Welsh Green Dragon
tanyamercer
Chris Halpin
helenglaberson
catherinegraham4
alexlodgeFiled under: Climate Change, Conservation, Flooding | Tags: Biodiversity, Newport Wetlands Nature Reserve, RSPB Cymru, World Wetlands Day
Last Tuesday was World Wetlands Day.
Each year conservationists use the day as an opportunity to raise awareness of the importance of unique wetland habitats across the world.
There are many internationally important habitats around the UK and all have a rich array of wildlife.
Conservationists believe that the preservation and creation of wetland ecosystems are important in helping to combat climate change. Reed beds absorb a massive amount of Carbon Dioxide from the atmosphere and help to increase biodiversity, something which has recently been heavily critised here in Wales.
They also play an important part in flood protection.
To find out more about wetlands in South Wales, Chris and I went to Newport Wetlands Nature Reserve.
For our the full interview with Gideon Harries of the RSPB, see below.
Filed under: Climate Change, Government, Protest | Tags: al-Qaeda, Climate Camp Cymru, Domestic Extremists, Environmental Extremists, George Bush, Marcus Brigstocke, Ministry of Justice, Osama bin Laden, Terrorism, The Guardian, Wikileaks
Have a watch of the video above. Do these people make you feel threatened? They seem to have the Ministry of Justice worried.
In what seems like further erosion of civil our liberty by the British government, environmental activists or so-called ‘Domestic Extremists’ have now been put in the same classification as al-Qaeda terrorists in terms of their threat to you and I.
From a government document leaked to The Guardian (not however through whistle blowing site Wikileaks as they have run into financial woes), it transpires that people who campaign for a cleaner greener environment are as much a danger to national security as those who wish to commit mass murder.
I followed this story last Friday on our radio production day and interviewed a representative from Climate Camp Cymru. Dai Jones (he asked for a pseudonym) said that when he first read the news he wasnt sure whether to laugh or be alarmed. Here’s the radio piece that made it into the lunchtime bulletin.
He reckons that events like Climate Camp and The Wave have struck a chord with the general public, and that the government are trying to put people off legitimately protesting in what they believe in. In conflating protesting to seem as something more sinister or violently motivated, Dai believes less people will want to be involved and the campaigns will lose momentum.
Such has been the dismay among environmental campaigners of this re-classification, with great ironic timing comes the latest news from the planets most notorious terrorist mastermind.
Osama bin Laden’s audiotape released on the 29th January is yet to be verified, but deplores America for not addressing climate change and George Bush for not signing up to the Kyoto agreement. Views that many climate change activists might share- reckon he’ll show up at climate camp next time round? I’m not even going to attempt a wise crack as Marcus Brigstocke has this one superbly satirically covered. So although the eco warriors do have a lot to grumble about, perhaps idealogically they do have a little more in common with terrorists than they would like to admit!
Filed under: Climate Change, Environment, Future Thinking | Tags: Alternative Fitness, BCTV, Community, Cymtillery Allotments, Volunteering
It’s that time of year again. The excesses of Christmas have caught up with us. Those jeans have either shrunk in the wash or I’ve put on an extra pound or two. Gym membership deals are posted through the letter box and everywhere you turn there’s an advert for some fabulous diet that promises you’ll lose 16lbs in 2 weeks.
But realistically, am I going to stick with the gym? Probably not. I find them incredibly dull, and lycra and me are not a good combination! Similarly, diets are always started with great vigour, but then abandoned by the end of January.
And, just when I was losing hope, I think I’ve found a way to keep fit that challenges, reinvigorates and doesn’t involve running machines or eating solely carrots for a week. Plus it helps the environment.
It’s called the green gym.
It’s a BTCV idea, which hopes to inspire people to improve both their health and the environment.
Experienced leaders guide ‘gym goers’ through a range of practical projects, giving the opportunity to tackle physical jobs in the outdoors – improving strength and stamina, boosting practical skills and confidence and benefitting local green spaces.
To find out more I visited the green gym volunteers at Cymtillery Allotments.
It could just be that this is the type of gym to stick with!
