Water returns and Severn Trent set to be fined for leaks

This afternoon there have been reports of Randwick folk getting their water back - an hour ago it gushed from my own taps in Bread Street - wonderful! Although it is still not drinkable and free supplies of bottled water will still be given out.

Photo: Turkish water being given out free: goodness knows where else all the water is coming from

It is ironic to hear that Severn Trent, who have been unable to supply customers with mains water because of floods, could this week be punished for failing to curb leaks sufficiently. Ofwat, the industry regulator, is planning to impose a multi-million pound penalty on the company.

Photo: Tewkesbury floods

The regulator has the powers to impose a fine of 10 per cent of Severn Trent's turnover from water services ie more than £50m. However the regulator is understood to be seeking an agreement for the company to pay an even greater amount to replace pipes - possibly double that figure - the cash would then benefit customers rather than the Treasury. The problem is that the expenditure must come from shareholders' reserves and will not be recoverable through price rises - does this mean shareholders profits might be damaged?

Photo: Marc Beswethherwick, Wallington floods

Ofwat had been planning to reveal leakage figures for the water company on Monday, but has delayed the announcement, partly because of the floods and the minor task of handing out 5m litres of bottled water a day, repairing Mythe and using tankers to fill 1,800 bowsers parked throughout the area.

Ofwat is also planning to fine Severn Trent for providing misleading customer-performance data. Plus there will also be an additional penalty imposed on the company when the Serious Fraud Office completes its investigation into false leakage figures given to the regulator before 2005.

For many previous posts re floods click on 'floods' label below - and Glos Green party initial response here.

Lastly a leaflet is being circulated by Severn Trent Water regarding the fact that supplies are being reinstated, but should not be used for drinking. The problem is that this leaflet is being delivered in areas where supplies have not been affected. The District Council have had an extra 300 phone calls already from people concerned and an increase on demands on bottled water supplies. The advice is clear - if your supply has not been affected, you should continue using it as normal.

A carbon-lite life is a happier life

New research shows Britain is worse at translating its use of natural resources into long and happy lives for its people than two-thirds of its European counterparts. It also shows we are burning up more fossil fuels for less "wellbeing" than we did 40 years ago.

The New Economics Foundation (nef) last week published a Happy Planet Index that ranks European countries according to a combination of life expectancy, life satisfaction and carbon footprint. It shows no link between the amount of resources a country consumes per head and the wellbeing of its population.

In the report Britain lies 21st out of 30 countries on nef's measure, because it has one of the highest per capita carbon footprints, behind only Luxembourg, Estonia and Finland, but only mid-table scores for both life expectancy and satisfaction. Iceland tops the Happy Planet index for Europe thanks to abundant renewable natural resources and high-ranking scores on the two happiness measures. Northern European countries such as Denmark and Sweden are highly efficient at treading lightly but happily on Earth.

"These findings question what the economy is there for. What is the point if we burn vast quantities of fossil fuels to make, buy and consume ever more stuff, without noticeably benefiting our wellbeing?"
Andrew Simms, NEF's policy director

If everyone in the world consumed at the same rate as Britain today, it would take about three planets like Earth to give the necessary resources. Yet I was interested to read that almost a third of respondents to a recent BBC poll said they would prefer to live in the 1960s than today.

As nef shows in their look at 34,000 Europeans a sense of wellbeing was determined largely by income equality, trust within the population and voluntary and political engagement. The report called for a three-pronged attack to make Europe deliver a better, carbon efficient, quality of life.

Governments should set legally binding targets for carbon reduction in each country to meet the EU's aim of limiting global temperature rises to below 2C above pre-industrial level. Policymakers should also work to reverse growing inequality in income, education, health and social opportunity. And employers must be encouraged to promote flexible working and allow staff to develop full lives outside the workplace, the study urged. It concluded: "Rather than turn the clock back, we need to look to a post-consumption era that is aware of the false promise of materialism and utilises wealth and technology to deliver more efficiency, rather than just more."

"Countries like Iceland, the highest scoring nation on our Index clearly show that happiness doesn't have to cost the earth. Iceland's combination of strong social policies and extensive use of renewable energy demonstrate that living within our environmental means doesn't mean sacrificing human well-being - in fact, it could even make us happier. By learning from the differences between European countries and by copying the best practices, we believe it will be possible to both greatly reduce our carbon footprint, and increase our well-being."
Nic Marks, founder of nef's Centre for well-being

"Our economy has been binge-drinking fossil fuels for decades. But not only has this been wrecking the environment we all depend on, it's not been making us any happier either. Gordon Brown needs to set the UK in a new direction - where the aim of Government is to improve the quality of people's lives, without costing the earth. This means an explicit focus on the type of economy we have, not just its size - we need low-carbon and high-happiness as goals for our society, not just ramped-up GDP."
Simon Bullock, economy campaigner for Friends of the Earth

Let us hope that these findings undermine fears that reducing carbon emissions in the battle against global warming will destroy hard-won gains in the developed world's quality of life since the Second World War. See nef report here

Water supplies begin to return but not here yet

Huge relief as new floods did not materialise after rain which was less than feared - and it is great news that progress at Mythe has been good - water is starting to be pumped again - for the majority of homes reconnection is still several days away as 1,200 miles of water pipes still needed to be re-filled and water will not be drinkable initially.

Photos: bowser spotting! The first pic of 2 bowsers outside the Slavery Arch and Mathews Way (an area which by all accounts still has water).

All this is a little ironic as this area finally gets its bowsers - some in places they were meant to be but others seemed to be extras plonked down even in places which apparently have water. At least we'll have use of them for a while and we still don't know how soon water will return.

Meanwhile volunteers were being sought to man the bottled water give-aways in the area.

How high did the water flow?
Evesham: whole town centre submerged up to one metre under water, but water peaks in many places were impressive. Norms for British Summer are 50 to 70 cm above the sea level but in:
- Worcester 5.30m
- Upton-on-Severn 5.93m
- Gloucester 4.92m

How many properties flooded in Gloucestershire?
550 Tewkesbury
200 Stroud
125 Cheltenham
1,350 Gloucester City
Many farms and businesses also effected - across the country this summer monsoon-like conditions have done £5 billion of damage to 50,000 British homes and businesses.

