Do Not Adjust Your Set

Drylaw sees the big picture

Drylaw now has it’s own public big TV screen. The high-tech equipment was installed last night and community leaders believe the big screen will attract new visitors to the area.

A spokesman for Drylaw Telford Community Council said: “Although it’s not as large as we were promised we accept that money is tight and are delighted that the council has agreed to locate a big screen in Drylaw. Drylaw has really needed this for a long time – we don’t think it’s right that the city centre gets everything, Edinburgh is more than Princes Street, the Bridges and Lothian Road. Now local people will be able to gather together in their own community to watch major sporting events and Strictly Come Dancing – it will help generate a new community spirit and will become a talking point, a bit like the Angel of the North. I’m convinced tourists will flock to Drylaw.”

A council spokesperson said: “The City of Edinburgh Council is often accused of wasting council tax payers money on expensive vanity projects like education and roads. This exciting initiative clearly demonstrates that this council is listening to communities.”

EDRA action to target Drylaw dog fouling

EDRA (Easter Drylaw Residents Association) members, supported by Environmental Wardens, are planning two Days of Action to tackle dog fouling in our local area. We will be handing out leaflets and speaking to as many people as possible.

Anyone who would like to come along & support this initiative are very welcome – see details below:

Friday 23 August:

10am – Noon: In & around Drylaw Shopping Centre; meet at 10am outside the Key Store.

2pm – 4pm: In and around the Green Space at ED Gardens.

Monday 26 August:

10am-Noon: Morning Walkabout – meet at 10am Easter Drylaw Way/Bank.

2pm – 4pm: In and around Easter Drylaw Park. Meet beside the CEC notice board at the Park/Easter Drylaw Drive.

Mhairi Curran, Easter Drylaw Residents Association

Week of action to tackle road litter

A call to clean up and clamp down on litter on Scotland’s roads has been issued for Scotland’s first Litter Week of Action.

Organised by Zero Waste Scotland on behalf of the Transport Litter Group, the annual day of action has been extended to a week of dedicated action to tackle litter on our roads and railways.

Commuters, employers, and transport providers and support agencies are all being encouraged to get involved from 19– 25 August.

A recent litter audit has revealed that an average of seven bottles and cans can be found on every 100 metres of Scotland’s roads, creating a hazard to road users and wildlife, and costs millions to remove.

Supporters of the Week can help to raise awareness of the negative impact and cost of transport litter. Actions available range from something simple such as adding a web banner to your website or displaying a poster in your workplace; to organising activities such as a day of awareness raising activities or targeted enforcement.

Organisations including BEAR Scotland, Scotland TranServ, Transport Scotland, McDonald’s and various local authorities have already committed to taking part in the Week.

The week of action follows the launch of a new consultation from the Scottish Government which intends to bring forward a final National Litter Strategy – the first since devolution – early in 2014. The “Towards a Litter Free Scotland” consultation will run until 27 September.

Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said: “It is shocking that on average there are four plastic bottles and three drinks cans littered on every 100 metres of our major roads in Scotland. It’s a blight, contributes to punctures and can cause accidents not to mention the fact that clearing it from our road and rail sides is a hazardous task.

“Littering is unacceptable – and in the Year of Natural Scotland and as we approach 2014 when we welcome the world to Scotland, it’s important that we show our country at its best. We have set out action to tackle Scotland’s litter problem in our National Litter Strategy consultation and are asking people to have their say on this during the summer.

“This Litter Week of Action is a great opportunity to highlight this issue and I’d encourage people to work together by taking action during the week so that we can show that littering is not tolerated here.”

Iain Gulland, Director, Zero Waste Scotland said: “2014 is set to be an important year for Scotland, with events including the Ryder Cup, Commonwealth Games and Homecoming, and as such it’s vital that we take steps to rid the country of its litter problem and show it off at its absolute best.

“Litter on the road and in transport hubs doesn’t just look bad, it’s also a waste of valuable resources. Commonly littered items like drinks bottles and cans could be recycled and help to boost the economy.

“I would urge everyone to get involved in this great week of planned activity and help to spread the message that throwing litter from vehicles or public transport is not acceptable.”

To get involved, visit

http://www.zerowastescotland.org.uk/content/Transport-Litter-Week-of-Action.

Innertube map goes green

Edinburgh’s unique Innertube map is now celebrating the launch of its third version – the Greenspaces edition.

This green map highlights the many parks and green spaces that are easily accessible by bike or on foot using Edinburgh’s amazing network of off-street paths, made up of old railway lines, canal towpath, the Water of Leith walkway, coastal promenades, routes through parks or on dedicated segregated paths. As well as linking to parks and open spaces, most of the paths themselves go through woodland, parkland or by the sea at Silverknowes and Portobello.