Green gym volunteers
Green gym leader Bryan Brown
The allotment at Cymtillery
Filed under: Environment, Pollution, Waste | Tags: Cardiff City Council, Civic Amenity site, Connect 2 Cardiff, Environment Agency, Fly tipping, Fly Tipping Action Wales, Keep Cardiff Tidy, Prosiect Gwyrdd, SmartWater, South Wales Police, Welsh Assembly Government
Fly-Tipping Action Wales Campaign – Radio Feature
You know what they say, where there’s muck there’s money. However in this case its leaving local authorities in South Wales a deficit to the tune of three million pounds per year, and in the end we’re the one’s who pay through higher council tax bills. Tonnes of illegally dumped rubbish is left at roadsides and wasteland each year, and now there is a new drive to tackle the problem.
The Environment Agency are once more trying to convince businesses and families that fly-tipping is not on, with partnership agencies like Keep Cardiff Tidy and Cardiff City Councils Prosiect Gwyrdd (Project Green) on board.
Notorious areas for fly-tipping are the lanes which run between Caerphilly and St Mellon’s where you can find dozens of dumping grounds. The usual suspects include old furniture, settees and large white goods like fridges and washing machines, but alarmingly also a lot of trade and industrial waste like building materials and toxic asbestos. People may think places like this are out of sight so out of mind, but it causes considerable disruption as many sites block farmer’s gates and of course have a devastating impact on the environment.
Duty of care
The new campaign which is backed by the Welsh Assembly Government is designed to remind homeowners and businesses that it’s their responsibility that waste gets disposed of properly. If you’re using a tradesperson like a builder or plumber you must check that they’re registered with the Environment Agency as a waste carrier.
This latest crackdown has been timed for January as it’s the worst month for illegal dumping when people have their annual new year clear out. Surprisingly almost two-thirds of waste found is actually normal household waste in black bin bags which could be left out for the dustbin man.
Hi-tech police crackdown
As technological advancement races on, South Wales Police are developing cunning ways in which to catch illegal fly-tippers out. Forensic techniques like SmartWater and aerial surveillance are being employed to chart illegal dumping sites and track down the culprits.
With the risk of landing a fine of up to £50,000 or even a prison sentence is it really worth the bother? The scale of the problem is only demonstrated by the fact that out of 55,000 cases between 2008-1009 only 72 arrests and prosecutions were made. Some people argue that the council need to make it easier for people to get rid of waste, especially large electrical items. With the opening of smaller local tips, or Civic Amenity sites like Waungron Road in Fairwater, legimate ways to chuck away waste are being made more accessible – the only stipulation is you can only take waste that will fit in your car; larger vehicles must go to the Recycling site at Lamby Way. Alternatively you can ring Connect 2 Cardiff, Cardiff City Councils helpline and they will arrange collection of larger white goods free of charge. For more information visit the Fly-Tipping Action Wales or Cardiff City Council website.
The root of the problem?
From the people I spoke to it seems part of the problem comes down to disposal cost and people tightening their belts because of the recession. This is especially the case for small tradesmen and businesses disposing of composite or dangerous materials like plasterboard or asbestos. When it comes to waste they often operate at a loss and if they do jump through the right hoops it’s seen by many as a lengthy bureaucratic nightmare. One builder I spoke to challenged me to try and dispose of some asbestos myself, just to see how hard it really is.
This is no justification for flagrant littering, but unfortunately the age-old dilemma rings true once again; the environment is not everyone’s main priority – time and money are more important. Despite the threat of a hefty fine or time behind bars, the blight that fly-tipping causes looks set to stay. One must hope this new campaign attempts to get to the root of why people lack a conscience when it comes to driving out to the middle of nowhere under the cover of darkness and using the countryside as a dumping ground.
Filed under: Fuel, Future Thinking, Transport, carbon emissions | Tags: Car Clubs, Car Pollution, Car sharing, Cardiff County Council, Cardiff's Sustainable Travel Plan, City Car Club, Energy Efficient Mobility, Gwenllian Lansdown, Ieuan Wyn Jones Transport Minister, Plaid Cymru
Cut back on cars, not just carbs this New Year
Cardiff Council plan to introduce car clubs to the city, as part of their strategy to cut down the numbers of cars on the roads.
