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About this site
wewantawindfarm.org was set up in order to counter the very dangerous campaigns against windfarms in the coastal Essex villages of Bradwell, Tillingham and Southminster. The name "We want a Windfarm" was given to us by a resident of Tillingham who was "sick to death with the Battle BullyBoys heavy handed approach to the windfarm."
wewantawindfarm.org is intended to be an informative and easy-to-read guide on what anyone can do to reduce their impact on the environment.
Latest news
15/04/06: Local environmentalists leaflet the vast majority of Burnham-on-Crouch. You can see the leaflet for yourself.
08/04/06: Deadline for Bradwell Wind Farm correspondence
approaching
All correspondence with regards to the
Bradwell Wind Farm should be received by 25th April.
This was taken from the notices that have gone up at the site:
A copy of the application(s) and plans may be inspected at the Council Offices during normal office hours. Any representations on the application(s) should be made in writing to the address shown below or by email to dc.planning@maldon.gov.uk stating your full name and postal address by 25 April 2006. Letters received are not acknowledged at the time of receipt although you will be notified of the Council's decision. All representations received will be made available for public inspection and will be taken into account by the Council when it considers the application.
21/9/05: The Government must act now to curb air travel. The current rate of growth in the aviation industry will account for 100% of the CO2 allowable under the Government's current target of a 60% reduction by 2050, so says the latest report from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research. There is a simple solution which could be introduced straight away: close every airport in the UK for 3 days a week.
20/9/05: George Monbiot argues that there are many in business calling for regulation to enforce companies to adopt environmentally-aware policies, but lack of Government action stands in their way. Read GM's latest article here
11/9/05: Really About Cycling: A leading National organisation has recommended that people get out of their cars and instead get on bikes, into buses or onto their own two feet. Who are they? The RAC of course, who have included this advice in their Responsible Driving page. Seriously, it's full of good advice on how to do less damage with your car.
2/9/05: According to Sidney Blumenthal, New Orleans wasn't just a disaster waiting to happen. In 2001, Bush received advice from experts that the flooding of New Orleans was one of the three most likely disasters to affect the USA. His response? To cut the flood defence funding and build on the nearby wetlands. Read the article in the Guardian. Also see Boston Globe article.
30/8/05: The tragic news about the devastation of New Orleans by hurricane Katrina has, of course, dominated the news this week. One of the USA's most historic and beautiful cities has been devastated by one of the most violent hurricanes ever recorded. Weren't last year's hurricanes also amongst the most violent ever recorded? I wonder how long it will take the Monkey in the White House to make the connection.
29/8/05: EBICO, the energy company whose stance on social justice is mentioned below (19/8/05) have now added an intriguing green aspect to their company profile. You can now buy Carbon Credits. These are tax-deductible charitable donations in which the money is invested in green projects. Large companies who cannot be bothered to reduce their own emissions buy these so that, in effect, they can have a stake in some genuinely environmentally-minded organisation's attempts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. EBICO has a calculator that helps you work out, based upon the number of kilowatt/hours of gas and electricity you use, what you would have to pay to offset the effects of this. The advantage is that there are only a limited number of carbon credits available so if you buy some then some other polluter has to get his house in order! It sounds like a nice idea, but you might do better by buying a solar panel...
19/8/05: Scientists have discovered that areas of permafrost in Siberia have begun to melt. See Guardian article for details.
19/8/05: This morning's post brought the scarcely unexpected news that Powergen, who supply my gas, was about to raise its prices massively. I read the small print and from 1st September the cost per kilowatt/hour will rise from 2.159p to 2.537p, an increase of 17.5%! A quick bit of shopping around on the internet unearthed EBICO, a not-for-profit company. Their charge will be a flat rate of 1.94p per Kw/h, so Powergen's charge is more than 30% greater than EBICO's. British Gas are even more expensive than Powergen (source: UK Power). EBICO was set up by a group of Christians in Oxford with the objective of ensuring that everyone, not just those who are able to pay by Direct Debit, should benefit from the lowest possible energy prices. This is particularly aimed at helping those who pay over the odds because they are forced into using coin-slot meters. It is possible to get both gas and electricity from EBICO, but in my case I am just interested in the gas. EBICO make no particular claims about being "green" (although their electricity comes from Scottish and Southern, who have a fair few hydro-electric plants) but they are interested in social justice. Enviromentalism and social justice go hand-in-hand, hence the entry here. So from my point of view it's bye-bye, Powergen!
3/8/05: Did you know that you can buy an "off the peg" wind turbine to supplement your domestic electricity? It's manufactured by Windsave but at the moment there are no grants available. It's worth waiting because negotiations are going on to sort grants out for buyers, and current legislation is due to be amended so that you don't have to apply for planning permission. Total cost, according to the company, should be in the region of £1500 and it should pay for itself in about 5 years.
August: Extra grants available for fitting solar panels for domestic hot water. Clearskies already offer a £400 grant. Now Southend Borough Council are offering a further £1100. Get in quick before they change their minds! Telephone 0800 096 6356
28/7/05: Torrential rain has fallen in Mumbai, killing at least 500 people. Some 26 inches fell in 24 hours, the heaviest rain ever to fall on the city. Compare this to the annual average of about 20 inches in Southend. See BBC report.
28/7/05: Birmingham suffered a tornado which injured 19 people and caused extensive damage to property. See BBC report.