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WIGAN youngsters are being urged to enter a very “green” competition.
The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is launching The Very Vegetable Painting competition for children, to celebrate its forthcoming Taste of Autumn events in October.
The UK’s leading gardening charity is inviting children, aged 16 and under, to paint an A3 sized picture comprising vegetables, to be in with a chance of winning a goody bag of prizes.
As inspiration, artist Carl Warner has lent his balloon landscape image, completely made of vegetables, to help children get their artistic juices bubbling.
Four lucky winners will have their paintings exhibited at the RHS Garden closest to their home, Garden Explorers family membership to the RHS for 12 months, a visit to A Taste of Autumn, a one-on-one design hour with an RHS gardener to help plan the family vegetable plot, a children’s hamper and a selection of gardening books and seeds.
The competition closes on September 15. For more information visit www.rhs.org.uk/vegetables. |
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A WIGAN primary school is leading the way on renewable energy following the installation of new solar panels.
Orrell Holgate Primary School is among 100 across the UK chosen to receive the £20,000 panels.
They are half-funded by the Co-operative Group’s £1m Green Energy for Schools scheme, with match-funding from the Government.
St James’ Catholic and Marsh Green primary schools have also been selected to receive panels.
Schools were nominated to take part by Co-operative staff and energy firm SolarCentury, which assessed the suitability of premises.
Pupils are keeping track of how much renewable electricity the panels are generating on a monitor in the school building.
The 24 photovoltaic panels should generate around 3,300 kWh of electricity each year – enough to power a school computer for 33,000 hours or to make 180,000 cups of tea – saving around two tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Headteacher Mike Wilson said: “We are very proud to be among the schools leading the way on renewable energy through this scheme.”
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NORTH WEST MEP Chris Davies is being called on to back proposals for tough EU regulations to improve the fuel efficiency of new cars.
Friends of the Earth also want the MEP to vote to strengthen rules for cutting aviation emissions at a crucial European Parliament meeting in Brussels next week.
The environmental campaign group said that rising oil prices and road transport’s increasing contribution to climate change meant that it was essential to increase the fuel efficiency of all new cars. The move could also produce economic benefits for the North West, which could help to manufacture the next generation of green cars. |
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THE Environment Committee, which is meeting next week, will vote on amendments to proposals to cut carbon dioxide emissions from aviation and discuss measures to cut emissions from cars by making them use fuel in a smarter way.
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riends of the Earth is calling on Mr Davies to:
Back tough mandatory emissions targets for new cars. Past attempts to cut emissions from new cars have not been successful, but this could make the single biggest contribution to cutting carbon
Push for amendments to the EU Emissions Trading Scheme that will toughen up environmental rules for airlines taking part. The trading scheme is designed to limit carbon dioxide emissions from EU industry through a permit system for companies. The EU intends to extend this scheme to include aviation from 2011 onwards.
Friends of the Earth Transport Campaigner Tony Bosworth said: “Rising fuel prices and road transport’s increasing contribution to climate change mean it is essential to manufacture greener cars. Chris Davies can play a key role in this by pushing for tough EU fuel efficiency standards for new cars.”
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Grand Arcade customer service advisor Donna Sharrock
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SHOPPERS in Wigan saw the Grand Arcade become the Green Arcade for one day only.The special Green Awareness Day run by Blakeley's Waste Management, the arcade's waste contractor, invited customers to discover recycling.
Staff from Blakeley's, which is based in Bickershaw, gave away 600 green apples to shoppers and showed a film depicting the journey of various waste packaging materials from the dustbin to the rabbit hutch.
Roger Hudspith, from Blakeley's, said: "It was a great way to inform the public about recycling." |
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A LOWTON family are the kings and queens of green after winning a council-run recycling competition ... twice! Deborah and David Smith have won £200 for putting their empties into a can bank. And the previous winner was Deborah's mum, Susan!
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Deborah said: "It's funny that my mum won last time, but it's no fix! We've always liked to do our bit and, especially with a big family, it's an easy way to slim our bin."
Wigan Council's Nick Deakin presented David and Deborah with their winnings, plus there's another £200 going to the Smiths' chosen school, Lowton Junior and Infants. The Smith children are pupils there and, of course, the same school benefitted when grandma won last time!
Nick said: "I always say how it's great to reward eager recyclers, but to get two members of the same family winning consecutive prizes, it's amazing. Well done to them. It just shows that when you go green, it is easy to bring your family along, too." |
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Deborah said: "Items are sorted and taken to the bottle and can banks. It's important for all our futures and when the recycling sites for empty cans and tins are next to the shops where you buy new, full ones, there's no excuse."
The Smith family labelled their old tins with their details, and one of their cans was drawn out from the thousands collected at the council's recycling centre in Ince.
