Thanks to Sharon Howe for recommending I check out the Uncaged website. Uncaged are a peaceful international animal protection organisation based in Sheffield, England. Their main campaigns are against animal experiments (vivisection); against xenotransplantation (animal to human transplants); the global boycott of Procter & Gamble; for animal rights and for democratic action on animal issues through the political system.

If you like me think the list below is simply not acceptable then STOP using products tested on animals and tell everyone you know about companies which test on animals including Procter & Gamble who produce well know household products like Ariel, Daz, Fairy, Max Factor, Olay, Pantene Pro-V, Herbal Essences, and Head and Shoulders.  There is lots of info on the Uncaged website. See www.uncaged.co.uk

Number of Experiments by Species (Great Britain, 2008)

Mice: 2,418,604
Rats: 355,370
Guinea Pigs: 29,293
Hamsters: 3,298
Gerbils: 1,092
Other Rodents: 866
Rabbits: 17,060
Cats: 360
Dogs: 6,105
Ferrets: 1,122
Other Carnivores: 1,264
Horses/Donkeys/Cross-Bred Equids: 89,365
Pigs: 6,824
Goats: 499
Sheep: 35,820
Cattle: 2,302
Deer: 63
Birds: 123,259
Reptiles: 109
Amphibians: 32,674
Fish: 605,155
Marmoset/Tamarin Monkeys: 368
Macaque Monkeys: 4,230
Other Mammals: 978
GM Animals: 1,335,560

By Sainsbury’s own calculations, a 20,000 sq ft store will generate 20,000 car journeys a week, causing traffic chaos and gridlock in Ottery’s narrow streets, increasing pollution in the town centre and severely compromising the health and safety of pedestrians and schoolchildren.

The effect on local shops selling food and comparison goods will be devastating. GVA Grimley’s report of February 2010 (commissioned by EDDC at taxpayers’ expense) recommended that the store should be half the size proposed by Sainsbury – i.e. 10,000 sq ft. It pointed out that a 20,000 sq ft store would be seriously disproportionate to the rest of the retail space in Ottery. By comparison, it pointed out that the Tesco store in Honiton represents 25% of retail space in Honiton, the Waitrose store 20% of retail space in Sidmouth but that a 20,000 sq ft store in Ottery would represent a staggering 70% of retail space in the town.

The GVA Grimley report warned that a store of this size would result in a 20% drop in business for local retailers. SO’s own survey of local shops’ income in the summer of 2009 indicates that a such a drop would force around 9 existing shops in the town to close.

Sustainable Ottery will be seeking answers from EDDC as to how much money was spent on commissioning GVA Grimley to conduct its detailed assessment of the supermarket applications before a small group of far less knowledgeable district councillors decided to ignore its conclusions. We will also call on the councillors concerned to justify a decision which flies in the face of every report they were presented with and the views of those elected to represent the people of Ottery.

We will be urging SO supporters to e-mail English Heritage and the Government of the South West in the hope that both bodies can intervene, using their powers and responsibilities in relation to heritage sites. (SO suggests people e-mail David Stuart of English Heritage, david.stuart@english-heritage.org.uk, quoting the EDDC planning application number 09/2354 and the EH reference number P00081464).

We trust that the two district councillors for Ottery and West Hill and Ottery’s Town Council will raise their strongest objections to the Development Management Committee’s decision. Constructive suggestions by Ottery’s Town Council that a smaller store would enable the walkway on Hind St to run inside the listed wall and two-way traffic to come and go from the store along Hind St appeared to fall on deaf ears at the meeting on 15 April.

`It is not right that just seven district councillors can simply ignore the advice of those far more knowledgeable on Ottery’s needs than themselves and that two votes can seal Ottery’s fate for decades to come,’ said Helen Collinson of Sustainable Ottery. `And it is downright unjust that in planning law, those opposed to a 20,000 sq ft store now have no redress and no means of appealing against the decision.’

Former Ottery town councillor, Robert Baker commented: `As an ex-councillor, I am astounded that such an important decision could be made after such a dismally inadequate standard of debate from the committee. The councilors involved should hang their heads in shame for ignoring the vast weight of properly-researched evidence from professionals, local councillors and EDDC’s own experts.’

`One of the classic comments made by one of the councilors on the Committee was that Ottery ‘deserves’ a supermarket,’ commented Sustainable Ottery member Jill Dixon. `No, what Ottery deserves is a proper and fair consideration of all the facts and of the recommendations presented by planning experts employed and commissioned at taxpayers’ expense.’

