ESG Radio Newsletter

Key words- Summer temps/floral explosion/pollution rise/shipping activity and protocols/ Litter and civic pride- CUTW / New ESG Objectives List coming soon

Hello there- The summer season has finally arrived and with it major outdoor activity and increased littering, wonderful tree blossom and also amplification of pollution in raised temperatures and calmer wind scenarios.

We can solve some of our problems, but there are some we cannot tackle ourselves. Using public transport/ disposing of rubbish responsibly/ using less packaging at point of purchase/ encouraging others to do the same; all these actions help. In our annual Clean Up awareness campaign we aim to highlight positive actions and progress as well as actions needed by Govt, businesses and industry for all to play their part in looking after our environment. Our volunteer teams will help clean up nature, coastal and underwater sites as tackled every year.

Date for this year is 29^th September. Campaign will kick off with a March up Main Street as from 11am. and related activity will follow at the John Mackintosh Square for a few hours. Hope you can join us on the day! Plse register by emailing esg@gibtelecom.net as teams are now signing up.

As an extremely busy Mediterranean Port, Gibraltar’s shipping activity is significant. Despite following strict Codes of Practice monitored by the Port and Maritime Agency, the volume and proximity of the ships mean that pollution will affect us on an on-going basis. There are always some vessels that break the rules and these should be reported – not necessarily via FB, but direct to the Port or Dept. of Environment. Examples could be endless smoke emissions from nearby vessels, which clearly are not circumstances of mere start up of engines.

Contact us for information on how to make such reports. Another factor is that Gibraltar needs to apply more stringent controls than are required whether by the EU or International conventions – simply because of the proximity of berthing and shipping activity to residential areas. The ESG is following up on all these issues with the authorities as well as seeking provision of onshore electricity connection throughout the Port area.

Since 2003 the ESG has set out its “Shopping Cart” of Objectives for Gibraltar and the regional environment and we try and update this as frequently as possible.

Our 2017 List is now being reviewed and will be available online soon. We know from feedback from the community that this resource is very useful to people interested in finding out more about the issues on the ground including students both here and abroad. The 2018 paper will be available online at www.esg-gib.net with issues covered such as : Climate Change, Energy, Waste, Sewage, Pollution, Transport, Cross Border Issues, Govt Environmental Management Plan and many more.

Thank you for listening..!

JOINT STATEMENT ON GRAND PARADE

The GONHS, Gibraltar Heritage Trust and ESG welcome the exchange in Parliament on the 18^th May highlighting a meeting held between the Chief Minister and the three groups in November 2017 to discuss the issue of the Grand Parade Car Parking Project.

The groups were very grateful to be able to present their views and concerns directly, and in some detail, which included viability of going underground, importance for current and future generations of preserving this important open space, and the added advantage this gave of creating an attractively landscaped area for both residents and the many thousands of tourists that will visit the Botanic Gardens and Upper Rock via the Cable Car.

All three NGOs sincerely hope that the outcome of the investigations into the viability of an underground car park facility at this site will be successful.

ESG Radio Newsletter May 30^th 2018

Keywords:    World Environment Day 2018    Grand Parade Car Park    Clean up 2018

We start today’s newsletter by highlighting World Environment Day event next week supported by a number of NGOs, schools and more. Event is organised by the Dept of Environment and promises to showcase the extensive efforts now being carried out at citizen level on environmental causes and targets – which is also growing year by year. The ESG will use this opportunity to promote its aims and objectives it works on year round for a better environment as well as its direct efforts through the Clean up the World Campaign to reduce plastic waste which is also the theme for World Environment Day this year. The date for this event is the 5^th June – and is being held at the Commonwealth Park from 9am to 3.30pm.

An important issue for us is use of space and the protection of open and green areas and liveability. We were therefore very pleased to hear the exchanges at Parliament last week confirming that fresh investigation is now underway to establish the viability of an underground Grand Parade Car Park. The ESG, together with the Gibraltar Heritage Trust and GONHS met end of last year with the Chief Minister to directly present joint concerns about the loss of this valued open space. The groups believe preserving the space and parking underground is important for both current and future generations. It would also provide an opportunity to landscape the area for the benefit of locals and the many thousands of tourists that will access the Upper Rock via the Cable Car and visit the Botanic Gardens.

Clean up 2018 planning is on-going and we are very pleased with the progress being made. Volunteers have started to register and we remind you that you can do this by emailing us at esg@gibtelecom.net. The Gibraltar wide clean up has taken place each year since 2005 and there have been many great gains achieved in addressing litter and waste issues – there is more work to do and we thank all volunteers and supporters for helping us maintain the valuable Gibraltar wide focus that the Clean up Campaign provides.

Date for this year is Saturday the 29^th of September, and will be launched by an exciting Parade with just a few surprises all aimed at raising awareness about how we need to work a lot harder to clean and protect our living environment! Hope you can join us once again this year. Details of workshops for August will be published soon.

For more information on our on-going issues please visit our website at: esg-gib.net.

Thanks for listening!