Peterborough...Creating the UK's Environment Capital

Find a car share buddy to beat soaring fuel costs

2010-05-07T03:45:00.000-07:00

With the cost of fuel expected to soar even further over the summer, Peterborough City Council's Travelchoice team is encouraging people to buddy-up on their car journeys to save money and protect the environment.

In particular, the team is suggesting work colleagues who live near each other could make great savings on their fuel costs by car-sharing on the commute to and from work.

The Travelchoice team operates the www.carsharepeterborough.com website that helps people find a buddy with which to share regular journeys. You can register with the site to find walking, cycling and taxi buddies too.

There are more than 364,000 journeys registered on the site, which means anyone looking to find a car share partner is in with a good chance of finding someone to split the cost of their journey.

Nicola Francis, Peterborough City Council's Travelchoice team manager said: "Fuel costs are predicted to increase further over the summer. So there seems to be no better time to join our car-share scheme. The typical commuter who car-shares every day can save hundreds of pounds a year.”

"Reducing the number of cars on the road also helps to reduce carbon emissions and help the city build upon its growing reputation as the UK's environment capital."

Finding a car share buddy is any easy way to do your ‘one thing’ for the environment as part of Peterborough Environment City Trust’s Green Festival, which runs from Saturday 29th June – Sunday 6th June.

To find out more about the Green Festival visit http://www.pect.org.uk/green-festival

Do something small today, make a big difference

2010-04-14T06:51:00.000-07:00

In creating a change one person alone can only
make a small impact but if that person joins a group then the whole becomes greater than the some of its parts.

If you then take that to the next stage and get a critical mass of people to accept that change then that becomes a social norm. The point at which that social norm is formed is what is called the tipping point – the point at which everyone just understands.

The tipping point is neither good nor evil, it is the point where things just change because the right events happen and cause and effect take over.

Imagine the scene some one drops one copy of a newspaper, no one sees him do it, and he’s got away with it. Within an hour the wind has turned that newspaper into 20 pages in gutters, trees and gardens. It looks like nobody cares.

So, why should the teenager find a bin for the sweet wrapper, or his mate for his drink’s can? Nobody round here cares, look at the state of the place. And so these small actions create an impression. Imagine an empty shop with a boarded up front window, a short while later look at the graffiti on the very same boards. That shop front lowers the tone, but who cares?

As I said the tipping point works for good and evil. Small actions like mending the window, picking up the litter, painting over the graffiti, which on their own are only small actions, add up to a greater whole.

What really works is not when someone writes to the council and waits for them to do something, but when the people who live in the street do it themselves. It’s their street, they have ownership, they have made a difference and people have seen them show that they care. The little action of finding a bin for that sweet wrapper now has more meaning. In this neighbourhood, it matters.

The Big Tidy Up is organising events around Peterborough for people to make a difference to the streets, parks and pathways where they live. If you or your family want to take part contact The Big Tidy Up’s coordinator Naomi Jones, by emailing naomi.jones@pcvs.co.uk or calling 01733 342683. For information on forthcoming events visit the Facebook page.

Don’t tear it down, transform it.

2010-03-31T05:59:00.000-07:00

Peterborough has some fantastic plans for future housing and the technology to create new eco homes is available for all to see, just tune into Channel 4’s Grand Designs and you will see Kevin McCloud raving about the latest insulation, solar power and energy efficient designs.

Great! But most of us live in Victorian, Georgian or 20th Century housing stock that predates climate change, but they are buildings of character that give our neighbourhoods individuality, that modern housing estates often lack.

Tearing down these properties would be wrong, transforming them is the solution.

Grand Designs have added their weight to a retrofitting campaign called the Great British Refurb. This Bristol town house won their eco home prize for its retro fit.

Link to:Award winning Bristol EcoHome

Retrofitting is coming to Peterborough. A Partnership between UKCEED, Axiom Housing Association, the City Council and others from the Environmental Cluster has attracted £150,000 of government funding to retrofit properties in Peterborough.

The project will adhere to the principle of “keep it simple stupid” focussing on the building’s shell first, then adding bolt on renewable technologies such as solar panels and heat recovery ventilation.

The project seeks to both inspire those in charge of social housing to retrofit more houses and develop the knowledgebase within the local construction and environment sectors of how to combine these technologies in the most effective manner, for more information on the project visit http://www.retrofithouse.co.uk/.

Ellen MacArthur has put sailing on hold to focus on climate change...

