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Transition Town LouthLincolnshire | |
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Transition Town LouthLincolnshire | |
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Fracking, gas, oil and coal in Lincolnshire |
Transition Town Louth is an inclusive grouping of people who recognize the reality of Peak Oil and Climate Change, but are determined not to cry doom and gloom into their beer but rather develop the transition to a sustainable community, resilient in an uncertain future, where the quality of life in our lovely town is maintained and improved. To find out more about Transition Towns in general please take a look at the national Transition Town Website and Transition Culture. An excellent introductory read is What we are and what we do, by Rob Hopkins and Peter Lipman. To find out more about Peak Oil, The Oil Drum is a good place to start and Real Climate is the leading net resource for climate science. To contact Transition Town Louth,Send Mail |
Next meetings of Transition Town Louth:Thursday 3oth January, 7.30 pm at The Boar's Head, Newmarket, Louth. |
Last meetingsThursday 19th December at Alison Spittle's house. |
What's New |
What's On |
Fracking in LincolnshireAll the Latest NewsLouth Canal Wind Energy ProjectPartnership for Renewables have lodged an appeal against ELDC's decision to deny planning permission for the Louth Canal Wind Energy Project Partnership for Renewables The Public Inquiry is scheduled for the 21st January 2014 and will take 6 days to complete. The planning application can be viewed here: East Lindsey District Council and details of the appeal here: Planning inspectorate. The project involves three wind turbines up to a maximum of 2.5MW capacity for each turbine. Partnership for Renewables have followed recent government recommendations and increased the package of community benefits to £5000 per MW per annum. This means the local community could receive up to £37,500 every year for the anticipated 25 year life of the project, £937,500 in total. It is extremely important for supportive local voices to be heard by the Planning Inspector if this appeal is to be upheld so please do what you can to ensure the "silent majority" is encouraged to register their support. More at Lincs Pro Wind Alliance. A sample letter of support for the appeal and where to send it is downloadable from here. Louth's River of Flower
This project, organised by Transition Town Louth, has it's own blog here Time and Tide BellTransition Town Louth launches campaign to bring Marcus Vergette project to the Lincolnshire Coast.A permanent installation of 12 bells around the U.K. rung by the sea at high tide. This project is to make a permanent installation of the Time and Tide Bell at the high tide mark at a number of diverse sites around the country, from urban centres to open stretches of coastline. The rise of the water at high tide moves the clapper to strike the bell. Played by the movement of the waves, the bell creates a varying, gentle, musical pattern. As the effect of global warming increases, the periods of bell strikes will become more and more frequent, and as the bell becomes submerged in the rising water the pitch will vary. The first bell was installed in July 2009 at Appledore, Devon: the second on Bosta beach Gt. Bernera, Outer Hebrides in June 2010: the third at Trinity Buoy Wharf, London in September 2010: the fourth installed in Aberdyfi, Wales, July 2011. A fith is being installed on Anglesey and our Lincolnshire coast could host the sixth. The integrity of the Time and Tide Bell project nationally is in the choice of the sites and how they connect. The Time and Tide Bell is to create, celebrate, and reinforce connections, between different parts of the country, between the land and the sea, between ourselves, our history, and our environment. Each of the sites bring something particular and unique to the whole group. The sites presently under development for installation this year are Orford Ness and Aberdeen. "This is an inspired project. The link between ourselves and the elements are in danger of being lost in our 21st century life. The importance of that link, given climate change, is more important than it ever has been and such a beautiful reminder of the importance of tides and sea levels is truly inspirational." Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer, House of Lords. The Louth Festival of the Bees.On Sunday the 26th May 2013, The Louth Festival of the Bees, closed with the premiere performance of Kelvin Thomson's Cantata for Bees: Hybrid Pollination, whose subject was the communication of science through music, illustrating the plight that bees face. It concluded a month of events including a Family Fun day in Spout Yard, drawing children's attention to the importance of bees and other wildlife and an Art Exhibition in McKinnell’s Studio Upstairs that explored the science behind biodiversity through artistic media. A Conference Day at The Royal British Legion involved speakers from across Britain talking on varied subjects from wildflowers of the Lincolnshire Wolds to bees in Kosovo, Morocco and Texas. Transition Town Louth would like to thank all those who gave so generously of their time and money to make the Festival such a success. The Louth Festival of the Bees was supported by the Co-operative Community Fund and East Lindsey District Council. The events were a contribution to Louth’s bid to win Gold in this year's RHS In Bloom Competition, a bid organised by the Louth In Bloom Committee and Louth Town Council. The Festival of the Bess is more than a one-off event; it is our on-going programme of activities and projects related to raising awareness about environmental enhancement, resilience and biodiversity. The people of Louth need a healthy environment in which to flourish. Across the Lincolnshire Wolds our road verges are a significant remnant of the once widespread flower-rich meadows. We are promoting the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust’s project to ensure that wildflowers and their associated ecosystems are conserved and enhanced. Find out more at Life on the Verge. Launched at The Louth Festival of the Bees, 'The River of Flowers' is an initiative to create a wildlife-friendly corridor right through the centre of Louth along the River Ludd. Work over the future months and years will seek to establish and enhance existing refuges for wildflowers and biodiversity. Running from the sources of the Ludd in the Wolds to the North Sea at Tetney and concentrating especially on the river banks and adjoining open spaces as the Ludd flows through Louth, we plan to increase the biodiversity, encouraging the growth of wildflowers that provide food for our bees and other pollinators. Similar schemes are taking shape in towns and cities around the world. See Bee Friendly Zone by not using insecticides and by planting bee-friendly flowers. Transition Town Louth is bringing the sixth Time and Tide Bell to Lincolnshire's coast, a proposed Marine Conservation Zone, is an art project by sculptor Marcus Vergette that draws attention to our littoral position between two contrasting environments of land and sea. The off-shore habitat has been neglected in the past but holds a large part of Lincolnshire's wildlife, perhaps half our species. The Bell seeks to enhance our relationship with it, considering the implication of global warming for sea level and marine life. Transition Town Louth's Biodiversity Campaign is run by an inclusive group of people who recognize the reality of Peak Oil and Climate Change, but are determined to be optimistic and work to develop the transition to a sustainable community, resilient in an uncertain future, where the quality of life in our town and countryside is enhanced for both people and wildlife. Gayton-le-Marsh wind farm gets permissionThe Inspector's LetterGlobal WarmingFor those who are confused by the recent (completely wrong) media reports that global warming has stopped, this article from New Scientist may be helpful. Key fact to remember - about 90% of the excess heat retained by our increased greenhouse gases is going into the oceans where it's hard to measure. Measurements of global atmospheric temperatures are a crude and variable proxy for the bulk of global warming. Pro Wind AllianceTransition Town Louth is now affiliated to the Pro Wind Alliamce. This is a group of organisations across the East Midlands that are seeking to promote the use of renewable wnergies and, in particular to counter the anti-windfarm lobby./p> Here is our Lincolnshire Pro Wind Alliance Blog/a> and you can join the conversation at the Yahhoo Group, ProWA. Transition Free Press is here
Transition Free Press will be a quarterly, 16 page, full colour, tabloid size newspaper. The mission is to report and reflect on the transition to community resilience. It will provide a sense of reality and will confront and evaluate issues. It will be editorially independent and ‘working with’ rather than ‘working for’ the Transition Network. So while Transition Free Press springs from the Transition Movement, it will run alongside it, rather than being an official in-house publication. While the various forms of online and digital media have an important role to play is spreading Transition ideas, there is still a gap that only print can fill. While people dip in and out of news online, in print they can take time to read and reflect. By being in print, Transition Free Press can be read anywhere and reach places and at times that digital media cannot reach. |
More than just a Jumble SaleSaturday 22nd February, British Legion Hall, Northgate, 10am to 2pm. Louth will host its first Repair Cafe. Transition Town Louth's NewsletterWarble, OctoberWarble, AugustClick to download Here are some notes relating to the Biscathorpe proposed oil well.
