ANOTHER PLANET

Ford is set to launch what it claims will be the most sustainable car on the consumer market next month with its new Focus Electric vehicle, made with recycled plastic bottles.  The global car manufacturer says the initiative will divert around 2 million post-consumer plastic bottles from landfill in total, through the use of Repreve-based interior fabrics which contain recycled PET yarns.  Each Focus Electric car will contain on average 22 recycled PET bottles – Ford says it is the first of its vehicle to have an interior made from 100% clean technology.

Its late February – and a South of England and the Midlands have been told that they are going to be subject to DROUGHT restrictions as two dry winters have dramatically reduced the supply of water. The UK must “find a way to save water” in order to ease the strain on water supplies and reduce the effects of drought, according to environment secretary Caroline Spelman. Farmers have already said that crops – and food prices – will be hard hit by record low moisture levels in soil and bans on farmers extracting water from rivers – with wheat, carrots, outdoors lettuce and salad crops, onions and potatoes all likely to be hard hit.  Organic farmers are better placed as their farms tend to have better soil structure with more organic material dug in and a more varied rotational planting regime, with moisture retaining plants also used. Greenhouse grown crops are also less at risk because of better water management and conservation regimes, with farmers capturing rainwater and recycling water.

Tesco is following on from Marks & Spencer by trialling new packaging to keep its produce fresher for longer and cut down on food waste. The retailer will initially test the packaging out on tomatoes and avocados and estimates it could lead to potential savings of 1.6 million packs of tomatoes and 350,000 packs of avocados each year.  If successful, it could be rolled out across 80% of the varieties of tomato the retailer currently sells. Reports suggest that initial trials further down the supply chain have already been a success.  Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s drive to cut its carbon footprint by 30% by 2020, against a 2005 baseline, is well underway as it switches its 100th store to CO2 refrigeration.

Edie.net reports that Smoothie maker Innocent has been voted the best brand for its environmental approach to packaging according to a new survey . The survey, put together by packaging trade show specialist easyFairs, questioned 289 packaging professionals asking them to name a brand that they really admired for its green packaging approach. In response 10% said Innocent, followed by Marks & Spencer (7%) and Kenco (5%).  Innocent uses food grade recycled plastic in its bottles and its cartons are made from 100% Forest Stewardship Council certified material. The company also adopts a strong sustainable packaging policy when it comes to its products.

And edie.net also reports that the UK marine renewables industry has the potential to supply 20% of current energy demand, cut carbon emissions and offer a more “reliable and predictable” source of energy than other renewables. The Energy and Climate Change Committee (ECCC) report ‘The Future of Marine Renewables in the UK’ concluded that the Britain could become a “leading exporter” of wave and tidal power equipment – if the Government adopted a more “visionary approach” to marine renewables development.  It added that developing a “thriving” wave and tidal industry could generate economic benefits to the UK, as companies export marine technologies, such as equipment, specialist skills and expertise.  Chair of committee Tim Yeo MP, said: “Britannia really could rule the waves when it comes to marine renewable energy.

A facility that claims to the UK’s first reprocessing plant just for carpet and carpet tile recycling has been officially opened in the north of England.  The Econpro WDS facility, located at Upton on the Wirral, will serve the North and Midlands and plans to be operational in April. It will initially offer recovery of post-industrial carpets and tile off cuts as well as take back of fitting wastes and uplifted tiles.  All reprocessed materials will be utilised in the cement and asphalt industries – Econpro says it has developed an intellectual property portfolio with regards to uses for bitumen-backed carpet tiles within the construction sector.

The fashion brand HONEST has launched what it claims is a 100% transparency policy in a bid to prove its sustainability credentials right down the supply chain claiming  it is the first company in the world to share the full cost breakdown of its products by revealing every production detail of every garment, from the origination of fabric to the amount of store mark-up.

Green party MP Caroline Lucas is calling for a £70bn programme of ‘green quantitative easing’ (GQE) to be launched, in a bid to set the country on track for a “genuinely green economy”.