Who lost power?
Castle Meads substation left 48,000 homes without power for a period of time while Walham which supplies 500 to 600,000 homes was just saved by temporary flood barrier just 5cm higher than the water.

And water?
350,000 homes without water and many hundreds of bowsers - how many I'm not sure we'll ever know as they appeared in some places they weren't meant to and never got to other sites. Some rarely got refilled while others remained pretty full.

Where did the word bowser come from?
Read Mollys article here and stuff about resilience of communities.

Who will pay for flood prevention measures needed?
Consumers are expected to foot the bill for flood prevention measures, yet the water companies have failed to invest enough in infrastructure, such as drainage systems, which could have lessened the impact. This could be hard to bear when coupled with other facts like:
- almost half of Britain's flood defence systems are not up to the required standard. Infact since 2000 there have been 25 separate reports from government bodies and parliamentary committees advising how to reduce flood risks and the way they are handled. Yet despite this, the National Audit Office has revealed that only 57 per cent of Britain's flood defence systems are in ''target condition'';
- funding for these systems is almost £200 million below necessary;
- the Government has been warned repeatedly that the UK does not have the capacity to respond to a major flood;
- fire fighters and Armed Services were initially forced to stand idly by while agencies squabbled over who was responsible for what.
- under a deal with the industry regulator, Ofwat, the water companies were supposed to spend £4.3 billion on infrastructure in 2005-2006. Instead, in a cost-cutting exercise, they invested only £3.4 billion.

It has all contributed to the current chaos and confusion: made all the more infuriating by the fact that when floods last created chaos, in the autumn of 2000, the shambolic response was heavily criticised by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which said such mismanagement could only be resolved in future by giving overall responsibility to the Environment Agency. It was never done.

At least most can claim insurance?

The local paper had someone whining that if these floods had happened in a Third World country then there would be a massive fund raising effort and the Government would be sending wads of our cash. A little out of perspective perhaps?? Yes the floods have been hugely traumatic for many and there is no way I wish to belittle the loss of a home but mercifully few lives have been lost - the vast majority of people will get their carpets and fridges back on insurance - very few have apparently not got some sort of insurance - in contrast millions have been hit by floods in SE Asia - over 650 dead and 452,000 homes flooded in China alone.

Click on 'floods' label to see more about floods locally.

Residents urged to make the most of rain: Daddy couldn't find me a Bowser

With bowsers still not in places we've been promised the news is that heavy rain is predicted for Gloucestershire on Saturday. I've just seen a news release from Stroud District Council urging residents who are without mains water to capture rainwater so that it can be used to help them cope whilst they are without supplies - see below - but also remember many of the springs in the area can also be used to help flush loos etc (see previous blogs for details).

Anne McKenzie, Co-ordination Team Manager for the council, said: “We’d urge people to collect rainwater in buckets, washing-up bowls, paddling pools and anything else that can capture it. Rainwater is ideal to flush the toilet.”

The council’s guidance during the water shortage is to make sure that people continue to flush their toilets using “grey water” and to use toilet cleaner. Grey water is water such as used bath water and washing up water. Toilets can be flushed in the following ways:
- by putting used (grey) water or rainwater into your cistern and flushing as normal
- by pouring used (grey) water or rainwater direct into the bowl – from a height sufficient to flush it through

Meanwhile a friend sent this below - to the tune "Daddy wouldn't buy me a Bow wow" - he's after more verses!

Daddy couldn't find me a Bowser
and mummy couldn't find one either
Its big and blue and fat
S.T told us where its at
But we cannot find their Bow-wow-ser

A second Community Supported Agriculture project for Stroud

There has been lots of work since the beginning of the year to create a second Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) project - this one based at Stroud Slad Farm on the south side of the Slad Valley.

Photo: Like Farmers markets (photos), allotments and Community Farm Trusts CSAs' do more than just provide local food.

The essence of a CSA (see more about the original Stroud CSA here) is that the community and farmers meet half way to share rewards and risks and ensure the viability of local farming, local food supply and local employment. When talking climate change or peak oil the solutions are clear in terms of food: we must start producing it locally - it is very inspiring to see this group start up this project - Stroud leading the way that others will follow.

Stroud Slad Farm Community (SSFC) is now in full swing and what is now needed is for locals and their friends to take the opportunity of having locally grown, seasonal organic veg delivered to you. You can choose to have £9 or £4.50 worth of veg a week.

As with all community projects, this one will stand or fall on the commitment from the community. We are confident that SSFC has a bright future if that commitment is forthcoming. If interested please get in touch by emailing: ssfc@cooptel.net

Puckshole: Vigilante road clearers stalled and road could be closed for months

Vigilante road clearers were hoping to bring some cheer to local residents and clear the mudslide from Puckshole (for more photos see one of my blog entries for 22nd July).

Photo: Puckshole road closed

These heroic folk even had a digger but sadly as they investigated it became apparent the site is quite unstable. I also got today this email from Highways in response to my query re the road - I did note in my email to them that I guessed it would not be a priority - sadly it looks like it will be a long while before the road reopens:

We are aware of the problem, but at the moment we are concentrating on the emergency itself. Our workforce has been fully tied up in protecting Walham, Mythe etc. delivering portaloos etc. and reopening the major network.

The land that has slipped belongs to the property the drive leads to and is ultimately their responsibility. We will be making contact as soon as possible, but at the moment this is not a priority. We have not cleared the road, as this may lead to further slippage, which could worsen the situation, especially with more heavy rainfall forecast this weekend.

Under no circumstances should anyone attempt to clear the road, as they will not only endanger themselves, but anyone who later attempted to pass through. I arranged for some stone to be placed over the mud to create a walkway on Monday, and I am happy to top this up if needed, as infill actually makes it more stable. Realistically we are talking months, but I can't say for sure until we can get it checked out in more detail.

Water and extra plastic recycling arrives: well some

The good news is that bottled water can now be got locally at Randwick Scout Hut and Whiteshill Village Hall: free to local residents - and first bowser arrives but not to a listed site?!

