Green Ixworth

Tomorrow, Thursday, is election day for the Suffolk Police and Crime Commissioner.

Here is your chance to do something about the many complaints we have all made on the resources and operational decisions which affect our daily life, especially in smaller communities.

Do remember to take photo ID with you, you cannot vote without it.

Ixworth Annual Parish Meeting

6.30pm on Wednesday 17th April at the SET School, Walsham Road.

This is not a Parish Council meeting, it is for Parish residents to raise any questions you have with the Parish Council.

In addition a number of village groups, including the Parish Council, will offer short statements concerning their activities over the past year.

It is your opportunity to hold councillors and voluntary groups to account for what they have done in the village.

We shall be there, will you?

Green Ixworth

14thMarch
A reminder that at 7.00pm on 14thMarch Green Ixworth will be holding its next open meeting with our speaker Julian Thompson. He will be speaking on the iFarm, its extension into promoting local housing and their recent purchase of the White Horse Pub in Thelnetham. An inspiring speaker, he will show how local residents working together in rural Suffolk and Norfolk can change their communities for the betterment of all. Questions on how to do it will be welcomed. All are welcome and refreshments will be served. See you at the Methodist Church, High Street, Ixworth.

Sticky w**d
Comments on social media have expressed concern over the “sticky w**d” covering the surface of the Black Bourn in a number of places, particularly where the current is slow. This plant is commonly known as duck w**d and occurs where there are excessive “nutrients” in the water. These nutrients are washed into the river from farmers’ fields or are dumped in the river by the 20 sewage works upstream of Ixworth, mostly treated but not always. It is worse when there is little water in the river because the nutrients are more concentrated. Next year Anglian Water is pumping fresh water into the river to dilute the nutrients, phosphates and nitrogen, most of which are fertilizers or animal waste being spread on fields.
If the river were allowed to flood when levels were high, instead of deoxygenating the water, it would spread on to riverside fields and pastures and provide free nutrients to grass land.
Responsibility for clearing vegetation, blocking the river, is usually the responsibility of the riparian owners, (owning the river bank and the river up to the mid-point). However, some activity in the river may need approval from the Environment Agency but keeping a channel open and not too wide or deep, is critical so the flow can take silt away and leave the natural gravels on the bed of the river for the invertebrates, mussels and fish to multiply.
The River Lark Catchment Partnership have already shown how much progress can be made with many plans for the long term and is an exemplar of what can be done.
Green Ixworth are looking for volunteers to work with us to help improve the state of the Black Bourn. Clearing in-river vegetation will produce immediate benefits but returning rivers to near their natural state will be the longer-term aim.
Our updated Vision for the Black Bourn can be found on the Green Ixworth website, from where you can also contact us.

Pic by Steve Wilson who with others, had cleared the lane through the vegetation upstream of Ixworth Bridge.

Recycling
What can we do to get better at it, will be addressed at our next public meeting on 15th June 7.00pm at the Methodist Church, High Street, Ixworth, when the Community Liaison Officer for the Suffolk waste plant at Great Blakenham, Siobhan O’Dell. She will be explaining the system operated by Suffolk County Council, answering any questions you have and how we might improve the already impressive Suffolk recycling effort. No longer will you have to ask the question, “Which bin does this go into?”

