2012 - 2013 Yearly Review

Clean British Energy Campaign
This has mainly focused on people signing postcards to urge the government to invest in renewables rather than following a ‘Dash for gas’.  If gas fired power stations were built it would mean the UK would not achieve it’s Climate Change targets, it would mean less green jobs and higher fuel bills as gas prices continue to rise.  People were also encouraged to earn a CBE certificate by switching to a power company that invests in renewables such as Ecotricity or Good Energy.  A petition to make Sheffield a Frack-free city was started with Sheffield Climate Alliance.  A photo stunt entitled ‘Green is working’ to promote green jobs was held in October.  A display of photographs featuring Renewable Energy was set up in the Town Hall foyer in December.

‘Energy we can all afford’ public meeting – Clive Betts MP (Labour), Cllr Joe Otten (LibDem) Simon Bowen (FoE) Craig Jackson (SYHA & LiveGreen) and Emma Bridge (Sheffield Renewables) answered questions from the public about the rocketing fuel bills, green jobs and climate change.  The meeting held at The Circle on Rockingham Lane, was organised by Sheffield Friends of the Earth in collaboration with Sheffield Campaign Against Climate Change.  It was held despite heavy snowfall and hope it influences Decarbonisation targets being included in the Energy Bill.

The Bee Cause
In July we held a Bee Breakfast with Meg Munn MP & Cllr Isabel Bowler and were featured on Radio Sheffield by Paulette Edwards.  In September Cllr Jillian Creasy and Cllr Sylvia Anginotti attended a Bee Walk.  There was a petition for a National Bee Action Plan and cards for people to sign.  Free seeds, wildflower posters and booklets made this a very popular campaign.  A bee map where people had marked their bee friendly gardens was displayed in the Town Hall foyer in September.  The group are currently searching for a site to plant a bee meadow in Sheffield.

Make it Better Campaign
Some smart phones contain tin which comes from Bangka Island in Indonesia causing devastation of the environment.  E-mails were sent to Samsung and Apple.


Litter Pick
We conducted our litter pick on Penistone Road on the Jubilee Holiday Tuesday 5th June 2012.  We wore masks of the Royal Family and were featured in the Sheffield Star newspaper.

Free Green Film Festival
As a result of a ‘buy two get one free’ offer at Dogwoof films, we showed ‘The Island President’, a very recently released film, on 30th May 2012.

The latest film festival will take place in the Spring 2013 with four films being shown on successive Wednesdays at the Red Deer pub beginning with Blue Gold on 17th April.

Stalls
We have run 9 stalls at: Environment Week, National Climate Jobs Caravan, the Green Fair, Firth Park Festival, Lowedges Festival, Ecclesfield Gala, Sheffield Food Festival, Riverlution and Peace and Craft Fair

Facebook, Twitter and Website
Sheffield FoE now has an active presence on Facebook and Twitter thanks to John who tweets and posts regularly.  Shaun has radically updated the website so it has a fresh modern feel.

Speakers
Dave Berry from Sheffield Renewables spoke at the September meeting about the share offer.  As a result of this it was decided that Sheffield FoE should buy a share.  Malcolm Lee of Sheffield Forgemasters spoke at the February meeting on the subject of ‘A Manufacturing Perspective on UK & EU Climate Change Policy’

Training
Members have attended various training sessions including the FoE Northern Gathering at Haworth, Local Groups' Conference in London, Planning Masterclass (Richard) and the Bee Prepared Day in Darlington.  There were also more varied local training days such as Planning and Sustainable Housing.

Other Actions

• Gerry attended the ‘Broomhill Air Quality Symposium’ on 21st April 2012.  
• Richard reported on his visit to the Garden Organic AGM at the May meeting.
• Liddy helped out on 15th September on a Greenpeace stall to lobby MPs about the Electricity Market Reform Bill.
• Richard attended the Sheffield Food Conference on 13th September and wrote a short report.
• Maureen wrote in support of Holbrook Biomass plant providing it is locally sourced.
• We opposed the RecyCoal planning application with a draft letter of objection being circulated among members.  Unfortunately this was passed at the January planning meeting. 
• Met with Cllr Jack Scott in October to discuss SCC environmental policy.
• We opposed the widening of the Incinerator’s resource base to as far away as Newark.  A sample bullet pointed letter was circulated among members for them to lodge their objections.
• Maureen’s letter about fracking was featured in January 10th Sheffield Telegraph.
• John talked to Sheffield Rotary Club about Sheffield FoE on 12th February
• Beatrice and John lobbied David Blunkett on 9th March about putting pressure on the government about the Energy Bill

Make it Better campaign

Some smart phones contain tin which comes from Bangka Island in Indonesia causing devastation of the environment.  Campaigners are being asked to e-mail Samsung and Apple.  FoE is aiming for a Europe-wide law next year to make all companies to come clean about their supply chains.  John is taking this campaign forward.

