GOING GREEN – September 2024
Greener Henley have had a bit of a break over the summer but on September 18th is the next Green Screen. This is a successful collaboration with the Regal Picturehouse screening of an environmental film followed by a panel discussion. This month’s subject will be ‘X Trillion’ a film about 14 women’s 3,000 mile sail across the North Pacific Ocean through the densest accumulation of ocean plastic on the planet.
This response to one of the biggest global challenges of our time is a story of hope with an optimistic call to action. Please come if you can. The film begins at 8 p.m. Prior booking of tickets is advisable as these events are always popular.
As it happens, I have been reading Will McCallum’s book ‘How to give up plastic’ in preparation for an exhibition on the 14th September at the Friends Meeting House. Here are some numerical facts from his book:
- It takes 450 years for a plastic bottle to break down in the ocean.
- Coca-Cola makes 120 billion plastic bottles each year.
- 330 tonnes of plastic is produced every year.
- 90% of sea birds have plastic in their stomachs.
Have you seen that shocking photograph of a dead hump-backed whale, beached with its mouth open showing it was completely full of plastic? According to McCallum, one rubbish truck of plastic enters the ocean every minute.
Here’s an exercise you could do next time you shop at a supermarket. Time how long your shop takes – twenty minutes? half an hour? More? Then calculate how many lorry loads of plastic that would equate to. Finally look at your shopping – how much plastic is in your trolley? How many single use plastic containers are there? How much of your shopping is wrapped in plastic? Is it necessary? Is the manager around to answer that question for you?
Recently I read that supermarkets who were challenged to reduce their plastic packaging argued that they needed to protect their produce from wastage. Since then, not only has the amount of plastic packaging increased, but the amount of food waste in the UK has also increased dramatically. We are part of the solution.
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Many people have commented on the lateness and scarcity of some of our common pollinators this year. Various reasons given for this are the cold wet spring (climate change), air pollution and a general decline in biodiversity. Most people understand that it is up to us humans to try to reverse the fall in insect numbers, caused by human habits, as are other species declines.
That is where the charity Bee Friendly Trust comes in. Towns, villages, community groups from across the country are all working towards getting Bee Friendly Town status. Henley Town Council is hoping to achieve this award with the help of the lovely, caring people of the town and Greener Henley. (See the Bee Friendly Trust for some examples of what other towns have done.)
The objective is to improve the biodiversity of the town by increasing the numbers of pollinators. We are looking for communities, groups, businesses, schools, churches and individuals – all of Henley residents to become ‘bee champions’. Who wouldn’t want to reverse the decline in bees, butterflies and other pollinators?
The two main activities to achieve this is planting more plants for pollinators and making bee hotels and placing them in the correct locations. Seeds for sowing this autumn are available from the Information Office at the Town Hall as part of the Nature Squared campaign (a Greener Henley, Henley Standard and Henley in Bloom initiative).
Otherwise, you could plant spring bulbs (no double flowering) and perennial plants. There is a lovely book ‘Planting for Pollinators – creating a garden haven’ by Heather Angel with descriptions of which pollinator feeds from which plant. For instance if you grow Honeywort (Cerinthe major ‘Purpurascens’) you may just see a hairy-footed flower bee using its long tongue to collect nectar from the bell shaped flowers.
Another expert on pollinators is Dave Goulson, Professor of Biology, beekeeper and writer. He has some useful suggestions of plants for pollinators at the back of his book ‘The Garden Jungle’. Take note if you are thinking of putting any lavender in your garden, he suggests Lavendula x intermedia ‘Gros bleu’ is much more attractive to pollinators than Lavendula augustifolia.
It would be great to link up with people interested in this project making Henley a Bee Friendly Town, please get in touch with me via https://greenerhenley.org.uk
Diana Barnett
Greener Henley have had a bit of a break over the summer but on September
18 th is the next Green Screen. This is a successful collaboration with the Regal
Picturehouse screening of an environmental film followed by a panel
discussion. This month’s subject will be ‘X Trillion’ a film about 14 women’s
3,000 mile sail across the North Pacific Ocean through the densest
accumulation of ocean plastic on the planet.