2009-10-23T03:20:00.000-07:00

Ellen MacArthur, round-the-world yachtswoman, has been inspired to do her bit to save the planet by what she has seen at sea.

Four years after becoming the fastest person to sail around the world alone, Dame Ellen MacArthur is giving up ocean racing – to save the planet. She is so anxious about the threat to the environment she will abandon any new marine expeditions.

Her conversion came during a journey to South Georgia in the south Atlantic where she spent two months investigating the plight of the albatross, the giant sea-faring bird which is under threat from hooks used in long-line fishing.

Dame Ellen said: "After being on South Georgia, the more I researched, the more frightened I got. And that has scared me to the point where I can't go back to sea and go round the world again because this really matters."

"When you sail on a boat you take with you the minimum of resources. You don't waste anything. You don't leave the light on; you don't leave a computer screen on. And I realised that on land we take what we want."

As reported by the Independent...

Cut your carbon emissions by 10%...

2009-10-12T02:51:00.000-07:00

I've talked about the 10:10 campaign before...

Brought to you by the makers of climate change film the Age of Stupid the campaign asks individuals and organisations to sign up to cut their carbon footprint by 10% during 2010.

More info about it can be found here...

I've just found a great guide on how to cut your carbon emissions by 10%. Check it out here...

Happy carbon footprint reducing!

Autumn at the Green Backyard...

2009-09-27T04:31:00.000-07:00

The Green Backyard community growing project will be hosting it's first Peterborough Conker Championship on Saturday 3rd October.

Places are limited so if you want to be in with a chance of winning an amazing prize, not to mention copious amounts of glory then register your place by emailing thegreenbackyard@hotmail.co.uk This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

All participants will be encouraged to make a voluntary £1 donation to the Green Backyard to help cover the cost of the event. Bystanders and friendly gamers are all welcome for free.

If there are spare places and you would like to try and register for the competition on the day then you MUST be there by 11.00am ready for the games to begin at 12.00.

All competitors will be issued with a match conker so that we can be sure of fairness, however you are welcome and positively encouraged to bring your own conkers for friendly games!

The Green Backyard will be cooking up some of their lovely harvest for the day, and would love you to bring a dish to swap and share too!

To find out more contact Sophie Antonelli, 07834 815943

www.thegreenbackyard.com

Environment Secretary Hilary Benn visits Peterborough

2009-09-14T02:38:00.000-07:00

Mr Benn visited Peterborough to see first-hand what happens to recycling in the city, and to hear about the achievements of Peterborough Environment City Trust's Zero Waste Places project.

Mr Benn also praised Peterborough's efforts to become the UK's Environment Capital.

Peterborough city centre is one of the country’s six initial Zero Waste Places, which aim to send zero waste to landfill and exemplify good environmental practice.

Green Apple Awards for the city...

2009-09-08T03:07:00.000-07:00

Peterborough has won a number of prestigious Green Apple Awards which recognise environmental excellence!

Anne Corder Recruitment's paper-less office won one, as did Peterborough City Council's Climate Change game.

Peterborough Environment City Trust scooped two awards one for their annual Green Festival, and one for their Zero Waste Places project.

Read more here...

Talking Energy

2009-09-07T02:49:00.000-07:00

EOn have launched a new energy discussion website at www.youtube.com/talkingenergy

National Chewing Gum Campaign – Keep Britain Tidy

2009-08-28T03:25:00.000-07:00

What do you think? Are fines fair cop for litter bugs? Or should we be taking a softer approach?

Have your say here...

Demolition of the Corn Exchange building in Peterborough city centre...

2009-08-24T04:51:00.000-07:00

We've been re-homing items from the Corn Exchange building (old post office) in P'boro city centre.

The building is being demolished as part of the Cathedral Square re-development. We didn't want useful items to go to waste so we ran a project called Zero Waste Places to make sure stuff from the interior of the building wasn't send to landfill...

Pics from the demolition...

Stuff saved from Landfill...

Could we be the generation to run out of fish?

2009-08-14T03:02:00.000-07:00

After the sucess of our screening of climate change film The Age of Stupid during the Green Festival 2009, we have decided to screen environment/sustainability film The End of the Line which looks at over fishing and its effects...

The screening date is: Wednesday 30th September 2009, 6.30pm, John Clare Theatre (Central Library, Peterborough City Centre)

Sound the global alarm. Scientists predict that if we continue fishing at the current rate, the planet will run out of seafood by 2048 with catastrophic consequences. Based on the book by Charles Clover, and narrated by Ted Danson, The End of the Line explores the devastating effect that overfishing is having on fish stocks and the health of our oceans.With Clover as his guide, Sundance veteran Rupert Murray crisscrosses the globe, examining what is causing the dilemma and what can be done to solve it.

