Green Matters November 2009
Good growing
Next time you wander past a church or hospital take a second look – there may be a spot for growing fruit and veg.
Across Hackney, patches of land are being transformed into miniature allotments, as part of London-wide initiative, Capital Growth. Small areas of underused land owned by local organisations are being turned into vegetable patches. The scheme aims to transform the city by creating 2,012 new food growing spaces by 2012.
Capital Growth, funded by the Lottery and the Mayor of London, was developed in response to increasing waiting lists for allotments.
In its first phase, from November 2008 to March 2009, funding was granted to develop 70 new food growing spaces in London.
In Hackney, there are nine projects, including one at St Leonard’s Hospital in Hoxton.
Paul Gates, a founding member of the group, who works at St Leonard’s, said:
“Gardening is one of those activities that bring people together from all different parts of the organisation, including staff who are now using the club with patients.”
Other projects include a roof garden at Dalston’s Arcola Theatre, a plot at St Paul’s Church, N16, and a project being run by residents of Farleigh Road, N16. The roof-top garden is being cultivated by groups that span all ages, from a youth theatre group to the those aged 50-plus.
More information
For more details visit: www.capitalgrowth.org
16 November 2009
Roving water plants for 2012
More than 300,000 wetland plants are set to create a colourful riverside setting at the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The plants were grown by wetland experts Salix in its Welsh nursery, before being moved to waterbeds and pallets in Norfolk.
They are due to be planted in the Olympic Park from next spring.
Around a third of the plants have been grown using cuttings and seeds collected in and around the Park before construction began in 2008. Visitors to the Park during and after the Games will be able to enjoy sloping riverbanks, riverside cycle and foot paths, wetlands, reedbeds, ditches and swales, ponds and rare wet woodlands. It is hoped the wetland plants in these areas will provide new habitats for a range of native and rare species.
London 2012 Chairman, Sebastian Coe, said: “We set out to ensure that the Olympic Park was just that – a park which as well as being home to fantastic sporting venues, can be enjoyed by local residents, visitors and families for generations to come.”
16 November 2009
Don’t let autumn leaves go to waste
Garden's and corners overflowing with reddened autumn leaves are a traditional sight at this time of year.
One way to keep the borough green with this annual addition to outdoor spaces is through leaf moulding.
By filling bin liners with a quarter of moist leaves, tying the bag and puncturing it with small holes to encourage air circulation a perfect soil conditioner will be created for plants.
Due to their slow decaying nature, leaves take longer than other natural materials to break down so the process takes at least 12 months. After this time, a rich, crumbly leaf mould is left over.
Cllr Alan Laing, Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, said: “Collecting and storing fallen leaves helps to reduce and reuse the excess garden waste that usually goes in our bins at this time of year, while supporting the Council’s efforts to make Hackney cleaner and greener.”
More information
For more details visit the Waste Prevention page.
16 November 2009
Go wild for 2012
The Olympic Park can now begin to offer a home to local wildlife – thanks to the installation of the first bird and bat boxes on the site.
The move is part of the Olympic Delivery Authority’s (ODA) plans to further diversify the park’s conservation areas, greens spaces and parklands. Its aim is to install 525 bird boxes and 150 bat boxes and natural habitats to support a wide variety of wildlife including birds, otters, voles, lizards and snakes.
Richard Jackson, Environment Manager for the ODA, said: “We are creating one of the largest new urban parks in Europe and we are doing this with sustainability at the heart of our plans. The Olympic Park will include 45 hectares of wildlife habitats, forming part of the interconnected green spaces and waterways which will create a sustainable and green ecological area.”
16 November 2009
Waste watchers
Hundreds of residents keen to live a greener life took part in the second annual Watch Your Waste Week from 19-25 October.
The week aimed to highlight the amount of waste being thrown away, as well as ways to reduce it. More than 300 people made green pledges at the Recycling Team’s plastic bag amnesty stall at Tesco in Morning Lane. In return they were given a reusable bag as well as a ‘bag for life’.