Photos: Whiteshill Village Hall, Randwick Scout Hut and the bowser at Double Spout, Ruscombe

The Whiteshill Village Hall being visible on the main road is doing vigourous trade and already has had a lorry top up supplies - David Drew MP visited there this morning to help deliveries to less able. The Randwick site however is turning over very slowly - but they did note they have an outside tap - metered but working and would let people fill up limited amounts. Both sites are both meant to be there until 5 and open each day while supplies last.

As for bowsers? Well I'm told none are in Whiteshill and I didn't see any but I did discover one at Double Spout on the Ruscombe Road. Not sure why it is there as this was not one of the sites listed by Severn Trent (see earlier blog) - and it's not getting much use. As for the Randwick bowsers (Carpenters Arms and Vine Tree) they apparently weren't there this morning: are they now?

Recycle your plastic water bottles? Hundreds of thousands of extra plastic bottles have been used to distribute water so the District have arranged for special recycling facilities to be made available for these extra bottles. The following plastic water bottle recycling banks are the nearest to us and will be open from 3.30pm today:

- Sainsbury's Dudbridge
- Tesco Stratford Rd
- London Road Car Park

Severn Trent profits but still no bowsers

Around 15,000 people in Stroud District from Hardwicke across to Chalford are without a water supply (plus of course another 115,000 across the rest of the County).

Photo: There was an amazing rainbow over Ruscombe yesterday

For those of us without water and indeed the many who are in worse situations it comes a little hard to learn that profits for the company this year will be nearly £300 million - thats' £1.1 billion in profits in 5 years - last year alone £580 million was handed over to shareholders.

Promises made by Severn Trent about providing bowsers and replenishing them have not materialised. Severn Trent clearly have lessons to learn from this - as probably we all do - of 59 bowsers promised for the affected area in Stroud District, less than 50% have been provided and around half of those provided have no water now.

Delivery of bowsers has also been fraught with difficulties: some bowsers have been placed in areas that have tap water while one apparently insisted on touring Chalford for 2 hours despite the village not having a bowser at that time and it could have spent more time refilling bowsers that are empty.

Stroud District Council have apparently intervened as they are "no longer willing for this chaotic and demoralising situation to continue" - and offered Severn Trent that staff will 'ride shotgun' on vehicles to guide them to the right locations. This will save them time and help them deliver their promise. It is indeed wholly unacceptable that since Monday many households have had no water.

Heres a bit from the Districts update bulletin about some of what they are doing:

• Continuing to take water to vulnerable and elderly people in the area - we have been doing this since Monday when the water supply began to run out
• Organising the distribution of bottled water from six supermarkets and garden centres that we set up and staffed
• Offering everyone in the affected area free shower facilities at Stratford Park Leisure Centre and Dursley Pool. Stonehouse Town Council will be offering similar facilities from their Oldends Lane building from Friday
• Providing 20 bottled water distribution points at village and community halls within the affected area
• Continuing to operate our customer service centre for telephone enquiries until 9pm and from 7am
• Providing up to date information on our websitewww.stroud.gov.uk
• Working closely with parish councils and voluntary organisations on distributing bottled water and meeting the needs of vulnerable people
• Ensuring staff and their families in the affected area can fill water bottles and take showers at Ebley Mill

Volunteers called for

The District Council are calling for more volunteers as the emergency runs into the weekend. Although they are being careful about the hours worked in a shift, staff currently involved need to have a break.

Free showers

Water free at Randwick Scout hut today until it runs out - still haven't managed to pick any up yet but I'm quite excited - I'm going out today to my partners daughters' in Paganhill for a shower - Puckshole still closed so its the long way round but I'm getting a lift - still unwell - indeed a rough night but still better off than all those poor folk without homes.

Hey and the news is that free showers are being made available - if you are without water and would like a shower, visit the following facilities. Take along proof of address to make sure that you get it for FREE.

• Stratford Park Leisure Centre, Stratford Road, Stroud, GL5 4AF
• Dursley Pool, Castle Street, Dursley, GL11 4BS
• Pavilion Oldends Lane, Stonehouse, GL10 2DG

Opening times are:

• Stratford Park: Mondays to Friday 7.00am-11.00pm, Saturdays and Sundays 7.30am-10.00pm
• Dursley Pool: Monday to Friday 6:30am-8:30pm, Saturday 8:00am-7:00pm, Sunday 7:15am-4:00pm
• Oldends Lane: Everyday 12:00pm - 7:00pm, for more information please call 07855 721544. Volunteers are also needed if you would like to help out please call Stonehouse Town Council 01453 822070 (9am - 5pm).

Could reeds be the new pipes?

A friend just forwarded this news item re Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems from the BBC yesterday about sewage and drainage - see it here - at last this issue is making the national news. As regular blog readers will know I've been banging on about this since this blog began - see some previous entries re SUDS here.

The BBC diagram gives neat summary of many of the issues we face with the Ruscombe Brook but are also part of the wider reasons why the floods are so bad. Vast quantities of water should soak away into water tables rather than being fed into brooks ands rivers that can't cope in extreme weather - and indeed in not so extreme weather.

1 Most old drains combine foul and surface water, which in heavy rain overflows into rivers

2 Interceptor sewers can collect this overflow and divert to treatment works before it reaches rivers

3 Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems mimic natural drainage, slowing water flow and reducing the amount running off into drains

4 Disposing of unsuitable material into sewers via toilets and sinks can cause waste to back up and overflow

5 Fat traps can intercept some of the offending material from commercial premises

6 Reducing water consumption not only helps the environment but reduces load on the sewerage system

7 Paving over gardens prevents water draining into the ground, adding to pressure on the system caused by rain "run-off"

Will it really be 14 days until we have water?

'Water, water, everywhere, But not a drop to drink.'

That quote comes from the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge - when the Ancient Mariner is stuck in the middle
of the sea but seemed to fit with all these floods.

