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| Next Meeting
The next meeting of the Central Lancashire group will be on Monday, February 13th at St Wilfrid's Parish Centre, Chapel Street, Preston at 7.30 pm. |
THE CASTLE OF THE CLOUDS This is the aptly named wind-turbine which now provides electricity for the Dewlay Cheese Company of Garstang, Lancashire. Dewlay was founded in 1957 by dairyman George Kenyon. The business is still family owned by brothers Nick and Richard Kenyon, producing award winning cheeses in the traditional way.
On an extremely wet and windy day, eight of us, from Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, World Development Movement and South Ribble Transition Towns, arrived at Dewlay to be shown around the dairy by Sales Director Mr Ian Coggin and to learn about the history of the Castle of the Clouds.
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| GAS DRILLING HALTED AFTER QUAKE
Shale gas test drilling in Lancashire has been suspended following an earthquake on the Fylde coast. Cuadrilla, the firm behind the tests, said drilling had been suspended as a precaution after the 1.5 magnitude tremor - the second in two months. It will now examine the data collected by the British Geological Survey (BGS) before deciding whether to resume. A tremor centred on Poulton-le-Fylde on April 1st shared "a similar location and mechanism", the BGS said. Cuadrilla's report into earth tremors near Blackpool is available here. |
| SHALE GAS
There is increasing concern among a growing number of environmental groups about the development of shale gas exploration in Lancashire (and elsewhere in the UK). The Co-operative and Friends of the Earth are calling for a moratorium on shale gas drilling - see here. See also details about local opposition to shale gas drilling at Ribble Estuary Against Fracking or contact the newly formed Residents Action on Fylde Fracking at raffgroup@hotmail.co.uk |
| REPORT CALLS FOR A HALT TO SHALE GAS DRILLING IN THE UK
The Government should impose an immediate moratorium on the extraction of natural gas from the UK’s shale formations until all the ecological implications are fully understood. That is the conclusion of a carefully considered report commissioned and issued in January 2011 by The Co-operative to coincide with the UK premiere of the award winning film, Gasland, which shows the astonishing implications of shale gas extraction in the United States. The report, written by the internationally respected Tyndall Centre, part of The University of Manchester, highlights evidence from the US, where some residents of Pennsylvania can now set fire to their drinking water, which suggests shale gas extraction brings a significant risk of groundwater contamination. The exploitation of gas shales is bringing new greenhouse gas sources into play and even a mid-range extraction scenario could see carbon dioxide levels rise globally by some 5 parts per million by 2050. This will further reduce any slim possibility of maintaining global temperature changes at or below 2 degrees C and thereby increase the risk of entering a period of ‘dangerous climate change’. The report concludes that until a sufficient evidence base is developed a precautionary approach to development in the UK is the only responsible action. The rapid growth of shale gas production in the US has raised interest in the UK, with a number of businesses beginning activities particularly on the Fylde coast of North West England. |
| SHALE GAS PETITION
To sign the petition against shale gas exploration, go to thepetitionsite.com/2/stop-fracking-in-lancashire or ipetitions.com/petition/ukgas. |
| BEE ALERT!
Bees are dying off worldwide and our entire food chain is in peril. Scientists blame toxic pesticides. You should read the thought-provoking article here, and to sign a petition urging the EU and US to ban these deadly chemicals, check out this link and sign up. |
| GREEN GUILD - PRESTON 2012
Find out about Preston's plans to make next year's Guild celebration the greenest ever. Check out the the Green Guild website . |
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The "oil for ape" scandal: impending extinction of the orang-utan
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Find out how the production of palm oil is destroying rain forests and threatening the survival of the orang-utan. | Transition Towns
For further details, go to South Ribble Transition Towns. What Is Peak Oil? Want to find out more? Check out peakoiltaskforce.net. |
| FORTHCOMING EVENTS OF INTEREST
ASHTON ON RIBBLE FARMERS' MARKET St Michael’s Church Hall, Tulketh Road is now being held monthly - on the third Saturday of each month, 9.00 am to 1.00 pm. PENWORTHAM FARMERS MARKET Cop Lane, Penwortham - first Saturday of the month. CUERDEN VALLEY PARK MARKET & EVENTS For information, go here. |
| Healthy Living
On the subject of shopping, you can buy health foods and alternative natural products for household and health care from Aphrodite in Priory Lane, Penwortham....or make an appointment to see an alternative medical practitioner....telephone 01772 746555. Searching for locally produced food? Log on to Made in Lancashire, and also Local Food Web.  Another good idea! Cut down on plastic waste by taking your empty washing-up liquid bottles (any sort) to be refilled with Ecover washing products at Aphrodite, Priory Lane, Penwortham. |
| Healthy Gardening
If you want to purchase plants from an environmentally friendly garden centre, try Ribblesdale Nurseries, Newsham Hall Lane, Woodplumpton, Preston.(e-mail: Angela@psadunnett.freeserve.co.uk) |
Beautiful Planet
Check out Preston's one-stop green shop, and have a good cup of coffee while you browse around. Beautiful Planet is at 69 Friargate, PR1 2AT, and can be contacted at prestongreencentre.blogspot, and facebook/PrestonGreenCentre .
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