Green Expo is now in its second year and Sustainable Cheshire (an Eco Communities project) have embedded the stalls part of the Exposition into our annual events programme.

The Expo is a mix of stalls along the River Dee and separate Youth Conference. It is taking place over 3 days from Thursday 15th June to Saturday 17th June from 10am to 6pm.

CHASE (Cheshire Heritage and Sustainability Enterprises) is the community interest company behind the idea of starting Green Expo. It is raising funds to restore the old hydroelectric building by the Old Dee Bridge to be an educational and skills centre for alternative energy.

Eco Communities were asked to support the Exposition side last year which is the stalls along the Dee open for the full three days and we were more than happy to support it.

Any surplus from Green Expo will go to restoring the building as a ‘Hydro Hub’. Jane Harrad-Roberts is Project Director for Green Expo and dedicated to making this happen and Helen Tandy, Eco Communities is manging the Exposition firmly to making sure it’s an event that ticks all the boxes for locals, visitors and everyone connected to the region.

Organisations are coming together to illustrate progress on Net Zero and Sustainability in all walks of life. Organisations like University of Chester, Chester Zoo, Cheshire West and Chester Council, Ginger, Greener Group and EcoVert Solution will be on hand to talk about what they are doing in this space.

We go from electric cars with to electric scooters and bikes from Ginger, back for a second time. Greener Group are also back for a second year, they are here as our renewable energy specialists. Then EcoVert Solutions are here as experts in Passive and Sustainable Home Building.

We also have some fantastic organisations looking after nature and wildlife with WWF, Record, RSPB and Cheshire Wildlife Trust with us for three days.

We know lots of smaller businesses that are further ahead of the game than many larger organisations by making sustainable changes, even though some of them cost them more money. A true Principle before Profit approach…

Angharad who is also our Media Manager but mainly the owner of The End of the Avenue, our first Plastic Free Gold Business sells her beeswax candles from her own hives, handmade soaps from homegrown ingredients and much more. Cheshire Market Gardens, Lisa has started an amazing project on the outskirts of Hoole with her plot growing a fantastic range of produce which is used and sold by lots of small businesses locally, including Hoole Food Market.

We are championing Fairtrade with two organisations. Chester Fairtrading are with us again to talk about why Fairtrade is so important, plus lots of fairtrade goodies to purchase.  Another fantastic Fairtrade accredited business is Luna Tree selling fair trade, handmade, silver jewellery and reproduction artworks.

We then look at Sustainable Food and Drink. We have some fantastic local food and beverage stalls both Fika and Bluestone are now Plastic Free Business accredited and are doing lots around sustainability.

Fika run a Plant Based Bakery from Hoole and a fantastic shop on the Chester Walls, they will be with us providing lovely treats and coffee. They will also be supporting us hosting our very first People Planet Pastry event on the Thursday at 1pm.  Grab a hot drink and something sweet and sit down and talk sustainability. No pitches, no talks just a really informal chat with real people that care in real life.

Bluestone are one of our newer friends but are already doing so much to become more sustainable, along with its Sister organisation Sandstone. Bluestone will have soft drinks, nibbles and alcoholic drinks will be served from mid-day. No plastic bottles and the crisps come in home compostable packaging win win….

Then on Friday join us for a slightly different People Planet Pint (Friday 6pm- 8pm), this will be our third PPP in Chester but we are moving away from our usual last Thursday to host one at the Green Expo this month. So get yourself down to the Exposition on Friday and from 6pm we will have our June People Planet Pint in the Green Hut area. Please Register – (the first 33 people also get a free drink).

Our Green Hut area is new this year, you will find talks here over the three days on a huge range of topics. Book your ticket thttps://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/green-exposition-tickets-628400903017o find out more…

As King Charles says; “If we look after the Earth, only then will the Earth be able to look after us. The cost of inaction is far greater than the cost of prevention. Find practical ways of overcoming differences so we can all get down to work together to rescue this precious planet and save the threatened future of our young people.”

Also see – http://greenexpo.uk  

Angharad Armson, Media Manager

It’s World Bee Day again where we celebrate the Bees and what they do for us. Bees and many other insects play a vital role in pollinating plants allowing them to reproduce and to produce seeds that will go on to set up the next generation of plants. It is this pollination that causes plants to “fruit” and we owe a great deal of thanks to the pollinating insects as it is plant pollination that gives us nuts, berries, fruits and seeds, all those things that a healthly diet requires. It is no understatement to say that without Bees, and other pollinators, our diet would be a bland affair as we would become much more dependent on root vegetables, which don’t really compare to a nice fresh strawberry, blackberry or apple.