More new plans to develop industry in Stanton.
A further section of the Shepherds Grove site is being proposed for development details are here:
https://stanton.your-feedback.co.uk/
Below is the response from Green Ixworth
Green Ixworth is an environmental organisation covering much of the rural area between Bury St Edmunds and Stanton. Our aims and objectives are to protect and improve the natural and built environment. Supporting the provision of jobs and truly affordable housing, none is currently planned in the area, so it is not difficult to support the implications of the questions.
However, our answers will depend on how each of those question areas is addressed by yourselves and there is little information in your outline to indicate that. For example, no indication is given as to what will be the balance in the types of business to be carried out and what proportion will be manufacturing or storage. Generally, storage and distribution provide few, well paid jobs, generally require few significant skills or provide much training beyond driving a fork lift. Manufacturing and research require high level skills and therefore provide higher wage income to the area. That balance would therefore be critical to our level of support.
Does the development and the jobs provided, contribute a net increase or a replacement for business space and jobs elsewhere? What use will the new development make of embodied carbon in existing structures?
The design, such as is illustrated, gives no indication of your intentions with regard to the aspect of roofs and whether they will mount solar panels. The scale of the buildings should make the site self- sufficient in energy needs. This would also determine our support or otherwise. For your information this guidance may help in your decisions: https://www.bre.co.uk/.../123160-NSC-Solar-Roofs-Good...;
Your position on road transport seems dependent on the roundabout being constructed by Copart. If the Copart/Jaynic project were notto go ahead, we would expect your project to construct the roundabout and the link into the Shepherds Grove East industrial estate. If it were your intention to use Summer Road directly on to the A143 in the absence of the roundabout we should oppose the project. We welcome your commitment to the use of public transport but would wish this to be tied into working hours fitting in with the bus timetable. The timing of traffic could create a noise problem, clearly this should be avoided.
There is, understandably at this stage, no indication of expected traffic levels as a result of the development. You will be aware of the general concern in the area at the very congested A143 particularly towards Bury St Edmunds. Existing proposals for perhaps 1,000 plus houses in Ixworth, Stanton and surrounding villages, will generate some 6,000 plus additional vehicle movements per day and Copart, if it should be built, a further large number of HGVs and other vehicles. There is no question that these additional vehicles will make the present situation worse. Minor road changes will not resolve this conundrum. Therefore, unless major road improvements take place before your project goes ahead, we should oppose the development, as desirable as it may be in other respects.
Biodiversity would be significantly damaged by your proposals. We would therefore expect a very substantial proposal for additional biodiversity on a significant scale to both replace and improve it. Further in respect of the major biodiverse value of old land and vegetation, new planting should not be seen as a satisfactory replacement.
You will be aware of local concern over the chemicals which have been used on the area of the old RAF airfield and subsequently a Nuclear Missile base. The aquifer is susceptible to pollution as is the natural drainage into the Little Ouse, an area with significant SSSIs and other valuable natural habitats. The presence of a disrupted clay layer over the aquifer is not sufficient protection. Disturbance of the soil during construction could release these chemicals into the aquifer or streams.
We look forward to the sight of and being consulted over your masterplan and further details.
BRE.CO.UK
www.bre.co.uk

BRE Group - World leaders in built environment research and development BRE delivers innovative and rigorous products, services, standards & qualifications that are used globally to make buildings better for people & the environment

Green Ixworth News
Our Swifts
Swifts, their future and how we can all help them survive and flourish, are the subject of a presentation by Suffolk Swifts group on Thursday 20th April at 7.00pm in Ixworth Methodist Church, Ixworth High Street. All are welcome and Swift nest boxes will be available to buy.
Pakenham Fen and Sizewell
Concern has been expressed on social media about the work Sizewell C is conducting in Pakenham. There is reason to be concerned and it is because the Nuclear Power Station is being built, in part, on land regarded as a very valuable habitat for wildlife. For an explanation of what is happening, what disruption and potential damage will occur and whether it is all worth it see the brief report with site maps by Green Ixworth on its website.

greenixworth.org.uk

Energy prices – another increase?

Saturday 3rd December, Ixworth
Martin Lewis, the Money Saving expert, has warned that energy bills could rise by over 40pc next winter and the government payment of £400 will have ended for most people.
The price guarantee rises to £3,000 in April 2023 but many fewer people than now will benefit from government assistance. This year's energy costs have already rocketed to almost double the average cost in 2021 but finance expert Martin Lewis has warned that the burden of costly bills could increase even more the following winter - by 43pc.
Government has already said there would be no more general subsidy or limits to average prices. “people will have to fend for themselves”. However, do not panic yet as Green Ixworth, working with West Suffolk Council can offer some help. Whether you acknowledge human made Global Warming or not, energy prices are going up and up but there is something you can do.
Take part in the Home Energy Campaign starting with the launch event in Ixworth Village Hall at 10.30am on Saturday 3rd December. After a brief presentation by Green Ixworth and Cllr John Griffiths, experts will help guide you through the maze of energy saving tips and devices including very cheap or even free options.
You can also request a free heat map showing where heat leaks out of your house.
There will be documents to take away, explaining many of the issues and advice to address them. Also a free Radiator Key for the first 15 people to arrive. Getting the air out of your radiators being an entirely free way of improving energy efficiency.
We shall finish by 12.30 leaving you time to enjoy the Ixworth Christmas Fair.
Access the Village Hall from the Bury St Edmunds end of the High Street.
Green Ixworth looks forward to seeing you on 3rd December at 10.30.

Damsons - plums with attitude, are available for free at 39 Micklesmere Drive, in buckets by the garage door. Help yourself to the damsons not the buckets. Wonderful in jam, compote, bottled, frozen, etc very versatile.

What state are our food supplies in? This is but one example of what having no policy on food supplies creates.

