Green News
In the wake of a summer which saw many parts of Britain a bit too waterlogged for comfort, it is essential that Britain moves faster in its implementation of flood prevention recommendations, the Environment Agency's chief executive, Lady Young, warned yesterday.
After the summer's serious flooding, the Environmental Agency faced a deluge of criticism - to the extent that flood defence chiefs were told they should pay back the huge bonuses they'd received days before the flooding - when it was revealed that it had failed to meet both its key flood defence targets.
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Green News
In what is believed to be the first move of this kind taken by a local council, St Albans City and District council have transformed a 1950s semi-detached house into an ecohome and opened it to visitors. The house's impressive range of energy-saving features includes a 1 kw wind turbine, solar thermal roof panels and a 4,700-litre rainwater-recycling tank.
The project has been awarded the Green Apple award for Environmental Best Practise by The Green Organisation. The Green Organisation is an independent company which seeks to recognise and confirm environmentally-aware practices in business and government. They state their aim as being to provide a service which operates not as an 'environmental watchdog' scheme, as so many other organisations do, but rather as a more positively focused, reward scheme system.
The contractor, Borras, also won a Considerate Constructor award for its successful use of so many recycled demolition materials in the creation of the house.
Green News
Government environment ministers have today announced plans to build on the protected area of undeveloped land - otherwise known as the Metropolitan Green Belt - around London. Despite promises that only areas which are 'not high quality in conservation terms' will be built on, and that even then the only buildings to appear will come in the form of environmentally friendly 'ecohousing' and other green developments, the proposals have angered environmental campaigners.
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Ethical & green gifts
The government has pledged to almost completely eradicate the use of conventional light bulbs by 2012, with the phasing out process beginning in earnest next year. The move, which was announced at the end of last month by environment minister Hilary Benn, is said to have the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than six million tonnes a year.
The government is also at pains to stress that, despite that fact that energy-saving light bulbs cost more to buy than their non-energy-saving counterparts, their use will ultimately save homeowners money, as they last up to 12 times as long as normal light bulbs and use nearly 80% less electricity. Just replacing one conventional light bulb with an energy-saving equivalent could save a household £7 a year.
Green News
Energy-saving lightbulbs may help the environment, but it seems they are not yet quite up to scratch in other areas. In June it was revealed that some epileptics are reporting dizziness and discomfort as a result of using energy-saving bulbs. The cause of this is something of a mystery, given that the bulbs don't flicker at the rate usually considered necessary to cause effects in epileptics.
According to an article published yesterday in The Scotsman, concerns are now also emerging that energy-saving lightbulbs are not the safest option for those with poor eyesight - particularly those who are also elderly and not very steady on their feet. The very slight delay which energy-saving bulbs experience before reaching full brightness can prove a problem for these people.
Home & Garden
If you've got plans to redecorate your house, but don't want to alter the world, or your own lungs, in the process, then Ecos Organic Paints might be the answer. Most paints currently on the market are laced with nasty substances like formaldehyde and lead. Ecos produces the only range of guaranteed non-toxic paints in the world, for people who don't want to contribute to global warming or risk their health just for the sake of changing the colour of their walls. Ecos paints don't contain of the any animal products like bone or tallow fatty alcohol which are often found in other paints, either, so you can rest assured you're making a completely ethical choice when you buy them.
You can order a brochure or buy paint through the Ecos Organic Paints website.
Related: Earthboom: Paint the planet green with Oliver Heath
Arts & information
Professor Chris Ripley, new director of the Science Museum, has revealed plans for a £6 million exhibit showing people exactly how global warming has already affected the planet, and what implications it could hold for the future. Ripley is at pains to stress that the purpose of the exhibition is not to promote a particular course of action, but to allow people to "come to their own conclusions" about which policies should be put in place in response to global warming.
The exhibition is not due to open until 2009, but, in the meantime, a small trial run exhibition opens next week in the Science museum's Wellcome wing, focussing in particular on the role of biofuels in cutting levels of carbon emission.
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