I had an interesting meeting last week with Mark Buckton, who is recruiting a team of Recycling Champions in Cambridge. The Champions will be volunteers who promote recycling, passing on news and tips to their friends and neighbours.

Every tin can, newspaper or potato peeling that isn’t recycled has to go to landfill. Methane from landfill sites escapes into the atmosphere and contributes to climate change. Water drains through waste materials, picking up pollutants on its course. Meanwhile, more energy is used creating new things, transporting them, etc.

Landfill also costs us money – £40 a tonne and rising. Last year, over 25,000 tonnes of household rubbish from Cambridge black bins was sent to landfill. We are burying over a million pounds a year in the ground.

It is estimated that 80% of the black bin rubbish could be recycled, often just by putting it in a different bin, but many people find recycling difficult or confusing. So the Council is looking for enthusiastic people in the community who can spread the word and encourage everyone to join in. Activities are up to the individual’s availability and time, but might include leafletting, putting up posters, running a stand at local events, giving talks, and spotting any barriers to recycling and passing them to the Council.

No special experience or knowledge is required as free training will be provided. People living in flats or shared premises are especially welcome.

For more information, please email mark.buckton@cambridge.gov.uk, telephone 01223 457673, or read more at the Council’s website. Recycling

Plastics recycling

Opening times, online galleries and event information at:http://www.williamsart.co.uk/

Cambridge’s South Area Committee this evening determined the following planning applications:

42 Hartington Grove: 2-storey rear extension REFUSED

15 Fitzwilliam Road: demolition of extension and erection of new extension APPROVED

52 Glebe Road: demolition of house and erection of new 3-storey house APPROVED

St Mary’s School Bateman Street: demolition of rear extension and erection of new 4-storey building REFUSED

157 Church End: erection of two houses APPROVED

Government requires public bodies active in the area of public safety to produce an annual plan setting out their priorities for the year. In Cambridge, there is a Community Safety Partnership comprising the city and county councils as well as the police, health services, voluntary organizations and a trade body of local businesses.

The plan was presented to city councillors last Monday (18th January).

Five themes continue from previous years: house burglary and personal robberty, alcohol-related violence, anti-social behaviour, domestic violence and reducing reoffending, together with a special project to tackle cycle theft.

Analysis of shop theft,the links between drug and alcohol abuse and theft were added as new areas.

Members were keen to emphasize their support for continuing to combat cycle theft, and it was pointed out that too often, cycle theft is a direct consequence of inadequate parking arrangements. Fortunately, the City Council has been addressing this, with newly installed cycle ‘loops’ at lamp-posts, the well used cycle park underneath Grand Arcade, and a study of new sites for bike racks.

Although this supp0rt was consensual, the lone Conservative councillor, Chris Howell, moved an amendment for the Partnership to prioritize cycle theft, despite assurances that this was already happening. It reminded me of those boys on the bus who insist on pressing the button even when the ‘Bus stopping’ sign is already lit up, so they are able to say ‘I did it’.

The Leader of the Council, Cllr Ian Nimmo-Smith, agreed to relay all comments back to the Partnership.

Councillors this week raised concerns over a change to the Section 30 dispersal order in the Mill Road area, and the way in which the decision was taken.

Section 30 dispersal orders are part of the Labour Government’s Anti-Social  Behaviour Act of 2003, and give the police powers to make people leave the area as a method of dealing with anti-social behaviour.

At last Monday’s meeting of Cambridge City Council’s Strategy and Resources Scrutiny meeting, councillors questioned the reducing of the area covered by the dispersal order. The order has been renewed for a further six months but for an area almost half the size it was before, and no longer including the cricket ground and cemetery.

Members of the  public, John Green who lives in the area, and Richard Taylor, a regular attender of council meetings and councillors questioned this decision, taken over the Christmas/ New Year holiday period, and expressed concern about the lack of consultation with local people as well as drawing attention to continued problems with drink-related nuisance, including public urination and intimidation. Police undertook to reimpose the original order if anti-social behaviour escalates again, but were disappointingly vague as to what level of anti-social behaviour would trigger any action.

The East Area Committee has been asked to discuss this when it next meets.

The City Council had cleared the graffiti completely from the bus stop by Friday, thanks for the rapid response!

To report graffiti within the city, email graffiti@cambridge.gov.uk.

No sign of action on the broken timetable display from the County Council yet; let’s hope it doesn’t take too long.

Real time information — the lit-up displays at bus stops that tell you when the buses are on their way — are good examples of bus companies and councils working together, and they are very useful if you’re trying to decide which bus to take, or whether it’s quicker to walk.

I know that because when (occasionally) a display is out of order, people tell me!

At present, this is the case with the display at the stop outside the Perse School on Hills Road. I noticed this one myself as it’s my regular bus stop, and as the bus shelter is copiously adorned with graffiti my guess is that the time display may be the work of a vandal.

I have reported both the broken RTI display and the graffiti, to the County Council and e City Council respectively. It will be interesting to see which gets sorted out first … do let me know.

Building site Back in July, Cambridge City Council put forward four changes to the law for the Government to consider, all with a common theme, making our local community more sustainable.

Under the terms of the Sustainable Communities Act of 2006, supported by the Liberal Democrat City Council, the government has a duty to consider such ideas from local authority areas.

In Cambridge we have been enthusiastic about this Act for some time and I was delighted when our Full Council voted through my motion supporting it, all part of the campaign to get the government to do so too.

Of the local councils, only the City Council put forward any suggestions. One assumes the Conservatives on the County Council are happy with the way things are! Cambridge City Council involved a whole host of groups and individuals in the process of coming up with ideas, from small pressure groups to businesses, schools and colleges. The ideas were narrowed down to four and I’m pleased to report that the Local Government Association has given us its backing for two of the four:

Enable the City Council to keep all income from council house rents and sales to use to build new sustainable housing in the city

Encourage and achieve higher energy efficiency in buildings.

Here is a copy of the full set of proposals.

The LGA has put together a report on proposals from all councils that have taken part, including the ones it doesn’t support as well as the ones that it does. The next step is for them to negotiate with the Government on how or whether the shortlisted proposals can be implemented.

So we are not home and dry yet but we have passed the first hurdle!