Horizontal hydraulic fracturing, ‘fracking’, is a way of extracting oil and/or gas. Water, sand and toxic chemicals are injected at high pressure into underground rocks to shatter them. This releases the gas/oil which can be collected. But investing in carbon-intensive fossil fuels is a distraction from the need to decarbonise our electricity supply. And it's hazardous. Studies show that fracking pollutes water supplies (with arsenic and lead), causes earthquakes, and spoils local communities. And there are nightmare stories coming form the States. Like in the town of Dimock, PA, residents have reported their water turning so brown that it stains crockery. Their water was later found to contain methane, and a host of toxic chemicals. But it gets worse. "My son had sores up and down his legs from the water." " My daughter... would have to get out the of the shower and lay on the floor." Those are the words from Greg Saunter, a local resident, whose water supply was shut off for his own good. He cannot shower in his own home. Or drink water out of his taps. Fracking has ruined his life. It cannot happen here. We call on the council to preserve the quality of life of its residents, and reject all planning applications for fracking.

Horizontal hydraulic fracturing, ‘fracking’, is a way of extracting oil and/or gas. Water, sand and toxic chemicals are injected at high pressure into underground rocks to shatter them. This releases the gas/oil which can be collected. But investing in carbon-intensive fossil fuels is a distraction from the need to decarbonise our electricity supply. And it's hazardous. Studies show that fracking pollutes water supplies (with arsenic and lead), causes earthquakes, and spoils local communities. And there are nightmare stories coming form the States. Like in the town of Dimock, PA, residents have reported their water turning so brown that it stains crockery. Their water was later found to contain methane, and a host of toxic chemicals. But it gets worse. "My son had sores up and down his legs from the water." " My daughter... would have to get out the of the shower and lay on the floor." Those are the words from Greg Saunter, a local resident, whose water supply was shut off for his own good. He cannot shower in his own home. Or drink water out of his taps. Fracking has ruined his life. It cannot happen here. We call on the council to preserve the quality of life of its residents, and reject all planning applications for fracking.

Horizontal hydraulic fracturing, ‘fracking’, is a way of extracting oil and/or gas. Water, sand and toxic chemicals are injected at high pressure into underground rocks to shatter them. This releases the gas/oil which can be collected. But investing in carbon-intensive fossil fuels is a distraction from the need to decarbonise our electricity supply. And it's hazardous. Studies show that fracking pollutes water supplies (with arsenic and lead), causes earthquakes, and spoils local communities. And there are nightmare stories coming form the States. Like in the town of Dimock, PA, residents have reported their water turning so brown that it stains crockery. Their water was later found to contain methane, and a host of toxic chemicals. But it gets worse. "My son had sores up and down his legs from the water." " My daughter... would have to get out the of the shower and lay on the floor." Those are the words from Greg Saunter, a local resident, whose water supply was shut off for his own good. He cannot shower in his own home. Or drink water out of his taps. Fracking has ruined his life. It cannot happen here. We call on the council to preserve the quality of life of its residents, and reject all planning applications for fracking.

The damage to the environment and economy of areas where this has been allowed is well documented. Poisoning of the water supplies, health issues, earthquakes are not imaginary and if you want an economic reason, property values can drop by 30% and you can find yourself unable to get house insurance. An estate agent in Poulton le Fylde, near one of Cuadrilla’s drilling sites, told the Observer "There are a lot of properties coming on to the market, and some of the owners are saying they want to get out before prices start dropping” Other local estate agents have said sales have fallen through because properties are near a fracking site. Herefordshire is an agricultural area and a tourist attraction, being an area of outstanding beauty. Experience in the US shows that fracking can create problems for local agriculture, including the loss of agricultural land, and concerns about water resources. Jumping forward to September 2015, you will have heard on BBC Hereford & Worcester that a new round of applications were to be allowed in the South of Herefordshire in the Wye Valley Area Of Outstanding Natural Beauty and in autumn of 2016 were issued. Thanks largely to public resistance accompanied by adverse oil prices South West Energy handed back the licences but made clear that this is a 'temporary' reprieve and they would be back, The fight continues ... Meanwhile a documentary is in editing stages at present. Thanks to those who have caught up with the plot and all the new additions to signatures. . Further info: Nationwide Mutual, the largest US farming insurance underwriter, announced in 2012 that “from an underwriting standpoint we do not have a comfort level with the unique risks associated with the fracking process to provide coverage at a reasonable price." What would be the impact on tourism of hundreds of shale gas wells and associated infrastructure? In Australia, local tourism bodies are among the opponents of unconventional gas developments. The Chartered Institute of Water and Environmental Management has said that the UK should “not encourage fracking as a part of our energy mix until there is more evidence that operations can be delivered safely, that environmental impacts are acceptable and that monitoring, reporting and mitigation requirements are comprehensive and effective. Mark Menzies, the Conservative MP whose constituency covers much of the area in Lancashire where Cuadrilla has been active, has said “I do not believe that the regulatory system is robust or transparent enough to instill public confidence should permission be granted to the industry.". Having fought off a previous attempt by South West Gas & Oil, we achieved a temporary stay, but with current news 2 years later in 2018 we can no longer consider ourselves safe we must raise attention to the fact that we are in an area where previous attempts have taken place. Go tell your friends again that this is no longer a distant threat but a very real one right on our doorstep . For recent updates watch our associated facebook pages. Here is an explanation for beginners: https://www.facebook.com/frackfreeshires/videos/1971358513123509/

