December 2nd, 2009
It’s taken 30 years, but now it would seem that the English otter is making a comeback! Agricultural pesticides were responsible for their diminishing numbers, but there have been sightings in various parts of the country, particularly in Dorset, with all of the county’s rivers housing otter colonies.
Between the 1950’s and 1980’s agricultural pesticides leaked into the rivers and streams blinding the otters and damaging their immune systems. In addition to this, the chemicals also poisoned the fish the mammals fed on.
Thankfully, due to the combination of conservationists, farmers and water companies, the otter’s luck has changed. There is now a 15m protection zone between agricultural land and the waterways, where the farmers cannot spray pesticides. Consequently, the rivers have improved dramatically, plants grow again, insects flourish and this creates a healthy ecological state for everything else to grow and develop.
With healthier waterways, a ban on otter hunting and the pesticide exclusion zone, the otters are now happily regaining their original habitats. However, there is one disgruntled party; the fishermen – they claim the mammals are stealing their fish and therefore threatening their livelihood. Well, probably true, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time!
Tags: agricultural pesticides, farming, habitats, otters, pesticides, UK | Posted in Wildlife, environment
Comments: No Comments yet!
November 23rd, 2009
Ensus is building Europe’s largest wheat refinery at Wilton in Teesside, intending to meet one third of the UK’s bioethanol demand.
Biofuels help combat climate change because the crops from which they are produced absorb carbon dioxide as they grow. Carbon dioxide is released as they are burned, but absorbed by new crops again, making a complete cycle.
There will undeniably be a huge impact on the UK’s wheat producing farmers and concern about how they will cope in years of poor harvest. Even environmental campaigners, Friends of the Earth are claiming that the potential deforestation to produce new farmland is just not worth it. Ensus insists however that the wheat supply will be provided by EU countries only and will also contribute to animal feed, therefore reducing the need for soya meal which comes from areas of deforestation.
So are biofuels worthwhile? On the positive side, they massively reduce carbon emissions and are cheap to the consumer. On the negative side they could result in deforestation and the destruction of animal habitats. In addition to this, biofuel production is not yet energy efficient.
Do we need to look at the bigger picture and regard biofuels as a work in progress, living in hope that this is a step in the right direction?
Tags: bioethanol, Biofuels, carbon emissions, deforestation, energy efficiency, Ensus, Friends of the Earth | Posted in Biofuels, Sustainable Energy, Transport, Wildlife, carbon emissions
Comments: No Comments yet!
November 19th, 2009
Woodland burials are now being hailed as the ‘green’ way forward, providing a final resting place in a leafy hillside or meadow rather than a crowded, unfeeling municipal cemetery.
Traditional cemeteries are hostile, overflowing, with high maintenance costs, not to mention the amount of land they utilise. The Manor Road Cemetery in London for example, covers an 8 mile area and is renowned for being littered with broken and vandalised gravestones.
Crematoriums were once believed to be a more positive solution, but consider the huge amount of wood that is burnt and the resulting emissions. Approximately 437,000 wooden coffins are burnt in the UK each year, which requires massive quantities of natural gas. Clearly this process can no longer be considered green.
In contrast to this, the woodland burial allows both burial shrouds and coffins including the eco-friendly options of cardboard, wicker or bamboo plus graves are often marked only by a tree or simple plaque. They offer a changing landscape, seasonal and evolving over time. Consideration is given to type of trees planted such as ash, beech and horse chestnut, wildlife is encouraged and grass is left to grow therefore protecting the natural habitat.
‘Natural’, ‘green’ and ‘woodland’ burials are believed to be the fastest growing environmental movement in Britain today and is supported by the Environment Agency, Agenda 21, Friends of the Earth and the Natural Death Centre.
Tags: Agenda 21, Environment Agency, Friends of the Earth, Natural Death Centre, Woodland Burials. Green | Posted in Wildlife, environment
Comments: No Comments yet!
October 14th, 2009
A 15ft Northern Bottlenose Whale was spotted in Poole Bay, Bournemouth last month.
Named Gilbert after the RNLI lifeguard who first spotted him, he turned out, in fact to be a female. It is thought that Gilbert took a wrong turn off her migratory path, on the way to the Atlantic and ended up in the exclusive seaside resort.
For a few days Gilbert seemed in good spirits and was seen frolicking between the piers at Bournemouth and Boscombe. But sadly, after 2 weeks in the area, the whale was spotted in distress by a jet skier. The alarm was raised but she was eventually found dead in the shallows at Alum Chine and hauled onto the beach by tractor
There were rope burns found around her beak and it is believed that she may have been caught up in fishing nets, but the main speculation for her demise was the lack of suitable food. Northern Bottlenoses are deep divers who feed predominately on squid, which provide their main source of water and without this supply it is probable that Gilbert died of dehydration.
