Green (Living) Review

Contiguous cover forestry

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Many people will immediately think, and that is what the promoters want everyone to think, of nice woodlands with great biodiversity but, alas, the story often is very much a different one.

More often than not those organization(s) behind this are promoting nothing uniform plantations of conifers, and other trees, in other words, monocultures, which generally lack biodiversity greatly, as opposed to mixed woodlands and forests, but is contiguous forest cover. Only that it has no benefits for wildlife and the Planet. This kind of forestry only benefits the corporations.

All plantations are of a uniform age, generally, and will felled almost at the same time, which is very different to, what I call, proper forestry and woodland management, and I will come to coppicing later, where the ages of the trees and their growth rates are different and thus also the time and age at which they are being felled.

What we really need are not monoculture forests of conifers or even broadleaf trees but a mixture of different kind of trees in our woods and forests and where appropriate they should be broadleaf rather than conifer. Not just do those kind of woods and forests provide greater biodiversity and are better for wildlife in general, they also are better in carbon sequestration.

Broadleaf trees can and will regrow when “pruned” on a regular interval, of between seven years to several decades, in a process called coppicing or pollarding, and ideally should be worked as coppice with standards allowing the finest specimens to grow into large trunks.

But present day commercial forestry, even in the country that is the birthplace of sustainable forestry, is only interested in fast growing trees that can be harvested within about a generation to make a quick buck. It is not, despite what they say, about the environment and all that, but all about a quick return on investment.

Under the term “contiguous forest cover” we are being sold a lie in the same way as we are being sold a lie with the Green Pledges and the Green Deal as to forestry. It is all about forestry monocultures, generally, and not about mixed woods and forests. Such monoculture forests do not benefit wildlife and biodiversity and do nothing with regards to “combating climate change”. In fact it is almost the opposite rather.

In a changing climate where there is the possibility of hotter temperatures, droughts and thus forest fires monocultures, especially of conifers, are also a disaster waiting to happen.

The British Forestry Commission, now, to an extent re-branded as Forestry England, Forestry Scotland and Forestry Wales, etc., and the Royal Forestry Society, are advocating bringing in foreign trees to Britain, for instance, including the likes of eucalyptus. This is bordering on insanity.

The only reason, though they are, unfortunately, not open with this, for eucalyptus is the fact that it is fast growing and, apparently, very suitable for the making of biomass pellets.

As a replacement for the ash, affected by Ash Dieback, they are proposing foreign maples and when challenged why not concentrate on the Sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus), known as Mountain Maple (Bergahorn) in Germany, the reply was that Sycamore was not a native British tree. Apparently American maples are.

Most, if not all, of those foreign trees are unknown to the British wildlife, for instance, and eucalyptus, for instance, has no known benefit to wildlife and Britain is just a little short of wild Koalas. We also have zero idea as to how many of foreign pests, in whichever form, we might be importing with those trees. The driver definitely is not environmental concern but neoliberal capitalism at its worst.

We need to return to an understanding of the ways of the past in dealing with woods and forests and work with the trees once again for the mutual benefit of all concerned, trees, wildlife, environment and humans. But then there are not the huge profits to be made from it as with the current – and future – kinds of forests envisioned by the capitalists, especially not in the biomass market and that is why governments and agencies follow the lobbyist trails and the brown envelopes.

Late winter gardening tasks

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Spring is just around the corner here in the UK Mid February 2020 and the way the flowers and trees are slowly – and some quite a bit earlier than usual – are beginning to come to life it is not going to be far off.

It may still be too early to actually put down any seeds into the ground, whether you garden directly in the ground or in containers, as there is still the chance for frost and some plants and even seeds certainly will object to getting frozen, even if but mildly.

But do you have all the seeds you want and need? If not then now is definitely the time to get those orders in if you get them by mail order. If you get them from physical stores on the high street or the garden centers then there still is a little time.

Plan your vegetable garden if you haven't done so yet and I would suggest you do that before you order your seeds.

One of the most important tasks, aside from pruning your fruit trees – we come to that in a minute – is to inspect and maintain all your garden tools, whether trowels, spades, or pruners, and everything in between.

Get cutting and digging tools sharpened now. For sharpening jobs that you can't handle, take tools to a local hardware store that advertises blade sharpening. Make sure power tools are in good working order, too, if you use any.

