Charting the charter: part II

Written by Councillor Paul Donovan Wednesday, 06 February 2019

Councillor Donovan (centre) at a litter pick last year. Volunteers are invited to join another litter pick on 16 February from 10am; meet on the corner of Woodbine Place and the High Street

In the second of a series of articles following the progress of Wanstead's environmental charter, Councillor Paul Donovan looks at the work taking place and how the project is gaining traction.

The work of getting the Wanstead Environmental Charter up and running is really taking off. The aim of the charter is to bring together the whole community to confront climate change, pollution and loss of biodiversity.

The ways in which this action is to be taken involves cleaner journeys, more vegetation, less plastic waste and litter, greener homes and low-impact living. The different stakeholders in Wanstead all need to step up and play a part. These groups include the council, businesses, civil society, schools and, perhaps most importantly, individuals.

Already, there has been a focus on reducing plastic use and litter around the area. An aim must be for Wanstead High Street to go plastic-free. There are conversations planned with various shops on the High Street as to what can be done to reduce plastic use. It would be great if one of the shops could follow the example of Budgens in Camden, which has moved in the plastic-free direction. I am sure it would be a real draw if at least one of our shops could go down this route.

There have been litter picks arranged, whilst the council are at present consulting on plans for a better recycling scheme. Though one key theme has to be to stop producing so much waste. It was amazing to see how much waste was produced over Christmas in Wanstead. Do we really need to use so much stuff?

Energy efficiency is an area where individuals and businesses can make a really positive impact in terms of reducing the carbon imprint. Just using things like LED bulbs and making sure when changing appliances like fridges that energy efficient devices are used can make a huge difference.

On the subject of cleaner journeys, the council has been consulting on the provision of electric vehicle charging points (see last issue of Wanstead Village Directory). This is an excellent way to reduce emissions in the area but people have to act to make the demand.

Schools can play a key role in making our area more environmentally sustainable. There is already some excellent work going on, such as the edible garden at Snaresbrook Primary. Nationally, there is a drive to cut single-use plastics from schools, with an ultimate aim of cutting plastic altogether. The Wanstead Environmental Charter working group are looking at how all our local schools can be brought together to address these issues.

So, things are definitely starting to happen. Much of the information included in this article is already up on the Wanstead Environmental Charter Facebook page. A website for the charter is under construction, ready to go live very soon. However, what is really needed is for more people to come forward and get involved in making the charter a reality.

For more information on the charter and to get involved, visit wavidi.co/charter

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