Author Archives: Ross

What’s really happening to our planet? New book by Tony Juniper

“What’s in the package?” my teenage daughter shouted excitedly as I opened the envelope containing a copy of Tony Juniper’s ‘What’s Really Happening to our Planet?’ book. And as she feigned interest before returning to the computer to play Sims with her friends I was struck by the irony that Dorling & Kindersley had published this book. Back in the 90’s DK’s educational CD-Roms – known as DK Multimedia, had fascinated and excited my older children. They could get information, on such topics as the human body, without needing to read too much and what’s more they could interact with it! So nearly 20 years on a book, even one with lots of interesting infographics, has to work hard to capture a young audience.

That said, pulling together the complexities of the issues that affect our planet is no mean feat. There are some alarming facts in the book, such as ‘Energy use up five-fold since the 1950’s’; not surprising given our growing population. And in DK style the information is presented crisp and clearly, with bright charts and colourful graphics to communicate the woeful state of our planet.

As well as the changing climate, the rising sea levels and resource depletion, the author covers the problems of world debt and wide spread corruption as well as the rise of consumerism and challenges of the waste we produce.

It’s a great resource to dip and out of for snapshots of the threats posed to our planet. I can see it being useful in schools and colleges. What’s good about having a good old fashioned book is that you can flick through and find things without being led by specific Internet searches. Perhaps that’s why sales of books are on the rise. However, I hope that it will be available in app format too.

It’s hard not to feel overwhelmed by all the fact and figures and to feel powerless to change anything. Some sections of the book do include what individuals and society can do, but I had to look hard to find them. There are simple things such as eating less meat, using energy efficiently; recycling and using greener forms of transport that could help reduce the impact on our planet. But the really big dilemmas such as population expansion, the impact and needs of the developing world and squaring economic growth whilst sustaining a healthy planet, require more than us making green choices.

Perhaps persuading the games developers Maxis that Sims 5 should be ‘Sims Save the Planet’ could help influence the decision makers of the future. If we don’t look after it, mankind and the planet will die.

What are microbeads – is a ban on the way?

What’s the issue with microbeads?

It might only be a small success of President Obama’s reign, but on his checklist of achievements he can include getting microbeads banned from ‘rinse off ‘ cosmetic products. So if the U.S. can do it why can’t we? Well, a UK ban might well be on the way – even if it doesn’t include all our European partners, as the Environment Minister Rory Stewart recently told the Commons “If we cannot get a common position out of the European Union, we are open to the possibility of the UK acting unilaterally.” This will please campaigners such as the Marine Conservation Society who have been urging governments to act, following many years of evidence gathering by themselves and others on the harm caused by microbeads.

What’s the issue with microbeads?

Microbeads – sound a bit cute, they are anything but – they are small bits of plastic added to face washes, body scrubs, toothpaste and the like to help buff and exfoliate our bodies. The problem is that once they are washed down our drains they can’t be filtered out and end up in our seas, rivers and lakes, absorbing toxic pollutants as they go. Looking yummy to fish, they then enter the food chain and potentially we eat plastic! Excellently explained by this video by the Story of Stuff Project.

How can I avoid them?

Check the label – plastics are called many things, and listed in very small print, so if you can read it it’s best to avoid anything listing Polyethylene / Polythene (PE), Polypropylene (PP), – Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), – Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) or Nylon. Alternatively, a handy app has been created see beatthemicrobead.org. You just need to scan the barcode and it tells you if the product contains microbeads. What can I do to help?

What can I do to help?

Vote with your pocket, and choose alternative products that don’t contain plastics, try Fauna & Flora International’s Good Scrub Guide for suggested alternatives and take the Microbeads pledge to stop using them. Greenpeace were successful in their petition calling for David Cameron to ban the use of polluting plastic microbeads in cosmetics. Perhaps the Prime Minister can add it to his ‘Things I’ve achieved list’ like President Obama!

More information on Toiletries & Cosmetics

A big thumbs up for Scotlands all-electric car club

Electric car sharing clubs in towns and cities have got to be the way to go haven’t they? Coupled with good public transport and safe routes for walking and cycling.