The map has been created on behalf of the Edinburgh & Lothians Greenspace Trust (ELGT) in partnership with The Bike Station, by Mark Sydenham, the originator of the Innertube map concept. The map is part of the wider Innertube map project, a campaign to improve and promote Edinburgh’s 75km of traffic-free off-road paths, characterised by a London Underground style map. This latest Greenspaces edition of the map highlights 54 of the city’s 145 parks, which have easy or close access to the path network, and is designed to encourage Edinburgh residents and visitors to use the routes to walk and cycle to green destinations throughout the City, rather than taking the car.

The Innertubemap project was established thanks to funding from the People’s Postcode Trust, a grant giving body funded entirely by players of People’s Postcode Lottery, who funded this edition, and continues with a wide range of environmental improvement work along the routes, community volunteering sessions and guided activities, which are publicised on the project’s blog at http://innertubemap.com.

“We’re excited to be launching a green edition of the Innertube map and hope that it will inspire people throughout the city to take to the paths and explore the wealth of green networks, paths and open spaces that Edinburgh has to offer,” said Liz Stewart, Edinburgh & Lothians Greenspace Trust.

The map has been designed as an attractive, pocket-sized A7 format, which folds out to show the A3 map on one side, with useful information about environmental organisations on the reverse. The map will be distributed to libraries, community centres, businesses and other organisations over the summer and anyone wishing supplies should contact info@elgt.org.uk.

The Innertube map project continues throughout this year, thanks to further funding from the Central Scotland Green Network Development Fund and Scottish Natural Heritage, supporting environmental improvement and community activity work delivered by the ELGT, with a programme of free community events and activities, all of which celebrate the Year of Natural Scotland 2013.

The Greenspaces edition of the Edinburgh Innertube map, is the third edition of the map since its launch in 2011. This edition follows the publication by The Bike Station of the student edition, funded by SESTRANS and Edinburgh’s universities and colleges, and the first edition, funded by players of People’s Postcode Lottery. The map, designed by the Hillside Agency, has already made a big impact, with over 80,000 copies distributed to date.

Good causes to benefit from carrier bag levy

The Scottish government will introduce a 5p levy on plastic bags from October 2014. Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said the charge should reduce bag use in Scotland and raise £5m a year for good causes.

Mr Lochhead said: “Discarded carrier bags highlight our throwaway society. We use more carrier bags per head in Scotland than any other part of the UK and this is unsustainable. They are a highly visible aspect of litter and we are taking decisive action to decrease their number. By reducing the amount being carelessly discarded we can cut litter and its impact on our environment and economy. A small charge should also encourage us all to stop and think about what we discard and what can be re-used. This charge is not a tax but will see retailers donating the proceeds to charity – this could be up to £5m per year after retailers have covered their costs.”

Iain Gulland, the director of Zero Waste Scotland, said: “We can all reduce the impact of carrier bags by making sure that when we must take one, we re-use it over and over again as many times as possible and then recycle it at the end of its life.”

Retailers have expressed concerns over the introduction of the charge, however.

A CBI Scotland spokesman said: “Modest economic growth coupled with a continuing shift to internet shopping is making conditions challenging for the high street, which is already feeling the ill-effects of the Scottish government’s £95m retail rates surcharge and its £36m rates levy on empty shops and other premises. The plans for costly additional red tape in the form of an environmental levy on carrier bags, after significant success recently in reducing the use of plastic bags by voluntary means, will only make a difficult situation even tougher for retail businesses.”

The Scottish Retail Consortium says that carrier bag use has already fallen by 40% and there is a need to concentrate on bigger issues. SRC Director Fiona Moriarty said: “The Scottish government has decided that it wants further and faster reductions and the only way it can achieve this is through legislation.

“However, it is our view that if we focus solely on plastic bags we are in danger of being distracted from much larger and more important issues around waste. The SRC will be working with the Scottish government to ensure that the legislation is proportionate and as far as possible consistent across the UK to avoid confusion for customers and businesses.”

Edinburgh’s top, say tenants

Edinburgh tenants have given Council housing in the city a vote of confidence in a new survey. Over 1000 Council tenants took part in the survey, which showed that satisfaction ratings are among the highest of any similar landlord in the UK.

Of those questioned, 89% were satisfied with the quality of their home, giving Edinburgh the highest score among similar landlords. 90% of participants responded that they are happy with the housing service they receive and only 4% responded that they are dissatisfied. Satisfaction levels with key services, customer care and engagement were either equal to or higher than other large landlords in the UK.

Neighbourhoods were also rated highly with 92% of tenants stating that they are happy with their neighbourhoods and only 2% were not.

Housing Convener, Councillor Ricky Henderson, said: “This feedback from tenants reinforces the high reputation of the Council’s housing service and is a real vote of confidence.

