Isle of Wight News on Ventnor Blog

Annual Hedgelaying Competition and longed to learn this fantastic ancient skill, then a new course being funded by the West Wight Landscape Partnership might be just what you’ve been waiting for.

If you’ve ever attended the At the beginning of February, just a few weeks before the annual competition, free training in the art of hedgelaying will be taking place at Dunsbury Farm in Brook.

The first day of training will be for novices or those with some experience of hedgelaying, whilst the second day will be a masterclass for the more experienced hedgelayer.

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We’ve upgraded our weather page with a couple more gizmos from the Met Office.

To give a spread over the Island, we’ve got the weather in Cowes, as well as St Catherine’s Point.

Both have a five-day forecast including wind-speed (in knots) and below that a rainfall, pressure and temperature map forecasts.

The BBC forecast has now been placed underneath.

If you’re wondering what the weather might be doing over the next few days, pop over and have a look our Isle of Wight Weather page.

Anyone who has been a reader of VB over the years will know that we think that the way the planning department and its enforcement unit at the Isle of Wight Council (IWC) are run is important. They have the responsibility of keeping an eye and hand on large parts of the where we live.

Reading in the CP last week that the Isle of Wight council had accelerated an enforcement issue from a complaint to the actual drafting of an enforcement notice in less than a month, we were compelled to find out more.

It was all over a 35m high art spar in Gate House Lane, Ashey – an attractive and rather interesting artwork which is a prototype being tested prior to manufacture.

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Since the Isle of Wight council refused planning permission for wind turbines at Cheverton Down, there has been a significant rise in membership of a group of Facebook called – Campaign for wind turbines on the Isle of Wight.

As we write this piece, membership stands at over 3,750 – an interesting figure as the anti-turbine group ThWART quoted their membership at around 2,500 (from memory).

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Two Island groups have given their reaction to the Isle of Wight planning department recommendation to reject the Cheverton Down wind turbine application. In summary, they’ve not very happy about it.

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Since yesterday, a lead has come up as to where the leak of the information to ThWART might have originated.

We’ve learnt that IW councillors were sent an email on Monday that told them the date and time of the planning meeting and where it would be held – Carrisbrooke High School – “owing to the large amount of interest in this item.”

ThWART sent out the email with these details on Wednesday afternoon.

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News reaches us that several Isle of Wight County Councillors have called in the decision made under delegated powers last week, to abolish the ban on mobile phone masts being mounted on Council buildings.

The decision to abolish the ban is intended to increase revenue for the IWC.

The decision was called in by Cllr Chris Welsford with support from Cllr Reg Barry, Cllr Jonathan Bacon and Cllr Colin Richards.

The Councillors’ view is that the decision was made without adequate consultation with the relevant stakeholders and partners including the public.

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Those on the Island that are interested in climate change may be aware that there’s a climate change march and rally – called The Wave – taking place in London for 5th December.

Newport town councillor Jackie Hawkins is organising a coach up there (in a personal capacity).

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This updated guidance in from Hampshire Constabulary, Environment Agency and Hampshire County Council this morning .

The good news is that there have not been any major problems across the two counties overnight – Ed.

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Following our report of similar news last year, the Forestry Commission has today declared the Isle of Wight as Europe’s most important woodland bat habitat.

A recent study combined the expertise of ecologists, scientists, foresters and bat conservation groups to find more than 20 Bechstein’s and six Barbastelle maternity roosts.

This is a dramatic improvement from 1998 when the UK Biodiversity Action Plan identified only one known maternity roost across the whole of the UK for each of these species.

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It’s just been announced that Isle of Wight-based yachtswoman, Dame Ellen MacArthur, has decided to retire from competitive sailing.

Her reasons? To apply here ample enthusiasm to environmental campaigning.

Those of you who heard the interview we did with Dame Ellen or the her speech at the Eco-Island conference back in March 2008 will know that she’s very environmentally minded.

One of her major points was that modern living is detached from the resource that it consumes.

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Cllr Geoff Lumley is tabling a question at today’s Full Council meeting, forcing the council’s elected member to address the loss of jobs at Vestas.

In the light of the devastating loss of 600+ jobs at the local Vestas plant, the IW Council supports the view of the Island’s MP that “it is important that public money is invested in businesses that are firmly rooted in local economies” and till work pro-actively to make that aspiration a reality in the future.

in the meantime and in the face of the current Vestas situation, the IW Council will exert whatever pressure it can to get the Government to facilitate moving the Vestas plant into alternative ownership as a way of not only saving the 600+ local jobs, but also of promoting its own policies to expand renewable energy sources, including wind power.

Could be an interesting discussion. It’s open to the public and starts at 6pm at County Hall.

Are you running an Island business or thinking of starting one – and keen to make sure it has the minimum impact on the environment?

The Isle of Wight Sustainable Business Network (SBN) is on hand to help out with free support and advice on a wide range of sustainability issues and opportunities for you.

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Missed this one somehow.

Looks like there’s another wind turbine planning application at the IWC.

This one (ref: TCP/29699, P/00176/09) is on “land at Span Farm, Rew Lane, Ventnor, Isle Of Wight PO38″ and was published on 12 June 2009.