Digging tools, and that includes trowels, as well as hoes, should be cleaned (in fact they should have been cleaned and oiled before they were put away for the winter but, erm, I didn't do that either) and then their cutting edges sharpened. This can be fairly easily with a mill bastard file. Pruners, loppers and such should be thoroughly cleaned, sharpened and oiled so they are ready to use when you start pruning. A little reminder: Wipe them after every use with a wipe that will remove the sap. It does not have the special wipe you can buy with Sapex but can just be a baby wipe or a cloth with WD40 or 3-in1.

Review your garden supplies. Besides seeds and plants, think about items needed to prepare your garden for the growing season: potting soil, weed cloth, mulch, plant markers, frost blankets, or other supplies. Refresh supplies that are low.

Pruning your fruit trees: Now is the time, in fact it is high time, to prune your fruit trees (bar those of the prunus variety; they should be pruned, I know it sounds totally against all rules but, after flowering as, apparently, the fact that the sap is rising strongly then any infections will be flooded out) and for apple trees you only have a little window of a few weeks from mid-February to mid-March.

Start seeds indoors (or in the greenhouse)

Sow seeds now or early-season vegetables that can go in the ground a couple of weeks before the last average frost date. This includes broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and leeks. Aim to start these seeds five to seven weeks before you want to transplant them outdoors.

Consider sowing early lettuce crops in cell packs. When it's warm enough, you'll have clumps of greens ready to transplant into pots or the garden.

Sow plants such as tomatoes or peppers six to eight weeks before the last average frost date. This means you may have to wait until the end of the month or even a little later before planting the seeds.

Pruning ornamentals

Choose a warmish day to prune landscape plants. Remove any dead or damaged branches. Thin plants with heavily branched interiors.

Do not prune spring-flowering shrubs or trees until after they bloom. If you prune now, you'll be cutting off blossoms.

Do not prune oaks and walnuts until July to avoid wilt disease.

E-bikes vs. standard bicycles

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

While I personally do have an e-bike (a Gtech one) and have been very happy with it, the maintenance of one, especially when it comes to tire repair of the back, this is where the motor is in this one, aside from the fact that the lifespan of the battery is only a few years and then getting a new one seems difficult, the old-fashioned standard, and I stress standard, bicycle has still a great deal going for it. Maybe more so even than it is realized.

Yes, using a standard bicycle, especially a single-speed one, takes more effort in pedaling and especially up inclines, the robustness and easy of maintenance tends to beat it hands down.

It would appear though that there are many people who own bicycles of the standard kind who are even incapable of changing an inner tube let alone do any other maintenance to the bike. Time and again one sees them asking on social media, for instance, if someone knows someone who could fix or service a bicycle.

Personally I cannot stand the derailleur type of gear changers on any bicycle and therefore have converted, and suggest converting to people who have trouble keeping the shifting mechanism properly aligned, to convert the bicycle(s) to single speed without actually modifying the bike in any other way. This only works well with bicycles that are not vertical dropout at the back. Those with vertical dropout do require a chain tensioner wheel though that is not too much of a problem either.

For all those bike with the more or less horizontal dropout of the back wheel no tensioner is required and all that needs doing is to shorten the chain to the appropriate length, using a chain tool, and, voila, a single speed bicycle is born, one that is much easier to maintain though may require a little more effort in use as no low gears.

While e-bikes are nice and make cycling easier (it is also a little cheating as you get far less exercise as you do not need to do as much work) they are first off rather expensive (still) and secondly the lifespan of the battery if a maximum of three years after which you need to buy a new one at about one-third of the cost of the new bike but which is also more than most new standard bicycles.

Having now had experience using an e-bike for more than 3 years, courtesy of G-tech (I got the bike for review and was allowed to keep it and that told that before the review was even written and published) I have to say that I do not think I would, personally, after the experience, even though in general very good, bar the fact of the lifetime of the battery (OK, it is only now beginning to really fail) and the difficulty of actually obtaining a new battery (which seems to be nigh impossible), not buy one. Sorry to say that, but it is true.

Considering the high initial cost of an e-bike and the fact that about every three years a new battery will be required, if not earlier, at almost one-third of the initial purchase cost, together with rigmarole of removing the back wheel (where the motor sits with the G-tech) the standard bicycle make for a much better investment in personal transport than does an e-bike, especially if it is not the derailleur gear change kind.