Our MP David Drew has rightly been calling for some answers. Here is what he said yesterday before Gordon Brown visited:
"I thank my right hon. Friend and all the other Ministers for the interest that they have taken in Gloucestershire. I pay due regard to the emergency services for the superb work that they have undertaken, and I pass on my commiserations to my colleagues in the county and all their constituents. However, can it be right that we are told that it will take 14 days to get back our main drinking supplies? There is much misinformation about who is off the mains supply and who is likely to be off. All the businesses, farms and individual households want some certainty. It cannot be the case that we must wait so long in this day and age because of the present crisis. For some time Severn Trent has needed to understand that it must act more quickly. I hope my right hon. Friend will make sure that that happens."

Gordon Brown replied: "Let me join my hon. Friend in expressing my sympathy to all the people in the Gloucester, Tewkesbury and related areas who have suffered an enormous amount of inconvenience as a result of the storms and then the floods. I also pay tribute to the emergency services—the police, the fire services, the Army and all those who have worked to try to get supplies into the areas and to make sure that the utilities are back serving the people. My hon. Friend is right that Mythe water station failed. He is right that we would like it back in use as quickly as possible. He is also right that all the civil engineering capacity that can be brought to bear is being brought to bear. The water works were polluted. There is, therefore, a danger that the water pouring out from there would contaminate local people. We have made it clear to the Severn water company that it has to provide the bowsers for the area. Nine hundred have already been provided, and 900 will be provided within the next day. Drinking water is being provided through the retail stores. I think that the company has discharged its duty in ensuring that that water is available. Obviously we want Mythe water station back as quickly as possible. I will visit the area later today, and I have invited the hon. Member for Tewkesbury (Mr. Robertson) and Gloucestershire Members on both sides of the House to join me on that visit, when we will see at first hand how things are progressing. I think that the House owes a debt of gratitude to all the emergency services, and we will do everything we can to get supplies restored as quickly as possible."

While it does appear that our Government is starting to take the floods seriously I can't say this has been the case in the past - it has ignored advice about building on flood plains and has failed to take Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) seriously (see my extensive correspondence on this - most recent 20th June 2007) - both these measures would have gone a long way to protecting properties and water supplies - although I'm not for one moment saying there would not have still been serious problems. Even the governments' latest Code for Sustainable Buildings fails to compel builders to provide 'gray water' recycling for flushing toilets and chemical farming is subsidised when organic farming uses less water. Infact on Stroud District Council I must have raised the issue of SUDS at least 40 times in connection with planning applications.

"The Government does not want to connect the floods to global warming for fear of being exposed in the itsy-bitsy bikini of its own half-hearted policy."
Writer Will Self

It is also time to take flood defences more seriously - funding was cut last year although that has now been reversed but no increase until year 3 - a country planning to spend a minimum of £30bn on a missile system conceived as defence against the Soviet Union can afford to spend serious money against endemic flooding. This will mean some tough decisions about which areas to prioritise and how we can start to use flood plains in the ways they used to be used - to soak up excess water. Plus putting in place ways to 'bleed' rivers further up so that not all the water comes down at once.

And what about compensation for floods? Again big numbers get talked about but the reality is that compensation is unlikely to be sufficient. How much bigger will Glos tax payers Council tax bills be as a result of the floods?

And what about power? I and 599,000 others have been threatened with the loss of power if the substation floods. This is yet another case for decentralised power sources and local grids that Greens have been pushing for years. Denmark already has 50% supplied like this - sadly our government has so far not been supportive of this. I am not convinced this will make them understand? The massive power cuts a few years ago in US cities that left 50 million without power did not seem to wake them up either...

....Anyway the Government are right to look now to better coordination with the Environment Agency - but they were planning funding cuts to the EA - in fact the Tories at the last election were openly talking of cut backs to the EA. We need to remove such threats and reinvest in the EA. David Cameron didn't go that far but did say yesterday: "Looking to the future and how we minimise the risk of future flooding, at least five times in the past decade the House has been told that co-ordination between the Environment Agency and local councils needs to improve. I welcome the review that the Prime Minister has set up. Can he confirm that it will look into co-ordination to ensure that this time it really is delivered, and will he ensure that we do everything possible to protect key infrastructure in the future?"

I'm still in bed but couldn't resist a rant - flu is probably not making me so coherent - it is not really any point seeking to put blame on one body or person - basically we are not in control and nevre really have been - It was nobody's fault, and yet it was everybody's.....

The solutions - or at least part of the solutions - to these problems Greens have been talking about for years - hey and I haven't even got onto the lack of action to tackle climate change - this Government has been great on the rhetoric but completely failing when it comes to policies - emissions are up in the last 10 years yet we have to cut by 90% by 2050. Let us hope this wake up call does just that and really wakes everyone up to the realities of the future.

Anyhow all this has got my temperature up - and no shower for 14 days.....at least communities are pulling together in wonderful ways and I've had many phonecalls from people with ideas and/or offers of help - even a call from Spain wanting confirmation of news reports they were getting - hopefully pointed some in various directions - but it highlights the need for us to build stronger communities so that we can face such events in the future - do we really know who in our communities need help? And if we need help are we able to ask? And ask who? By all accounts hearing a scientist yesterday this will not be a freak event there will be many of these as climate change takes hold.

Hey and Puckshole is still closed and I have no news of when it might open - have contacted Highways but understandably they are slightly busy....

Still no bowsers

Still no bowsers in Randwick or Whiteshill - Severn Trent do not appear to know what is going on re the bowsers.

Photo: Pinched from BBC Glos website

I contacted the District Council earlier today to see if they could apply some pressure - residents can also phone the 'bowser' line 0800 032 0142. It seems all the initial bowsers obtained have been allocated to flood areas but that has left us in this area without any water for a couple of days.

Even the planned locations of bowsers are not very satisfactory (see previous posts re floods by clicking on 'floods' label below). Most of the village of Ruscombe is without one - the nearest two being the Chapel at the end of Lower Street and then the Vine Tree in Randwick. Whiteshill and Parish Council have requested another in Bread Street at Laburnam Cresent to address this - I've sent an email making the same point to the District Council who are collating info on bowser locations.