Britain’s dream of leading the world in harnessing the power of the sea is in danger of being sunk by risk-averse, under-ambitious policymakers who are letting foreign rivals dominate a multibillion-pound industry. An influential Commons committee warns that without a “more visionary” approach from ministers and officials, the development of wave and tidal technology will stall and other countries will steal a march on British firms. Experts believe that up to 20 per cent of the UK’s electricity could one day come from devices deployed around the coastline. But the technology is still in its infancy, and a report today from the Energy and Climate Change Committee warns that Britain could cede its pioneering status to other countries unless ministers intervene.  http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/green-living/britain-must-act-fast-to-rule-wavepower-world-7179538.html

Its fracking mad!!! Fracking – the extraction of shale gas by pumping high pressure water and chemicals into underground shale – was halted last year after being linked to earth tremors in Lancashire – but drilling companies hope that a decision will so allow them to re-start operations. Common sense tells us its madness, and protesters say fracking will cause water contamination and methane leaks – and we now all await a report by the Department of Energy and Climate Change in the next few weeks. More at http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/feb/25/fracking-plans-pollution-uk-water

 

THE GREEN PARENT

GREEN EVENTS AND INNOVATIONS 2012 – PANELS ANNOUNCED

09.30 – 10.00      REGISTRATION

10.00 – 10.15      WELCOME AND INTRODUCTION:   Teresa Moore (BNU) & Ben Challis (Glastonbury Festival/AGF)

10.15 – 11.30      FESTIVAL FOOD:  On-site sense, sustainable sources. Panel discussion curated by Sustain

11.30 – 11.45      Coffee Break

11.45 – 12.15      GREEN INNOVATIONS: with Claire O’Neill (AIF/AGF)  Ali Owen Thomas (Firefly Solar) and updates from the Green Festival  Alliance. Presentations

12.15 – 12.45      THE GREENER FESTIVAL AWARD 2012: presentation and discussion with Helen Wright (AGF)

12.45  – 14.15     Lunch

14.15 – 14.30      KEYNOTE with Sandy Strallen, WaterAid

14.30 – 15.30      WATER – the stuff of life – Panel Discussion

15.30 – 16.00      WHATS NEW IN TELEVISION AND FILM? A presentation on the BAFTA “Albert” initiative with Richard Smith (BBC) and Luke Westbury (NEP Visions OBs/AGF)

16.00 – 16.15     Coffee break

16.15 – 17.45      THE ECONOMICS OF GREEN. What’s worth it? What’s not?  Panel discussion chaired by Teresa Moore, with question and answer session to close.

* all panels and timings subject to change

CONFIRMED PANELLISTS INCLUDE

Mellisa Hayles  (Sustain), Kelly Parsons  (Sustain), Petra Barren  (Eat Street Collective),Andy Marsh  (London Remade Solutions), Claire Pritchard (GCDA), Rob Scully  Croissant Neuf Summer Party),  Richard Smith (BBC), Adrian Mills  (WaterMills), Chris Johnson  (Shambala Festival), Sinclair Eiloart  (London Green Fair) and David Hanton (KPMG)

At the SouthBank Centre, Level 5 function room. The nearest tubes are Waterloo (Northern/Bakerloo/Jubilee) and Embankment (Northern/Bakerloo/Circle/District) and the nearest rail stations are Charing Cross and Waterloo.

The postcode is SE1 8XX and the website is http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/.

agenda and panellists subject to change

Book your place online at http://store.bucks.ac.uk/browse/extra_info.asp?compid=1&modid=2&prodid=93&deptid=154&catid=41  £75 / £50 AIF/student rate

GREEN EVENTS AND INNOVATIONS MARCH 16TH 2012

The second Green Events & Innovations Conference is taking place at London’s Southbank on Friday March 16th, hosted by A Greener Festival and Bucks New University and supported by the Association of Independent Festivals. Confirmed panels include minimising water use at festivals, sustainable food and catering at events and the economics of sustainable events - as well as updates on waste, recycling, energy use and new innovations from the festival and event business, from other cultural industries notably TV and film, and updates on the Greener Festival Award scheme for 2012.