Make it Better campaign

We have signed up for Friends of the Earth's latest campign called "Make it Better". The campaign launched on Saturday 24^th November and looks at the tin used in smartphones. See the link below for more details and to send letters asking for better products.

http://www.foe.co.uk/what_we_do/make_it_better_action_37571.html

The Guardian has a special feature on the issue in their Saturday magazine which can be read using the link here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/nov/23/tin-mining-indonesia-bangka

Smartphones sold by best-selling brands almost certainly contain tin from a paradise island in Indonesia where tin mining is destroying forests and farmland, choking coral reefs and devastating many communities, a new Friends of the Earth investigation reveals.

FoE's research shows that Samsung and Apple deal with companies that use tin mined on Bangka island and it's almost certain that this tin ends up in their products, although the companies may not have known this or about the devastating effect of mining on the island. When asked by Friends of the Earth whether they used tin from Bangka, they neither confirmed nor denied this. Tin is used as solder in all phones and electronic gadgets.

       

Friends of the Earth's Executive Director Andy Atkins said:

       

"While Samsung and Apple's battle to lead the smartphone market is played out in courts and high streets around the world, the rival brands could have more in common than they'd like to think.

       

"Though they may not have realised it, our research shows that mining tin to make both companies' smartphones may come at a terrible cost to people and the environment."

       

To prevent problems elsewhere and help ensure that companies make products in a way that's within the planet's safe limits, Friends of the Earth's new Make It Better campaign is calling on Samsung and Apple customers and others to ask the smartphone makers to back new rules for all companies to come clean about their supply chains.

       

Friends of the Earth's Executive Director Andy Atkins continued:

       

"Millions of us love our phones - we don't need to know complex details about how they're made but we do want to be sure that people or the planet aren't hurt in the process.

       

 "Friends of the Earth's new Make It Better campaign is asking smartphone makers to tell us if their phones contain tin that's linked to the destruction of precious forests and coral reefs and wrecking the lives of communities in Indonesia."

       

 "And to prevent problems elsewhere, we want them to back new rules for all companies to come clean about how they do business - so we can love our favourite products, and love the way they're made."

       

To address the problems in Bangka, Friends of the Earth is also calling for the smartphone giants to bring together affected parties to agree and implement a plan to halt environmental and human problems caused by tin mining.

Key findings from 'Mining for Smartphones: the True Cost of Tin':

       

Devastation on Bangka island:

       

* Dangerous and unregulated tin mining on Bangka island killed and injuring miners - police figures show that in 2011 an average of one miner a week died in an accident.

* Silt from tin mining dredgers and boats is clouding the formerly clear sea around Bangka, killing the seagrass eaten by turtles and 60-70% of the island's coral reefs, driving away fish and ruining fishermen's livelihoods.

* Farmers struggle to grow crops in soil turned acidic by the destruction of forests for tin mining, while abandoned craters scar large parts of Bangka island.

* Doctors suspect a possible link between Bangka's high number of malaria cases and the hundreds of abandoned tin mine craters filled with stagnant water that are a breeding ground for disease-carrying mosquitos.

* Almost half of all mined tin is turned into solder for the electronics industry and around a third of the world's tin is from Bangka and neighbouring island Belitung.

  

 Smartphones impact on the world:

  

* There are now more than 1 billion smartphones in use around the world, according to consulting firm Strategy Analytics, with growing demand likely to push this beyond 2 billion within the next three years.

* Samsung sold around 95 million smartphones in 2011 - producing these used enough water to fill the Royal Albert Hall 500 times and an area of land over twice the size of Birmingham.

* Apple sold around 93 million smartphones in 2011 - producing these used enough water to fill Wembley Stadium more than 80 times and an area of land more than three times the size of Glasgow.

* There are many things companies could do to reduce the impact of phones and make them better for customers - from introducing universal chargers or batteries that can charge in seconds to designing them to be much easier to take apart and repair. Experts say that through innovative design and better reuse of old phones phone companies could cut demand for tin and other raw materials.

       

More Details:

       

1. High-res professional photos of the devastation caused by tin mining on Bangka island can be downloaded for free editorial use here: http://photolibrary.foe.co.uk/?c=126&k=11d5cf9866

2. Case studies of people affected by mining in Bangka and the full investigation into Samsung and Apple's supply chains are available in Friends of the Earth's new report 'Mining for Smartphones: the True Cost of Tin': http://www.foe.co.uk/resource/reports/tin_mining.pdf

3. Friends of the Earth's new Make It Better campaign is asking leading smartphone makers to say whether their phones contain tin linked to the destruction of coral reefs and forests in Indonesia's Bangka islands - and to back new rules for all companies to come clean about their supply chains at www.foe.co.uk/makeitbetter. To help end problems in the supply chain, we're calling for legislation requiring large companies operating in Europe to report on their full human and environmental impacts - including indirect impacts through suppliers - such as accidents, pollution incidents, greenhouse gas emissions and how much of the world's water, land and raw materials they use. The Make It Better campaign will also celebrate positive steps companies are taking towards more planet-friendly production and how innovative design can reduce the environmental impact of our favourite items.

   

We will let you know more about what we are planning to do next month.