Reuben Wyatt from the mobile police station has been delivering bottled water for pensioners in Whiteshill, and now brought another batch up to Randwick. Those in touch with care services have already had deliveries earlier in the week. There have also been offers of help with laundry from a couple in Stonehouse.

I've also only just come across a freephone number for housebound people to ring if they need water delivery - 0800 092 0410. See previous posts re floods for info about springs etc but be particularly cautious as flooding leads to additional contamination.

Meanwhile the District Council has better info than many other websites about what is really going on - see website here.

Flood update: plus bowser locations

Latest bits of news:

- The plan to construct 22-miles of temporary water mains to enable water to be pumped from outside the county in an effort to restore essential supplies will not be going ahead. Apparently the reason is the traffic disruption it will cause on the M5 and the resources required to implement it. Reports note that other options are currently being explored which will provide the same degree of benefit without the undue impact on traffic and already severely stretched resources.

- The substation at Castlemeads has been switched off due to flooding. The decision to terminate the supply in a controlled manner was made for safety reasons due to a sudden surge in the flood water. It has affected 48,000 homes in the Gloucestershire area - the other substation workers and the Navy are still fighting to protect - if that goes down it means 600,000 homes without electricity. Reports are so far positive although at one point yesterday floodwaters were within 2 inches of breaching.

- Whiteshill water supply is rumoured to be a burst water main - if this is the case it may well be restored very soon - however it still looks like 2 weeks without water in Randwick and other areas.

- Whiteshill and Ruscombe Parish have already given in a list of 12 or so names of people needing help while Randwick are in the process of building a list - if in doubt please give names of vulnerable people to District Council as I am sure these wont be complete lists and circumstances change constantly. Neighbours are being very wonderful and helping out in many areas - this is hopefully a good excuse if ever people needed one to knock on doors locally to see if all are OK.

Areas without water in Stroud:

Bisley with Lypiatt
Chalford (part)
Cranham
Eastcombe
Farmhill
Hardwicke (part)
Harescombe
Miserden
Oakridge
Paganhill (part)
Painswick
Pitchcombe
Randwick
Slad
Thrupp
Uplands
Upton St Leonards (part)
Whiteshill and Ruscombe

Bowser locations:

These are the locations - but apparently many including Randwick and Whiteshill ones are still not in place. Whiteshill and Ruscombe Parish have also sought a bowser for Bread Street as there are many properties between The Chapel in Ruscombe and the Vine Tree in Randwick - we'll see:

• Chalford Hill, Eastcombe, Bisley,Oakridge Lynch, Whiteway, Quarhouse
Lamb Inn, Eastcombe
O/S No 25, Foxes Cl, Manor Village, Eastcombe
O/S No 27, Freame Cl, Manor Village, Eastcombe
Lay By.Thomas Keble School, Eastcombe
The Willows, Limekiln Ln, Watery Ln, Bisley
Highfield Sports Gr.Highfield Way,France Lynch
Butchers Arms, Oakridge Lynch,
Adj. Prv, The Green, Peyton Pl, Quarhouse
St Marys Church, Bisley
Village Hall, Manor St, Bisley
Adj. Avalon, Whiteway, Miserden
Upper Througham Fm, Througham
• Cranham
Prinknash Park, Painswick Rd
The Black Horse pub
Cranham C Of E Primary, Cranham, Painswick
• Painswick
Opp. Reservoir Golf Club, Course Rd
Car Park, Stroud Rd
Painswick Primary School, Churchill Wy
St Marys Church, Victoria St
Butchers Arms, Sheepscombe
Woolpack Inn, Slad
• Stroud (Uplands, Brownshill, Bussage, Edge, Pitchcombe, Whiteshill, Westrip, Randwick, Farmhill)
O/S No.4, Keats Gardens, Farmhill
Allen Dr, Paganhill
Opp. No. 4, Swift Hill View
Junc Peghouse Rise, Folly Lane, Uplands
Edge Church, Edge
Entrance To Manor Fm, Pitchcombe
Adj. To Prv (Church), Main Rd, Whiteshill
Primary School, Whiteshill
Chapel Hall, The Throat, Whiteshill
Vine Tree Inn, Randwick
The Carpenters Arms, Westrip
On Verge, The Green, Bussage
Opp. The Old Post Office, Brownshill, Nr Stroud
Bussage C Of E Primary, Bussage, Nr Stroud
O/S No.4, Keats Gardens, Farmhill, Stroud
Allen Dr, Paganhill, Stroud
O/S No.35 Maple Dr, Maple Dr, Whiteshill
Adj. Avalon, Whiteway, Miserden
• Upton St Leonards
The Ashpath, Churchfield Rd
Stats Orchard, Woodland Green
Rance Pitch, High St
Perry Orchard Estate, East Of High St
Port Way, Valley La
Kings Head pub, Upton Hill
Hotel, Upton Hill
Upton Junior School
Bowden Hall
Stanley Rd
Budlea Cl
Brow Rd
Fox Cl
Ramada Hotel, Bondend Rd

Do you need water locally?

I've received several offers from people who have local springs in Randwick, Ruscombe and further afield who would be happy to let others have some of the water (apparently needs boiling to drink). For water from farm in Foxmoor Lane call Julia Currie on 01453 764376 - for others please call me on 755451 and leave a message - I'm sleeping lots with flu - interestingly my partners daughter has this theory that there is a particular strain of flu that only men get - Man Flu - in her experience men seem to suffer so much more when they get flu.......it is true I do feel very very rough.....

Photo:Randwick Village Spring near School

Anyhow there are also the various village springs - which I would be happy to use for washing and the loo but not advised for drinking - infact one of those in Ruscombe has again been found to have eColi. I don't yet have news on bowsers but certainly many homes in the area now have no water. Also as noted on previous recent posts do let District Council know if you know anyone who is vulnerable in the light of the floods and lack of water.

Association of Green Councillors meet in London

The Association of Green Councillors' annual conference this year was Friday at the Local Government House, Smith Square, just down from the House of Commons then Saturday at Camden Town Hall.

Friday was hosted by the Local Government Association Independent Group - see my news release here. Three Greens from Stroud District Council were among those attending.