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We’ve been following the progress of the volunteers involved with the Green Gym for sometime now and notice that this week they’ll be getting to work on Rew Down.

The group meets every Wednesday at different locations around the Island, helping to clear overgrown areas, tidy up and conserve our Island’s natural beauty.

If you can’t make it along this week, cvheck the links ta the bottom for details of the forthcoming events, next week is Brading Down and the following, Cowes County Primary School.

Here’s what they say about this weeks outing to Ventnor.
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Oo-er missus, look at the size of me radishes!!

I am glad that I like radishes and the ‘gerls’ (guinea pigs) like radish tops, cos I am all radished out!

The ones up the allotment are still profuse and the ones in my salad trays are HUGE! (see picture).

As well as the radishes, the rocket has taken off well (nothing as delish as fresh, fresh rocket) but the other stuff, lettuce and beetroot, doesn’t seem to have done so well.

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The interest in growing your own vegetables is becoming ever stronger. The reasons are simple – they taste better; you can save money; you know exactly how they’ve been grown; you can choose if you want to apply pesticides to them; and there’s the general satisfaction of knowing that you’ve grown your own food. We hope you enjoy this series – Ed.

After much enthusiasm about my allotment to my fellow ‘Twitterers’, VentnorBlog have asked me to do a blog spot about growing your own, so here goes.

Minimum input – maximum output
My philosophy of gardening and growing fruit and veg is Minimum input – maximum output.

I’m one of the lucky ones with an allotment – I took it on about eight years ago when I lived in a small rented house with an even smaller garden, and wanted a patch of land somewhere to call my own.

The plot was thick with brambles (which still make a regular appearance) which were cut and dug as much as possible. A layer of farmyard mulch was put down, covered with carpet and generally left that way until I could work each piece of land.

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Getting up at silly o’clock this morning, I was messaged by Julian Winslow who was also up early for an assignment.

He suggested having a listen to the birds and with Ian Boyd’s words about bird song still ringing in my ears, I opened the window.

As is our bent, it also seemed like a good idea to record it to share with you just in case you weren’t up at 05:15 this morning.

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This Saturday not only sees the start of the annual Isle of Wight Walking Festival but also sees the return of the Riverfest event.

Newport Quay is the location for the festival which brings you a combination of entertainment, activities, exhibitions celebrating the Rivers’ habitats and wildlife, industry and heritage highlighting the importance of water in the environment.

From 11am til 3pm, there’ll be storytelling, guided walks, wildlife activities not to mention the workshops at Quay Arts.

There’s be exhibitions by the Environment agency, IW Walking Festival, Newport Rivers Group, Eco-challenger, Medina Valley Centre, IW Wildlife Trust and the Red Squirrel Trust.

Image: Newport Quay by Auntie P

News reaches us this evening that Ventnor beach has once again been awarded Blue Flag status as well as the Quality Coast Award. We have not been able to clarify this with Encams yet, but have it on good authority that the Blue Flag can continue to fly high over Ventnor for another year.

Readers will remember that Ventnor was awarded the Blue Flag last year after a break of five years.

A number of criteria need to be met before a Blue Flag is awarded including stringent tests on water quality, the presence of paid life guards, sufficient recycling as well as education initiatives – something which is fulfilled by the Coastal Centre Rockpool Surveys.

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Last week I was puzzled to see the pink planning notices around Brighstone and Shorwell for the application for wind turbines on Cheverton Down being changed for turquoise ones.

It turns out the application has been readvertised because additional information requested by the planning department is now in, and there is a new deadline of 22 May for public comments, which can be made in writing, or online.

The additional information includes extra photographs and photomontages, and a revised archaeological assessment.

All previous submissions still count, so if you’ve already commented you don’t need to write again.

Image: Vaxomatic

Last Friday, a new garden was officially opened at St Mary’s Hospital in Newport.

The garden is in memory of Jenny Cocks who worked as a Sister and Senior Nurse at St. Mary’s Hospital for many years.

Guy Eades, Healing Arts Director for NHS Isle of Wight said: “The garden is a fitting tribute to Jenny as it was her idea that St. Mary’s Hospital should have such a garden.

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Congratulations to Island based public artists, Eccleston George for making it onto the BBC Breathing Places Web site today.

The photo being sported on the BBC Web site was taken at the official open day of Medusa’s Wildlife Meadow (behind Brading Roman Villa) and features the-then High Sheriff for the Isle of Wight, Alan Titchmarsh sitting in one of Eccleston George’s sculptured seats.

The Eccleston George team have been working closely with the Green Gym and The Footprint Trust to develop the space behind the Roman Villa and have done absolute wonders to enhance the area for public use.

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Many thanks to new VB contributor Lois, for alerting us to this video and the write up below. Ed

“If you don’t know how to fix it, please, stop breaking it.”

These were words spoken by 12 year old Severn Suzuki at the 1992 Earth Summit at Rio de Janeiro. Suzuki spoke to the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development for seven minutes about her fears for the earth, its environment and the world to be inherited by her children.

She reflects that, as a child, she is told to respect others, not to hurt and to share what she has.

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Last night saw the planning committee of Ventnor Town Council “see no reason” to object to the application to have three wind turbines on Ventnor Golf course.

The Detail
A large group of people attended with the majority of them being golfers, hence pro the wind turbines.

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