Category: Environment

In December last year, Frome Town Council declared a climate change emergency and made a commitment to going zero carbon by 2030. This news was welcome to the growing number of environmentally-conscious individuals among us however, as other councils follow suit by making these bold declarations, the public can be left wondering what plans are actually in place and whether any action will follow. For the past ten weeks, I have been volunteering with Frome Town Council, working under the guide of their Resilience Manager (one of only a few in the country). During this period, I have been exposed to a number of projects the council have established in response to tackling climate change and for the first time, I have felt some faith in how the government is dealing with these issues, at least at a local level.

I have been primarily focussing on the Plastic Free Communities campaign; an initiative run by Surfers Against Sewage that encourages towns to reduce their use of single-use plastics and invest in more sustainable alternatives. Although not so much of a climate change issue, this is still a major environmental issue. With an estimated 8 million tonnes entering the oceans each year, plastic pollution threatens wildlife, costal scenery as well as our own health through the accumulation of microplastics. We can also reduce our carbon footprint by choosing to invest in reusable products instead of buying hundreds or thousands of disposable ones over a lifetime. The council have overseen this campaign and whilst volunteering, we have managed to get twelve businesses signed up and have awarded them with a plastic free campions plaque.

Frome was the first town in the UK to create a community fridge – an idea which has since spread across the country. The aim of the fridge is to divert excess food from going to waste and instead share it with the community. The fridge is open to everyone and is non-judgemental, removing the stigma associated with a food bank and making food more accessible to those in need. Besides the social benefits, community fridges offer a solution to the growing problem of food waste. Each year in the UK, we send over 7 million tonnes to landfill. When this breaks downs, it releases methane – a potent greenhouse gas which contributes to climate change. Sharing food is a great way of tackling this.

Another UK first for Frome was SHARE. Described as a ‘library of things’, SHARE is a shop where people can borrow items that are only needed once or infrequently. For example, the average drill is only used for thirteen minutes. Instead of forking out for a new one, residents in Frome can borrow one for just a few pounds. During the placement, I volunteered in SHARE every Friday afternoon. Each week is different. One day you may be erecting a tent to check it has the right poles, another you are making a trip to the recycling centre to dispose of the cardboard boxes from all the new items that have arrived. I spent most of my time, updating the online inventory and serving customers. The locals love the shop and the membership base is pretty staggering for such a small town.

In terms of a more direct response to climate change, Frome has established several projects. Firstly, the town runs a scheme where residents can have solar panels installed at a significantly reduced cost. The council promotes greener travel through the use of ebikes and hybrid cars that available for hire. They have also overseen the installation of electric car charging points. Whether Frome will be carbon zero (whatever this means) by 2030 is uncertain but what is certain is that they are a model for other towns. There is a real sense of community here – the people have pride in their town and this is reflected in the things that go on. I hope that as other towns declare climate change emergencies, they look to Frome for inspiration.

Greenwashing has increased over recent years as the public have become more aware of environmental issues. The practice involves companies making misleading claims by marketing their products or services as environmentally friendly. Of course, even if something has been produced sustainably, the most sustainable option is to buy nothing at all! Ultimately, every product comes with some level of environmental cost. Whilst many of these products may be very aesthetically pleasing (and certainly Instagram-worthy), many are unnecessary and you can make use of items you already have at home.

Here are some tips to get you started:

1. Use containers you already own to store food both at home and on the go. We’ve built up quite a collection of takeaway tubs in our house – these are perfect for taking lunch into uni.
2. Take stainless steel cutlery with you. A bonus of not buying a bamboo set is that others won’t mistake it for being disposable!
3. Reuse old plastic bags when shopping. I do own a couple of tote bags but I find that it’s always handy to carry a spare bag – plastic ones are super light and take up little room.
4. Keep hold of glass jars for food storage (I hope to have a pantry full of these one day). There is no need to buy new ones and this saves the energy that would be used in the recycling process.
5. Keep hold of gift tins/ boxes. Some of these are really pretty and can be useful for keeping bits and bobs in – I like to use these for makeup and toiletries
6. Buy less paper. Keeping hold of scraps to write to-do lists on will save you money and trees.

I was recently tasked with creating a short video for my module in ‘Marine Biology and Conservation’. Working with my friends, we decided to investigate the use of single-use plastics and their degredation into microplastics and the impact this is having on our oceans.

We decided to visit Bournemouth to carry out a beach clean. The results shocked us. From afar, Bournemouth seems to be quite clean (I was actually worried we wouldn’t find much). However, a local resident revealed to us that the council plough the beach meaning that waste is simply buried. Once we began collecting, we found plastic waste everywhere. Everything from lighters to traffic cones. Much had washed up but some had clearly been littered. This video shows our findings.

Please be mindful about the waste you produce and where it ends up!