The conference kicked off with LGA Chief Executive, Paul Coen (pictured right), welcoming delegates and giving the opening speech. One of the first things he noted was that this group of a 100 or so Green delegates must be the youngest ever group to grace this venue. To me that is a sad reflection on the state of our politics when young people don't wish to participate...there is currently a Councillors Commission which is looking and barriers and incentives to becoming a councillor. I made a submission a couple of weeks ago raising various points including:
- Proportional representation is essential to ensure more voices are represented
- Decentralisation of powers: seeing people being able to make the local changes that are needed.
- Scrutiny, Cabinet and indeed all committees are increasingly demanding more knowledge and skills. If this comes with increased local powers then we need to reward this financially and provide training so that we can improve local services.

Anyhow I am getting side tracked - after Paul we then had another excellent session - "Climate Change and Local Authorities" - with Green MEP - Jean Lambert, Green London Assembly Member - Cllr Jenny Jones AM and Cllr Andy Cooper - Kirklees. Followed by Q and A.

We have heard many exciting examples of Green party action in local authorities. How Greens on the London Assembly hold the balance of power so Ken Livingstone needs them - hence £150m going to tackling climate change and more - read Green news release at the time here.

We also heard from Andy Cooper (pictured left giving his talk, "Only the Green Party can save us now!"), a Green party councillor in Kirklees who negotiated a £21 million funding from various sources to provide free cavity wall and loft insulation to 40,000 properties.

This is just the sort of scheme that makes sense: it cuts householder bills by an average £150 each year, an estimated £4.5 million will annually go back into the community rather than to power companies, a jobs boost for the local economy, it tackles fuel poverty and will be the largest carbon saving project in the country.

Andy also shared much more like Kirklees now has 5% of the countries solar panels plus a £3m householder renewable energy fund (poss plus another £3m) - basically it is a revolving fund that you pay back when your home is sold. They also have the first LA Budget that takes account of carbon. Plus lots more......

There were many other sessions including a look at Local Government Reforms by Paul Wheeler, Leadership Centre for Local Government. Green approaches to crime, Influencing Local Development Frameworks, Making best use of Scrutiny, and Working with the major parties.

After my many hours due to the floods trying to get back to Stroud by train from London (see previous post) it is ironic that one of the issues we were discussing at the conference was the failure by many councils to resist building on flood plains and the lack of a serious commitment nationally to Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems - which are now mandatory in countries like Scotland and Ireland. Let us hope the recent disasters make people listen more closely to the solutions we need to put in place.

Of course there was also time to talk and catch up news from fellow Green councillors around the country - including a trip to the pub - although I missed the curry night.

One slightly shocking thing to hear was about the 'dirty tricks' of other parties - this picture of a Labour newspaper shows them celebrating their win to get cotton bags - yet it was part of a Green party project and a Green party amendment to the Budget. Then again it's good they are wanting to sing green ideas out!

Similarly this picture is of the front page of their newsheet saying 'Greens backed tree massacre' - it couldn't be further from truth - so what to do - I was pleased to hear Greens there did not respond in kind but instead made a statement on the back page of one of their leaflets reassuring people that they did not back the massacre. See Ladywell Green comment on that incident here.

Ethical shopping: just another way to show your wealth?

See excellent article from Monbiot here - he says much of what I've thought for a while.

Photo: a couple of years back I got to be one of the first in the country to see this car - it is the first production car to run on bioethanol (see blog entries elsewhere on the problems of that) and lets face it it is still a car - this is not going to lead to 90% cut in emissions by 2050.

Flu, floods and no water

Great!! I've been in bed last couple of days and am v grotty indeed with flu and now no water - got the message below too late to get more than a trickle of water into a pan.

Photos: Used to illustrate flooding if we don't tackle climate change.

Apparently it is expected to last 7 to 10 days! Parts of Stroud are also likely to be effected. Some 350,000 homes are expected to be without water and some 600,000 could lose electricity if flood waters rise to hit the substation - apparently quite possible at this time despite the Navy being called in to protect it. Tewkesbury remains cut off, surrounded by water. So at least even with flu and no water I'm better off than many who have seen their homes and livelihoods flooded.

Photo: Bowser in Churchdown (taken from BBC website)

We have been advised by Severn Trent Water that there is a likelihood of a progressive loss of water supply in the following areas: Bisley, Oakridge, Cranham, Painswick, Miserden, Whiteshill, Cranham, Randwick, Haresfield, Eastington, Frampton, Arlingham, Slimbridge. We understand that the areas immediately surrounding Gloucester are already off. This is due to the fact that the reservoir at Churchdown is now empty; the only water now in the system is that in the pipes. Unfortunately, Severn Trent Water (STW) cannot predict how long this will last. In the event of loss of supply, STW can be expected to set up on-street bowsers. Our concern is to ensure that vulnerable residents have water until this happens and that they can then get access to them. We obviously know the location of sheltered schemes etc; our particular concern is for isolated residents.

Photo: Cheltenham Station - no wonder I couldn't get a train through on that line on Saturday!

Do please contact the Council for advice if you know of vulnerable or isolated residents. Meanwhile the Director of Public Health for Gloucestershire Dr Shona Arora advised:

• Wear wellingtons to wade through the flood water and keep children from playing in it to minimise any risk of infection
• Boil all bowser water as a precaution and use it to make up infant formula
• Flush the toilet less often and try to use grey water including flood water for this
• Main hospitals are functioning, although Tewskebury Hospital has been partially evacuated
• Most GP surgeries are functioning

Watch aerial footage of waterworks on BBC here.

Honour the elders

Love the water butts in this old photo - pinched from another blog here that has lots more re the 'Cottage Homes for Aged Persons Bill, 1912' - so many of the solutions we need are from yesteryears - at least water butts are once again returning.

Photo: Nelson Mandela bust in South Bank, London

It is also refreshing to see the launch of elders by Nelson Mandela and others. Mandela said at the opening the Elders could prove effective in "working objectively and without any personal or vested interest" in dealing with seemingly intractable problems where others fail because of "political, economic and geographic constraints...This group can speak freely and boldly, working both publicly and behind the scenes on whatever actions need to be taken."

