Car free day

When and where is the next car free day?

Sunday 23 September 2007

Outside Leytonstone tube station and in the surrounding area E11
1pm-7pm
All roads in Town Centre closed to traffic, family fun day on the streets of Leytonstone with a French market
What is car free day?
The aim of Car Free Day is to raise awareness of the health and environmental benefits of sustainable living and sustainable transport, by leaving the car behind. The event is a fun day out where visitors and the local community can enjoy one of the Borough's Town Centres as a
traffic-free urban space.

Londoners invited to decide on green proposal for city-wide ban on free shopping bags

Londoners are today being invited to help shape the capital’s future environmental policies by deciding whether or not to introduce a London-wide levy – or even an outright ban – on throw away shopping bags.
London Councils has launched a public consultation to give Londoners the opportunity to tell them what they think of one of the key provisions that will make up the 10th London Local Authorities Bill (LLAB).
The organisation first announced its intention to tackle the issue of throw away shopping bags in July, and is now calling on Londoners to tell them what they want. This is a unique opportunity for the capital’s residents to help shape and draft a future piece of legislation – and one that can make a significant difference to the environment.
The consultation asks the public its views on a range of options – from doing nothing, to an outright ban on all throw away shopping bags – or just for plastic ones. The consultation runs until Friday 26 October, and the views expressed in responses to the consultation will help shape the final proposal that will go into the 10th LLAB, due to be deposited in Parliament in November.
In the UK, over 13 billion bags are issued every year to shoppers – roughly 220 per person every year. For London, a conservative figure based on population size would indicate Londoners use at least 1.6 billion bags per year – although the number of tourists in the capital suggests that this figure is probably much higher.
While some of these bags will be re-used once or twice, official figures reveal that only one in 200 of these are recycled, meaning that billions of shopping bags are sent to landfill every year. Many of these will be plastic bags that can take over 400 years to break down.
The government, retailers and consumers recognise this as a problem, and many of them are already making efforts to reduce the amount of throw away shopping bags sent to landfill. London Councils agrees with these concerns, and wants to give Londoners a chance to lead the country in a bold initiative.
Speaking on the launch of the consultation, Chairman of London Councils, Councillor Merrick Cockell, said:
“This is an opportunity for London and for Londoners to lead the country in a bold initiative. We are asking for their views on our proposals to do something about the billions of shopping bags that end up sent to landfill each year, and their views will directly shape one of the key provisions planned for the 10th LLAB.
“Inevitably, the big solutions to environmental issues will come from our cities, and London, as one of the world’s truly global cities, is keen to step up to the mark and take the lead. I would urge everyone to seize this opportunity to help shape London’s environmental future.”
Commenting on the proposals, Councillor Sean Brennan, London Councils executive member for sustainability, said:
“London’s local authorities are at the sharp end of waste disposal, and as such, we are keen to take a lead on this issue. People need to realise that the ‘free’ shopping bag they pick up in the supermarket is not really free at all – certainly not in its cost to the environment.
“Introducing a levy on plastic bags should help consumers think twice before picking them up in future. But if Londoners feel strongly enough to propose an outright ban on free throw away shopping bags, then that is what we will lobby for.”
The consultation will go live on, Friday 14 September, and runs until Friday, 26 October 2007. To take part, please visit: www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/thebigquestion
What do we mean by a throw away shopping bag? Although plastic bags are often singled out – all types of throw away bag can have a significant environment impact.
So for the purposes of this consultation, ‘throw away shopping bags’ means all types of bags that are given away free and have a very limited intended and actual lifespan.
The outcome of the consultation will help shape one of the key provisions that will form part of the 10th London Local Authorities Bill, due to be deposited in November.
One role of London Councils is to help promote private legislation on behalf of the boroughs. As such, it helps to draft and then steer through Parliament, various parliamentary bills including the London Local Authorities Bills.
The most recent of these, the 9th Bill, recently received Royal Assent to become the London Local Authorities Act 2007. For more information on the LLA Act 2007, please visit: http://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/llaact

Low CO2 emissions to be rewarded with cheaper parking

Waltham Forest Council will soon reward drivers of eco-friendly cars with cheaper resident parking permits. The Green Parking scheme will come into place on Monday 1 October, and will link the cost of permits to the CO2 emissions of the vehicle.
The new charges will halve the current permit prices for the drivers of low emission vehicles, including electric or hybrid vehicles, while permits for high emission vehicles will double in price. It is expected that a significant proportion of drivers will be unaffected by the changes, as their vehicles will be classed as having average CO2 emissions, for which there is no change in permit charges.
From October, permits for low emission vehicles will cost £22.50 for the first permit in a household, £40 for the second and £52.50 for the third and subsequent permits. For average emission vehicles, permits will continue to be charged at the current costs of £45 for the first, £80 for the second and £105 for the third and subsequent permits in a household. High emission vehicles will be charged £90, £160 and £210 respectively for the first, second, and third and subsequent permits in a household.
Carbon dioxide emissions have been identified as a major contributor to climate change, and the Council is keen that residents choose greener forms of transport wherever possible.
Cabinet Member for Environment, Cllr Bob Belam, said “Waltham Forest has committed itself to becoming one of the greenest boroughs in Greater London. Green parking is one of many steps we are taking that will make a direct impact on climate change.
“We have identified cheaper parking as a positive way to reward drivers who help cut emissions. The Council estimates the number of low emission vehicles could go up by between two and five per cent as a result of green parking scheme.”
For more information on Green Parking, see www.walthamforest.gov.uk/parking-permits