This is part of Cardiff’s wider Sustainable Travel Plan which, if all goes well, will be implemented in other parts of Wales. The Council has already developed green alternatives that aim to cut down on cars, such as park and ride schemes, improving cycling facilities, and a drive to work car share scheme. They also plan to launch a new car club next year, to encourage people to rent out a vehicle instead of owning their own.
Hopefully the public will be inspired to take up a car diet for their New Years resolution. Less cars will mean a reduction in problems such as traffic, parking and of course the big greasy beast that is pollution, making the city a more sustainable and enjoyable place to live.
Cardiff’s sustainable travel plan
Ieuan Wyn Jones, Transport Minister says, “Commuter levels in and around Cardiff have increased significantly over the past few years. This is an exciting opportunity to develop and implement a range of innovative transport solutions which will benefit the 210,000 people who travel into the city on a daily basis.”
Executive Minister for Transport, Delme Bowen expands on car sharing and car club schemes:
Car Clubs
Cardiff Council is currently in the process of awarding a contract for an operator to run a car club in Cardiff. It is hoped that car clubs will encourage residents to rent instead of buying their own vehicle. ”A car club, along with car sharing, helps to promote choice and the greater use of sustainable modes of travel.” say Cardiff Council.
Car clubs follow a model that has been around since the 1970s in Europe, and is now used in many cities all over the world.
Car clubs are new to Cardiff, but they have been implemented overseas since the 1970s.
Scientific studies and customer surveys have provided substantial evidence that car clubs can help cut down on toxic output. More Options for Energy Efficient Mobility through Car Sharing (MOMO) have provided a paper bursting with the advantages of car hire.
The club scheme does not only yield green benefits – it is also hugely cost-effective for users. People will cut down on the high annual cost of tax and insurance, with the car company responsible for overall maintenance.
“The car sharing scheme is part of the answer to dealing with Cardiff’s congestion problem and provides people living in Cardiff with another option for how they go about their daily business.” says Gwenllian Lansdown, a Plyd Cymru Councillor who backed an 100-strong signature petition last year, urging the city council to support such a car club scheme. “This scheme has proved successful in other cities across the globe and I look forward to it starting in Cardiff” says Landsdown.
Car clubs will reduce congestion in the city.
A chosen car company will operate their rental service on behalf of the Council. If the scheme is successful, the contract will be renewed. Richard Drew, the South West Manager of City Car Club, is currently responsible for the plans in Cardiff.”We’ve been informed that we’ve been the most successful bidder but they haven’t made a final decision to say that we’re definitely going to go ahead yet” he explains.
The clubs would be aimed at people who would consider buying a second car, or those who are not completely dependent on having one. Users would pay a one off membership fee of around £75 and then they would pay around £3 an hour for car hire.
“If all goes well, we’re looking to start the early part of spring next
Feedback has been positive towards car sharing and car clubs.
year.” Drew said last December. Before then, the company will need to decide where to base their cars. Drew explained, “what we’d be looking for in the first instance is people that know the area well that can suggest places where there’s real issues with parking.”
So how is the public responding to the Council’s Sustainable travel plan? “Feedback has been good so far, and car sharing generally is increasing. In Cardiff County Council alone there’s 18,000 people both recycling and car sharing. That’s looking good.” says Delme Bowen.
It looks like car slimming plans are running smoothly. Let’s hope the city won’t crash diet but will maintain a regular slimming regime, with healthy portions of sharing and regular car club rental.
Extreme car sharing:
Filed under: Efficiency, Energy, Fuel, Future Thinking, Renewable Energy | Tags: Energy Circle, First Utility, Google, Google Energy, Google Powermeter, iGoogle, Saving Energy, Smart Meters, Widget
Not intent on being an online ‘power house’, it now seems that Google has its sights on becoming one in a more literal sense.
In what seems a very perceptive move, it’s been reported that Google have applied to create a subsidiary company in the US (imaginatively called ‘Google Energy‘) with which they can start trading energy on the open market. In entering this sector, it seems they are taking the future insecurity of energy supply into their own hands. Some commentators are sceptical that Google Energy is a business move purely for the money, yet Google insist they are doing it for the more philanthropic reason of reaching carbon neutrality. Producing their own energy at their Californian HQ, this move will enable them to trade the excess created and pump it back into the grid. However, future investment in the renewable energy sector clearly makes keen business sense.