Then again will this be an excuse for the likes of older statesmen to strut their stuff still more with out-of-touch ideas and worse?

See more re Elders here: http://www.theelders.org

Plus of course groups like Transition Towns already have written in to their steps that a key point in transition to a different society is that elders should be honoured. Indeed for those of us born in the 1960s when the cheap oil party was in full swing, it is very hard to picture a life with less oil. Indeed with the exception of the oil crises of the 70s we've had more energy year on year than previous years.

Rob Hopkins writes: "In order to rebuild that picture of a lower energy society, we have to engage with those who directly remember the transition to the age of Cheap Oil, especially the period between 1930 and 1960. While you clearly want to avoid any sense that what you are advocating is ‘going back’ or ‘returning’ to some dim distant past, there is much to be learnt from how things were done, what the invisible connections between the different elements of society were and how daily life was supported. Finding out all of this can be deeply illuminating, and can lead to our feeling much more connected to the place we are developing our Transition Town projects."

C&C correspondence continues: does Defra understand SP?

A slightly frustrating response below from Defra re Simultaneous Policy (see my Blog entry on 22nd May for last letter on this). I'm beginning to wonder if they understand how SP works! Below the response is my reply back to Defra.

Photo: Rainbow over Bread Street: sometimes wonder if I'm chasing a rainbow with SP but over the years things have moved significantly - yes still a long way to go but it has come further than I ever imagined - no doubt because it makes so much sense - and is fair!

Certainly the Government seem to be shifting on Contraction and Convergence - and with a Green party suggestion even Stroud District Council mentioned C&C in it's response to the Climate Change Bill (see my blog on 23rd June 2007). Ian Pearson, the Minister responsible wrote in a letter last month: "Certain aspects of Contraction and Convergence are appealing, including the identification of a fixed level for stabilisation of greenhouse gas concentrations, and comprehensive global participation. Any framework that incorporates long term targets can offer countries greater certainty about their national targets and provide a clear signal to allow business to plan ahead and help drive investment in new and better technologies. The principle of equity is extremely important to all countries but in particular developing countries and a number of countries have expressed an interest in using per capita emissions as a basis for assigning responsibility for future action. Some developing countries, in particular, India, have advocated the Contraction and Convergence model. Equally, other countries have shown interest in alternative frameworks...."

It is also good to see the Minister talking more on equity as the recent draft Climate Change Bill did not really cover this issue: see questions 14 and 16 in the local Green party's response to the Bill.

Reply from Customer Contact Unit, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)

Dear Cllr Booth

contraction and convergence - Thank you for your email of 13 July regarding my previous letter. I am sorry that there were technical problems. Below is the information I sent you:

The UK government is also looking for the best possible framework through which to address climate change. As part of our internal deliberations we are considering in detail contraction and convergence, along with 3 or 4 other frameworks, in terms of the emissions reductions delivered and the economic costs related to each one and their overall acceptability to our international partners. The work that we have done on these key frameworks suggests that for each one, there will be advantages and disadvantages for individual countries and groups of countries and that no framework will provide only advantages for all.

The UK would consider global acceptability to be an essential feature of any future regime and so it is unlikely that we would be willing to sign up to any framework on a unilateral or even partially multilateral basis, such as that which you suggest in relation to simultaneous policy. As you recognize, we cannot ignore the international context of this problem. Without participation by all parties we will not be able to stabilize the climate. A key part of the UK strategy is, therefore, to work extensively with other parties both through the formal UNFCCC process and through informal discussions to identify a way forward that would be acceptable to all. Although there is some agreement about the key elements that need to be addressed and plenty of ideas forthcoming in relation to these elements of a framework, there is still some way to go in building the level of consensus within the international community that would be required to agree on a framework for the way forward.

Given this international situation, we consider that it is essential to listen to other parties, in particular in the developing world, and to encourage them to put forward ideas about what sort of framework would best allow them to grow their economies in an environmentally sustainable way. Within the framework of the UNFCCC negotiations the two approaches that have so far been put forward are the Brazilian historical responsibility proposal and the South African ideas on Sustainable Development Policies and Measures mentioned in our previous correspondence with you.

We believe that it is the right approach to give consideration to the concerns of all parties and this is why we support discussions on all of these ideas within the forum of the UNFCCC. I hope that this letter addresses your concerns and there are no problems reading it. Yours sincerely

My reply today: Thank you very much for your reply. However it is not correct to suggest that simultaneous policy is unilateral; its whole purpose is to achieve multilateral agreement in as short a time as possible. I stress that it can work in parallel with the conventional international negotiation process.

I am deeply concerned that HMG's insistence on 100% global agreement can only serve to put off the time for global action on global warming into the indefinite future. The rationality of some rulers is of questionable quality. Remember President Mbeki’s denial of HIV as the cause of AIDS? Will UK really hang back if Burma, North Korea, Zimbabwe or other "rogue states" refuse to sign? Surely you will agree that to insist on 100% agreement is unrealistic, and that a reasonable target should be set instead? Cllr Philip Booth

Heavy rainfall is result of climate change: community resilience is answer

Photo: Slad Road in Stroud under feet of water: Coop, GP surgery and Pharmacy nearly flooded to ceilings

The Independent today notes a major new scientific study that shows the heavier rainfall in Britain is being caused by climate change.

The details are below but perhaps a key issue that comes out of all this is what Molly Scott Cato writes in her letter to the SNJ today....."However good the official response, there is only so much that politicians and emergency planners can do. We are going to have to learn to rely on ourselves and each other more and more in the coming years. Building up resilient local economies and strengthening our communities is the most positive route we can take to protect ourselves against the effects of climate change."

Infact coming home on those various trains - see previous blog item - I read a review of the new book by Thomas Homer-Dixon entitled: "The Upside of Down: Catastrophe, Creativity and the Renewal of Civilisation" (This link also has excerpts and a short video although I couldn't get it to work).