`It has been said that Ottery is a “dying town”, ‘ said Clive Essame of Sustainable Ottery, `and while I do not agree with this, I do not see that imposing a giant supermarket on the town can do anything but harm the economic and community life of the town. Why is it that whenever regeneration of an area is on the agenda in East Devon the solution is seen to be to allow a supermarket to be built? ‘

`80p in every £1 spent in a big supermarket is lost to the local economy, while in locally owned shops 80p in every £1 spent stays within the local economy to be spent again. Our elected councillors have acted against the interests of the town in the name of regeneration. I fear we will all live to regret their decision,’ said Mr Essame.

To find out what Sustainable Ottery members said at the meeting, please see the website –www.sustainableottery.org.uk or click on http://www.sustainableottery.org.uk/#/sainsburys-horror-apr-2010/4540421897

If you wish to add your comments upon this decision then you might like to write to the papers

( emma.silverthorne@archant.co.uk for the Ottery Herald) or  below are a list of contacts to whom you might like to direct them.

EDDC Development Committee members-

PDiviani@eastdevon.gov.uk (Chairman), ADinnis@eastdevon.gov.uk,RFranklin@eastdevon.gov.uk , IChubb@eastdevon.gov.uk , BBuxton@eastdevon.gov.uk ,DAtkins@eastdevon.gov.uk , MWilliamson@eastdevon.gov.uk

You may also like to contact Mr David Stuart at English Heritage  David.Stuart@english-heritage.org.uk and your two district councillors roger.giles@devon.gov.uk anddcox@eastdevon.gov.uk.

The planning details are -   EDDC planning application number 09/2354 and the English Heritage reference number P00081464.

As the contented user of a somewhat elderly second hand Macbook, I was pleased to read that the back and forth battle between Greenpeace and Apple which has been going on for years has finally started to fizzle out. In its new report, Greenpeace ranked Apple as its No. 1 company.

The ranking guide gives consumers an idea of how Greenpeace feels the top 18 consumer electronics companies in the world stack up. The rankings give the companies a gold star for eliminating the most harmful chemicals from their products.

The categories listed on the Greenpeace ranking guide are Desktops, Notebooks, Phones andMonitors. “Apple has virtually eliminated toxic PVC and BFRs across the entire product range,” the chart reads.

Read more here.

The idea came from the supermarket giant after a visit to From Somewhere’s collection at Estethica, the London fashion week ethical fashion showcase.

Tesco’s plan is to recycle waste within its own supply chain while still keeping its fashion credentials. The clothes are being produced in a “green” factory in Sri Lanka – the first in the world to be awarded a gold rating for environmental responsiblity by LEED, the international green building certification system.

But while the benefits for Tesco are obvious – associating themselves with a commitment to environmental responsibility and recycling – why would one of the UK’s most respected ethical fashion labels agree to team up with a global giant not generally known a light carbon footprint?

The From Somewhere and Estethica founder and designer, Orsola de Castro, said she took the view that reclaiming and “upcycling” fabric should be made more accessible, and that any effort by huge retailers to take responsibility for their waste should be encouraged.

“Making the world’s second-biggest clothes manufacturer start to look at their own rubbish is the same. It looks odd, but it will become part of the norm. Of course, right now this minute it is more of a marketing excercise, but at least it’s a greenwash at 30 degrees – it will take a long time to make the industry take responsibility and truly improve.”

The collection itself is true to From Somewhere’s signature look, with body-con shapes and bright colours that will appeal to the teenage and twentysomething market. The prices, which start at £16, are attractive too.

Recent months have been tough for ethical fashion, with Ascension (formerly Adili) forced to suspend shares and subsequently being sold to an investor for a token £1. And while sceptics may frown at the collaboration, Orsola argues that anything that gets ethical fashion into the mainstream can only help. People Tree’s recent collaboration with the film star Emma Watson, for instance, brought an explosion in sales for the company.

This most recent collaboration also follows more recent efforts by Tesco to improve their green image. Last month, the company opened its first carbon zero store in Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, and pledged to spend more than £100m with green technology companies..

You can read the whole article in The Guardian here.

Sheringham awaits its fate. As North Norfolk District Council decides whether to permit a new Tesco supermarket in the heart of this largely unspoiled seaside town, or to approve a rival proposal for a new form of an environmentally friendly food store set on the edge of the town centre and championed by Clive Hay-Smith, a local farmer.