Last year’s hugely successful conference was attended by delegates and panellists from festivals including Leeds & Reading Festivals, Truck and Wood, NozStock, Sunrise Celebration, Glastonbury, Waveform, Isle of Wight, Sonisphere, Lounge on the Farm, Hadra Trance Festival, Kendal Calling, Splendour, End of the Road  and Roskilde; delegates and panellists from universities including De Montfort, Leeds Metropolitan, Sheffield Hallam, Bucks New University, Manchester Metropolitan, Dundee, London Metropolitan, Gloucestershire,  and Glamorgan University: suppliers included delegates and panellists from WaterMills, Frank Water, Robertson Taylor Insurance brokers, Firefly Solar, Network Recycling, Big Green Coach, Liftshare, Buffalo Power, Innovation Power, Eco-Action Partnership and Eco-charge Technology; and representatives from Julies Bicycle and the Association of Independent Festivals.

The day runs from 10.00am to 18.00 and costs £75 per delegate. Students and AIF members have a discount rate of £50.00. Please note to reduce cost this does NOT include lunch but there are plenty of cafes, bars and restaurants at the SouthBank Centre. The venue is the Level 5 Function Room at London’s SouthBank Centre. The nearest tubes are Waterloo (Northern/Bakerloo/Jubilee) and Embankment (Northern/Bakerloo/Circle/District) and the nearest rail stations are Charing Cross and Waterloo. The postcode is SE1 8XX and the website is http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/.

Delegates who attend the full day are entitled to the certificate of attendance from Bucks New University, which is an entry level requirement for any aspiring environmental auditors for the Greener Festival Awards team.

email:  hello@agreenerfestival.com

Registration: please go to: http://store.bucks.ac.uk/browse/extra_info.asp?compid=1&modid=2&prodid=93&deptid=154&catid=41

Supported by Robertson Taylor, insurance brokers

LOVE YOUR TENT!

Its Valentines Day and the Isle of Wight Fesitval has announced its 2012 eco-initiative – LOVE YOUR TENT

Hot on the heels of the success of 2011’s Let it Bee, Love Your Tent has been created by Eco Action Partnership, sustainability consultants to the Isle of Wight Festival, and supported by AGreenerFestival, the campaign is designed to bond people with their tents. Whether it’s a tipi or a two-berth, reusing your Festival home reduces the impact on landfill sites and saves you money.

The Isle of Wight Festival is supporting LOVE YOUR TENT with loads of onsite stuff going on, to get festivalgoers involved and be a part of the action. There will also be a Love Your Tent showcase camping field called RESPECT, which is free to book for all of those people who want to do their bit for the environment. Campers will sign up to abide by the 10 Tent Commandments (see below!) and in return they will be given a Greenback loyalty card which will give discounts on goods and services across the island. The Greenback loyalty cards are supplied in association with the Eco Island initiative www.eco-island.org.

At the 2011 Isle of Wight Festival, 1 in 6 people left their tent on site. There was 152.62 tonnes of waste collected from the campsites, which were made up of tents, camping equipment and gazebos, equating to 25% of the landfill waste from the whole Festival. And The Isle of Wight Festival is just one of 450 festivals which take place across the UK each year, none of which are immune to the problem of discarded tents which makes it one of the biggest environmental issues facing festival organisers today. So please … LOVE YOUR TENT!

THE TENT COMMANDMENTS

•      1. Thou shalt Love Your Tent.

•      2. Thou shalt not buy cheap, one-use tents, but invest in one that will last for years to come.

•      3. Thou shalt never leave your tent anywhere for someone else to dismantle and take to landfill (recycling facilities for all tent components currently don’t exist)

•      4. Thou shalt RESPECT your tent and the area in which you pitch it, making sure you clean up after yourself……even during and after a weekend of partying at the Festival.

•      5. Thou shalt spread the word and encourage others to Love Their Tent

•      6. Thou shalt clearly demonstrate your devotion to your tent and send evidence to iloveit@loveyourtent.com  for a chance to win 2013 Isle of Wight Festival tickets. (Keep it clean people)

•      7. Thou shalt love thy neighbour and not disturb them by playing bongos at 4am.