Green Ixworth

Great news from West Suffolk Plannners. The Hempyard Bridge restoration project will no longer have the monstrous equine barriers originally suggested. Our objection and arguments have paid off and good sense has been seen by Suffolk County Council who made the original proposal.

We should like to give its thanks to all those residents who gave Green Ixworth your support by also submitting reasoned objections. It was a pity the Parish Council could not do the same. However we would like to thank Parish Councillors Debra Reay and Steve Wilson and County Councillor Joanna Spicer for their specific assistance and the WSC planners who helped persuade SCC to change their minds.

If only we can persuade SCC Highways not just to work a bit harder on the A143 footbridge plan but to make it a dual use bridge for wildlife as well as humans we may be getting somewhere and release Ixworth from its formidable boundaries.

Ixworth & Ixworth Thorpe Paris Council

Is holding their own consultation on the Persimmon development in the Village Hall at 7.30 Wednesday 16th March all residents are welcome.

Green Ixworth welcome this further consultation by the Parish Council on what is at this stage the Persimmon “Master Plan”. It sets out the boundaries and road connections for the site and the choices available for the different areas of school, housing ,green space, etc. It has to be agreed with West Suffolk Planning before the detailed plan can be submitted for approval.

Green Ixworth submitted its comments on the December “consultation” which go beyond the Master Plan to re-emphasise what we believe to be in the best long term interests of the village; housing mix, style, parking, energy efficiency and green space. If Persimmon maintain their present position we shall already have won an important victory, to retain all of the surrounding trees and footpaths.

A copy of the Green Ixworth response is available at:https://greenixworth.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Persimmon-cons-response-1.pdf

See you all on the 16th.

greenixworth.org.uk

Ixworth & Ixworth Thorpe Parish Council

Can you spare half an hour to help the Parish Council design a policy to reduce Climate Change and help you and your families future?

Suffolk County Council and West Suffolk have established their policies on Climate Change and our PC has established a working group to develop Environmental Policies which can be implemented by the Parish Council.

Now we would like you to have your say before we go further. The first stage of work is completed and now we would like your views and thoughts on what we have produced. A formal consultation with residents is being held this Saturday. You will be most welcome, especially your own views and ideas.

Ixworth Library,
Saturday 19th March
10am to 1.00pm

Persimmon Consultation

Green Ixworth has submitted its response to the Master Plan consultation, too long for this page it is available on our website greenixworth.org.uk. In it we praise their intention to retain the surrounding green corridors and the fact they have responded well to our campaign. They will also retain the Ixworth Wood which we promoted.
We need to be aware that even if the Master Plan is adopted by West Suffolk with the other improvements we have suggested such as the Green Bridge across the A143, the final detailed plans may not comply with the Master Plan. Even if they do, changes may still be proposed prior to completion so constant vigilance is needed.
We have also commented on the issues we wish to see considered in the detailed plan, some of which were in the Neighbourhood Plan. The need for more housing to suit the needs of residents to downsize, be affordable or social is also strongly expressed.
We would welcome any comments you may have on our response as we need to ensure that our thoughts are broadly in line with those of residents.
Please contact Green Ixworth on our website.

Green Ixworth would like to thank those who have helped us in whatever way over the last year including those who sometimes disagree. We believe that together we can make a difference.

May Green Ixworth wish you a happy, healthy and a green Christmas and New Year.

Persimmon Consultations

For those unable to attend today's consultation in the Village Hall, you can view their outline proposals for the Masterplan on https://consultation.persimmonhomes.com/ixworth?fbclid=IwAR1RllQ0UkeVvisfGxvgjRWGg406-rK71hk7NhYcuRFhwTSEEKvug9_sIpc

I should point out that before a detailed planning application can be made a Masterplan must be drawn up and agreed with the Planning Authority at West Suffolk. When you have looked at the consultative document if you wish to make any comments you can contact Persimmon at [email protected]

At first glance it seems they have looked with care at many of the points Green Ixworth raised with them over the past year and sought to satisfy our concerns. However there is no change on the 5 arm roundabout. We shall be preparing a comprehensive response to the consultation in a few days.

We all need to be aware that some of their proposals such as the bypass bridge contain get out words like “if feasible”. Also when the detailed plans are drawn up they may differ from the principles set out now. So we shall have to watch carefully what happens later on.

But the first signs are a distinct improvement over their previous proposals.

