RE: Sustainable travel - can our infastructure support it?

The thing is that we are a car based society now - like it or not - and to change habbits will take time. 

The idea of linking emissions to congestion charging is really cynical money making when the actual damage caused by cars is, in the overall scheme of things, small.  Insulating our homes properly is far more significant and public transport is already overloaded.  It also affects those of us who need cars for work etc.  I agree the solution for transport is alternative fuels and that bio-diesel (including chip oil - I believe McDonalds are already trialling this for their deliveries) is likely to be the short term answer with more radical solutions in the future - if you look at the pace of development in the automotive industry you can be pretty confident they will come up with the answer.

For info I typed this on the train as it is quicker, easier and more comfortable than driving although my car is at the station.

RE: Sustainability - why aren't supermarkets doing more?

I think the supermarkets are in a difficult position as they have to counter the conflicting public demands of cheap food and environmental soundness and consider them to be doing a good job overall.

One of the biggest challenges is public perception i.e. if it is more environmentally friendly to grow a tomato in Spain using natural conditions than grow one in the UK where additional heating is required will Joe or Joanne Public accept or believe this?

 A key step the supermarkets could take is to rate their products such as they now do with health content (although this can backfire when I've had a rotten day and look for the comfort foods with the most reds on them in Sainsburys!) with a simple traffic light system having a particular appeal.

 In terms of operations my experience suggests the supermarkets do want to do the right thing in terms of reducing waste, energy and water use although this has as much to do with cost as any greater good. However recent events such as Asda, Sainsburys and Tesco moving some transport to rail (and water for Tesco) and the purchase of large numbers of electric delivery vans by Sainsburys shows the sort of leadership it would be great to see in terms of their estates - how many solar panels would fit on the roof of a Tesco Extra? 

Is the term ‘sustainable city’ an oxymoron?

Is the term 'sustainable city' an oxymoron?

The sustainability of a city boils down to the amount of resources that a city uses and the amount of waste it produces.  Forum for the Future calculates a city's sustainability based on "their 'environmental impact', 'quality of life' and 'future proofing'".

Reducing waste and resources certainly increases the sustainability of cities and areas but can a city ever sustain itself?

RE: Nuclear power - yes please or no thanks?

A most interesting read.

Has anyone done research into how much energy lies in the earths stock of Uranium compared say to that of Coal or Oil?.

As we are now buying energy from France possibly generated by the Nuclear plants all along the North Coast is it not a little ridiculous of UK Ltd to ignore the demand and the possible secondary business opportunities for British Business in developing safe Nuclear and finding safe ways to dispose of the waste.

This problem is not going away. In my view we have very limited time left before power cuts and death due to over heating in summer and Hyper Thermia in Winter will drive people into ill thought out solutions.

Pleasetake a look at my blog www.itstimeweallstartedtocare.blogspot.com

Regards

Glan Blake Thomas

RE: How should we regenerate our inner cities?

There will always be (relatively) deprived areas in cities however much is done.

The change from industrial to post industrial has been much more traumatic than could have been envisioned and was not helped by the poor quality and design of many developments in the 60s and 70s especially. 

The other thing that must be remembered is that even in the worst areas there are a lot of good people who really care about their areas.

Based on what I have seen the keys to success include but are not limited to:

• Good Transport Links - Rail or Tram is best but guided bus run as a tram is a cheaper option
• Sustainable infrastructure - Retail and leisure in the area which does not require a car to access (Why not subsidise Tesco or Sainsburys et al to operate loss making community stores?)
• Community buy in - ask people what they want but analyse the results sensibly (shared equity can help this)
• Designed in security - avoid the walkways and rat runs of the 60s estates
• Robust policing - enough said but design in the infrastructure to help them
• Good design - a human scale with an aesthetic that appeals to the masses not those who live (or in my case used to) live near Islington or Hoxton Square.  Comfort is more important than fashion.

I worry that many current regeneration schemes are too superficial and focus on gentrification not regeneration.  A few undersized flats with metal or wood cladding and balconies and a smattering of wine bars is not regeneration.   Local retail and industry which provide employment and a sense of community is.

RE: Zero to hero - no carbon or low carbon?

There seems to be two sides to this; new homes or old homes.

New 'carbon zero' homes

• Well if you buy a brand new home then you don't pay stamp duty.(bbc article on tax relief to these homes)
• And of course the home will (hopefully) conform to all the latest technologies and standards significantly reducing bills and more importantly being far more sustainable.
• But is that enough to 'kick start' (as the government puts it) the market for zero-carbon homes.

Old existing UK housing

• Well this accounts 99% of existing housing stock (according to this article) so it seems a good idea to start updating it, lessening it's carbon footprint
• The article just mentioned indicates how refurbishing could pay you back in 8-9 years.

Surely the answer must concentrate on 'lowering carbon' over 'zero carbon'... The government will need to do more than remove stamp duty to kick start the carbon zero revolution and putting some tax breaks into refurbishing existing properties seems more useful at the moment.

Apparently if we all installed just one energy saving light bulb, the electricity saved in a year could power the Blackpool Illuminations for nearly 900 years which is a rather scary thought - more energy saving facts here

RE: Where do we go after Kyoto?

Just read an article about the upcoming UN climate conference in December. It seems that the democrats (in what looks a bit like good PR) will be trying to apply more pressure on President Bush by attending. Whether this will lead to the US signing up to anything seems unlikely though. Surely it's still Bush's signature on the document.

Imagine if they were setting the example in combatting climate change, would that force countries like China, India, Brazil, South Africa and Mexico to sign up?

I'd love to know how the rest of the world will ever get the US to sign up to an international treaty on climate change, answers on a postcard please...