So it’s great to see that E-Car Club, in partnership with St Andrews University and Transport Scotland, has launched an all-Renault fleet of eight 100 per cent electric ZOE hatchbacks plus two all-electric Kangoo Van Z.E, it’s first club in Scotland. The aim is to cut congestion and reduce air pollution. The 10 EV fleet will be available to hire around St Andrews, with the 100% electric ZOE hatchbacks and Kangoo Z.E. vans available on hourly or daily basis – great if you don’t own a car for those journeys that simply can’t be done by public transport.

The ZOE is a good looking car so it’s no surprise that E-Car Club chose the ZOE Dynamique and Kangoo Z.E. Maxi after they proved reliable and popular with its members elsewhere in the UK.

Renault UK’s Electric Vehicle Product Manager, Ben Fletcher, said: “This deal confirms Renault’s status as a major player in the EV market. We value the importance of electric car sharing in helping to reduce congestion and improve air quality in our towns and cities.

“Local residents and tourists alike can now take advantage of these schemes knowing they are benefiting the environment around them and saving money at the same time.”

St Andrew’s faces the same challenges as many UK town and cities in addressing congestion and air pollution, the introduction of a totally electric car club is a step in the right direction to help reduce the town’s carbon emissions. It also supports St Andrews’ goal of becoming the UK’s first carbon-neutral university. The scheme hopes to improve local mobility, whilst reducing parking and congestion.

It is important that the scheme is affordable, particularly with a large student population. Hire rates in St Andrews are £4.50 per hour – or £35 per day (24 hours) – for the Renault ZOE, and £6.50 per hour – or £50 per day – for the Kangoo Van Z.E. The price includes power and insurance.

Chris Morris, Managing Director of E-Car Club said: “E-Car is a low cost, flexible and environmentally sustainable transport option which we are confident will prove popular with the local community, university students and tourists alike.”

It’s good news for Renault to as sales of their electric vehicle range, comprising of ZOE, Twizy and Kangoo Van Z.E, rose by 90 per cent in 2014 compared to the previous year.

Energy saving tips for students

Student accommodation has come a long way in recent years – the purpose built – en-suite, well equipped, serviced flats that many first year students experience is very different from the cold, damp rooms I remember. No worries about energy bills or how many showers you can take, it’s usually all included in the rent. So it can come of something as shock when students move on to house sharing, and realise that you have pay for electricity, gas and even water! Some canny landlords include an ‘extra’ cost for utility bills – requiring payment even during the long holidays. Beware of this, one student told me his house of 8 were all asked to pay £11 per week for utility bills – paying the landlord £4576, they did the bills themselves, paid £25 per month and saved £2,000.

However, there are many students living in damp, poorly insulated houses – and all too aware of the cost of energy. I’ve heard stories of students, like older people, not daring to put the heating on because of the cost. With many students wanting to grab the best houses for next year it’s worth reminding them to look at the heating system, and look for any energy guzzling appliances and to think about the energy bills with any property. In the meantime, Green Choices have put together some tips for students on saving energy, saving money and staying warm!

Check out the energy performance of any property and likely bills before you sign anything. The less you have to pay for heating the more you can spend going out!
Get that boiler working right – make sure the landlord has it serviced and that it is running correctly before you move in – it’s a legal requirement! Get familiar with how the heating system works.
Don’t be tempted to save on the gas by plugging in an electric heater. You’ll be clicking up the kilowatts and the £’s, not to mention the CO₂ emissions.
Boring … but do as your parents say and put on an extra jumper before turning up the thermostat.
Cook in bulk or together – saves on washing up as well!
If you have a tumble dryer– check the filter is clear, and water container (if a condenser model) emptied. Don’t overload and keep use to a minimum. See how much one costs to run at Sust-it
Stop draughts – Pull the curtains – and ask your landlord for thermal linings (worth a try) or pick up some heavy retro curtains from the charity shop.
Defrost the freezer – it will be easier to open as a result!
Turn things off! Chargers, lights, straighteners, TV’s – it all adds up.
Wash your clothes at a low temperature and go easy on the detergent. Share your loads so you always do a full wash.

Fancy a conservation holiday in Scotland?

If lying by the pool in the sun doesn’t float your boat, then how about an eco-holiday with a difference? Fancy doing something active and at the same time help restore some of Scotland’s wilderness?

