St Bridget’s Church Eco-Congregation Green Sheet No. 27

Any ideas?

During your day at work/home/leisure, do you witness situations where items go to waste, but can't think of a use for them yourself, i.e., at my work, every week we have a whole dustbin full of unsuitable sized sponge cake bits left over. At present, they go to feed the wild ducks somewhere, so it's not entirely wasted, but I'm sure it's probably not that good for them, and a better use can be found! There is only so much trifle our luncheon club can make, but maybe if someone has contact with a larger charitable organisation that prepares food, then perhaps they could make use of it? We also re-use a lot of plastic carrier bags, and are always in need of them, (up to a point), and charity shops always find them useful too. So, if you see things going to waste and are looking for suggestions of how to make use of them let me know, and I'll print it up!

Global warming DVD update

Anyone who missed the films shown at our Eco nights and would like to see them, can do free. There are two copies of each film at the back of the church in the Eco section, we now have the genuine BBC DVD that is updated and edited, rather than a home copy, so no adverts to suffer!

Kitchen Garden Update

We have been enjoying the produce of our kitchen garden, and have tried to distribute vegetables to those who have contributed equipment, etc. Sorry if we missed anyone out, but some items just appeared and we're unsure of who left them! If anyone would like to visit the garden, especially if they are thinking of joining in, please just ask myself, Liz Ashley or Mike Brady and we'll be happy to show you around. There is a great need to preserve the privacy of all the residents at the Rectory, hence a guided tour is more preferred than people just coming and going ad hoc. We intend to make the path easier to traverse in the Winter and possibly signpost directions, and help with this would be very welcome. The broad beans are finished, to be replaced with Winter onions; runner beans are in full flow; exploding potatoes are nearly finished: carrots look promising: as do "whatever the brassicas are"! I believe we are arranging a huge delivery of muck soon, so looking forward to getting my hands dirty.

Carbon Footprint

The Carbon Trust is launching a green equivalent to the Fairtrade label – a carbon label which details the carbon footprint of a product and a commitment by its producer to reduce it.

Several major brands, including Walkers crisps, Boots Organics shampoo and Innocent smoothies, will test the use of the logo. Over time it is expected that many more will join, raising the prospect that products might be marketed on the basis that they have the lowest carbon footprint in their marketplace. However, food policy expert professor Tim Lang has urged caution because there is still considerable uncertainty about the best way to calculate carbon ratings for individual food products.

Good Egg Awards

Sainsbury's, McDonald's and Starbucks are among companies opting for free range eggs and being praised for doing so by leading farm animal welfare organisation Compassion in World Farming. They estimate that this will save 2 million hens from living in horrendous conditions every year.

The recent Good Egg Awards rewarded European companies who are making significant progress on the welfare of egg laying hens. Companies had to be either cage-free already or they must have committed to phasing out caged eggs in their egg supply by 2012 – in advance of the EU ban on battery cages.

The UK winners were: J D Wetherspoon, McDonald's, Marks & Spencer, Pret A Manger, Sainsbury's, Starbucks, The Eden Project, Whole Foods Market, Waitrose, Ugo Foods Group Ltd, House of Commons and the staff catering of Google, Microsoft UK and Sky.

Since the awards, Morrisons has committed to being 100% cage-free in all own-brand shell eggs by 2010. But Sainsbury's is the only UK retailer to make a big deal out of giving hens tree cover with its Woodland Eggs. CIWF advocates that the best free-range systems for laying hens provide tree cover. This is because hens originate from jungle fowl and still, to this day, fear aerial predators. Tree cover and vegetation encourages them to range outside without feeling afraid. Of all the supermarkets, Marks & Spencer stands out. Right back in September 1997, Marks & Spencer was the first UK food retailer to sell only 100% free-range shell eggs and by 2002, all Marks & Spencer eggs, whether fresh in-shell or used as an ingredient in foods, were free-range.

The demand for higher animal welfare eggs is on the increase – 30 per cent of eggs consumed in the UK are now cage-free compared to just 10 per cent in the mid 1990s.For more information visit the Good Egg Awards website or contact Compassion in World Farming

The SuperScooter

An electric motorbike, which is claimed to be the first to perform just like a petrol model, has recently been launched. The Vectrix also has a very low emissions profile, especially if you are using a green energy tariff. The manufacturers claim that the Vectrix Super-Scooter has by far the lowest carbon footprint rating of any similarly-performing vehicle.

A two hour charge time from a household plug or charging point costs circa 30p and delivers 60 miles of travel. Equivalent in power and size to a 400cc maxi-scooter, it has a top speed of 60mph and features regenerative braking which recycles energy back into the battery as you slow down. The Vectrix is exempt from road tax and the London Congestion Charge. The downside is that they cost about £7,000 but apparently this works out cheaper than an equivalent petrol model in the long term. For dealers, check out the www.vectrix.com website.For cheaper models of electric scooter see ScootElectric's range. Their top speed and range between chargings is about half of the Vectrix's but their cost is less than half (£1,500-£3,000). Check out the models at www.scootelectric.co.uk.

If you have items to contribute to the green sheets please contact Sally on 0151 625 2659.

The items included in the green sheets are for your information only, but we hope that you find some of them useful.