Manchester is my planet are currently running a second survey to gauge what people across Greater Manchester think about climate change. The campaign surveyed the area last year, and now hope to compare the original results with this year's findings. To respond to the survey, CLICK HERE - there are some great prizes up for grabs, too........
The BBC have launched a new website aimed at encouraging people to make the right choices and lower their carbon emissions. 'Bloom' suggests actions you can take in every area of life to be more climate conscious. You just choose the action you're going to take, plant a 'seed' on your page, and watch the resulting flowers grow. Or bloom, I suppose.
You can search the actions based on easiness (the easiest is washing clothes at 30 degrees), cheapness (a cheap option, for example is to 'use your dress sense' to make your existing clothes last longer, while a more expensive action is to invest in an electric car), carbon rating (installing a biomass boiler wins on this front), and popularity on the site.
The site also aggregates BBC news on climate change-related issues, or you can search for audio or video content.
You can create a login for yourself in order to save your actions and watch your collection of flowers grow, and the fact that you can see what other users have been doing adds a nice sense of community. The site's in beta at the moment, so there aren't a lot of other 'bloomers' to compare yourself to, but it will be interesting to see how the site develops.
Pupils at Thorneyholme School have written poems with a fishy theme.
We are promised lots more, but here are the first few for you to enjoy:-
Canals
Canals are quiet, canals are great,
Sometimes they have ducks sitting straight.
I saw a silver fish swimming by,
Then it said to me goodbye.
I heard a bird in a tree,
It sang a lovely tune for me.
I saw a frog saying Hi,
Then it caught a juicy fly.
The sun was setting. It said goodbye,
It is time to go home I thought with a sigh!
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DOWN A RIVER
I saw a boat that actually sank,
I am upon the river bank.
I heard a splish and a splash,
Then a big bang and crash.
In the water I saw a frog,
It was sat on a river log.
I saw a shiny fish,
That wasn’t on a dish.
I saw a fish that did not fly,
Looking up at the bright blue sky.
The sun was going down,
Now my child do not frown.
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The life cycle of the trout
Hello I am an alevin.
I only have a small fin.
My Dad is bigger than me.
I am smaller than a flea.
Hello I am a little fry.
I can hear a boy cry.
Now a car whistles by.
And I jump up for a fly.
Hello I am a parr.
Look at that man with the jar.
Look at that car over there so far.
Oh no I’m in the jar.
Hello I am a smolt.
Look at that man saying halt.
Oh look at that float.
Now I’m near a boat.
Hello I am an adult trout.
On no my son is in that boat.
Come here my smolt.
It’s not your fault.
You could swim down to the salt.
><((((º>`·. . · `·. .· `·. . ><((((º> `·. . · `·. .· `·. . ><((((º>`·. .· `·. .· `·. . ><((((º>`·. .· `·. .· `·. . ><((((º>`·. .· `·. .· `·. . ><((((º>
Thanks to Paul who has emailed to let us know that he spotted three porpoise at Pickering Pasture, swimming upstream towards Runcorn Bridge. Good spot Paul. If you see any interesting wildlife on or around our waterways, let us know by emailing info@merseybasin.org.uk
The Boat from Bollington to Middlewich.
The British Waterways heritage boat Lindsay, a cargo narrowboat, with crew will arrive at Clarence Mill, Bollington in the week before 7th June, where it will be florally decorated by Chris Harrop, a Bollington-based floral designer who has kindly offered to lend her talents to this exciting project. The boat decorations will include lots of hanging baskets and tubs, donated by local groups, clubs, societies and organisations. In this way, the event involves the wider communities of Macclesfield and Congleton Boroughs. The boat will depart Bollington on 8th June towards Macclesfield and Congleton .
Bollington will hold a Floral Weekend on 7th and 8th June to send Lindsay on its way. During the weekend, visitors will be able to see the boat being decorated and there will be a number of other events throughout the town such as Open Gardens, plant sales, a family fun day, children's pet show and much more. Pott Shrigley’s Rose Queen will launch the boat on Sunday afternoon, with Bollington Brass Band providing a fanfare of musical entertainment.
Lindsay will moor at Macclesfield Marina on Sunday evening and Macclesfield Canal Society have agreed to man Bosley Locks on Monday 9th June and to put up a display about the society along the canalside.
The boat will then stop off at the Queens Head in Congleton for an evening's entertainment on 9th June. Anyone is welcome and encouraged to come and view the floating garden, to walk alongside it for stretches of the canal or to join in the canalside events.
On leaving Congleton the boat will stop off at Rode Heath for Odd Rode Festival on the evening of Wednesday 11th June. Activities to be confirmed are a bouncy castle, a brass band, refreshments, a tea party, dance troupes, stalls, music with much more in the pipeline. More details, coming soon!!!
The next stop will be Hassall Green before it arrive in Middlewich on Thursday 12th afternoon. Once Lindsay reaches the Middlewich Folk & Boat Festival the donated floral displays will be sold and all proceeds will be donated to the East Cheshire Hospice.
More details will appear here nearer the time, so do come back and find out more!!
I am pleased to be able to report that the litter trap boom was re-attached on 18th April 2008. The modified boom runner attaches the boom to the wall on the bank opposite the litter trap itself.
Utilising a roller mechanism, it is intended that the boom will move up and down more effectively than was possible with the sliding runner mechanism.
The boom should also release more effectively in flows that are too high to avoid damage to the litter trap equipment.
Watch this space and for once look forward to rain (?!) to see how the modified runner mechanism fares.
Plans for Cheshire's Floating Garden Festival (8th-15th June) are well under way, and historic boat 'Saturn' has a full schedule of events for her trip from Audlem to the Folk and Boat Festival at Middlewich.
Several local schools will have the opportunity to visit Saturn during the week and learn about her history, as well as participating in garden-themed activities.
There is a full programme of events at the launch weekend in Audlem on 7th & 8th June, including boat-horse harnessing, canal painting, rag-rug making and many other displays. There will also be performances from The Crofters and Day Star Theatre - see the Floating Gardens website for more details.
En route to Middlewich, Saturn will be stopping at Nantwich, and then moving on to Barbridge where there are two evening events that are open to all. On Tuesday 10th June, there will be a waterways talk and live band at The Jolly Tar Inn - be there from 6.30 pm onwards. Then get your brain limbered up for a waterways-themed pub quiz at The Olde Barbridge Inn on Wednesday 11th June. Watch this space for more details.
More details will appear here nearer the time, so do come back and find out more about how to get involved
Readers in Greater Manchester might have noticed that the Manchester Evening News are backing United Utilities' 'Tap into Water' campaign, encouraging people to abandon bottled water.....cutting back on the mountain of plastic bottles which take a thousand years to biodegrade in our landfill sites......and return to drinking Northwest tap water. The story on the MEN website has garnered plenty of comments - what do you think? CLICK HERE TO READ THE STORY.
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