You can do just that with Trees for Life as they restore about 1,000 square miles of Caledonian Forest, in the Highlands to the west of Loch Ness and Inverness back to wilderness. Trees for Life is running Conservation Weeks at eight locations in the Highlands between mid-March and November. In addition, to mark the Year of Natural Scotland, Trees for Life is introducing new Wildlife Weeks for conservation volunteers who also want to spend extra time learning about and observing the Caledonian Forest’s outstanding wildlife. The specially-designed Wildlife Weeks include day trips to the Isle of Skye to see white-tailed eagles, the third largest eagle in the world; to Aigas Field Centre at Beauly, Inverness-shire to see the beavers living on the loch; and the opportunity to feed wild boar at Trees for Life’s Dundreggan Estate in Glen Moriston to the west of Loch Ness.

The work can be physically demanding, so volunteers need a reasonable level of fitness, but the Conservation Weeks suit all abilities and anyone over 18 years old can take part. There is no upper age limit. “We have pledged to establish one million more trees by planting and natural regeneration within the next five years. Every volunteer who takes part in our Conservation Weeks will be helping to achieve something very special,” said Alan Watson Featherstone.

You might want to combine the trip with a week in a Scottish log cabin or cosy cottage, the EcoHolidayShop has lots to choose from with green credentials.

BBC Wildlife Magazine has voted Trees for Life’s Conservation Weeks as one of the Top 10 Conservation Holidays in the World, a green choice of a holiday for sure. For more details, see www.treesforlife.org.uk or call 0845 458 3505.

Why not explore Britain’s best cottage holiday destinations this summer

On a dull January day, nothing beats the blues like booking a cottage for a short break or summer holiday. The UK has some great holiday destinations and a wide range of self-catering options, many in our beautiful National Parks or Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. And, although it’s early to think of a dip in the sea, how about considering the cleanliness of the beach and the water quality? A must if you have young children. You can search for Blue Flag beaches on Cottage World, as well a looking for properties in National Parks, holiday cottages that allow dogs, or are near a pub! There’s lots of choice, from a Grade II house in Pembrokeshire that sleeps 10, with it’s own hot tub to a cosy barn conversion in Exmoor for just 2.

Heat pumps prove a big draw at eco open homes event

Taking in part in the recent eco-open homes event which coincided with the nationwide Heritage Open Days proved again to be a worthwhile experience, with lots of interest in our ground source heat pump.

I must admit, opening our house up to strangers, is not something we really look forward to, but it’s a big incentive to tidy up and it is good to discuss the pro’s and con’s of energy efficiency measures with others; whether it’s about saving money and reducing energy bills or about saving the planet. There was some interest in the wind turbines, and in the way the house was built and designed re-using materials, maximising solar gain and minimising heat loss, but the heat pumps – both ground source and air source certainly seemed to be an area of growing interest. We installed our heat pump seven years ago as part of our new-build eco-house. It involved sinking 160 metres of pipe in two loops 1 metre down out into the field. The actual heat pump bit sits in the utility room, looks a bit like a fridge freezer and works like a fridge in reverse! It provides all the hot water and heating; underfloor downstairs and radiators upstairs. The questions most people asked apart from How does the heat pump work? Were – How efficient is it? Well, we know that for every one unit of electricity put in we get about 4 units out and that it performs well – but we can only go on our experience of running a heat pump to service a house built with high insulation values, so investing in insulation measures has to be a starting point for most homeowners. Another frequently asked question was, how noisy are heat pumps? I know some people have had noise issues with air-source heat pumps, but our ground source is fairly quiet running and no more intrusive than your average central heating boiler. There is obviously some debate about how green heat pumps actually are given that they still rely on carbon producing electricity to run on (even if they are using it more efficiently). One solution is to install PV solar panels to generate some of the electricity then they are a greener alternative to oil.

And heat pumps were given a further boost today when the Government published proposals for the long term support for householders who install renewable heating systems such as heat pumps, biomass boilers and solar thermal in their homes. The consultation which ends 7 December 2012, proposes that the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) for householders, would be managed by Ofgem, is aimed at any householder seeking to replace their current heating with renewable heating kit or householders who have installed any such technology since 15 July 2009, (shame we were before this!). The plan is that householders will get paid for the heat expected to be produced by their installed technology. The Government have also published consultations on expanding the RHI scheme to commercial, industrial and community customers and also on the Air to Water Heat Pumps and Energy from waste.

See here for further details.

Energy saving bulbs need to be recycled!