Residents can download entry labels from the council's website, or pick them up from libraries, or simply attach labels with tape.
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SIMON Ryley from Shevington is the first winner of a great green prize after telling us just how he and his family are going green.
Simon filled in our electronic form to tell us that he recycles household waste using locally provided facilities, turns off the tap when he brushes his teeth, has switched to energy-saving light bulbs, buys more seasonal and unpackaged food, hangs up washing to dry rather than using a tumble dryer and chooses not to fly where there is a suitable alternative.
Congratulations to Simon, who won tickets to the Harrogate Flower Show. Stay Green, Simon!
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Competition winner Simon Ryley
with daughter Hannah.
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VOLUNTEERS have been digging deep to create a better woodland in Ashton Heath.
Members of Ashton Heath Residents’ Association planted woodland wildflower and grass seed in the popular wooded area.
The group received a grant from national charity, Community Service Volunteers Action Earth, as part of a five-month national campaign to help improve the environment.
The project is also supported by Morrisons supermarkets.
Gillian Hall, customer services director at Morrisons, said: “We are pleased the sponsorship we have given CSV is going to help this excellent community environmental project.
“Action Earth is a fantastic programme and we are sure the Ashton Heath woodland improvement will make a real impact in helping to improve the local environment.” -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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MORE than 2,000 children in Wigan are set to benefit from a lesson in the three eco-Rs.
Wigan Council has commissioned learning and training expert drama group CragRats to talk about the three Rs – reduce, re-use and recycle.
Actors will visit schools in Norley Hall, Worsley Hall, Worsley Mesnes, Hag Fold and Scholes.
Pupils will watch a specially written play that tackles issues surrounding recycling. They will then take part in an interactive workshop and look at how they can make a difference.
The aim of the tour is to get young people to be environmentally aware, to understand what might happen if we fail to recycle – both locally and globally and to reduce and reuse wherever possible.
Wigan Council’s environment education officer Rebecca Hill said: “We have had great success using theatre in education to get messages out in an effective way to young people. It is crucial that the next generation appreciate their environment and the council is committed to delivering eco-education to them.”
CragRats’ Patricia Moorhouse added: “Recycling and environmental issues are extremely topical and this tour helps capitalise on that by giving young people a chance to formulate their own opinions and hopefully take positive action.”
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| IF HUMAN beings can't get the eco-message through, how's about a rapping robot? |
A particularly friendly automaton called Recycler is doing the rounds in Wigan this week, and we caught up with him at the start of his whistle-stop tour at Ince St William's RC Primary School.
His interactive educational show is aimed at teaching pupils and teachers all about the three Rs: reduce, re-use and recycle and yes – the robot really does do a rap!
Recycler shows children what they can do to make a difference and gives examples of how they can put the three Rs into practice at home and school.
Press play on the right to see the video |
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THERE’S no escaping it, being environmentally-friendly is trendy.
Whether we’re measuring our carbon footprint, stocking up on organics or recycling and reusing, the green issue is certainly a popular one. And rightly so, because the future of the planet depends on it.
But when it comes to acting in a more responsible and eco-friendly way do we really have to re-write the rule book? Or does the key to a greener lifestyle lie behind us rather than in front?
Here Wigan Council’s award winning green travel guru James Noakes (pictured) takes a gentle stroll down memory lane and realises that when it comes to going green we could very well be heading back to the future…
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Growing up in the middle of a bustling city, as a young man my dad had an allotment he could escape to.
Coupled with his job working in an abattoir, he was very much self-sufficient in food for him and his family. He learnt to cook simple food from fresh ingredients and couldn’t understand why anyone would want to buy, let alone eat, processed food.
Like most people then, he didn’t own a car. He travelled around Britain for his holidays by train, sampling the varied delights this country has to offer. It may seem strange to people now but a trip to Ireland (where he met my mum), was as exotic as it got!
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My dad was probably the first environmentalist I ever knew but he did not see himself that way. You see, the reason he lived like that was he was a product of his time.
Born before World War II, he grew up when it was virtually criminal to waste anything – food, clothes, energy and so on. And he certainly didn’t need an over-excited cook on the TV to tell them how to make dinner from fresh ingredients.
To many people that may seem like a reminder of how bad the past was – how much harder it was or how little people had. The truth is that it is a model for how we will probably need to live our lives in the future. Consider the major issues that we face today.
Obesity and food – caused in part by our addiction to “junk” food and lack of cookery knowledge.
Of course obesity existed back then but it only affected a small proportion of people. Imagine a fresh vegetable, unprocessed diet now and how people would be a lot healthier for it!
Carbon emissions – a car was a luxury and a plane was something you saw on the big screen!
People of that era were not without fault but their lifestyles were less energy intensive on a personal level.