“The Scottish Housing Regulator has already awarded our housing service the highest grade of any local authority, so it is encouraging to see that our tenants are also satisfied with their homes and the service they receive.”

The Council has worked closely with Edinburgh Tenants Federation in designing the survey. Both organisations will work together to develop an action for any necessary improvements identified from the results.

Betty Stevenson, Convener of Edinburgh Tenants Federation, said: “The Federation has been closely involved in developing the survey and we are pleased with the results showing high satisfaction. We will be working with the Council to make sure that any identified improvements are put in place.”

Do you agree with those survey results? Are you saisfied with the city council’s housing service? Let us know!

Complaint over LACK of council cuts in ‘forgotten estate’

Muirhouse in June - a 'forgotten estate'? — Muirhouse in June – a ‘forgotten estate’?

Usually, community groups and voluntary organisations are up in arms over council cuts to services in their area. However one Muirhouse man is on the warpath over a lack of cuts!

TRIM (Tenants and Residents in Muirhouse) member Robert Pearson has written to the local council team to demand action over the state of local green spaces – weeds, long grass and the general state of the area.

He said: “Yet again I feel it necessary to email you regarding Muirhouse, I am absolutely fed up with the way Muirhouse is being left to rot by you, Edinburgh City Council. It was you who caused the area to fall apart in the first place and now you are leaving us in a mess.”

He goes on: “Back in March this year local children join the Centipede project and planted over 2000 bulbs which spelt Muirhouse Is Home (pictured below). It looked fantastic, the children loved it and it was never vandalised. Unfortunately we are not able to see it anymore as the grass and weeds have taking over the place. Walking around the estate the green areas are all overgrown and basically in a mess; why is this happening again? Does this happen elsewhere in the city? Or does it just happen in the forgotten estate?”

North Neighbourhood Team Business Manager Mandy Rudden said she has requested information from her Regeneration and Task Force colleagues and will update Robert when this has been received.

Local support for Leith Walk revamp

Local residents and organisations have given the thumbs-up to council plans to improve Leith Walk. Ambitious plans would see upgrades and improvements along the full 2.2km length of the famous Leith thoroughfare.

Following a comprehensive public consultation earlier this year, the Council announced it would be seeking additional funding from the Scottish Government in order to give Leith Walk the best possible revamp.

At a 6 June meeting in McDonald Road Library, an enhanced design – which would make the thoroughfare more cycle and pedestrian-friendly – was presented by the Leith Programme team to local residents, business leaders and community groups.

Features of the enhanced scheme include:

clear pedestrian priority over 1.8km, including safer crossing points;
significant sections of uninterrupted cycle space (both dedicated on and off road sections);
redesigned, simplified junctions;
largely segregated cycle provision from Pilrig Street uphill for around 1km to Picardy Place;
two-way segregated cycle provision from Annandale Street to the Omni centre;
replacement of London Rd roundabout with a signalled junction to significantly enhance conditions for both pedestrians and cyclists;
1.75m wide cycle lane provision on the road in both directions between Foot of the Walk and Dalmeny Street (into town) Pilrig Street (out of town);
Narrower road environment with frequent zebra crossings, with a design that supports slower vehicle speeds;
a simplified streetscape more conducive to community activity, trading and business; and
better connectivity for sustainable forms of travel between the waterfront and the city centre.

Given the scope of this new design and the need to obtain a Traffic Regulation Order to implement the changes, stakeholders were advised that opting for the enhanced design would affect the timescale.

For anyone wishing to view the designs in detail and speak to the project team about any aspect of the programme, a drop in session will be held at

McDonald Road Library on Tuesday 23 July, from 2 – 8pm.

Councillor Lesley Hinds, Transport and Environment Convener, said: “It was very useful for us to be able to present this potential enhanced design for Leith Walk to local stakeholders tonight. It prompted a lot of interesting debate and we are pleased that there was such overwhelming support for the plans from those present.”

Sustrans Scotland Director, John Lauder, said: “Sustrans Scotland wants to see Leith Walk reach its full potential as a busy, vibrant shopping and residential street. In order to achieve this aim, the City of Edinburgh Council, in partnership with ourselves, has put forward an ambitious proposal to Transport Scotland for the full 2.2km length of the street.

“Sustrans strongly backs the features of this ‘enhanced design’ for Leith Walk, including the addition of new crossing points, wider pavements and better cycle lane provision. We now call on the Scottish Government to carefully consider the Council’s ‘enhanced design’ proposal and fully back its implementation.”

Keith Hales, Vice Chairman of the Leith Business Association, who attended the meeting, said: “This is a massive improvement on what we thought the designs were going to be and we will be commending the designs to the membership.”