Because the cranes are scheduled to be demolished despite almost universal support within the Salford community for them to be saved and restored as tourism attractions, and for future generations to be proud of the work of the dockers. Salford City Council have ignored the advice of English Heritage that the cranes should be listed locally as heritage assets and are scheduled to demolish them sometime in the summer, so it could be very soon. A Community Preservation Order was submitted to Salford City Council to save and restore the cranes but this has been rejected and the local community is now appealing to the Secretary of State for Communities & Local Government to make an immediate political intervention. We need all the help we can get with this campaign to save the cranes

On the 11th July, the Secretary of State, Eric Pickles, granted Gallagher Group planning permission to extend their Hermitage Quarry into Oaken Wood, a wildlife-rich area of Ancient Woodland near Maidstone in Kent. This is the first time that the legal protection of an Ancient Woodland site has been set aside in favour of economic growth. If this precedent is set, all of our cherished local wildlife sites are at risk, all on the say-so of one man. Nowhere is safe. Eric Pickles will go down in history as the Minister who removed protection from Ancient Woodland across the UK, the beginning of the end of our "green and pleasant land". With less than two years to the next election this government is very sensitive to public opinion. The plans to sell off our forests were stopped in their tracks when they realised the extent of the groundswell of opposition from the shires and beyond to the idea. Oaken Wood represents a line in the sand. We have less than 2% of our Ancient Woodland cover left. If we cannot prevent the destruction of one much-loved local woodland, an irreplaceable ecosystem home to European protected species such as dormice, reptiles and bats, we accept that economic growth is more important than any legal protection for the countryside,and pave the way for uncontrolled development with no regard to the damage to our environment.

Smithfield General Market is under threat. A major London landmark, the buildings are part of one of the greatest market parades in Europe built by Sir Horace Jones, the architect of Tower Bridge. Proposals from a group of investors and developers have been approved by the City of London Corporation. These involve major demolition of the buildings only leaving 3 stretches of street frontages standing. The plans will see the interiors, including the great market halls, completely demolished to make way for offices that will rise up above the remaining facades. There are already too many empty office buildings in London - there is no need to build more. Moreover, the City has hundreds of thousands of square metres already in the pipeline not far from Smithfield. These proposals will cause substantial harm to the conservation area and will break up a complete group of protected historic market buildings. These buildings have been standing empty for too long. We are backing a fully-funded, viable, conservation-led alternative that would preserve the General Market and Fish Market in their entirety and allow them to open within months as a food market and a place for cafes, retail, bars and restaurants. The City of London Corporation was advised to put the site on the open market following a public inquiry five years ago, to allow a conservation-led scheme to come forward. The City, who own the freehold, never did this. We are asking the Secretary of State and his Planning Minister to call the application in for a full public inquiry, to ensure that this important site is saved for the nation. The campaign already has the support of all the National Amenity Societies, many local businesses and residents, and notable names such as Michelin-starred chef Fergus Henderson, author and playwright Alan Bennett, and MP Glenda Jackson. “If you go to St Bartholomew’s and then walk through Smithfield, it is like walking from one cathedral to another. You wouldn’t pull down St Bartholomew’s, nor should you pull down Smithfield. Smithfield was the scene of many martyrdoms – this would be another.” Alan Bennett “You can’t stop change but you should be able to recognize when something is extraordinary which Smithfield General Market is! This is the time to say no.” Fergus Henderson For more information please see SAVE's website: http://www.savebritainsheritage.org/news/campaigns.php Link to the most recent press article, in the Financial Times, August 2nd. ‘Smithfield: Alternative option for Reviving historic London Market.’ http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/1510ebfa-f83f-11e2-b4c4-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2bBXyYs6d