Biscathorpe, the new oil and gas prospect Fracking, gas, oil and coal in LincolnshireA webpage devoted to our campaign to keep fossil fuel fossilised. Sunday 8th September Noon till Dusk Anderby Creek Beach Bells on the BeachParty to celebrate the approach of the Time and Tide Bell 
On all the timeFarmers' Markets are held in Louth on the second Friday and fourth Wednesday of the month So where do we go from here? - DegrowthTry the Green House Project Politics, they say, is the art of the possible. But the possible is not fixed. What we believe is possible depends on our knowledge and beliefs about the world. Ideas can change the world, and Green House is about challenging the ideas that have created the world we live in now, and offering positive alternatives. The problems we face are systemic, and so the changes we need to make are complex and interconnected. Many of the critical analyses and policy prescriptions that will be part of the new paradigm are already out there. Our aim is to communicate them more clearly, and more widely. 
 The extent of Arctic ice is a good indicator of global warming. The blue line, updated daily, shows the extent of sea ice. Lasr summer's ice meltbroke the records by a large margin. This dramatic change far exceeds recent forecasts and raises the serious possibility that the global climate models are not giving the right results - with the errors on the bad side. 
Global warming is being caused by our burning of fossil fuel, increasing the carbon dioxide in the air. This is clearly seen by the Mauna Loa measurements. |
For the last 25 years David Fleming has visited Louth every summer spending a few days working on his book, sometimes in our garden, sometimes with a pint of Tipsey Toad at the back of the Wheatsheaf. On the way, as a major influence on Rob Hopkins, he was instrumental in starting up the Transition movement. In the last couple of years he gave memorable talks to Transition Town Louth. It was in Louth that he met his two research assistants, Beth Stratford and Beth Barton, who have done so much to bring his life's work to fruition.
Rob Hopkins writes on his blog: "Following his death, his family and friends have set to the task of making sure that his life’s work does finally see the light of day, and I’m delighted to announce that copies will soon be available. I’m delighted, as would he have been, to know that his insights, his humour and his brilliance, are now more widely available. I’ve already ordered mine…"
The book is printed in a hardback first edition of 500 copies, comprising David’s final draft, comprehensive footnotes, bibliography and references and many wonderful wood cuts and illustrations. All proceeds from sales of Lean Logic will be used to promote David’s work and passions.
Copies may be obtained for £30 or £25 each for two or more (plus £5 per copy for postage and packing if required) by sending a cheque payable to Lucy Barlow to: Lean Logic, Court Farm House, North Street, Fritwell, Oxon OX27 7QX.
Fuel Rationing Will Be Needed Before 2020 According To Major New Report
New parliamentary report warns of coming energy scarcities and outlines a rationing system which could ensure fair access to energy and guarantee emissions reductions
18 January 2011, London: A report launched today by the Lean Economy Connection, commissioned by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Peak Oil, calls for a nationwide system for ensuring fair and equal access to fuel as energy scarcities develop. Dr Caroline Lucas MP; Dr Jeremy Leggett, chairman and founder of Solarcentury and SolarAid; and John Hemming MP spoke at the launch, held at Portcullis House, Westminster this morning.
The report, entitled Tradable Energy Quotas, sets out a detailed proposal for a scheme which would ensure fair and equal entitlements to fuel and energy under conditions of scarcity, while also guaranteeing that the government meets its commitment to an 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050.
The report proposes an electronic energy rationing system called TEQs (Tradable Energy Quotas). Under TEQs, units of ‘energy credit’ are distributed free to all adults. Surplus units can be bought and sold, meaning that there is no upper limit set on the number of units owned by one person. Businesses and government bid for their energy units at a weekly tender, creating revenue to help fund the infrastructure and skills that the economy needs to end its dependence on fossil fuels.
Caroline Lucas MP, leader of the Green Party, said: “TEQs have long been Green Party policy, as we believe that we need a fair and transparent system to reduce energy demand and give each person a direct connection to the carbon emissions associated with their lifestyle. The TEQs scheme would guarantee that the UK’s targeted carbon reductions are actually achieved, while ensuring fair shares of available energy.”
Jeremy Leggett, chairman of Solarcentury, said: “What I like about TEQs is the fairness of it. When the energy crunch hits us, government and industry must ensure equitable access to available energy within a national budget. TEQs is the kind of approach we will need if we are to mobilise the infrastructure of a zero-carbon future fast, under pressure. It would increase the chances of working our way through the grim times to renaissance-through-resilience."