Industrial fishing began in the 1950s. High-tech fisheries now trawl the oceans with nets the size of football fields. Species cannot survive at the rate they are being removed from the sea. Add in cofactors of decades of bad science, corporate greed, small-minded governments, and escalating consumer demand, and we’re left with a crisis of epic proportions.

Ninety percent of the big fish in our oceans are now gone. Murray interweaves glorious footage from both underwater and above with shocking scientific testimony to paint a vivid and alarming profile of the state of the sea. The ultimate power of The End of the Line is that it moves beyond doomsday rhetoric to proffer real solutions. Chillingly topical, The End of the Line drives home the message: the clock is ticking, and the time to act is now.

Watch the trailer:

It's free to attend the screening (although we'll have a donations box on the night!) Just book your ticket/s by contacting Nyree Ambarchian - nyree@pect.org.uk

Schools junk band performance...

2009-08-07T03:06:00.000-07:00

Peterborough Environment City Trust's schools' junk band project is now completed and the schools have enjoyed putting on their final performances...

Find out more and view all the pics here...

Get the recognition your business deserves for being green...

2009-07-31T04:42:00.000-07:00

The Peterborough Evening Telegraph Business awards 2009 have now been launched.

Why not put in an entry in the environmental achievement category.

What the judges are looking for:

Companies must demonstrate a commitment to environmental sustainability and, in doing so, a contribution to Peterborough’s growing reputation as the UK’s Environmental Capital City.

More info...

Or contact:
linda.pritchard@jpress.co.uk,

The deadline for entries is 4th September.

Teens save water...

2009-07-28T05:18:00.000-07:00

A group of teenagers from Peterborough are embarking on an ambitious initiative to raise awareness about the need to save water.

The youngsters, from the Youth Group at Wellspring Community Church Peterborough, plan to use as little water as possible between 31st August and 4th September.

The teenagers will not be allowed to use any water from their homes for five days. Instead the teens will have to travel to fetch water from the homes of friends, neighbours or family members.

The 'Turn off the Tap' initiative aims to raise money to install a Rotary Water Drilling Rig for North West Kenya. The Rig will help provide clean, fresh water for local people in the area and will be installed by charity Nehemiah Construction Ministries.

Youth Leader Chris Wild got in touch with me after reading my column in the ET last week which was all about water. Read it here...

One in six people in the world don't have access to safe drinking water, and things are set to worsen with climate change. Chris aims to spread the word about how precious a resource water is and encourage people to do their bit to conserve it.

Chris said, "The group will be allowed to use a bicycle or trolley to transport water from the homes of friends and family. If the water runs dry, then they either go and get more water, or do without. They are committed NOT to turn ON the tap!” The process will be repeated each day. For five days, the teenagers are endeavouring in some way, to put themselves in the position of millions of people in the developing world, who have to walk many miles every day of their lives to get water."

For water saving tips visit Anglian Water...

To sponsor the teenagers 'Turn off the Tap' campaign contact Chris Wild...

Tel: 01733 361709 or 0968819662.
E-mail: chedzy@nehemiahconstruction.org.uk

Allotment Diary - Week 4

2009-07-20T06:27:00.000-07:00

MONDAY 13TH JULY 2009
I picked up some packets of seed from Peter at about 7pm tonight and headed straight to the allotment to get some seed into the ground. On arriving at the allotment, I notice the fella who has the plot next to mine has pulled up all his lettuce and had left them to rot in the ground. They had gone to seed anyway, but it's a good example of how you can grow too much of one crop. As with most things on an allotment, nothing goes to waste and at least they will compost down to give the soil some nutrients.

I removed the fleece covering the existing beds to expose the plants. I am amazed at how quickly things grow and the Broad Beans have had a definite spurt of growth in the last 24 hours.

My next job was to measure out a new raised-bed, so that I'm planting the seeds within a planned area. Leaving a gap of 600mm or so for walking on, I put some sticks in the ground to mark the corners of where the bed will be, then tie string between the sticks to mark out the border, 3.8M long x 1.2M wide. I had to turn over the soil with a garden fork in some parts, where the soil had become compacted, then raked it over to level it out ready for planting. The bed I've marked out this time runs lengthways down the plot at a 90 degree angle to the other two raised-beds. This is for no other purpose than to bring some variety to the appearance of the allotment as it gets established.