•      8. Thou shalt follow all additional on-site guidelines in order to keep the respect for others and the environment.

•9. Thou shalt join our community www.facebook.com/LoveYourTent and keep up to date on news from Festival land as well as the chance to enter other exclusive competitions.

•      10. Thou shalt be happy campers and share the love.

There is more here www.facebook.com/LoveYourTent

and a lovely SHORT FILM here  http://vimeo.com/36763390  – go on – Love Your Tent!

The Isle of Wight Festival takes place 22 – 24 June @ Seaclose Park, Newport, Isle of Wight . Headliners include Pearl Jam, Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. Keep up to date with the Festival at www.isleofwightfestival.com

Boom 2012 social ticket price

Are smart meters really that clever?

Now you would have thought that as a member of the A Greener Festival team I would be very keen on smart meters that accurately measure energy use wouldn’t you? Well I’m not and let me try and explain why. Last week four of us from the AGF team went down to the British Library for a fascinating talk from their ‘Myths and Realities’ season on whether or not sustainable lifestyles really were possible (Great Theory: Impossible Practice). One thing that came out of the fascinating talks from Ian Christie (University of Surrey) and Professor Dale Southerton (University of Manchester) was that despite pressure on the world’s resources that mean we are increasingly encouraged to consume less power, water, and even food – few of us make more than minimal efforts to change our behaviour. We have more efficient lighting in our homes – but we have more lighting and so our energy use inexorably increases. We know we are using too much water so we use showers – but we spend more time in them, we have power showers and we wash our bodies more and more.  We have more efficient boilers – but we make our homes get warmer and warmer. And we are obsessed with fridges and freezer – which take up 25% of household energy use now. The freezer used to be a small box designed to cope with seasonal gluts in cheap or home grown produce – now these enormous white goods drive our lifestyles and eating habits. Mad!

Now smart meters (intelligent metering systems) would allow consumers to monitor and hopefully reduce energy and water use. Wouldn’t they? Well apart from some evidence that they don’t actually get used like that, my main worry is twofold – the cost and use of information. Let’s look at the cost. The current estimate of installing smart meters in place of the 53 million existing gas and electricity meters in the UK (by the Public Accounts Committee) is £11.7 billion. This means that household bills will need to be increased by something like £350 to cover the cost – but estimated savings are something like £23 per annum. Hmmmmm! And homes that are already energy efficient save even less. And we all know what happens with estimated costs. They never go down, they always go up – especially when someone else is paying or the state is regulating. It looks like one big gravy train. One enormous £11.7 billion publicly funded gravy train and (as ever) any attempts at state regulation will fail – as they always do, despite no doubt the best efforts of the Department for Energy & Climate Change.

With smart meters, details of energy use are pulsed to your utility company via Wi-fi every half hour and stored digitally. But will the date be stored safely? Well whatever the government may promise it is particularly BAD at keeping data safe: ministers throw documents in bins in parks; HM Revenue & Customs lost 25 million child benefit records in 2007; the Driving Standards Agency lost 3 million records of driving test applicants (also in 2007); PA Consulting lost the details of all prisoners in the UK 2008 and the Ministry of Justice lost details of 5000 prison officers. I am afraid that the information will just not be kept safely – and indeed despite assurances to the contrary, might be just too tempting to the utility companies to use it themselves – even if they can keep it safe. Who is going to guarantee that no-one knows if I go away on holiday for a month or even out for the day?  How is my privacy and my home security going to be protected? Who will be protecting systems against hackers who could target the data? What will stop the utility companies using data for marketing or other purposes? Who will deal with complaints?

Poorly designed scheme in the Netherlands, Australia and California have prompted ‘mass consumer rejection’.  Let’s hope the UK is not next in line for an expensive, badly designed and frankly dangerous scheme. I remain unconvinced, despite the fact that the EC require all member states to have installed smart meters for a80% of all domestic gas and electricity use by 2020.