With the standard bicycle very little maintenance is required and servicing consists of a thorough clean and a thorough oiling and the occasional change of brake pads. It also does not mind getting into deep water, literally, while that is something to be avoided rather with an e-bike considering electric motor and battery.

“Oh, what about climbing hills with the standard bike with no or very few gears?” “What about it? Ever heard of feet? That's why in England the standard bicycle is often referred to as a “push bike” because that is when you push it.”

I have beaten man a cyclist with fancy bikes and all the Lycra gear and environmental fruit bowl on their heads who were pedaling hell for leather up a hill while walking up it. Those other cyclists then had to take a little rest atop the hill to get their breath back while I jumped, almost fresh, onto the bike and coasted down the other side, being almost half up the other incline before the others just about made it to the bottom of the former. So, it is not all that difficult and people did it quite well before the advent of all the gearing and e-bikes.

On the sustainability scale the standard bicycle, especially if it is a conversion from an old one where the gearing may have been damaged beyond repair or such, which is then even more sustainable, wins hands down over the e-bike for, aside from manufacturing and shipping, more often than not from China, we have to consider the environmental costs of the battery and its components, also and especially considering that the batteries fall under toxic waste. And that aside from the human costs in the mining of cobalt, coltan, lithium and others, the miners often being children who are virtual and actual slaves.

Frozen in time

Your freezer is your friend

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Your freezer can be your greatest friend in the prevention of food waste, whether you have a large family or you a single parent or, simply, single.

Save food, money and the planet and move food that’s nearing its ‘use by’ date to your freezer.

Reducing your food waste

It is estimated that one in five bags of food shopping goes to waste each week. That adds up to a substantial amount of food, but also money wasted. Did you know that an average family of four could save £70 a month simply by reducing the amount of food they waste?

Recycling your food waste going into the waste stream, such as landfill, by using a caddy, or into your composting bin, is great; but reducing the amount of food waste we produce in the first place is the real solution.

Surprisingly there are some small, easy changes we can make to our daily habits that could make a world of difference.

Three simple tips to reduce food waste

Save food, money and the planet by:

Freezing food near its ‘Use By’ date
Making meals from leftovers
Planning meals and avoiding over-buying

While the packaging label generally says “freeze on day of purchase” generally it is just good enough to freeze before the “use by” date.

Another advice, though I do know that there are some who would argue with it, is to buy as much of your food, especially vegetables, frozen, and when it comes to meat and fish, especially when buying larger packs which are often cheaper, to freeze those into individual packs immediately.

Using frozen vegetables, especially if you consider that, due to the way and shortness of time they get from field to package, is that firstly they are fresher than so-called “fresh” vegetables on the shelves and secondly that you have no waste such as peelings and that you only use the amount you really want and need as they can be used straight from the freezer. This is not only good advice for the single person but for everyone.

Stirring Paddle

Eastern European Gypsy pot stirrer

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

This one, relatively inexpensive, hand-carved, wooden tool will replace more or less all your other kitchen utensils that are used for stirring. Its versatility is second to none. It is the answer for all those who want fewer tools in their kitchen, as this one will replace the great majority of – if not indeed all other – stirring implements in use.

In Eastern Europe, from whence the design appears to stem and where this tool is made in great numbers by the Gypsy carvers for sale to the public, though they use this kind of stirrer themselves as well, albeit theirs often are somewhat larger, due to the size of the pots and amount of food to be cooked, than the ones made for sale to the public (generally), you tend to rarely see a wooden spoon used for stirring. Wooden spoons are either larger spoons and ladles for serving food or or smaller ones for eating with. Stirring is generally always done with this kind of stirring paddle.

The advantage of the stirring paddle compared to a wooden spoon is that, generally, all that is required in order to clean it is to wipe the “blade” of the stirrer with a cloth. Washing the tool is, generally, not required. On the other hand the problem with a spoon is that the bowl tends to collect food residue that is not as easily wiped away and hence they often requires water and some washing. Never ever, though, immerse a wooden implement into soapy water and leave it there and on no account put it into the dishwasher.

In general though, as wood is natural antibacterial through its action of withdrawing moisture inside itself and bacteria die without moisture, it is only necessary to wipe a wooden implement as far as cleaning is concerned.