Now for planting. Instead of planting the seeds in rows along the length of the bed, I decided to plant them across the width. Again, this will add to the aesthetic look of the allotment as it grows. I had time to plant three rows of Turnips and four rows of Carrots. There's room in the bed to plant some of the other seed - Onions, Beetroot and a different variety of Carrot - but I needed to get the plants and seed-beds watered and covered before nightfall. I covered the seed-beds with a sheet of netting that fits nicely over the area of the raised-bed, by simply hooking the corners of the net over the sticks I had placed in the ground to mark out the area. This will need replacing with a horticultural fleece when the seeds germinate and start to come through.

My final task of the evening was to give all three beds a thorough watering before putting the fleece covers back over the original two beds. A good evenings work again, which I'm very pleased with. It's much more rewarding than vegging out in front of the TV for the evening and is giving me a good workout at the same time! More seeds to go in later in the week.

TUESDAY 14TH JULY 2009
It was raining during the afternoon, so I've no need to go to the allotment today. I did, instead, pop into Wickes Builders Merchants after work though to check out their decking boards and agreed the same deal with them as with B&Q. Between the two stores, I should be able to find enough 'damaged' stock for my needs.

WEDNESDAY 15TH JULY 2009
I didn't get to the allotment at all today. After work I went home and then straight out again to Sinead's school presentation. It looks like rain anyway, so no issue.

THURSDAY 16TH JULY 2009
The seed potatoes have arrived with Peter, so I'll get them in over the weekend. It did rain last night, but I popped down this evening just to have a look over things anyway. I didn't water or do anything other than check over things, but planned out in my mind where the spuds will go.

FRIDAY 17TH JULY 2009
OK, so this blog is getting thin, but it's not through lack of trying. It rained again today. In fact it absolutely poured down during the afternoon. I have put aside some time over the weekend, so I really hope the weather improves!

SATURDAY 18TH JULY 2009
I woke up early this morning, raring to go. The sun is out and, although it looked like showers, I quite fancied getting a lot done today. My first task was to go shopping at Wickes. I purchased 5 lengths of decking and 10 lengths of 2.4M x 25mm x 38mm wood. I have a plan.

When I got home I quickly knocked-up the components for the raised-bed I'd marked out on Monday. Now I've got all the measurements clear in my head, it was just a simple case of making 21 measured cuts and screwing in 12 screws and I was ready to load up the car. With the 25mm x 38mm wood, I simply cut the 2.4M lengths in half and then screwed in some small brass hooks. The idea is to drive the 1.2M lengths into each corner of the raised-beds, leaving just under 1M exposed. The hooks are positioned in several places up the exposed length, which will allow me to simply hang the nets over the beds and replace the fleece as the plants get bigger. The only problem it poses is that I will need some side netting too, so that birds and insects cant get in... mmnnn???

After popping into Peter's to pick up the seed potato, I went to the allotment with Megan. We unloaded all the wood and quickly positioned the raised-bed around the seed-bed that I'd planted on Monday. After uncovering the existing two beds and folding up the sheets of horticultural fleece for future use, I then drove the 1.2M x 25mm x 38mm poles into each corner of all three raised-beds, ready for the netting to go over.

To ensure we only walked on the areas that won't be used for planting, Megan and I also measured out the next area for raised-beds, leaving a 600mm path, and then marked it out with string and sticks. There is now room for 2 triangular beds, which will add even more character to the allotment when it's fully utilised.

It's starting to look like rain again, so there's only enough time to get in three rows of Potatoes, of the Carlingford variety. Each row is planted with twelve seeds, with the rows about 12" apart. I've got another two bags of different variety seed-potatoes to go in, but they will have to wait until tomorrow.

SUNDAY 19TH JULY 2009
I popped to the allotment at about 2pm for an hour, just to finish seeding the raised-bed I built yesterday and to plant the rest of the spuds. There was enough room in the bed to sow three rows of Onions, two rows of Beetroot and four more rows of Carrots. The whole bed is now full of root-crops. When I put the triangular beds in place in a couple of weeks time, I'll fill one with root crops and the other with salad crops. In total, that will be 2 x leaf/brassica beds, 2 x root beds and 1 x salad bed, plus the potatoes. It's been pretty hard work, but not bad for a months effort!