More on smart meters here http://www.telegraph.co.uk/property/greenproperty/7456179/Green-property-smart-meters.html and More on UK data loss here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_UK_government_data_losses

Maldives climate change champion ousted in coup

The President of the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed,  has been ousted in a coup. Nasheed, who has been a leading light in the fight against climate change, famously held a cabinet meeting under water to highlight the risks to the island chain from global warming.

ANOTHER PLANET

A new exhibiton of photographs showing life in some of the most remote communities in the world is taking place in London, amidst warnings that climate change may well wipe out ancient ways of life within years. Ragnar Axelsson has spent 25 years capturing the lifestyles of traditional  innuit hunters ad fishermen in Greenland andhis new exhibition ‘LAST DAYS OF THE ARCTIC’ runs until March 11th at the Proud Gallery in Kings Road, Chelsea, London.   www.proud.co.uk. And the very next day Climate Week begins in the UK and there will be more on Climate Week here soon.

Meredith Alexander, Ethics Commissioner for the London 2012 Olympics, is leaving her post saying she cannot sanction the involvement of Dow Chemicals as a sponsor. Dow remain embroiled in a worldwide row over the Bhopal chemicals disaster at the Union Carbide plant in India in 1999.  The Commission for Sustainable London appear to have agreed to the £7 million deal, despite the fact that 3,500 people died when the within days of the Bhopal chemical gas tragedy and campaigners say more than 20,000 more have died since. Dow has a greed to withdraw branding from Olympic stadium panels.

Marks & Spencer (M&S) has signed a pilot agreement with energy storage and clean fuel company ITM Power to deliver what it claims is the UK’s first hydrogen fuel powered vehicles. The trial forms part of M&S’ ongoing Plan A Initiative which sets out a number of sustainability ambitions, including a target of sourcing 100% of its energy from renewable sources.

Food manufacturers have welcomed EU proposals to deliver a coordinated strategy to halve the amount of food waste by 2025. The European Parliament has asked the Commission and member states to draw up plans to tackle the problem. Nearly 50% of edible and healthy food is wasted every year in the EU by households, supermarkets, restaurants and the distribution chain.  The EU says food waste currently amounts to around 89 million tonnes a year and could climb to 126 million tonnes in 2020 if no action is taken. Unilever Food Solutions has developed a waste toolkit for catering venues and restaurants to help food service operators control their costs better. The toolkit breaks down the cost of commercial food waste and contains guidance on how establishments can carry out waste audits. It includes a briefing sheet for managers, guidelines for staff and menu ideas to use frequently wasted ngredients. Unilever drew up the toolkit in response to its latest World Menu Report, which highlights the growing problem of food waste when consumers dine out. According to the research, over half the food produced in the world today is wasted as a result of inefficiencies in the human managed food chain. We have just updated our ‘information pages’ at http://www.agreenerfestival.com  to include more content on food, starting with a extremely interesting article by Hannah Claxton who previously worked in the music industry and now describes herself as a ‘trainee farmer’ – with a determination to produce sustainable food. And more from Climate Week on food here http://www.climateweek.com/eat-low-carbon/

A Perthshire landowner and contractor have been handed fines of £9,000 and £900 respectively at Perth Sheriff’s Court for illegal waterworks in the River Tay, Scotland to enable gravel extraction. As a result of investigations by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), landowner Thomas Steuart Fothringham and contractor McIntosh & Robertson, run by John McIntosh, were found guilty of carrying out engineering works by building grey bank protection (river bank protection using artificial materials) on the south bank of the River Tay without a license.  According to SEPA, the engineering activities could have caused “huge adverse impacts on the water environment” as a result of silt into the river.

Edie.net reports that UK retailers will have to extend their takeback schemes for e-waste under new rules governing the WEEE Directive which have effectively strengthened producer responsibility requirements. The recast of the directive, which was approved by the European Parliament means that large stores selling electronic items – with a floor space of over 400 square metres – will be obliged to take back small items of WEEE free of charge, regardless of whether a customer makes a purchase or not. In addition, manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment will continue to contribute financially towards meeting tougher reprocessing targets, although they will benefit from a cut in red tape, with simplified registration and reporting requirements.