The report warns that, without a scheme such as TEQs, the UK will not only fail to achieve the steep emissions reductions promised by the Climate Change Act, but will find itself unprepared for energy scarcities when they arise, and unable to sustain an orderly market. Fuel poverty would rapidly develop, leaving the most vulnerable people in society at risk.
Speaking at the launch today, John Hemming MP, chairman of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Peak Oil, said: “What is needed is an intelligent response both to climate change and to fuel depletion. We therefore welcome the model set out in the Lean Economy Connection’s report, which addresses both sides of the problem. It is the first coherent proposal to attempt to do this, and it merits close attention.”
Shaun Chamberlin, Director of the Lean Economy Connection and co-author of the report, said: “It is essential that we prepare now to mitigate the energy shortages of the future. We are calling on the government to move beyond research and into the development of a framework to reduce carbon emissions, to ensure that the UK is ready to implement energy rationing at short notice.”
Commenting on the need to involve citizens fully in the task of controlling climate change, Mr Chamberlin added: “Tradable Energy Quotas are the only way we can reduce carbon emissions and at the same time guarantee that everyone gets fair access to limited energy supplies. This is also an alternative to carbon taxation; we are in difficult times, and we should not take money away from people when they need it the most. TEQs is about motivating people to cooperate in the common challenge of drastically reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.”
Copies of the report, Tradable Energy Quotas (TEQs): A Policy Framework for Peak Oil and Climate Change, can be downloaded or ordered from www.teqs.net/report.
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Louth Community Food GardensWe are a sub group of Transition Town Louth, a voluntary organisation which exists to raise awareness on the impact of
Climate Change and Peak
Oil to our community. |
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Transition Town Louth has launched the area's own Freegle group. If you have something to give away or want something for free just sign up and get freegling. Part of The Freegle Association 
Or here if you prefer to use facebook
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Transition Town Louth is acting as a focus for Landsharers in the area. Let us know if you would like to join Landshare and meet others to share ideas. 
Go places with  For
skill sharing.
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Join the Transition Town Louth Facebook Group.
Communicate on our Yahoo Message Group. Follow TTL on
Other pages on this website:Zing ~ The Incredibly Light Railway Transitition Town Louth Constitution The Minutes Page is where you can read minutes of meetings. The Archived Stuff is where you can find older stuff |
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Click here for much larger picture (4Mb). Photo credit: Chris Vernon |
There are now over 300 Transition Initiatives, Louth being the ninety-ninth. Transition Towns are completely autonomous organizations, linked by the Transition Network, which provides and shares ideas, resources and support. The common thread is a belief that energy security in the time following the peak in oil production and the risk of global warming, present threats so large that we will be forced to make a transition to a very different world from that to which we are accustomed. The Transition movement is driven by optimism and a determination to learn to adjust to whatever the future brings. Preparing in good time to meet the challenges is the wise approach. Our government, driven by the need to address the climate change issue and knowing that fossil fuels will be increasingly hard to come by, has a policy of reducing CO2 emissions by 80% by 2050. Even that drastic change may be understated as we compete for what little fossil fuel remains. This is not a target that can be missed but a reality that we are forced to accept. Indeed, the problems may press harder and faster than the government is prepared, as yet, to admit. It behoves each of us, as individuals or working through community groups and within local government, to accept that reality promptly, and to work together to make the transition as painless as we can, moving positively to a future where life may actually be better. Transition Town Louth is a grassroots grouping of people who share a determination to act. We are not concerned with debating whether global warming caused by man's actions is a problem, nor whether energy security is soon to be the most significant constraint on economic activity. We have accepted the issues, moved beyond debating the realities, and are ready for actions. |
| generate enough electricity from its Fen Farm, Connisholme and Baumber Farm, Mablethorpe wind parks to power about 40% of East Lindsey's homes. |
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Transition Town Louth Constitution
TweetTo contact Transition Town Louth, Send Mail
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Cornmarket, Louth, Sunday 26th October 2008 |
Town Hall, Louth, Friday 5th December 2008 |
Town Hall, Louth, Saturday 7th March 2009 
Louth St James Market, Sunday 25th July 2010 |
Listening to David Fleming's talk, August 2009.