Ixworth Welcome to our exhibition regarding Land at Crown Lane and West of A143, Ixworth. To use this website, please press the arrow to the right to go through the place cards or use the menu located at the top. We thank you for your time. Yours sincerely Persimmon Homes

Green Ixworth congratulates the Events Committee for the very successful Ixworth Christmas Fair. The enjoyment of those attending was obvious. We were happy to welcome so many visitors to our stall and impressed at how many people were trying to do their bit for the environment and defeating Climate Change. Most encouraging were the children who were passionate about the environment with recycling and better choices of food and other products at the heart of their concerns. Many thanks must go to both parents and the schools for their good work.

But again thanks to the hard work of those who organised and participated in the Fair.

Green Ixworth
How are your hedgerows?

For those who walk with or without dogs you must come across hedgerows in good or bad condition. Now there is something you can do about that. The app available below enables you to report the hedge condition. It is free and you can help to encourage healthy hedges which are good for wildlife.

https://hedgerowsurvey.ptes.org/healthy-hedgerows-survey

Healthy Hedgerows Healthy Hedgerows is a rapid hedgerow health checking survey. With just a handful of questions, this hedgerow health-checker will place each hedge you survey in the lifecycle and give you instant management options. It has been designed for farmers and landowners that want to understand their whole....

A date for your diary!
Green Ixworth will be holding its next General Meeting at 7.00pm 21st October at the Courtyard Cafe (Pykkerell Pub). The main speaker will be Will Cranstoun, the West Suffolk Area Manager for the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. Among many other things he has been responsible for developing Mickle Mere and the Black Bourn Reserve. He knows his stuff and should provide us with plenty of ideas for future activities and our long term projects.
We shall also be reporting on our current work schedule and our draft Vision for the Black Bourn which will shortly be circulated for consultation with riparian owners and the public.
All are welcome.
The Pykkerell bar will be open so you are welcome to bring a drink into the meeting with you. We would expect to finish about 9.00pm.
Eagle Class from Ixworth Primary School supervised by Lisa Palmer the Deputy Head, on a visit to Robins Copse. Roger from Green Ixworth is showing the children which fruits are edible and which not.

Persimmon Homes receive permission for a new estate in Colchester

For an idea of what Ixworth could be in for look at https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/housing/colchester-berechurch-road-development-approved-8379150?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=DM47439

Many of our concerns are reflected by local residents in Colchester but have been narrowly passed by Colchester Borough Council Planning Committee.

We expect the formal application from Persimmon for homes on the Crown Lane site soon.

Plans for over 150 new homes given the go-ahead Plans from Persimmon to build 153 news homes on Berechurch Road in Colchester have been approved.

Green Ixworth congratulates Steve Wilson and his supporting Water Babies for opening up the Black Bourn so that nature can take its course, and a very straight one it is. Unfortunately it means we lose the Swans to Pakenham.

Green Ixworth congratulates Steve Wilson and his supporting Water Babies for opening up the Black Bourn so that nature can take its course, and a very straight one it is.

Hydrogen – The answer to all our prayers?

Comment in the press recently suggests hydrogen gas can power cars, domestic boilers and more all without causing any pollution. A answer to the climate emergency. Oh that it was so simple.

Reducing our Carbon Footprint is crucial to reduce Climate Heating, Hydrogen can help to reduce pollution but at a cost. Government seems to be ignorant of the differences between Blue and Green Hydrogen. A recent article posted on the Green Ixworth web site shows the importance of the differences:

https://greenixworth.org.uk/?p=364

Hydrogen – how to reduce our carbon footprint – Green Ixworth Hydrogen – how to reduce our carbon footprint August 21, 2021  |  No Comments In this new article, Roger Spiller examines some of the arguments concerning the potential of Hydrogen for reducing climate heating. Hydrogen-warningDownload

Green Ixworth is coming up for its first birthday and our first in person meeting will be this Thursday 29th July in the Courtyard Cafe (Pykerrell) at 7.00pm. Our guest speaker will be Sir Kenneth Carlisle, owner of the Wyken Estate who will share his experience of making 21st Century farming friendly to the environment. His is just one example, along with Dairy Farm, Ixworth, of environmental improvements already taking place on a large scale in our neighbourhood often without due recognition of the contribution they make on climate change and our community.
A special briefing on plans for the Black Bourn will be given by Steve Wilson
We expect to finish by 9.00pm.
The Pykerrell bar will be open for a drink before and after the meeting.
The meeting is open to all, we look forward to seeing you there.

Our latest newsletter is now available on the website.https://greenixworth.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Green-Ixworth-News-5-1.pdf

greenixworth.org.uk

Bee orchids!
One of our members decided to create a wild flower rich pasture instead of lawn. They raked out the moss, sowed wild flower seed and left the “lawn” to its own devices. The wild flowers have not shown much yet BUT these mature Bee Orchids, in three locations, must have already been in the lawn but were regularly cut before they were noticed.