Sony Corporation has exceeded its waste minimisation targets across all of its global business sites, achieving a 54% reduction rate in 2010 set against a 40% objective. The electronics giant is now embarking on a number of pioneering initiatives to take its ambitions further. Out in Korea, Sony has launched a zero electronic waste campaign in collaboration with the Korean Government and various recycling companies, signing a memorandum of understanding with a national council of green consumers. Across Europe Sony says it is also reducing waste.. Recycling levels have increased from 73% in 2000 to 99% in 2009, meaning that 99% of the waste generated by Sony Europe’s manufacturing facilities is now either reused or recycled.

Northern Ireland will be bringing in a 5p levy on plastic bags from next year. A similar move in the Republic of Ireland which currently has a 18p levy per bag led to a 90% drop in plastic bag use. The Northern Ireland levy will rise to 10p in 2014.

Supermarket giant Tesco is back tracking on its support for carbon labelling of its products.  The chain says the labels, which it launched with the Carbon Trust four years ago, is frustrated at the lack of take up by other retailers and the time it takes to organise reports the Grocer magazine.  Tesco displays the label on around 500 products and is one of more than 100 businesses currently using it.

Edie.net reports that London’s police force has begun installing solar PV on its buildings as part of carbon cutting drive. The latest installation on the a Metropolitan Police Service’s building has seen solar PV panels installed on the roof of Lewisham station, in south east London.  So far, including Lewisham, three of the Met’s buildings have had PV installed on roofs.  The National Trust is also supporting solar power industry by commissioning renewable energy consultants Dulas to deliver its biggest solar panel installation yet. The works at the National Trust’s Grade 1 listed villa Llanerchaeron, Wales is expected to generate up to half of the electricity the property requires, with installation reaching completion before the cut to Feed In-Tariffs (FITs) came into force last month.

Plasterboard manufacturer British Gypsum has reached zero waste across all of its UK production operations, resulting in the closure of an internal landfill site.  The company has implemented a comprehensive waste reduction programme at its Kirky Thore manufacturing facility and is now recycling all of its gypsum waste. It has since closed and restored a nearby landfill site where the waste was previously sent to.  The programme reduced the amount of production waste going to landfill from an average of 5,000 tonnes per month in 2004 to zero in just six years.

The average UK family home is comfortably warm at 17.3C a rise of more than 5C since 1970 according to figures from University of Salford Retrofit 2012 conference which showed the average temperature at risen by just over a degree C a decade since the 70s.  Another challenge is that expectation of personal comfort in the home had risen, with the public’s definition of ‘comfortable’ home temperature rising from 12C in 1970 to 17.3C in 2008.

As the Environment Agency continues to urge businesses to reduce their water use, drinks giant Coca-Cola has unveiled how it will continue to hit “stringent” targets to reduce water usage in its first digital Global Reporting Initiative. As part of the ‘Reasons to Believe’ sustainability report, which follows GRI sustainability reporting guidelines, ‘water stewardship’ is one of four key areas focused on by Coca-Cola. And car giant Ford has revealed that it has invested Euro 2.3m in its five-year water reduction strategy.

Pioneering technology using microbubbles could solve the difficulties of harvesting algae for use as a biofuel, according to scientists. The technique, developed at the University of Sheffield, builds on previous research in which microbubbles were used to improve the way algae is cultivated.  Algae produce an oil which can be processed to create a useful biofuel. Until now however, there has been no cost-effective method of harvesting and removing the water from the algae for it to be processed effectively.

The rise of mixed plastics collections in the UK is starting to pose serious material quality problems for reprocessors, according to new research, According to a technical guide from WRAP, increasing amounts of mixed plastic packaging are diluting the presence of PET and HDPE bottles, making it difficult for plant operators to extract these polymer types to a high enough standard. The cost of this fall in quality in turn is now being passed onto local authorities through a reduction in the price they receive for their plastic bottles, and this trend is likely to continue until more infrastructure capable of sorting bottles from mixed plastics comes on-stream.