Nissan electric cars arrive in the UK by low emission ship

The Port of Tyne has welcomed the world’s most energy efficient car carrier, bringing 60 Nissan LEAFS ready for their UK sales launch on March 1st. The carrier, the City of St Petersburg, has an aerodynamic bow, which reduces wind resistance by 50% and saves 2,500 tons of CO₂ emissions per year.

Nissan is focusing on reducing CO₂ emission across the board, so as well as manufacturing electric and environmentally friendly vehicles, they are working at reducing CO₂ emissions during the production, transportation and sales processes.

A major step in reducing CO₂ emissions will be in 2013 when LEAF production begins at Nissan’s Sunderland plant, until then they will continue to be imported from Japan for distribution to 25 UK Nissan EV dealerships.

Your carbon footprint on the earth

Introduction

There is no doubt that people have an impact on the environment but measuring our own individual impact is not easy. Over the last decade or so there have been many attempts to develop ways of measuring human impact on the natural environment and to devise indicators of progress. These require one to answer questions about one’s lifestyle: how much energy one uses, how far one travels and whether by car, public transport, bicycle or foot, what one eats, and so on. They then combine this information into an indicator of one’s environmental impact. Currently most either convert the data into the amount of land needed to support one – one’s ‘footprint’ – or into carbon emissions. Most contain links to information on reducing one’s impact.

Some footprint calculators are quite simplistic, while others require actual figures for energy consumption, or travel, for example. Human behaviour is very varied and variable at an individual level. Some weeks we may, for example, use lots of energy, if it is a cold spell or one is at home all day rather than at work. And if one has just taken that once in a lifetime flight across the world to see distant relations one’s carbon footprint is going to be seriously skewed. So calculating one’s environmental footprint is not at all easy. The world is very complex and there is a lot that is still not known about human impacts on ecological systems.

Decisions on greening your lifestyle are taken in the context of a very complicated world but reducing your impact is worthwhile. The important thing is to make a start.

Making a Start

There are lots of things that can be done – see Tips and Starters for some ideas.

Carbon calculators

There are many carbon calculators around and several that calculate ecological footprints. The following list is not comprehensive, but none require you to log in or buy software. Several companies offer to offset your carbon emissions by planting trees or funding climate care projects and some of these, which have carbon calculators, are included in the list below.

Act on CO₂ was the Government campaign aimed at getting everyone to reduce their carbon. The Act on CO₂ Calculator, provided a way to check out your own carbon footprint and gives advice on how to reduce it with a simple, personalised action plan.

Climate Care also offers very simple carbon calculators, for day to day emissions from car, home and air travel. The results comes back as emissions in tonnes of CO₂ with a note of the cost of offsetting this with a payment to Climate Care (minimum £5).

CO₂ Balance also offsets carbon emissions with treeplanting and has home, car and holiday CO₂ calculators. They say their methods have been validated by Bournemouth University School of Conservation.

The BP carbon footprint calculator is based upon energy in the home, whether one recycles waste, car usage and flights but does not provide many options for answers.

The US Earthday Network has a 15 question quiz which calculates one’s global footprint in terms of global hectares, broken down into food, mobility, shelter and goods and services. Based on national consumption averages, it is not highly detailed but gives you an idea of your Ecological Footprint relative to other people in the country you live in. Once one has done the quiz quite a lot of extra information is available with very informative FAQs. It was created by Earth Day Network and Redefining Progress, a US nonpartisan, non profit public policy organisation.

Resurgence has a detailed carbon calculator for which you’ll need your fuel bills and information on journeys made.

Background information

There is a vast and ever growing amount of information regarding human impact on the environment, with a lot of research being carried out and many academic publications and books. Several of the websites above contain links to further information.

Ecological footprints tend to be based on the amount of productive land available. Redefining Progress, the American public policy organisation, who are behind myfootprint.org work on the assumption that there are 1.8 biologically productive hectares per person worldwide. In the UK the average ecological footprint is 5.3 hectares. So one can calculate how many planets like earth would be needed to support the world population if everyone had a UK average ecological footprint.

Carbon calculators are generally related directly to estimates of carbon dioxide emissions, which are very significant in terms of climate change. Many of the calculators listed convert the results in carbon dioxide emissions per year and compare this with the average for the UK (10 or 11 tonnes/person/year). The UK government target is to reduce this to 4.5 tonnes by the year 2050 but the sustainable world average is 2.5 tonnes/person/year.