residents will pop in to for a pint of milk and a loaf of bread. Shoppers will be drawn from much further afield, and the majority of them will arrive by car. Why else the need for such a vast car park? Winterstoke Road is already congested and will become infinitely more so, while the streets surrounding the store will be used by drivers attempting to avoid the main roads. Increased levels of traffic will lead to increased levels of air pollution in a largely residential area, and along routes used by children walking to school. Tankers delivering petrol, lorries supplying goods and vans servicing the home delivery service will ensure an almost constant stream of traffic throughout the day and beyond. Noise and light pollution will affect those living in close proximity to the store. Granted they experience both from the football stadium, but no more than a couple of nights a week. The superstore will be an almost 24 hour presence.

All this in a city whose council is promoting the 10:10 campaign.

Much is made of the green credentials of the new building but these will be more than outweighed by the increased carbon emissions from the vehicular transport it engenders.

2 The presence of a superstore at Ashton Gate will pose a completely unnecessary and unfair threat to local retail.

Bedminster offers a wide range of stores from supermarkets through high street chains to family run businesses. We already have two large supermarkets (Asda and Sainsburys), several smaller ones (two Tescos, Aldi, Lidl and Iceland) and an extensive range of other food and non-food retailers. We did not need a Tesco superstore, nor do we need a bigger and better Sainsburys. Relocating this new store from the other side of Winterstoke Road to within a couple of hundred yards of North Street will almost certainly have a detrimental effect on local traders. The claim that the move will stimulate local trade is ludicrous. Shoppers arriving by car, parking in the car park, loading their boots with Sainsburys goods and filling their tanks at the petrol station are not going to stop off in North Street on their way home for a pound of mince, a box of matches or a packet of paracetamol. The new Sainsburys superstore is specifically designed to satisfy their every requirement and sales in local high streets areas will fall as a result.

Although some distance removed, Asda may very well be affected and, with it, the shops in East Street. An expansion of this magnitude suggests that Sainsburys will be hoping to attract customers from all over South Bristol, depriving areas such as Knowle, Brislington and Long Ashton of their custom.

This is a disaster, not just for the local traders, who will lose their income and possibly their jobs, but also for sustainable community. Local trading is a far better option than its supermarket equivalent. Goods are more likely to be locally sourced or produced. They are not transported hundreds of miles to and from central distribution centres. They are generally less packaged. They are sold by shopkeepers who know their wares and are able to respond to public demand. They provide continuity, inspire loyalty and offer a personal service that binds the community together.

A greater percentage of every pound spent in local businesses remains in the local community than for every pound spent in a supermarket. To opt for a superstore over local retail at a time when governments, both national and local, should be seeking solutions to an oil dependent society, is very short-sighted. And to choose to demolish a perfectly adequate building in order to build a brand new larger one half a mile down the road, when we are all being urged to reduce our carbon footprints to save the planet, is suicidal.

3 This is not the only, let alone the best, solution to the problem.

I would rather the club remained at Ashton Gate, in the heart of the community that supports it, than chase after illusory fame and fortune. I certainly do not approve of the construction of a stadium on a green field site. However, if the club is determined to move and dispose of its existing ground, then I suggest there are worthier legacies it could leave to Bedminster than a monstrous box straddling a concrete car park.

A mixed development of housing and small businesses would be an ideal alternative. Sainsburys proposes a housing development on the Winterstoke Road site. This is the wrong way round. Houses on the Winterstoke Road ‘island’ will be isolated, cut off from the services of Bedminster by a congested road struggling to cope with its increased load. Ashton Vale residents will lose the only food retailer they have and will now also have to negotiate Winterstoke Road to do their shopping. Meanwhile a new Sainsburys will pose a threat to a thriving high street, where a housing development would benefit from all the services its residents desired.

We are told that Bristol City Football Club cannot fund the move without the price Sainsburys will pay for the Ashton Gate site, but are not reassured that the club have exhausted all other possibilities. I feel we are being emotionally blackmailed by the, as yet unconfirmed, prospect of hosting a couple of World Cup matches. It is much easier to back popular short term projects, especially in the run up to an election. It is much harder, but ultimately more honourable, to take the long view and chose the one that will be of lasting benefit to the community. I am hoping that you will take just such a decision in this matter.

My submission is short on facts and figures, although I have listened to and read a good deal of arguments on both sides. I am relying on your having read and digested these for yourselves. This is my personal submission as someone who has lived and worked and raised two daughters in Bedminster, who loves its thriving community and who fears for its future should Sainsburys be granted permission to build this superstore.

A previous application for a Tesco store was withdrawn on the eve of the planning committee meeting. I wonder what will happen this time.