Yes they burned fuel and had dirty factories but they used less energy overall. Imagine if we could combine our better energy
efficiency with their better energy-use.
Waste – No-one dreamed of throwing away a toaster, never mind a vacuum cleaner or a TV.
People took their shoes to a cobbler rather than chuck them away. Pop bottles got you money back if you returned them and fruit and vegetables came in their own natural packaging. A cloth shopping bag wasn’t trendy – it was normal. Reduce, reuse, recycle was a way of life to the majority of people.
True, not everything was better back then and maybe, given the chance, many people would have swapped their life then for how life is now.
We live longer and life is a lot easier for a lot of us. There are no golden years to look back on but it is true to say that we should learn from certain aspects of our past.
As we face the big issues of climate change, energy security, waste and obesity, it is worth us applying those lessons in a modern setting. The messages and the warnings may be new but the ability to meet the challenges is not.
Use fresh food; reduce waste; use less energy; travel less; shop local – who would have thought that my dad and the many like him all those years ago were living a lifestyle that would be seen as fashionable today?
You can find out more about how to adopt a greener lifestyle through recycling by visiting Wigan Council’s website – www.wigan.gov.uk and search for ‘recycling’.
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| BUSINESSES in the North West are helping create a boom in environmental tourism as increasing numbers of companies and organisations seek to establish their green credentials.
More than 600 businesses seeking to achieve a bronze, silver or gold standard award for their commitment to sustainable tourism applied to join The Green Tourism Business Scheme (GTBS) in the last twelve months.
The North West is among the areas of the UK leading the way with at least 51 applications seeking to join an existing 47 GTBS members in the area as diverse as Cheshire, the Lake District, Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire, |
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There is no scheme in the world better placed to highlight the importance of protecting environments, respecting local cultures, supporting local communities, conserving natural resources and minimising pollution," said Andrea Nicholas of the Green Tourism Business Scheme, which is already the largest organisation of its kind in the world.
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DRIVING back to Happiness, Driving on the Moon, Drive like an Egyptian or even You’ll Never Drive Alone! – it just doesn’t work does it?
Let’s face it – sometimes walking is the best option, not only in song titles but in life as well. For those of us lucky enough to be able to walk, it can seem a bit of a shame that we don’t do it more often.
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James Noakes is Wigan Council’s green travel expert and he’s encouraging everyone to walk more in 2008.
“There are a lot of times when it just seems so much easier to jump in the car and drive to the corner shop or work,” said James.
“But someone much smarter than me once pointed out that for every action there is a reaction. So what is the reaction to our desire not to use the feet we were blessed with?
“More traffic, more obesity, less community spirit and a less safe feeling on our streets.”
It’s fair to say that for many the decision not to walk comes all too easily but the consequences of this can be huge.
For a start, deciding to take the car rather than walking increases the amount of traffic on our roads but lots of people, motorists included, complain about the amount of cars on the road. |
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James said: “In Germany they once ran a campaign that said – Your are not in traffic – you ARE traffic – which is perhaps more honest than a lot of people would want it.
“Nearly a fifth of all trips less than one mile are taken by car, so here’s an idea, leave your car at home for some of these trips. That way you can help reduce the traffic we all complain about.”
But of course walking not only good for slimming our roads – it can also help slim ourselves.
“As obesity is increasingly becoming a problem, more than half of us are overweight, it can be tempting to try out the latest diet craze – only eating cheese on a Wednesday, cabbage with
everything, Mongolian goat extract or whatever,” said James. “But the truth is it can be much simpler than that.”
“My dad once gave me his secret to losing weight and it has helped me many times. I’ve kept it to myself until now because the diet book industry would get me, but I’m going to share it with you now …“EAT LESS AND EXERCISE MORE!”
“I’m no doctor and you can probably tell that my dad wasn’t either, but getting more exercise is more important.
“Choosing to walk instead of driving can only help in the battle of the bulge and walking can fit in with almost any daily routine.”
Of course the best thing about walking is it is free! So why not try it out?
It may not cure the ills of society but it’s a great start.
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WIGAN'S largest recycling depot has been busy disposing of our domestic rubbish on a massive scale.
Last year, Kirkless Household Waste Recycling Centre dealt with 11,018 tonnes of garden waste, 7,092 tonnes of paper and 4,950 tonnes of timber. A total of 160,504 tonnes of rubbish arrived at the centre from Wigan households between 2006 and 2007 - plus more than 17,400 televisions or computer monitors and around 16,550 fridges or freezers.
With landfill tax currently standing at £24 per tonne and set to increase by £8 each year, Government targets are rapidly raising the bar on recycling. But Wigan is moving fast and has already passed the current statutory target of recycling 20% of its waste, by 1.87%.
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Recycling bosses are confident that this will increase further over the next financial year.