'Drive at 70mph and save the environment'

The Commission for Integrated Transport (CFIT) has called for more to be done to cut carbon emissions from road vehicles, including installing gearshift indicators on dashboards to encourage drivers to use their gears properly and making drivers stick to a 70mph speed limit, generating 30 per cent less CO2 than at 80mph.The commission also said that emissions could be cut if air conditioning was used less and if roof racks were removed. It suggested that drivers could benefit from lessons in eco-motoring. Going easy on the accelerator and not breaking too heavily could make a significant difference. The CFIT called for all cars to produce no more than 100g of CO2 per kilometre by 2020 and wants the government to make flying more expensive. The committee said that its proposed measures would increase by 70 per cent the CO2 savings proposed by the government's climate change programme, ie rather than stabilise carbon emissions by 2020, they would actually be reduced by 14 per cent. • Research by the Liberal Democrats has shown that the government may talk tough on the environment but green taxes have actually gone down in recent years. Fuel duty, landfill tax, hydrocarbon duty, air passenger duty and others took 2.7 per cent of national income in 2006 compared with a peak of 3.6 per cent in 1999. The Lib Dem Shadow Environment Secretary Chris Huhne said: “Mr Brown has cut green taxes by a fifth even though they are crucial to changing our behaviour. He has cut flood defence and climate research budgets. He vetoed the plan to toll road freight, and he ditched the legal requirements on big companies to report their environmental impact in operating and financial reviews.”• The Lib Dems are the greenest party, according to the Green Standard report by such environmental groups as Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, WWF, the RSPB and the Campaign to Protect Rural England. The Lib Dems got three "green lights" in the report while Labour and the Tories didn't get any.

NORTHBANK ROAD

Cllr John Macklin and Cllr Bob Belam were on a regular ward walk when they came across these pot holes is Northbank Road. John posed for the photo and Bob emailed the department on Saturday 1st September to ask for them to be repaired.
A return email promised they would be repaired the following day.

Here is the proof. This we thought was good service.
However on close inspection we found that the job was not done too well and another hole nearby had been missed. We have reported this and expect the job to be done again!

Carbon emissions target is just hot air

Government is set to miss its target to reduce carbon emissions by a wide margin because of the failure by ministers to implement clear policies on renewable energy, a report by research group Cambridge Econometrics (CE) has found.The draft Climate Change Bill set out a schedule to cut carbon emissions on 1990 levels by 26-32 per cent by 2020, in order to prevent dangerous levels of climate change. But CE claimed carbon levels would fall by just 15 per cent despite the UK comfortably meeting its Kyoto obligations of a 12.75 per cent reduction by 2010.“These forecasts provide a reality check to the rhetoric on climate change that is now standard government fare,” said Professor Paul Elkins, a senior CE consultant.“The goals for 2020 will not be achieved without stronger policies than have yet been put in place.”Carbon emissions have not decreased in any year in the UK since 2002, but are expected to decline by 1.75 per cent annually over the next five years. The report found that renewable energy, including offshore wind power, will account for just 5 per cent of the country’s total electricity production by 2010 – just half of the government’s 10 per cent target.

'Pay as you pollute' taxes from Lib Dems

High polluting cars would be subject to an annual tax of £2,000 as part of a package of measures to combat global warming by the Liberal Democrat Party.Zero-carbon vehicles would be exempt from vehicle excise duty under the proposals put forward by the party’s climate change policy group while gas-guzzlers would face a tenfold increase. The recommendations will be presented to delegates at the annual conference in Brighton next month for a vote - before they become official policy.“The Labour government’s aim of a 60 per cent cut in carbon emissions by 2050 will not be enough,” said the report.“The objective of climate change strategy must be to make the UK carbon-neutral over the long term. A reduction in emissions of the magnitude that we are advocating will only happen if developed countries such as the UK take the lead by cutting their emissions.”The policy paper also suggests restricting airport runway capacity to current levels and new flight and freight green taxes.

'Give public money to go green at home'

The public could receive Council Tax rebates or interest-free loans for installing solar panels and wind turbines, according to the New Local Government Network.A new NLGN pamphlet has called for local planning laws to be relaxed to allow more people the option of installing eco-friendly energy sources to their homes. It has called for local councillors to be able to consult with local residents on whether to reduce the amount of planning permission required to install a microgeneration system. The pamphlet suggested that the forthcoming Planning Bill could be amended to reflect this new level of public involvement. It also called for councils to support residents wishing to invest in microgeneration technology, including offering interest-free loans to cover the cost of installation and giving a Council Tax rebate to homes with an eco-friendly energy supply. Currently the government offers a grant of up to 30 per cent to pay for the installation of micro-generation technology. Central government could also give local authorities incentives to promote microgeneration through a cost-neutral performance grant that would reward those whom improve most quickly. This could form a part of the local government grants regime and be cost neutral for central government, where the cost of rewarding successful authorities is offset by a mild penalty for poor performance.James Macgregor, author of the report, Finding the Energy, said: “Local authorities should be required to demonstrate that microgeneration plans were in the public interest. This would require neighbourhood level consultation and debate, giving citizens a powerful voice. Councillors would be at the heart of this process, supported by local officers. Listening to the voices of local people in this way would ensure that ‘residential amenity’ was protected as defined by residents. Council tax rebates and capital loans for householders that install domestic microgeneration equipment would incentivise local people to engage in the process."