A Guid New Year

Not having got to bed until the wee hours we slept in this morning and decided to have a (very) late breakfast in the Lounge. It was packed out but we managed to get a table. We were advised it would be a 45 minute wait for our food so I popped over the road to buy the Guardian to read over our hot drinks. The G2 section was given over to climate change and I was particularly taken by an article by Andrew Simms in which he quoted from EF Schumacher.

'We must do what we conceive to be right and not bother our heads or burden our souls with whether we'll be succesful, because if we don't do the right thing, we'll do the wrong thing and we'll be part of the disease and not part of the cure.'

I think I could do worse than taking being guided by this principle in 2010.

I don't know about anyone else, but I often feel completely powerless in the face of major events. The UN Climate Conference is one of them where, confronted with arguably the biggest threat the planet has ever witnessed, our leaders seem unable to take the steps necessary to avert it.

There are hundreds and thousands, maybe even millions, of us switching off our standbys, converting to low energy light bulbs, turning down the heating and putting on jumpers, taking the train instead of the plane, eating less meat etc etc. And, in case our governments haven't noticed what we've been up to, we send them postcards and emails and even paint our faces blue and go on demonstrations. Yet still they do nothing ... or at least as little as they can get away with.

However, the threat of climate change is too important to give up on. So yesterday I signed the Avaaz petition here and today I emailed President Obama here. I don't know whether it will make any difference (although NGOs insist that it does) but at least I know I've tried.

Perhaps if you tried too ... ?

Waving - and (hopefully) not Drowning

Yesterday 40,000+ people marched through central London, giving the government the mandate it asked for to negotiate a safe and fair deal for the planet. We've done our bit, now it's over to you, Gordon!

Not Drowning but Waving

This afternoon Alan and I went down to Millenium Square to Bristol's International Day of Climate Action. It was a blustery old day and the rain came and went - not ideal event weather. However there was a fair crowd which I hope will have swelled by this evening.

We signed a few cards and petitions, listened to Jonathan Porritt and had our faces painted.

This evening I booked coach tickets to The Wave in London on Saturday 5 December.

Are you planning to be there?

Blog Action Day - Climate Change

Gordon Brown has agreed to attend the UN Copenhagen Climate Change Summit. Now we need to urge him to use his influence to ensure that other major world leaders attend and that they deliver a fair and safe global climate deal.

Sign up to Oxfam's Here and Now campaign and book your ticket to London for The Wave.

See you there!

Rediscovering our Humanity

Yesterday evening the Archbishop of Canterbury addressed a gathering in Southwark Cathedral organised by Operation Noah. My husband, who was in London for work, stayed on after his meeting and went to hear him. He was very impressed and so this afternoon I logged on to read what he'd said.

"People should use the climate change crisis as an opportunity to become human again, setting aside the addictive and self-destructive behaviour that has damaged their souls."

Rowan Williams is so right. If, instead of regarding the lifestyle changes that have to be made to save our planet, as curtailments of our liberty, we were instead to welcome them as the means of a deeper understanding of ourselves, our neighbours and our God then, not only would we have prevented a catastrophe, but we would have rediscovered our humanity.

The archbishop made reference to CRAGS, carbon reduction action groups, which reminded me that I was once quite keen to initiate one locally. A timely reminder to revisit my plans.

I would be interested to hear from anyone who may belong to such a group and who would like to share their experience.

The Greening of my Diet

In the campaign to reduce my carbon footprint it has been all too easy to pick and chose my targets to suit my lifestyle. As a non car owner and someone who hasn't flown (except for two family emergency short hauls) in almost three years, I am justifiably proud of my relatively low level of emissions. I reduce, reuse and recycle my waste. I buy local and organic. I've even started growing my own veg. However I have thus far, turned a blind eye on the composition of my diet.

Some time ago I was reminded of the significant contribution livestock farming makes to global warming, accounting for 18% of greenhouse gas emissions. These are produced by clearing forested land, making and transporting fertilizers, running farm vehicles and the digestive system of animals.. Transport, on the other hand, 'only' accounts for 13%. The average household would reduce their emissions by more if they halved their consumption of meat than if they halved their car usage.

While I respect the convictions of my vegetarian, and vegan, friends I am not persuaded of the need to give up eating meat altogether. However I am, rather regretfully, coming round to the environmental benefits of eating less of it. I've tried going vegetarian on several occasions with limited success, the chief obstacles being bacon sandwiches and my children. So it will not be easy.

Happily this week is National Vegetarian Week which may kick start me in the right direction.

With toast and marmalade for breakfast and a feta cheese and salad baguette for lunch I've done alright so far. This evening I have been invited to a barbecue (of the indoor variety unless the rain clears) which will prove more of a challenge. I'm taking a Spanish tortilla , but I fear I'll be tempted by the sausages (especially any with sticky burnt skins!). However for the sake of the planet I will resist. Wish me luck.