Trenches at Waterlooville

Initial survey work and the digging of test trenches has started on the Grainger part of the West of Waterlooville MDA. I'm not sure what the trenches are for, but it looks like they are checking the composition of the soil. The diggers and bulldozers moved in days ago, similar trenches were dug on a different section of land last year. I think crops were grown on the land last year. You can't actually see the trenches from London road, you have to climb up the embankment to get a good view of them. Like the George Wimpey development nearer Denmead, this housing/commercial development will permanently take this land out of agricultural use and/or remove it as a habitat for wild life. At the same time the weak environmental regulation of building in the UK will mean carbon emissions will also increase. Sadly when people move into their new Grainger and Wimpey homes, they won't care that the land their homes are built on was once green or what Waterlooville looked like before the homes were built.

Congrats to the Hawks

An outstanding result for the Hawks (Havant and Waterlooville) football club yesterday, beating Swansea 4-2 in the FA cup tournament. It's not often the team or the two Hampshire towns make headline news!

Even more incredible for the part time Hawks team will be the fact that they will be playing Liverpool in the next (fourth) round. Good luck Hawks.

Hawks Supporters site

Rubbish Waterlooville

Waitrose bag Asda bag Tesco bag Bag of unknown origin Shopping cart

Plastic carrier bags and other rubbish trapped in hedgerows and grass are an eyesore around Waterlooville. The photos here were taken this weekend near Waterlooville fire station and along the dual carriage way bypass. There seemed to be examples from every local supermarket, Waitrose, Tescos and Asda. The problem is that most people don't notice the mess in the grass and hedgerows, whilst sitting in their cars. You have to be walking past it to really appreciate the crap that is lying around. Car drivers probably use more 'disposable' carrier bags than pedestrians these days, as most pedestrians i see with shopping bags have there own sturdy bags or recyclable 'bags for life'. So not only do drivers ignore the bags, but they are probably also the primary reason why supermarkets in the UK keep supplying 'free' carrier bags to customers. How can the mess be cleaned up? Well one could blame the people that drop the bags on the pavement. But the bags are just as likely to blow out of public waste bins along the street or out the back of waste collection vehicles. So who should take responsibility for cleaning this crap up? I think the supermarkets and other retail outlets in Waterlooville should contribute to a yearly clean up fund. This could be used to pay for a team of people to go around the grass verges and hedgerows cleaning up the rubbish a few times a year. Twice a year is probably sufficient. I don't think that Havant council does anything, i might be wrong but i have never seen anyone clean it up. Of course the other solution is to eliminate the packaging and bags. Biodegradeable packaging has been around for centuries, it's called paper and card! But obviously there are other modern alternatives as well. Banning disposable plastic carrier bags is another obvious way forward. If you don't like it, tough, you'll have to survive without, i'm sure you'll manage.

A New Year!

The same Waterlooville.

One annoying thing about Christmas is that it is virtually impossible to buy paper gift wrap in the popular stores. Recycle For Hampshire and Project Integra won't take the current plastic wrap for recycling. This situation is exactly the opposite to what we know it should be. We know we need to recycle more, but shops and manufacturers do not help us achieve this.

The ridiculous thing is that for many, many decades, paper wrap was perfectly satisfactory, so there is absolutely no excuse.

If you have to buy gift wrap, try getting paper wrap and if you can't find any, complain in the shops that are selling the plastic stuff.

Natural Collection has a selection of eco friendly gift wraps. I think as long as people assess a product mainly based on price then we will always have a waste and consumption problem.