Gail Robinson, senior waste management co-ordinator, said: "I think the increases in recycling have been due to a combination of things, such as expanding the garden waste and cardboard collection service and an increase in the number of bring sites." The figures paint a different picture to how things were 10 years ago, when just 2% of waste was recycled.
By 2000, that figure had risen by just 0.1% but, within three years, had shot up to 9.2%.
Around half of the waste currently collected by the council is sent to Rigby Houghton landfill site in the north of the borough, which is expected to be full in about three years.
Waste will then be sent to other landfill sites outside the borough. Experts say the effort needed to keep recycling figures on the increase means making the most of household waste recycling centres.
This was tested to the limit when catastrophe struck at Kirkless. The site was almost wrecked in a blaze last May, which saw the roof collapse on the £3.2m site. The main building was left structurally unsafe following the ferocious fire and meant the site was out of action for months.
After months of hard work and assistance from the borough’s four other sites, in Leigh, Atherton, Wigan and Orrell, it opened to the public shortly before Christmas 2006. The council is continuing to encourage residents to recycle as much of their waste as possible. There are now more than 150 recycling "bring" points dotted around the borough.
These roadside facilities can be found at pubs, supermarkets and other public buildings. The council’s latest initiative is a bi-monthly draw, which sees one resident presented with £200 if their recycled and labelled can is picked out of the thousands of cans which are taken to Kirkless each week. Mrs Robinson added: "Thanks to residents for their recycling efforts during 2007. Please continue your recycling during 2008 and together we’ll increase our recycling rate further to benefit us all." Over the next few years the council has set its own recycling targets.
The main aims include:
Reducing municipal waste growth to 1% by 2010 and to 0% by 2020
Recycling or composting 30% of waste by 2009/2010, 33% in 2015/2016 and 50% by 2020
Serving all households with a recycling collection of at least two materials by 2010 to meet the requirements of the Household Waste Recycling Act 2003.
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A SCHOOL in Wigan has become a shining example of how to harness renewable energy. Fred Longworth High School in Tyldesley has installed £20,000 worth of solar panels.
The 24 photovoltaic panels should generate around 3,300 kWh of electricity each year – enough to power a school computer for 33,000 hours or to make 180,000 cups of tea – saving around two tonnes of carbon dioxide.
Students can keep track of how much renewable energy the panels are generating and the amount of carbon dioxide they have saved by checking a monitor in the school building. The 1,300-student school is one of 100 across the UK chosen to receive the panels. |
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Head teacher Tony Colley said: "We are very proud to be chosen for this important initiative. "We are already working hard to reduce the school's carbon footprint with a raft of green initiatives.
Switching on these solar panels will instantly boost our efforts while sending out a strong message about our commitment to helping the environment. " Year 11 student Tim Jones added: "We are increasingly aware of the need for green alternative fuels and this is a really good example of what can be done."
The panels are half-funded by The Co-operative Group's £1m Green Energy for Schools scheme, with matching-funding from the Government's Low Carbon Building Programme (LCBP).
Schools were nominated for the project by Co-operative staff and members along with SolarCentury, which erects the panels. The premises were then assessed for their suitability.
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A PROJECT to reduce CO2 emissions and cut energy bills is being launched to make Wigan a greener place to live.
The scheme encourages people in Greater Manchester to reduce their energy use.
Almost 20,000 people have already signed a pledge stating their intentions to do more to reduce their carbon emissions.
Organisers of the scheme, Manchester is my Planet, are now seeking to increase this to 50,000 by World Environment Day next June. |
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They are calling for people in Wigan to get "switched on" to the idea of reducing their carbon footprints.
People interested in getting involved should make sure appliances are not left on standby. Some household goods such as televisions, computers, music systems and washing machines use a lot of electricity on standby.
Getting in the habit of turning appliances off also reduces the risk of electrical fires in the home. Last December there were nearly 150 accidental house fires in Greater Manchester – some of which were caused by electrical appliances being kept switched on over night.
May MacKeith, from Manchester is my Planet, said: "You need to remember to turn things off, or don’t them leave on standby, when you’re not using them - that means TVs, hi-fis, DVD players, computers, washing machines and games consoles that will be used extensively. Getting into the habit of switching off also helps to reduce the risk of fire caused by electrical appliances.
"We aim to get 50,000 people from both Wigan and the rest of Greater Manchester to sign up to the Manchester is my Planet pledge by next June."
In addition to making a commitment to help make Wigan greener, residents who sign up to the Manchester is my Planet pledge get access to competitions, special offers and useful information that helps them adopt a lower-carbon lifestyle. They also get the satisfaction that they are helping to reduce collective carbon footprint through making some simple changes to their lifestyle.
For further details visit manchesterismyplanet.com |