In all honesty I’ve been meaning to write this post for a few weeks and was initially going to discuss the role of smart meters and the UK government’s plans to roll these out by 2020. Like the previous post about boilers, smart meter systems are hardly the most glamorous of devices to discuss, so Google’s very recent movements into the energy sector has spiced the whole affair up a bit. This is especially because their innovative technologies make the UK utility companies plans look prehistoric even before the meter fitters have chucked their tools in the back of the van.
You’ve probably heard or seen in the UK media about how ’smart meters’ are the future. The idea behind them is that in keeping tabs on our daily usage of Electricity or gas, we can curb how much we use and determine when we’re being wasteful. Our currently dubbed ‘dumb meters’ which require that quarterly annoyance of letting in the meter reader (or more often than not when our energy provider spuriously estimate your bill) means that as consumers we’re often paying over the odds for the energy we actually use. Imagine if they applied the same process to a contracted mobile phone – no itemised bill but instead a rough guess on how much you’ve been yapping on the phone for the past 3 months. That doesn’t seem to make any sense does it? Here’s a radio feature created by my colleague Jim Turner just before Christmas on this very subject .
So these so-called ‘smart meters‘ are meant to be the answer, but may not actually be that ’smart’. They will cost between £85 -£100 for each household and work by sending usage data directly to the power company each day. However the technology they contain is not that up to date at all. They work by sending through how much energy you’ve used by SMS text message to your Utility Company who then use the data to create an itemised monthly bill. This mobile phone technology has been around for almost twenty years and for this reason the Energy sector in UK are having second thoughts on a nationwide meter upgrade. They fear that by the time each and every home has been visited the smart meters will have become obsolete.
And this is where Google comes in hot on their respective heels. Smart meters are old news and now Google Powermeter is being heralded as the next big thing.This is in effect an online power monitoring tool which can be incorporated as a widget as part of your iGoogle home page. Initially developed to work with smart meters, Google have now in fact bypassed the need for them and work through a broadband connection rather than the aforementioned SMS technology. This means you don’t have to wait for your Utility company to process the information; the Google application will do it in near real time and you can check it online whenever you want. Clever eh? Here’s an example of how the data might look:
This is some way off for every customer in Wales though. Currently the only company who offer this service are first:utility and you do need a smart meter installed for it to work.
Being more energy-efficient is obviously inextricably linked to freeing up some more of our incomes. In years to come, if winters look set to be as harsh as this one, then we’re certainly going to have to trim on energy usage to avoid bankrupting ourselves to keep warm and watch the telly. For more tips on how you could save, check out Energy Circle’s 10 big ideas for home energy efficiency in 2010.
Filed under: Efficiency, Energy, Fuel | Tags: Baxi, Boiler Scrappage Scheme, British Gas, carbon emissions, Central Heating, Energy Saving Trust, NPower, Worcester Bosch
With what’s already been dubbed as the coldest winter in thirty years and sub-zero temperatures becoming the norm these past few weeks, the last thing you want is a boiler that’s on the blink. That said, if your house is anything like mine with the central heating blaring out at all hours to keep you toasty, you’re probably charging through oblivious like we are. Deep down inside of you is the terminal dread and a modicum of guilt to how much it’s all costing. But, hey who the hell cares when its -4°C and it’s like this outside?
I may be ‘as snug as a bug in a rug’ as I write this but unfortunately I bet many of us will be in for a nasty surprise when our next quarter’s gas bill drops through the letterbox. Such a cheery thought.
So with that in mind, although it is completely irrelevant to me as I don’t own my own bricks and mortar yet, I still found it fairly interesting to see that the government has a trick up its sleeve to help us save energy [money]. Perversely by spending some more and shelling out a couple of grand buying ourselves new boilers. Yesterday Prime Minister Gordon Brown launched a boiler scrappage scheme similar to the one the government employed to help the flailing motor industry last year. First mooted at the start of December it has created quite a buzz within the industry. To qualify you need an inefficient boiler deemed as G-rated (usually meaning it’s over 15 years old) and you can then trade it in to the tune of £400 off your new shiny one. Landlords up and down the country will be pleased to learn they can get in on the action too.