Peter had decided to pop over and take a look at what we're doing. Looking over the plot, it's been really, really satisfying for us both to see how quickly it has taken shape. Where only a couple of weeks ago it seemed a huge task to get the 100 sq.M into production, over half of it is now planted. I mention to him the problem of netting the sides as the plants grow higher and he came up with the ingenious idea of using pallet-wrap. Like cling-film, but thicker, pallet-wrap comes in rolls about 500mm wide x 300M long and I can just wrap it around the outside of the raised-beds and build the height as the plants grow, raising the height of the net over the top using the brass hooks to keep it in place. Ingenious idea Peter!

It looked like rain again, so Peter headed off and I finished planting three rows of Maris Piper Potatoes before the heavens opened. I've still got another three rows to go in, but they'll have to wait.

Help keep the River Nene clean...

2009-07-19T08:08:00.000-07:00

To get involved contact: MAndy Somers - mSomers@anglianwater.co.uk

The Prince's Rainforest Project...

2009-07-19T06:43:00.000-07:00

What's the worst that could happen?

2009-07-19T06:28:00.001-07:00

Climate Change Denial...'flat earthers'?

2009-07-19T06:03:00.000-07:00

A You Tube Channel dedicated to dispelling those ever loyal companions of the 'climate change denier' (otherwise known as 'flat earthers') - the 'climate change myth'.

Ever heard the one about how scientists predicted catastrophic climate change in the 70's and it hasn't happened yet so why should be be bothered now?

Or the - 'it's cold outside so there is no global warming'?

So, who's paying the bill?

2009-07-19T06:01:00.000-07:00

It's just 4.5 minutes long, it's with subtitles - but really worth watching right to the end...

Wake up, freak out...then get a grip

2009-07-19T05:55:00.000-07:00

Great short film, worth a watch if you have 5 mins.

Really easy to understand explanations of the 'tipping point' and what 'runaway climate change' means...

Watch it here...

Allotment Diary - Week 3

2009-07-13T05:05:00.000-07:00

MONDAY 6TH JULY 2009
Well what with the massive downpour and subsequent showers, I've no need to head to the allotment today. Just as well, as I'm out of town until near 9pm! I did manage to exchange emails with Peter during the day to make plans for the next stages of planting. Peter has ordered some seed via the internet and I've pointed him towards a good supplier for late spuds, which will give us a crop to pick for Christmas Day!

TUESDAY 7TH JULY 2009
Again, showers all day, so no need to head to the allotment. As we plant more crops, I'll probably have to pop in daily to check things over, but things are quite relaxed at this early stage.

WEDNESDAY 8TH JULY 2009
I popped into B&Q to buy some more horticultural fleece today, which will be needed on Thursday when we get to planting (subject to weather). I also took a look in the B&Q timber department for some wood that would be suitable for constructing the raised-beds. Timber decking is ideal, as it's been pre-treated for outside use, but it's £4.46 for a 2.4M length of board. I want 2M lengths, but noticed that some of the boards were split or damaged, so haggled the price down to £1.50 per 2.4M, including them cutting off the damaged bits to make it 2M. I can use the off-cuts to make the stakes that will hold the boards in the ground. Essentially, it will cost £9 to build each 2M x 4M raised-bed.

THURSDAY 9TH JULY 2009
Before heading to the allotment this evening I popped into Peter's to pick up some seedlings. A tray of Broad Beans, Cabbage and Cauliflower are ready to go into the ground. Some of the seeds that Peter ordered has arrived too and we've got plenty of seed that can go straight into the ground over the weekend, including lettuce, carrots, onions and beetroot. There are also a range of seeds that will give us a spring crop, including carrots, cabbage and onions - but these won't go in until September. The potatoes have yet to arrive.

The weather held out today, so it was a lovely evening at the allotment. There were two other allotmenteers pottering around and the peace and quiet is blissful. My first task was to measure out a 2M x 4M bed over the existing plants with a tape measure. Perfect! A raised-bed will fit over the existing plants perfectly in length and allows room for another row. The other seedlings I'm putting in tonight will fit into another raised-bed.

My next task was to turn over some more of the soil ready for planting. It's still hot work, even at nearly 8pm when the heat has gone out of the sun. After preparing the soil, I then levelled it by raking over it and then layed out some string across the plot to ensure I'm planting in straight lines. My wife Michelle and daughter Sinead turned up to have a look at how things are progressing. Michelle was amazed at how quickly the plants have grown and we chatted for a while about plans for the allotment over the coming weeks and months. When Michelle decided to head home, Sinead decided to stay with me for a while longer.