The apocalyptic picture painted in this book is grounded in much research - he argues that life is going to get very much harder for everyone. The reasons for this pessimistic outlook include most of what Greens have been banging on about for years - population growth (or differences in population growth rates between rich and poor countries), climate change and the increasing scarcity of high-quality energy sources such as oil.

Homer-Dixon also looks at other threats that tend could exacerbate the effects of the ones mentioned above. Again Greens have been trying to highlight these issues like the rising connectivity of our technological and transport networks, which increases the risk that a failure in one part of a system will cascade further and faster to other parts of the system.

Similarly energy grids - during the past decade, regional electricity production and distribution systems have been increasingly integrated- yet the result is that whole networks can collapse, as happened in the American power meltdown of 2003 in which 50 million people were affected, and the recent European blackout in 2006, in which millions of Belgian, French, Italian and Spanish homes were left in the dark. This is one of the many key reasons Greens want to see localised energy production/grids.

Anyway reflecting the point Molly made above - it's too late to avert disaster so the most sensible strategy is to be prepared. As Homer-Dixon points out, the idea of making our technological and social systems more resilient, so they can deal more successfully with future disasters, is hardly addressed by governments. To Greens this is all about building stronger local communities and economies - surely that is just commonsense?

In looking up Homer-Dixon I also came across the Utopia project in the Highlands - read more here - it is an experiment with volunteers to figure out how life in Britain will be affected by climate change and the end of cheap oil during the next few decades - Dylan Evans who set the project up also writes a column in The Times about their experiences - to me it is projects like this and our own Transition Stroud that will help build what is needed to make the difference.

Michael McCarthy, Environment Editor of The Independent writes in todays paper:

More intense rainstorms across parts of the northern hemisphere are being generated by man-made global warming, the study has established for the first time ­ an effect which has long been predicted but never before proved. The study's findings will be all the more dramatic for being disclosed as Britain struggles to recover from the phenomenal drenching of the past few days, during which more than a month's worth of rain fell in a few hours in some places, and floods forced thousands from their homes.

The "major rainfall event" of last Friday ­ fully predicted as such by the Met Office ­ has given the country a quite exceptional battering, with the Thames still rising. In Gloucester water levels had reached 34 feet, just 12 inches below flood defences ­ the same level as during the flood of 1947 ­ although a police spokesman said last night that the River Severn had stopped rising.

Last night vast areas of the country around Gloucestershire and Worcestershire were still inundated, large numbers of people in temporary accommodation, transport links were widely disrupted, and yet more householders were standing by to be flooded in their turn, in one of the biggest civil emergencies Britain has seen. About 150,000 residents in Gloucestershire were left without drinking water when the Mythe Water Treatment Works in Tewkesbury became inoperable after flooding. Another 200,000 people are at risk of losing their supplies. The water shortages may last until Wednesday and 600 water tanks were being drafted to the area.

Panic buying of bottled water was reported, with supermarkets selling out of stocks, and there were contamination problems in south London, where 80,000 households and businesses in the Sutton area were advised to boil their water after rain got into a tank. Yet another potential danger was from car thieves; West Mercia police warned drivers who had abandoned their cars in the floodwater to collect them quickly to prevent theft.

The Great Flood of July is all the more remarkable for following right on from the Great Flood of June, which caused similar havoc in northern towns such as Doncaster and Hull, after a similar series of astonishingly torrential downpours on 24 June. Meteorologists agree that the miserably wet British summer of 2007 has generally been caused by a southward shift towards Britain of the jetstream, the high-level airflow that brings depressions eastwards across the Atlantic. This is fairly normal. But debate is going on about whether climate change may be responsible for the intensity of the two freak rainfall episodes, which have caused flooding the like of which has never been seen in many places. This is because the computer models used to predict the future course of global warming all show heavier rainfall, and indeed, "extreme rainfall events", as one of its principal consequences.

The new study, carried out jointly by several national climate research institutes using their supercomputer climate models, including the Hadley Centre of the UK Met Office, does not prove that any one event, including the rain of the past few days in Britain, is climate-change related. But it certainly supports the idea, by showing that in recent decades rainfall has increased over several areas of the world, including the mid-latitudes of the northern hemisphere, and linking this directly, for the first time, to global warming caused by human emissions of greenhouse gases.

The study is being published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, and its details are under embargo and cannot be reported until then. But its main findings have caused a stir, and are being freely discussed by climate scientists in the Met Office, the Hadley Centre and the Department for Environment For Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. One source familiar with the study's conclusions said: "What this does is establish for the first time that there is a distinct 'human fingerprint' in the changes in precipitation patterns ­ the increases in rainfall ­ observed in the northern hemisphere mid-latitudes, which includes Britain. "

That means, it is not just the climate's natural variability which has caused the increases, but there is a detectable human cause ­ climate change, caused by our greenhouse gas emissions. The 'human fingerprint' has been detected before in temperature rises, but never before in rainfall. So this is very significant. Some people would argue that you can't take a single event and pin that on climate change, but what happened in Britain last Friday fits quite easily with these conclusions. It does seem to have a certain resonance with what they're finding in this research."

The Hadley Centre lead scientist involved with the study was Dr Peter Stott, who specialises in finding "human fingerprints" ­ sometimes referred to as anthropogenic signals ­ on the changing climate. Last September Dr Stott, who was not available for comment yesterday, published research showing that the climate of central England had warmed by a full degree Celsius in the past 40 years, and that this could be directly linked to human causes ­ the first time that man-made climate change had been identified at such a local level. The human fingerprint is detected by making computer simulations of the recent past climate, with and without emissions of greenhouse gases ­ and then comparing the results with what has actually been observed in the real world. In Dr Stott's research, and in the study to be published on Wednesday, the observed rises in temperature and rainfall could be clearly accounted for by the scenario in which emissions were prominent.

The conclusions of the new rainfall study are regarded as all the more robust as they are the joint work of several major national climate research bodies, led by Environment Canada, with each using its own supercomputer climate model. Global warming is likely to lead to higher rainfall because a warming atmosphere contains more water vapour and more energy. Since climate prediction began 20 years ago, heavier rainfall over Britain has been a consistent theme.