Thurrock is the most polluted area in the whole of UK but the Government have put forward proposals for a third Thames crossing between Essex and Kent which could make local people's lives a misery. Option C for the crossing would devastate over 100 acres of Green Belt as well as destroying a Fen, villages and a wildlife Hospital. Thousands of people will be given no choice but to sell their homes to the government and relocate. There is very little pristine land left in this part of the country. The new Thames crossing is being proposed on the grounds of reducing delays and congestion. Yet evidence from the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England shows that new routes actually increase congestion and road usage rather than reduce it. And with toll gates due to be removed on the existing crossing and bridge from 2014 the problem could be eased without the need to build another. Kent and Essex councils have already backed route C and whilst the department for transport says that it is considering all options there are indications that the decision has already made. Not only this, but at £5 billion Option C is more than double the cost of other routes at a time when budgets are stretched. Please sign the petition and help us stop these plans.

Even the analysis used by the Council to justify the change suggests that cycling speeds will only be reduced by 1 or 2 mph. In the space of a couple of hours, over 120 users of Wandsworth Common signed a petition to oppose the change. The Council chose to ignore them, to ignore their own policy, to ignore the needs of disabled people and ignore common sense. The Council used money from Transport for London to put the lines in. They now plan to use more money from TfL to take them out! Doing nothing would be infinitely preferable to this crazy scheme. By spending a fraction of £85,000 on simply improving the existing lanes and signage, the safety of all users could be improved. (NB funding amount was originally stated in this petition to be £82K).

It is Public Open Space and, by law, the proposed sell-off should have been the first proposal to be publicised. Even the councillors were not told until all the following decisions were made.The area in question is recognised on the council's own documentation in 2002 as "A Site of Importance to Nature" also as "the least disturbed woodland in the entire Country Park" The Country Park Boundary (set by Stockport MBC) was conceived and made public to make sure that the urban sprawl did not ruin the Country Park and to conserve wildlife and places of importance to Nature. If such concepts are obsolete in less than eleven years , what hope is there for our children?

Since the Wheatsheaf has been refurbished the pub has become a real magnet for local people, showing that in the right hands it is very much a viable business. On Friday 19th July rumours were circulating that the lease had expired and the present tenant Gregarious (formerly Antic) were on 24hr closure notice. There was also concern that whilst Gregarious want to buy the lease they were being outbid by Tesco. On Saturday 20th July this petition was launched. Some 10 days later, over 8,000 people had signed the petition. Early wins - but there is still work to do: Sadiq Khan MP received a letter from Enterprise Inns (the owner of the freehold) on Tuesday 30th in the afternoon stating that they are no longer selling the pub. Tesco have also, via our MP, confirmed that they are no longer looking to purchase the pub. There are a few on-going actions to ensure that we can secure the pub should Enterprise Inns change their minds. An application to get the pub listed as a community asset has been made, an application to get an article 4 listing has been made, and we are also looking to get the building listed as a 'Wandsworth Borough Council Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest'. Tooting is fortunate to have a diverse range of shops, and a lot of independent traders. We need to show the council the amount of support that exists to keep this community asset. On the blog you can find out more about how you can help to make sure that we win this battle. Tweet: #SavetheWheatsheaf and link to the petition please.

There are many potential sites for new houses around Leeds which could be developed to create affordable homes within short distances of the City Centre where most employment is found. By allowing development of green fields on the outskirts of Leeds, the Council are increasing the congestion on local routes and public transport, as well as destroying some of Aireborough's most beautiful resources and it's uniqueness of character.Say NO to thoughtless and ill-concieved solutions to demand for homes. Say YES to a more careful and considerate approach to housing which respects and enhances Aireborough as a beautiful place to live.