Now I’m not going to deny it, boiler talk is certainly not sexy. I’m not even going to attempt to pretend that it is. I remember when I was studying for my Bachelors Degree in Architecture I had to endure an entire hour and a half long lecture on the different types of boiler and heating systems one could choose, their efficiency ratings, values this, values that… blah blah blah. It bored me to tears. Sufficed to say I’m not in that industry anymore, yet the boilers have come back to haunt me. However, if it’s good for the environment then I suppose for one post only I can become slightly enthused about our unsung household heroes. And the boiler is a tireless workhorse – it’s only when it lets you down that you ever really notice the arduous blighter, and then you curse it, poor thing.
So then swiftly back to the point. This scheme is estimated to be costing the government around £50 million pounds and aswell as ridding households of inefficient gas guzzling monsters that help rack up our gas bills, it will also keep around 130,000 boiler fitters in employment. It will presumably mean too that companies like Worcester Bosch, Baxi and Calor are now breathing a huge sigh of relief. Not only the manufacturers will be onto a winner though; energy companies like British Gas are expected to use the scheme to drum up new business. As the biggest installer of boilers in the UK they are looking set to match the government’s £400 discount alongside NPower who like British Gas are offering the same discount.
You might be thinking – well why bother? The Energy Saving Trust reckon about 3.5 million homes in the UK have the least efficient G-Rated boilers. An easy way to determine whether you have such a beast of a boiler is if it has a permanently lit pilot light – if it does then I’m afraid it should be out with the old and in with the new. Another way of checking is to go through this simple online boiler checklist. As 14% of the UK’s carbon emissions come from domestic heating, this is an obvious way parliament can coax us to be more efficient and for them to reach their targets. Cynicism aside – you could save up to £200 a year on your energy costs so you don’t need me to tell you that’s no bad thing.
So as we look set for at least a few more weeks of slippery pavements and icy roads, get your boiler checked out and imagine what it’d be like if it gave up on you right now. But you better be quick – the offer is only open to the first 125,000, so out of the 3 and a half million suspected dodgy boilers – thats a potential 3,375,000 households who could literally be left out in the cold. Or should that be left in in the cold.
Filed under: Environment, Recycling, Waste | Tags: Cardiff Council, Christmas Tree Recycling, Christmas Waste, Delia Smith, Oxfam, The Woodland Trust, Using Leftover Food
So you’ve survived eating cold turkey sandwiches all week, you’ve just about eaten you body weight in cheese and you’re almost glad to see the back of a mince pie for at least another 11 months. We certainly get through a lot of it over the Christmas period, and many of us will now be thinking of our healthy and energetic start to 2010. In this interim week-long limbo between Christmas and New Year, its easy to laze in front of yet another vintage film on ITV and forget all about the growing mountain of waste outside your back door.
So what easy things can be done to combat some of this leftover stuff? You mastered your surprised ‘oh isn’t this a lovely present face’ on Christmas morning when you opened that hideous jumper from Grandma, or received the John Grisham thriller you’ve no intention of ever reading. How on earth can you offload them now everyone’s gone back home and you’re left with a pile of tat you don’t want or need? After tiring of my gifts after about 5 minutes, I went for a trawl on the internet to explore ways one can do exactly that – although at first I stumbled across this reworking of a timeless Christmas Carol!
Having never yet hosted my own Christmas dinner, I too am oblivious to what happens to all that leftover stuff after a Christmas with all the trimmings. It seems for the most resourceful, any leftover food is shoehorned into the subsequent days dinners – and I’m not just talking about those aforementioned never-ending turkey sandwiches. Delia Smith, love her or hate her, has a number of recipe ideas utilizing the leftovers from Christmas lunch ranging from Turkey Soup to a Stilton omelette (so maybe i could manage a bit more cheese then!).
No doubt in the coming weeks every street will become littered with the skeletal remains of the once beloved Christmas tree. Now with pride of place in the heart of every cosy living room the length and breadth of the country, soon to be standing naked and bare on the end of each street corner. Cardiff Council can spare us all the rather depressing January sight that is the christmas tree graveyard as they offer a Christmas Tree recycling service. Well, I may have dressed that up a bit, as their website advises you to remove the decorations, chop it up and whack it in your green wheelie bin. The same can also be said of that real christmas holly wreath you had hanging on your front door, the boughs of holly with which you decked the halls and the cheeky mistletoe you hid at the top of the stairs.