Over 100 people attended a Give or Take event at Gayhurst Community School, where more than 1,000 kilos of furniture and bric-a-brac was exchanged for reuse.
In addition, 30 residents took up the Zero Waste challenge to reduce their waste over the week.
The results are already coming in, but residents can still take part in the challenge until 6 November, and be in with a chance to win one of 43 organic food boxes from Growing Communities. Another highlights of the week were free give-aways, including real nappy packs for parents, and over 100 ‘food rescue packs’, which were given to people who took part in an online food waste quiz.
Dr Compost was on hand to give composting and wormery advice to more than 100 people at a free compost give away event.
Residents from Warburton and Darcy estate used the week to get more people on the estate using their new community composter.
Installed in August this year, it gives residents the option to divert their food waste, and the compost is used to grow food in the raised planting beds on the estate.
Cllr Alan Laing, Cabinet Member for neighbourhoods, said: “I am pleased that so many residents are supporting our commitment to make Hackney one of the greenest boroughs in London and urge others to join us and keep the momentum going by using our improved services and facilities.”
For details of waste prevention services call: 020 8356 6688 or visit the Waste Prevention page. To download a challengers pack visit:the Watch Your Waste page.
2 November 2009
Composting for the big zero
Hoxton's Follingham Court estate is among six new locations in England taking part in a project aiming to make Britain a ‘zero waste nation’.
They will join six existing Zero Waste Places in demonstrating how to reduce waste as far as possible, whether at home, work, school or in the community.
Follingham Court residents will participate through the installation of a new composting unit, as well as a growing wall where they can plant food. The project will use social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter to provide tips and support on reducing waste and reducing the carbon footprint.
Environment Secretary Hilary Benn announced the new locations alongside a new Zero Waste Places Standard for local authorities, which will recognise areas that go above and beyond the national waste targets, while supporting them with small grants for further development.
2 November 2009
Standing up for the environment
Students teachers and volunteers were among those celebrated at an event highlighting the importance of sustainability in schools.
Altogether 19 people were named ‘Green Heroes’, with each being commended for their contribution to promoting conservation. The awards were organised by The Learning Trust, and took place on 6 October.
Joe Jones, a Year six winner from Jubilee Primary School, N16, was nominated by fellow ecoconscious pupils for his mature and thoughtful approach to greener living.
From Tyssen school, site manager John Hayward was commended for building a pond on the school site that has attracted birds, frogs and other wildlife, as well as creating a living green roof that has cut down energy usage.
Speaking at the event, Speaker of Hackney, Cllr Muttalip Unluer, said: “We need to preserve the environment for future generations and this all starts in the schools.
Hopefully we can all help undo the damage done by previous generations and embedding this message at school level is paramount to the conservation of our resources and planet.”
The Learning Trust’s Sustainable Schools Initiative supports schools in Hackney to become sustainable by 2020.
2 November 2009
Green spending
Council has received a top rating for ‘green’ spending from the Mayor of London.
Thanks to its focus on buying recycled and sustainable products across the Council, Hackney received a ‘gold’ rating in the Mayor of London’s Green Procurement Code on 26 October.
New solar powered pay-and-display machines save the Council 72 tonnes of CO2 every year. A new paper supply for printers is 100 per cent recycled, and also avoids use of damaging bleaching agents.
The Council’s fleet of vehicles also has green credentials. The number of electric vehicles in service, has increased, while others use sustainably-sourced biodiesel.
Cllr Sophie Linden, Cabinet Member for Customer Services and Sustainability, said: “The Council is committed to maintaining Hackney as the greenest borough in London, by putting the environment at the heart of how we deliver services. There's still a good way to go, and this is a step in the right direction.
The Mayor of London's Green Procurement Code encourages organisations in the capital, including small to medium-sized businesses, to consider environmental impacts when awarding contracts and purchasing supplies.
More info at: www.greenprocurementcode.co.uk
2 November 2009
Page updated: 15 Jun 2010
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