Surely anyone with an ounce of sentiment for Sheringham would choose the latter? In any case, Hay-Smith’s planning application, which will ultimately have cost him £2m, is a happily radical departure from the model of town-wrecking supermarkets that, dimly, has guided the planning officers and planning committees of councils throughout Britain over the last decade.

If Hay-Smith’s altruistic and elegant offering of a supermarket, supplying locally sourced food and combined with a food academy (to celebrate local food and to encourage local people keen to cook imaginatively and well) and free allotments is given the thumbs down, what hope is there for similar proposals anywhere else?

Read the rest of Jonathan Glancey’s article THE TESCO CUMPS OF NORFOLK from The Guardian on Tuesday 2nd March

Find out the result here !!!

We’re watching this application in Nofork closely as there are applications here in East Devon for more supermarkets. We’re having an East Devon Greens meeting on Wed 31st March in Ottery St Mary where we’re hoping to have a speaker from the group who are fighting the supermarket proposal over there.

Thanks to Geoff (East Devon Greens) for suggesting watching The End of the Line last night. I was happily having my usual Saturday night veggie curry when the blood started flowing or should I say literally gushing. As an ex vet nurse I’m not squeamish in the slightest, but I was shocked by the way it was filmed to show the worldwide fishing industry to be an extremely desperate, avaricious affair. The horrific scenes of the glorious blue-fin tuna being hunted with huge nets, dragged on board and hacked to pieces (while still alive and flipping about) were enough to turn anyone’s stomach I’m sure.

The End of the Line is Rupert Murray’s acclaimed film, which examines the consequences of unchecked, unregulated sea fishing across the globe. The documentary reveals how chronic overfishing could lead to the total extinction of the wild fish many humans rely on for food, within 50 years.

It is not a film about what might happen, it is a film about what has happened. The collapse of the cod population, in Newfoundland, saw the end of 40,000 jobs; the bluefin tuna is being hunted to extinction; it takes five kilos of anchovies to produce one fish farmed salmon. And while there are some positive signs, with retailers such as Walmart and McDonalds both selling fish from sustainable sources, some outlets still sell endangered species. The final chilling conclusion is, unless more radical steps are taken globally, including the reduction of overfishing, it will take just 50 years for the world’s oceans to be all fished out.

Read more……

Ten Terrifying Facts about the fish we eat

Hugh’s Guide to sustainable British fish

Charles Glover’s Fish2Fork blog can tell you which restaurants try to serve sustainable fish and work with fishermen to lower their impact on the sea. It can also tell you which restaurants go on serving endangered species and make no attempt to work with their suppliers to avoid by-catch, or endangered or over-fished species

PLEASE ADD YOUR COMMENTS BELOW – WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE FISHING CRISIS? Me and my children are vegetarian so don’t eat fish but we do give it to our cats and my dog adores fish. I will be making an effort from now on to only buy sustainable fish for them.

]]> http://www.sharonpavey.org/did-anyone-see-the-end-of-the-line-last-night/feed/ 4 http://www.sharonpavey.org/vertical-farming-a-sustainable-solution-to-the-worlds-rapidly-diminishing-resouces/ http://www.sharonpavey.org/vertical-farming-a-sustainable-solution-to-the-worlds-rapidly-diminishing-resouces/#comments Mon, 08 Feb 2010 09:32:35 +0000 sharon http://www.sharonpavey.org/?p=416

Many people are unaware that livestock production is responsible for at least 18% of global greenhouse gas emissions – that’s more than the entire transport sector. According to the head of the UN climate change panel, Rajendra Pachauri, “People should consider eating less meat as a way of combating global warming.”

In May 2009, Ghent City Council in Belgium attracted worldwide media and public attention when it announced that it would promote one meat-free day a week for environmental and health reasons. Meanwhile, the “Meat-Free Monday” campaign continues to snowball around the world, led by high-profile chefs and celebrities including Sir Paul McCartney.

Now Sidmouth too is doing its bit to support this important initiative. According to the market organisers, “Going meat-free one day a week is an easy step we can all take to reduce our carbon footprint – and it’s good for your health, too!”

The market takes place as usual from 10 am – 12.30 pm at St John’s Ambulance Hall. In addition to fresh fruit and vegetables and the other usual stalls, shoppers will find a vegetarian food stall, information on meat-free alternatives, recipes and free food samples.

For further information on the “Meat-Free Monday” campaign including weekly recipes, see www.supportmfm.org