In terms of recycling all your Christmas cards and wrapping paper, The Woodland Trust are collecting cards at all M&S, WH Smith and TK Maxx stores throughout January. And good news with this is, not only will they be recycling and making new paper but they are also pledging to plant 12,000 new trees, the location of which you can decide by clicking the link above. Wrapping paper needs to go in your green recycling bags – its estimated that 32 square miles of wrapping paper could end up in UK bins after Christmas!
Finally, back to that dodgy board game, trashy novel or putrid smelling aftershave you received from Auntie Phyllis. Well the charity shop could well be the answer for those who are more ethically minded – here’s Oxfam’s rough guide to the kind of goods they accept. Otherwise you could always whack it up on eBay!
For more information take a look at Cardiff Council’s Christmas recycling guide.
Filed under: Climate Change, Future Thinking | Tags: Copenhagen Summit, Dai the Blue Dragon, Ed Miliband, G77, Gordon Brown, Kyoto Protocol, Legally Binding Treaty, Lumumba Di-Aping, Welsh Assembly
So it’s all over and descended into absolute chaos, but is it really that suprising? It wasn’t only inside that things started to take a turn for the worse last week, as talks stalled police and activists clashed on the streets surrounding the Bella Centre in Copenhagen.
It now transpires that China chucked the largest spanner in the works and is getting most of the blame for the demise of COP15, alongside America who according to Gordon Brown, showed a lack of ‘ambition’. Without the superpowers agreeing to anything meaningful or tangible, the weak agreement that has been signed could place a legally binding deal in serious jeopardy. When world leaders were gathered at the summit on Friday to ’sign’ on the dotted line, in fact they were thrashing out a weaker international consensus which merely capped global temperature rise by 2 degrees and agreed remuneration packages and aid for countries who face the immediate onslaught of climate change.
Here’s the Channel 4 news coverage from last night. Keep watching as the live interview between Ed Miliband and George Monbiot is particularly compelling – it starts just before the 4 minute mark.
Crucially, no date was set for a peak in carbon emissions, no date was set for any of it to become legally binding, nor were any international emissions targets defined. However much activism and pressure was placed upon world leaders to reach a deal, could we really have expected anything more in just two weeks? Gordon Brown and Ed Miliband are now insistent that the procedural process for the talks must change, as negotiations involving 193 separate countries made for a diplomatic nightmare.
They say that some of the smaller nations were effectively holding the whole summit to ransom, as talks stalled last week for hours at a time when smaller countries threw their toys out of the pram over the developed world not taking enough responsibility for their historical carbon emissions. This meant hours of precious negotiating was wasted and talks had to continue until well after midnight on a number of occasions to make up for lost time. It was also probably part of the reason why a hurried and weaker agreement was signed in the dying moments of the conference so that the fortnight’s talks were not deemed as a total failure. This certainly needs to be addressed in time for next years summit in Mexico, as although it is commendable that the UN ensures every nation has its chance to speak, this is evidently not the forum in which such a discussion should take place. How can a fortnight’s worth of negotiating be enough to hear each and every one of the 193 countries represented, with over 25,000 delegates in attendance, with such an emotive issue on the negotiating table?
This can be demonstrated by last-minute comments made by the Sudanese delegate Lumumba Di-Aping, who likened the final accord to the Holocaust. This was quickly denounced by European leaders and however inappropriate it shows the frustrations of the G77 and developing world that the richer nations could not get together to agree lasting targets based upon their previous behaviour.
Last week saw Carwyn Jones on behalf of the Welsh Assembly pledge to help the Mbale region of Uganda prepare for climate change, but unfortunately this is small fry on such an international stage. Such measures should be adopted by other larger developed nations rather than keeping their own interests top priority. This is only demonstrated by China, America, South Africa, India and Brazil breaking away from the main talks to forge a watered down strategy that better suited their economies rather than the environment or consideration of the most vulnerable of nations.