The stirring paddle is equally at home doing the porridge, the stew, the soup, the scrambled eggs, or the dough, or whatever else needs stirring. Larger sized ones are also suitable for stirring an errant child's behind, but, please bear in mind, I never said this.

Stirring paddles of all sizes can be obtained here.

Used Electric Vehicles batteries could be used for rickshaws in Bangladesh

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries made for Electric Vehicles (EVs) only use around 70% of their life, the remaining 30% can be used for the second life
One second-life application being explored by researchers at WMG, University of Warwick, is for motorized rickshaws (easy-bikes) in Bangladesh
The current batteries used for easy-bikes only last 6-12 months and have a high carbon footprint, therefore using used Li-ion batteries could lower their carbon footprint

Used EV batteries could be used to power rickshaws in Bangladesh, as researchers from WMG, University of Warwick, seeking to find out how they can be repurposed for the rickshaws and lower peoples’ carbon footprint.

Motorised rickshaws, also known as easy-bikes, have gained popularity in Bangladesh due to their cost-effectiveness with one million of them all over the country.

However, the easy-bike currently uses a lead-acid battery for power, which has a lifetime of 6-12 months and therefore increases the operating cost as well as the carbon footprint.

In order to reduce the carbon footprint, researchers at WMG are exploring the possibility of repurposing used EV Li-ion batteries thanks to a £25,000 grant from Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF), an award from the UKRI aimed to deliver scalable solutions to issues faced by low and middle-income countries.

Currently, Li-ion batteries retire from EVs after reaching 70-80% of their state of health (SoH). At 70% SoH, the lithium-ion battery still have 3 times higher energy density than a new lead-acid battery, and potentially can have a lifetime of 3-5 years in easy-bike application.

The researchers hope to repurpose the batteries to improve the energy storage life from 6-12 months to 3-5 years, which in turn will reduce the number of batteries being recycled and improve the ecosystem.

The new application of Li-ion batteries will be better environmentally without an additional cost in transport. As easy-bike replaces manual driving, the quality of life will improve significantly and bring a socio-economic change to a large community in Bangladesh. Furthermore, this development could reduce the consumption of grid-connected electricity which could be used to develop industries and infrastructure.

In fact, there are currently one million rickshaw pullers in Bangladesh who earn $4.8 billion every year. The new development in easy-bikes will directly improve their economic status. A few million people involved in vehicle support such as mechanics and manufacturing industries will also be benefited.

This project eventually could lead to mass production of second-life Li-ion batteries in Bangladesh, in conjunction with UK automobile industries, which will create job opportunities for thousands of people.

Dr Mohammad Al-Amin from WMG, University of Warwick comments: “To prevent climate change, all cars in the future will need to be electric. However, the batteries in EVs once they have reached their end of life, for car purposes, is something that can be explored more, as there is still energy left in them to be used.”

“If we can re-purpose them to be used for easy-bikes in Bangladesh it will help lower their carbon footprint and provide the country with a new economy. Thousands of jobs opportunities could be created both in Bangladesh and the UK.”

OK, so much for the press release that has been relayed above.

I must say that I am very much unconvinced about the statement as to the lead-acid batteries lasting only such a short time considering that golf buggies and the Toro electric vehicles (and others) used on golf courses and such, as well as the electric milk floats in the UK, are in daily use and recharged daily and their batteries seem to last for years.

Lithium-ion batteries have a large environmental footprint not least caused by mining operations and then the inherent dangers of being prone to explode when charging and such like and, should they catch fire, are almost impossible to extinguish. In more than one case of an accident with a Tesla vehicle where the car caught fire (and this is mostly the case) the fire spread so rapidly that it was impossible to rescue the occupant(s). The vehicles then have to be cooled down in a special container or the flames doused for at least three days, and even afterwards there remains the danger that the battery can self-ignite again.

There have also been a number of fires recorded that have been started by exploding e-Bike batteries well after those batteries had been removed from their chargers. Several of those started in cycle shops where the batteries that had been charged has been brand-new ones.

On top of that comes the safe disposal of those batteries at the end of their lives which, apparently, is also a small environmental nightmare.