Tags: Bournemouth, Northern Bottlenose, Poole By, Whale | Posted in Wildlife
Comments: No Comments yet!
September 28th, 2009
Following recent media coverage, many of us are now aware that the bee population is diminishing at an alarming rate.
We need our bees! The pollination of our plants is a crucial part of our environment, without this service UK agriculture will undoubtedly suffer. In fact there is a figure that represents the financial worth of these insects – £12.4 billion a year!
The cause of the problem is a nicotine based pesticide called neonicotinoid. It is seed/soil based chemical, it is coated rather than sprayed and does indeed serve its purpose. However, once the bees, when going about their daily business, come into contact with it the problems start.
Neonicotinoid does not actually kill the bees, which is why its use is justified, it stresses them to such a degree that it effects their reproduction and so eventually their colonies start collapse.
Although this synthetic pesticide is not targeted at the bee, its ongoing damage is apparent. Should that not be enough reason to start looking for an alternative?
Tags: bee population, Bees, eco-system, environment, neonicotinoid, nicotine, pesticide, UK bee colonies | Posted in Wildlife, environment
Comments: No Comments yet!
September 18th, 2009
Thursday 20th August 2009 saw Bournemouth and Poole attempt a ‘Fantastic Fireworks’ event to break the world record for setting off the largest number of fireworks simultaneously. At 9.30pm off the coast of Sandbanks 110,000 fireworks were ignited in less than 60 seconds. The record was indeed broken, but the display proved to be a bitter disappointment for the crowds as they one huge explosion was over in seconds and the beauty and spectacle was completely lost.
To make matters worse it now appears that the environmental effects of the event have been considerably detrimental as hundreds of rockets, comprising of plastic pellets and wooden sticks, continue to wash ashore.
The organisers had implied that the pellets would be made of biodegradable cardboard, but in fact they were plastic. Conservationists at Hengistbury Head picked up 600 of these pellets in one hour! At least the ones that wash ashore can be collected and disposed of; unfortunately the others will have floated out to sea posing a risk to marine life.
Plastic waste has always caused a problem on UK beaches as it never completely degrades and research has shown that small marine animals ingest tiny pieces of plastic and these toxins are passed up the food chain.
All of this has to beg the question: ‘was it really worth it?’
Tags: environment, fireworks, marine life, plastic waste | Posted in Events, Wildlife
Comments: No Comments yet!
August 19th, 2009
The Borough of Poole boasts many stretches of heathland, involving a size greater than 700 football pitches, which not only houses important wildlife, but brings great pleasure to the local community.
These sites provide green spaces which are the ‘green lungs’ of the town, contributing to improving people’s physical and mental health by providing places for informal recreation – walking, sitting, socialising and children’s play; breathing spaces to take time out from the stresses of modern life. Yet these beautiful areas have been subject to a recent spate of arson attacks.
A particularly bad fire in April damaged one-third of Talbot Heath in Poole. There were 20ft flames which the wind swept from one end of the heath to the other, destroying protected wildlife and wrecking the habitat of one of Britain’s rarest birds, the Dartford Warbler. It is believed that this land will not recover from this alleged arson attack for 10 – 15 years!
Because of the increasing number of these incidents desperate measures have had to be taken. These fires which happen with alarming regularity during the spring and summer months are at best started carelessly and at worst deliberately. The situation has got so bad that the Dorset Police are now offering a £250 reward to anyone who can provide them with any information on the perpetrators.
Tags: arson, Dartford Warbler, Dorset Police, green lung, Poole, Talbot Heath | Posted in Local Councils, Wildlife
Comments: No Comments yet!
August 17th, 2009
The largest seahorse colony in the UK is under threat. Boats mooring and anchoring off Studland Bay, in Dorset are damaging the seagrass in which these beautiful creatures reside.
The RYA have come out in defence of the yacht owners, by stating that they are ‘normally very pro-environmental’.
None-the-less Natural England have organised for an area to be cordoned off with buoys to protect the threatened species.
This ‘anchor-free’ zone will be voluntary, but policed by wardens. The boat owners however, are concerned, that should they be caught in the wrong place, at the wrong time their boat details will be published on the internet. Natural England have denied that this is the case and explained that the wardens are only there to monitor the situation and they are confident that the cordon will be respected.
The Seahorse Trust has recently begun tagging seahorses in an effort to track and monitor their existence. Currently there are believed to be 40 in Studland Bay.
Last year, seahorses were registered as a protected species for the first time. Steve Trewhella of the Seahorse Trust, welcomed the study and said a ban on anchoring was just what was needed.
Tags: Dorset, Natural England, protected species, RYA, seahorse, seahorses, Studland Bay, The Seahorse Trust | Posted in Local Councils, Wildlife
Comments: No Comments yet!