“Spotting it made my day on Saturday.”

Why not try just leaving a patch of lawn or rough grass to its own devices for year. It will need cutting in September/October, leave the straw on the ground for a couple of weeks for the seeds to drop out then take the cuttings away, perennials prefer a poor soil.

Green Ixworth has been offered the chance to sign up to a new service to support residents reduce our carbon footprint and save money on energy bills.
The service is offered by Groundwork East ( https://www.groundwork.org.uk/hubs/east/ ) and fully funded by Suffolk Climate Change Partnership (https://www.greensuffolk.org/about/suffolk-climate-change-partnership/)

The Groundwork East team will carry out a desktop survey to assess the carbon footprint of our village, set a suitable carbon reduction target and measure the outcome. The team will visit to raise awareness, engage residents and carry out a short survey to understand what we currently do (if anything) to reduce our environmental impact. This will be followed with proposals for an engagement plan and access to a dedicated advisor to provide in-depth advice throughout the project. All the actions recommended will be no to low cost, although additional support can be given where householders are particularly interested in specific higher cost measures such as heat pumps, or solar panels.

We think this could be very helpful in understanding our current carbon footprint and in engaging and supporting residents to make positive change. Groundwork East have asked Green Ixworth to ‘sponsor’ the project. The management group welcome the opportunity. Debra is leading on this initiative and welcomes any comments or feedback. We are also encouraging the Parish Council to join with us to support the initiative.

East of England | Groundwork

Thanks to Holly Jackson for alerting us to this new group forming in the Bury St Edmunds area.
https://actionnetwork.org/events/kick-off-event-love-the-leaf-bury-st-edmunds

Kick Off Event - Love the Leaf (Bury St Edmunds) We're facing a climate emergency. The biggest threat to our very existence and to much of the natural world we’ve ever seen. And yet our leaders are letting us down. The most powerful way we can respond to climate change is by working together to leverage our collective power to get big change fro...

What is nicer than to sit in front of a log fire?

Quite a lot. A Cproner recently gave the cause of death of a young girl as Asthma severely aggravated by particulates, the sort you get from vehicle engines and wood burning stoves. Fireplaces and stoves are now the largest single source of primary particle pollution in the UK, greater than traffic and industry. About 40% of the UK’s primary particle pollution comes from just 7% of homes that burn solid fuel.

Article from the Guardian

Will the new ban on sales of coal and wet wood in England help the problem or risk making it worse?

In 1950s Britain, replacing coal with so-called smokeless fuel (made from powdered coal and industrial waste coke) was the main solution to our smogs. London’s particle pollution decreased by 66% in just 10 years. A similar ban was implemented in Dublin in 1990 and particle pollution decreased by 70% in one year.

These are dramatic improvements but after the ban the cities were still significantly polluted by solid fuel. In London the gradual rollout of gas central heating played an important role in continuing to improve air pollution through the 1970s.

But UK solid-fuel users mainly burn wood. Government estimates suggest increases in wood burning since 2005 have offset gains from other sectors, including cleaning up traffic exhaust.

Banning the sale of wet wood has not been tried before. According to the UK government, burning wet wood produces about four times as much particle pollution as dry wood. However, wet wood accounts for about only 20% of the total being burnt, limiting the potential impact of the ban.

UK banks’ support for coal industry has risen since 2015 Paris climate pact
Read more
The wood that people buy in garages or garden centres is not labelled as dry or wet. The ban will mean that sellers will now only sell dry wood – but the fear is that this could encourage people to believe they can burn more solid fuels at home, even if it is smokeless fuels and dry woods. Writing in Country Living, Emma-Louise Pritchard concludes that the new rules “mean that those of us with fires or wood-burning stoves in our homes can continue to light them with added peace of mind”.

The sale of fuels made from coffee grounds and olive waste may further encourage home burning. In Dublin, despite the coal ban, the marketing of wood and peat as green biofuels has contributed to solid-fuel heating remaining the biggest source of particle pollution in the city.

Several local councils, including Camden in north London, are clearer in their messaging. They have asked people not to heat their homes with any solid fuels.

Roger Spiller

If you see bees swarming, usually on a tree branch, then the safest response for you and the bees is to get them removed. There may be locals who would do so but Ray and Linda Godwin will also help. Contact them on 01284 769772 or 07774 802591.
Green Ixworth