Charlotte Encombe, Chair of Greener Leith, said: “Greener Leith welcomes the improvements shown in these exciting new draft designs for Leith Walk, which will give pedestrians and cyclists a vastly improved public realm and help to revitalise the economy of the area. We are also delighted that officers and councillors have included local people’s priorities for the street and have made real changes to the design. We look forward to collaborating on the detail of the designs as the project moves forward.”

Council seeks support to spruce up city

The city council is calling on local green groups to back Edinburgh’s 2013 Britain in Bloom bid by helping to spruce up their local neighbourhood.

It’s Your Neighbourhood, run by Keep Scotland Beautiful, is a scheme that aims to bring members of the community together to make a positive change to the place they live, work or spend their leisure time. It is open to groups of all sizes who are interested in cleaning up and greening up their local area.

The initiative forms part of the Royal Horticultural Society’s Britain in Bloom competition, in which Edinburgh is competing against Bristol and the London Borough of Hillingdon in the City category.

Local community groups or businesses who enter the It’s Your Neighbourhood scheme will be mentored by assessors in an effort to improve and progress local green projects. This could be help with identifying funding sources, gardening and maintenance advice or providing access to tools.

Successful participants are presented with a certificate of achievement of either Establishing, Improving, Developing, Thriving, or Outstanding.

Councillor Lesley Hinds, the city’s Environment Convener, (pictured above) said: “Edinburgh will be representing Scotland later this year in the prestigious Britain in Bloom competition and so we’re calling in all green-fingered city residents to back our bid and do their bit to spruce up their local neighbourhood.”

Derek Robertson, Chief Executive of Keep Scotland Beautiful – the independent charity which campaigns, acts and educates on a range of local, national and global environmental issues which affect people’s quality of life, said: “We would welcome any community group who is working to clean up and green up their local area in Edinburgh to register for this years’ It’s Your Neighbourhood campaign. It’s Your Neighbourhood is about giving community groups who work tirelessly year round, national recognition and support for their efforts, and currently we have over 70 groups registered from across Scotland.”

Registration for It’s Your Neighbourhood closes at the end of April. Further information can be found on the Beautiful Scotland website.

MP calls for action to halt bee decline

Local MP Mark Lazarowicz is calling for a precautionary moratorium on three pesticides – imidacloprid, clothianidin and TMX – linked to the decline of the UK’s bee populations. The North and Leith MP is a longstanding member of the House of Commons Environmental Audit Committee and its new hard-hitting report on Pollinators and Pesticides is published today.

Mark Lazarowicz (pictured above) said: “As part of our inquiry into insects and insecticides we looked at the sharp decline in the number of bees in the UK and there’s growing concern that the use of certain chemicals might be to blame. Bees matter to both gardeners and farmers because of their role in pollinating fruit and vegetables as well as flowers. They are fundamental to our ecology and economy. The scientific evidence points to the need for a precautionary moratorium to be introduced. DEFRA should listen to it and act.”

Two-thirds of wild insect pollinator species – such as bumblebees, hoverflies, butterflies, carrion flies, beetles, midges and moths – have suffered population declines in the UK. Managed honeybees have also experienced unusually high mortality rates, decreased fertility, increased susceptibility to disease and the loss of hives. Similar trends have been observed in the US and other European countries.

Disease, habitat loss and climate change can all affect insect populations, but a growing body of peer-reviewed research suggests that the use of one group of insecticides is having an especially damaging impact on pollinators — neonicotinoids. Applied to seeds, these systemic pesticides are widely used in the UK on oilseed rape, cereals, maize, sugar beet and crops grown in glasshouses.

Authorities in France, Germany, Italy and Slovenia have already suspended the use of some neonicotinoids in certain circumstances. The European Commission has also proposed an EU-wide moratorium on the use of imidacloprid, clothianidin and TMX on crops attractive to bees, following a recent risk warning from the European Food Safety Authority. The UK has refused to take domestic action or to support the EU proposal.

Many of the UK’s largest garden retailers, including B&Q, Wickes and Homebase, have voluntarily withdrawn non-professional plant protection products that contain neonicotinoids. The report recommends a full ban on the sale of neonicotinoids for public domestic use in order to create an urban safe haven for pollinators.

Pesticide manufacturers often claim that studies linking their products to bee decline are flawed or inconclusive and that other factors are primarily to blame, such as the Varroa mite. But although the agrochemical industry has produced many studies on the environmental effect of pesticides, it keeps most of its data secret on grounds of commercial confidentiality.

The report warns that this lack of transparency is preventing a fuller understanding of the problem. The MPs call on the industry to place the results of its trials and studies in the public domain so that they can be subjected to open academic scrutiny. Defra should help companies establish which genuinely commercially sensitive details need to be redacted to make this possible.

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