Now for planting! After another 40 minutes or so, the Broad Beans and Cabbage had gone in nicely next to the previous crop of the same plants from the other week; so we will get a staged harvest. It was now getting on for 9pm and I didn't think there was enough daylight left to plant the Cauliflower, water all the plants and cover them before nightfall, so I settled for watering and covering the plants, which Sinead helped me with. We left the tray of Cauliflower covered for planting over the weekend. A good evening's work!

FRIDAY 10TH JULY 2009
We had a family wedding to go to this evening, so I didn't go to the allotment at all. Everything had a good watering last night, so I'm sure it will all hold out.

SATURDAY 11TH JULY 2009
Amongst my other weekend chores, my plans for Saturday included going to B&Q to find some 'damaged' planks of decking. I managed to find 12, including 2 discoloured ones which they also let me have at £1.50 each. The trade department was closed, so there was nobody to cut the boards down to 2M lengths for me, but I've got an electric saw at home, so it's no big deal.

As it turns out, not getting them cut to size turned out to be a God-send. Having laid out the proposed bed size of 2M x 4M in my driveway, it was clearly too wide. The idea of raised-beds is that you can reach everything without having to step foot onto the bed, so 2M across is too wide. After much thought and deliberation I plump for 1.2M, which means I can simply cut a board in half for the widths - easy! As for the length of the beds, I decided to make them 3.8M instead of 4M. This allows me to cut each 2.4M board down to 1.9M leaving me a 500mm off-cut, which will allow me to maximise the number of stakes I can make from each off-cut. Two of the 1.9M boards will make up each long edge of the raised-beds.

After making all the cuts I need, I've only the stakes to cut to size and screw onto the boards. I've got to get ready to go out and, as it looks like there's rain on the way, I there's no need to go and water the plants, which suits me because measuring and cutting everything to size took longer than I anticipated.

SUNDAY 12TH JULY 2009
During the afternoon, I spent another hour or so making the stakes out of the remaining 500mm off-cuts, by sawing them in half to 250mm and then sawing them length ways in approx 1" widths. I then took each of the boads and screwed the stakes onto the sides with 40mm wood screws, leaving about 100mm of the stake overlapping the board, so it can be stuck into the ground to hold the boards in place. 24 stakes and 48 screws later, the finished boards for my raised-beds were ready. I loaded them into the car along with some gardening tools and headed to the allotment, stopping off at Peter's along the way to drop off some trays and let him know I was heading to the plot.

After unloading the boards from the car, I had to measure up again to find out how well the new sized beds were going to work with my previous planting. It worked. After getting the first raised-bed in place, Peter arrived with his carer and we discussed how we can lay out additional raised-beds as we need them. I've deliberately left a 1M gap along the right-hand side of the plot, so that Peter can get down the side of the allotment in his wheelchair once it's grassed over. It's threatening rain, so Peter heads back home and I position the second raised bed, leaving a gap of approx 600mm between the two. While this is quite a lot of room to leave between beds, it is a practical amount in terms of the space needed to kneel down for planting and weeding. As there will no longer be any need to actually tread on the beds now, plants can be placed slightly closer together; so it's swings and roundabouts in terms of how much 'useable' soil is available.

I managed to plant three rows of Cauliflower from the seedlings left over from Thursday night. I then moved the row of Cabbage I'd planted on Thursday into the second raised-bed. Now all the seedlings we have in the ground are in one of the two raised-beds. I give the plants a thorough watering and cover them with the horticultural fleece. It's been a good weekend of work and the allotment is looking very smart now a couple of raised-beds are in place. There's not been time to get any of the seed in over this weekend, as I'd planned, so I'll have to make it a priority early next week.

New website for Peterborough Environment City Trust

2009-07-10T07:52:00.001-07:00

Check out our new website at www.pect.org.uk

New website offers eco and fairtrade products

2009-07-10T07:39:00.000-07:00

Newly launched website www.saferplanet.co.uk has over 600 organic and ecofriendly products!

The website also has a Green Room which features games for children to help them to learn more about climate change.

Site founder Karen says, "Our products are sourced from across the world. Some products are made especially for us under the wikaniko label, like our hand made organic soaps are sourced from a fair trade partnership in Khayelitsha Township in Africa.

"Over the next 12 months, in association with Environmental Partners Ltd, we are aiming to plant ten thousand trees in Africa. Already with the help of our many customers and friends we have planted numerous trees. With more help we could plant a whole lot more and reach our target faster! It is estimated that if you helped with the planting of just 5 trees you can actually offset your own carbon footprint.

"We are also looking for people to join our business. With todays current climate there is a shortage of companies expanding, and we are expanding dramatically which is so positive."

Check out the website: www.saferplanet.co.uk