From where I am standing the good old lead-acid battery still has a lot going for it, at least in the above rickshaw department and, as said, I do not buy the short lifespan of them. The general lifespan of the Li-on battery also appears to be no more than three to four years, if lucky, however well one deals with the maintenance cycles when charging.

There is more to creating a woodland than just planting trees

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Many people, and, apparently, even most governments, seem to think that all that is needed to create a woodland is to stick some trees in the ground and the rest will do itself. Alas, that is a fallacy.

Just planting trees and leaving them for Mother Nature to do its work is a waste of trees, money, time and effort and will lead to nothing but disaster. Mother Nature, unfortunately, is not the best gardener and forester, and especially when the woodland is not caused by natural regeneration but has been man-made.

Left to its own devices, and Mother Nature's care, brambles and other such will soon smother the newly planted trees and that will be it. Unfortunately many do not realize this and believe, as said above, that all that is needed to establish new woodlands is to plant some trees and leave them be. They also do not want to listen to those who have worked the woods for generations often.

Newly planted trees to create a woodland are planted relatively close together in order for them to raise each other up, so to speak. But that only works if man helps them along as well by keeping any weeds and such at bay so that the young trees do not get smothered. That also must be done in newly coppiced areas and natural regeneration if one wants the woods to live and thrive. Protection from browsing deer and other animals may also be required.

Then, after a while, thinning will be required, which means first those trees are cut that are weak, sick, of bad growth and stature, overbearing thus suppressing others, and such like. This brings in space and light allowing the other trees to better develop.

While our woodlands are to have amenity value and be a valuable habitat for wildlife, as well as, in today's thinking “carbon sinks”, they are also created, or should be so, as a source for homegrown timber from which to make all manner of things from wood.

There was a time when woods, old and new ones, were much better managed than they are today with trees even being “pruned” in order to grow more or less knot-free trunks and this was the “by hook and by crook” method of brashing, often done by youngsters, children even, and also and especially those that had the estovers' rights to firewood from those means.

We also used to grow our own trees, either by natural regeneration and protecting them, or in our own nurseries on the farms, estates, what have you, where the trees were grown from seed and only planted in the area from whence the seeds were taken because many trees behave like hefted sheep in that they like the area of their parents and do not, necessarily, thrive when planted elsewhere. Unlike today where we gather the seeds here, as in the case of the ash, which apparently brought ash dieback to our shores, send the seeds to countries such as Belgium and Denmark, have the nurseries there grow the seeds into trees and then import them. That to me is about the same as importing tulips to Amsterdam. Apparently it is cheaper to do it this way than to have our own forest tree nurseries and cost is, it would seem, all that counts nowadays, but I digressed, as I often do.

Depending on whether the woodland created is intended to be worked by coppicing, coppice with standards, or as standards, depends on whether there will be more thinning cycles.

If the woodland is to be worked in coppice rotation then there will be no further thinning cycles required as the cutting will be done, a parcel at a time, from the time of or even before the second thinning. In the second case, the coppice with standards there will also be no further thinning while in the last case there will be at least two more thinnings before the trees are able to grow without further “interference”.

The timber resulting from all thinnings should be, in one way or the other, depending on trunk thickness and structure, turned into forest produce and products, even if only firewood.

But until we get to the fist thinning even there is lots of work to be done in the new woods, such as keeping vegetation at bay from encroaching upon and smothering the young trees and even whips of a couple of years old need that kind of care and this work goes on for month after month, and year after year until the first thinning. After that the trees will, more or less, be big enough to continue, more or less, on their own.

This is all work, I am afraid, that Mother Nature is not going to do for us and lots of work it is.

So, if you just want to stick some whips in the ground and then forget about them in the hope that it will be a nice woodland in some ten, twenty or so years, forget about even setting out on that path. All you will end up with is an overgrown tangle of wilderness that is no good to beast or man, and wasted effort, time and money.

Everyone talks about climate, too few about pollution and general environmental destruction

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

All we are hearing is CO2 and other greenhouse gases, and occasionally the issue with plastic, especially the kind that is plastic bottles of all sorts. The word carbon is being manipulated to include soot, for instance, which is now called “brown carbon” and all that in order to be able to trade all those issues under the carbon trading schemes, what I would refer to as modern day indulgences.