So what will happen now? Well it’s important that international momentum does not falter in the hangover of the conference, although this looks bound to happen. Also, does achieving this ‘weak’ agreement stand in the way of further definition of a legally binding political treaty? With talk of countries making voluntary targets, it’s no wonder the developing nations kicked up so much of a stink in the first week of the summit that the Kyoto agreement should still stand. Just because COP15 is over, it does not remove the obvious challenges we face with Climate Change. World leaders seem to have sidestepped the main issues and chosen short-term gain over long-term probability. It is now back in the hands of NGO’s, International Environment groups and campaigners to lobby world leaders to pull their proverbial fingers out, as there certainly is no planet b.
Filed under: Climate Change, Transport | Tags: Cardiff Council, CO2, Copenhagen Summit, On Your Bike - Free Ride Scheme, Sustrans Cymru
In light of events surrounding the Copenhagen Climate Summit, there’s a growing public awareness of the threats posed by climate change. But is this translating into effective action in Cardiff? The city has been making a concerted effort to reduce CO² emissions and combat climate change through a project aptly named ’sustainable Cardiff’. Selected as Wales’ first “sustainable travel city” by the Assembly Government, a £28.5 million scheme aims to reduce congestion and pollution and promote public transport. Part of the money has already been invested into providing free cycle hire, bus travel around the city centre, and improved bike and walking routes. The money has also given a final go ahead for the Pont-y-Werin (translation: Bridge for the people) pedestrian and cycle bridge across the Ely river between Cardiff’s sports village and Penarth.
On your bike
Transport, particularly private cars are widely acknowledged as one of the biggest contributors to carbon emissions. Scientists say the need to change the way we travel is becoming ever more pressing. 
Cardiff Council have introduced a ‘keep cardiff moving’ travel plan that aims to cut car journeys and encourage the public to use buses, cycle, walk, or share car journeys at the very least. In terms of total impact on climate change, driving is thought to release around six times more CO² emissions than flying and seven times more than ships and boats. Cars alone create nearly half of our total transport emissions.
Changing perceptions
Lee Waters, Director of sustainable travel charity, Sustrans Cymru says achieving a sustainable travel plan in Cardiff will only be successful if people change their perceptions. “People need to be shown that there are alternatives rather than using a car all the time. We need to encourage people to use their cars less and choose to travel in ways that benefit their health and the environment’. Listen below to Lee Waters, Director of Sustrans Cymru on ‘False Perceptions’…
“We need to break down this car culture and realise that it’s quicker and healthier to get around the city on a bike or walk.” Critical Mass is a peaceful gathering that wishes to see less car-dominated cities and more people cycling. On the first Saturday of every month, bikers depart from the steps of the Cardiff Museum at 11am and cycle en-masse around the city centre to raise awareness of cyclists in Cardiff.
‘Cardiff Cycling Campaign’ join the event every month – they are an organisation that promote cycling and are bidding for improved cycle routes and a cleaner transport environment. Cardiff Council claim “Cardiff is becoming an increasingly cycle-friendly city with 80km of cycle routes”. However, Cardiff Cycling Campaign argue ’some of these cycle routes are no more than lines on the map, with nothing but blue “cycling permitted” signs to show that bikes are allowed on the road.’ They are currently campaigning for cycling access through the new St Davids 2 development, the A470, the Cogan Spur, and the Western Cycling Corridor.
On Your Bike – Free Ride Scheme (OYBIKE)
Cardiff residents and visitors who register with the Cardiff Bike Scheme can hire a bike from bike stations in 10 locations in Cardiff city centre and Cardiff Bay.
Users have to register online and pay an £18 annual fee or £5 a week to use the bikes, which are free for the first 30 minutes and have a small charge after that. Delme Bowen, Councillor for Traffic and Transportation says the new OYBIKE scheme which started in September has so far successfully seen a monthly increase in usage within Cardiff. Have a listen below:
I thought I would have a go at Cardiff’s new Bike scheme. Watch the video below to view my experience.
There’s mixed opinion in Cardiff. Some people think it’s a great idea whilst others need a little more convincing…
Lee Waters says ‘the OYBike scheme in Cardiff is still only on a very modest scale compared with similar programmes in Copenhagen or Paris. In Cardiff, there are only about 70 bikes and 9 drop off points. However he also points out that thirty years ago Copenhagen had the same level of cycling that Cardiff has today. Now, over a third of all commuting journeys in the Danish capital are by bike. Let’s hope Cardiff has the potential to achieve the same.