The Hippies of the late 60s and early 70s of the last century were ever so right when they simply talked and warmed about pollution of air, water, soil, etc. and about the general environmental degradation and destruction. In their days though we still had mostly glass bottles for everything and in most places there was a deposit attached to those bottles the refund of which made up the pocket money for many a child back then.

We scoured the highways and byways, pulling a small handcart, and taking bottle after bottle out of the ditches that those too lazy to dispose off properly had thrown to take back to the shops for the refund money. The lazy people were about already then when there actually was a small incentive to bring the bottles back. We kids benefited from this and the environment benefited from us taking the bottles back to the shops.

But today, when we are not talking about plastic pollution, everything is carbon this and carbon that. Soot, the stuff that is covering the glaciers in the Himalayas and causing them to melt (and probably also in places such as Switzerland and elsewhere) is now referred to as “brown carbon”. It is soot and this soot comes from oil and coal fired power plants. Exhaust fumes from combustion engines are now referred to as “carbon emissions”, etc., ad infinitum. It has all become “carbon this” and “carbon that” and for but one reason, aside from confusing everyone, and that is that carbon can be traded in the modern day indulgences scheme called carbon trading.

Let's get back down to earth and call a spade a spade and deal with pollution of air, water, soil and everything else in between. In fact, had we done that when the warning messages came from the Hippies we would have a much better Planet by now than we have and had we not done away with practices of the native peoples, such as back burning to prevent bush fires, we would have a lot less of them. But hey, that releases carbon into the atmosphere and for other reasons the Greenies put a stop to that. Now those bush and wild fires, whether in the USA, Siberia, Australia or other places release a far greater amount of “carbon” into the atmosphere on an annual level than any of the back burning would have ever done.

Modern man thinks himself so superior – that includes so many of the experts – in comparison to tribal people who have practiced certain things for particular reasons. We think that we have much greater knowledge and understanding and that our technology will safe us. Yes, we have seen to where that has lead us, aside from smartphone zombies, I mean.

The same attitude has been taken as to our woodlands and their management, especially in some parts of Europe, such as Britain, where coppicing was the standard management practice for broadleaf woodlands. But the self-appointed apostles and experts claimed that cutting trees was bad for the environment and the practice of cutting parcels of woodland in rotation had to be stopped. Another reason for the decline of coppicing, it is true, was also that the bottom fell out market for wood products from such operations, but the main culprit was the pressure from the misguided. Now some of the once thriving coppice woods are so severely overstood that they are in danger of collapsing, which will be the end of the coppice stools, some of which can be a thousand year or more in age.

I could go on and on citing examples be this in forest management, or agriculture, or so many others, but we would be here for the next month or so. Suffice to say that the belief of certain people that they knew so much better about all the things than the people who had sustainably managed woods and countryside for centuries and more and our belief that technology could save us, so to speak, is the reason that we are were we are today. Sixty wasted years.

Belu becomes first UK water company to make all plastic bottles from 100% recycled plastic bottles

GREENWASH ALERT

The 100% recycled material used by the British water brand generates 75% less carbon emissions than aluminium and is easily recycled unlike a carton.

Pioneering social enterprise and ethical water company, Belu, has announced that it will become the first water company in the UK to make 100% of its plastic bottles from 100% recycled plastic bottles.

CEO Karen Lynch comments: ‘We have come to the conclusion that where the single use can’t be removed, the answer to our anti-plastics challenge, is in fact, plastic. Our message is to first use less, but when you buy bottles, buy better.

‘Using 100% recycled plastic is the lowest carbon footprint option that can be part of a circular economy.

‘Belu is a social enterprise that gives 100% of profits to charity WaterAid, and our driver is to do the right thing.

‘If you must use a single-use bottle, the kindest thing you can do for the planet is to choose a bottle made from 100% recycled plastic, and not a can or carton.

‘Making bottles from 100% recycled plastic reduces carbon emissions and other pollutants; nothing new needs to be made as it uses a resource that is already here. It will also create demand and value for recycled plastic bottles which will ultimately fuel investment for better local recycling infrastructure.

‘By moving to manufacturing 100% recycled PET plastic, Belu estimates that it will generate about 60% less carbon emissions than a comparable virgin bottle and about half that of a typical aluminium can (which contains 70-73% recycle content). While cartons are closer in emissions, other environmental impacts become more significant. A standard 500ml carton still contains 35% plastic and 5% aluminium foil. Special processes are often needed to recycle them, and collection avenues are limited across the country meaning only 37% of UK cartons are recycled.

‘When we looked at cartons we found that complexities of materials mean that these products cannot be part of the circular economy we so firmly believe in.’

‘While some of the big water companies have trialed individual products made from 100% recycled plastic, there has been no commitment to making this part of their wider business, instead these lines have been given limited distribution.

‘From November 2019, Belu has committed to make 100% of our plastic bottles from 100% recycled plastic bottles. We are the first in the market to completely switch over. All our bottles will now be made from bottles, and they remain 100% recyclable too - so please do recycle.

‘Whilst we are one of the smaller brands in the market to make this commitment, we know it is the right thing to do, and if we do this successfully, other brands will follow, as they did when we were the first market with 50% recycled PET from 2012.

‘We are proud to introduce 100% recycled plastic Belu bottles with our long-standing partners including Pizza Hut, Shake Shack, and Pure.

‘We’ve taken the opportunity to update our labels to ensure that people are completely clear that Belu bottles are 100% recycled, 100% recyclable, 100% of our profits go to WaterAid.’

Belu is a social enterprise that provides hotels, restaurants and catering providers with natural British mineral water, filtration systems and refillable bottles with the lowest carbon footprint possible. As the UK’s most ethical water company, their goal is a world in which everyone, everywhere, has clean water to drink. They give 100% of profits to the charity WaterAid to help transform lives worldwide with clean water.

The Belu Filter Initiative has played a key role in the growth of the ethical water company, who gave a record £1million in profits to WaterAid in 2018. It brings their total given to £4million so far, helping to reach more than 270,000 people with clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene.

Belu is carbon neutral, making a forward commitment to reduce carbon footprint each year.

Their Ethical Glass bottles are made from recycled content and are 100% recyclable. They remain the first and only water brand to have achieved the independent British Standard Institute’s carbon neutrality standard, PAS 2060. For more information, visit belu.org or follow @BeluWater on Twitter.

WaterAid is working to make clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene normal for everyone, everywhere within a generation. The international not-for-profit organisation works in 28 countries to change the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people. Since 1981, WaterAid has reached 26.4 million people with clean water and 26.3 million people with decent toilets. For more information, visit www.wateraid.org, follow @WaterAidUK or @WaterAidPress on Twitter, or find WaterAid UK on Facebook at www.facebook.com/wateraid.

If this is the case then they know more than all the experts on polymers and plastics because using 100% recycled is NOT possible in the same way that there is no recyclable “paper” coffee cup. I just call 100% GREENWASH onto this.

Not so long ago I saw the 100% recycled coke bottles but reading the smaller print it stated “made with 30% recycled materials” and that also did not say whether post-consumer or pre-consumer.

London College of Garden Design to sponsor new design series for leading podcast

Supporting podcasts are an integral part of our marketing strategy now.

The London College of Garden Design has announced their sponsorship of a new series interviewing some of the world's leading designers on ‘Roots And All’, the podcast that last week won 'Podcast of the Year' at the Garden Media Guild Awards.

The first episode features Thomas Rainer, Principal Designer at Phyto Studio in Virginia and co-author of the book ‘Planting In A Post-Wild World’. LCGD are also supporting a workshop day in Central London with Thomas on Saturday 18th January 2020.

Sarah Wilson host of ‘Roots And All’ said “I attended the London College of Garden Design myself and I’m always banging on about what a brilliant place it is to study if you’re looking to get in to garden design”.

Director Andrew Fisher Tomlin said “Supporting podcasts are an integral part of our marketing strategy now. Our previous sponsorship of Peter Donegan’s ‘Sod Show’ and now Sarah’s ‘Roots And All’, are a reflection of a growing interest in and improvement in the very high quality of broadcasts that are beyond the very traditional form of radio shows.”

About the London College of Garden Design

The College is one of Europe’s leading specialist design colleges and offers professional level courses including the one-year Garden Design Diploma and a unique Planting Design Diploma delivered over 5 months. Both courses are taught from the College’s home in the world-famous Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew.

The Thomas Rainer workshop day is being ran by Gillian Goodson with the support of LCGD and London Stone. For more details visit www.lcgd.org.uk

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