Pollination is a happy relationship for plants and bees. A plant, when in flower, produces nectar (basically sugar filled water) to feed to the bees . This nectar is generally held deep inside the flower causing the Bees to rummage deep and while doing so the flower spreads pollen all over the bees. Some of this is stored in the bees pollen baskets on it back legs that the bees use for a protein boost in the hive, however, the pollen on the back of the bees gets carried from flower to flower and at each one it rubs off onto a new flower and this causes the flower to be pollinated and ultimately produce the fruits, nuts and seeds we all love. It’s a brilliantly fantastic relationship that ultimately produce all food for a most of the mammals on earth (the carnivores need a well fed herbivore)

For some years now At The End of the Avenue, we have wondered what plants our bees may be feeding on as they live on the rural urban fringe. In 2021 we decided to answer that question and had the honey they produced sampled for pollen to see where they had been. It was clear that agricultural crops were the predominate feed source around the hive. There was very little in the way of native wildflowers. This caused us to pause to think. Agricultural crops create a famine and feast scenario for bees. At certain points of the year the supply of nectar is in no short supply as fields of crops flower, such as the endless fields of Rapeseed that is currently everywhere. However, once the crop stops flowering, these miles of flowerless fields effectively become a foodless dessert for the bees and they have to find alternative sources of nectar. This is often known as the June Gap when spring flowers pass and the later flowering species have not flowered yet. It is also well know that urban bees have a more constant food supply as we attempt to keep colour in our gardens all year round. So we attempted to plant as many native flowers in our garden to see if we could help them through June and keep the food supply high. Last years sample (2022) shows that our small little plot made very little difference to the total of non-agricultural forage, however, if we could all collectively start to plant more native species in our garden, or leave wild patches of flowers, perhaps this could change. So we are encouraging everyone to plant for pollinators and make a small contribution to a larger effort to help the bees in June.

Do you agree with Sky News and have are too many of becoming Bee Keepers? I live much more rurally and this isn’t the same issue but do we now have too many urban hives? What do you think……????

Whether you believe Sky News or not, we both agree on something, we all need to plant more pollinator friendly plants and support all pollinators…….

More Info:

World Beekeepers Association – LINK

Friends of the Earth – Bee Identification Guide – Link

World Bee Day: Are bees bad? Sky News – Link to Video

Helen Tandy, Founding Director, Eco Communities

It was thanks to City to Sea who provided research they had completed that we were able to get back on track. We re-costed, decided on Circular & Co’s cup. Then we had to design a logo that would engrave, thanks to Craig for your graphic design support.

If we had not already had enough hurdles already, we were also the first batch of cups to be engraved in the UK, which of course had some extra technical hitches. However having postponed our launch they actually arrived on time… so at least we now have more time to calm from the stress and get you lovely people to join us on the 23rd May, New Chester Market at 7pm.

Great work from Circular & Co who kept us updated all the way… Adele from the Cheshire West and Chester, New Chester Market team who has been a huge support and is allowing us to launch the scheme in the Market.

Join the team from 7pm, New Chester Market, 23rd May… RSVP – see below helentandy@sustainablecheshire.uk

Get yourself a drink and come over and find out about our Cheshire Cup Club scheme. What Cup Club is all about. Which businesses are part of our trial and how it all works….

Then scan and get yourself signed up to Cup Club for just £2.50……let’s create a circular community in Chester – Borrow, Use, Return……. More info on the scheme and information on the problem of single use coffee cups–see – LINK

In 2019 Cheshire West and Chester Council declared a climate emergency to focus on climate change as an organisational priority. Climate Emergency UK, a grant funded organisation, was set up to maintain a data base of councils which have and haven’t declared an emergency and a scoring system. As well as the council database of those having declared, they also started asking councils set questions. In 2021 the data they collated put Cheshire West at a score of 58%, with Manchester City Council at 87%. But we were above average which was 50%.

The next review will come out later this year and they are already starting to ask councils for replies to a list of updated questions.

We have started to review Climate Emergency UK’s batch of new questions and how the region might fair. Plus more ideas on things we can all do at home, work and schools. 

This time we are focusing on the first few questions from the Climate Emergency UK Scorecard questions around Waste Reduction. 

Question -points will be awarded if the council has done 2 or more of the following: – installing water drinking fountains on the council estate/public spaces

– banning plastic cups for water

– reducing plastic packaging

– reducing the use of plastic cutlery (forks, knives, spoons, chopsticks), plates, straws, beverage stirrers, balloon sticks or food and cup containers made of expanded polystyrene; including their covers and lids at their external events.

Cheshire West & Chester Council supported Plastic Free Chester in 2018 which went through full council and so they should achieve a positive score on this question. Here is the reply we received from the council.

Point awarded if the council requires event organisers to provide additional information about their environmental commitments that make reference to single use plastic or items that will be used that will be recyclable or compostable.

Further points awarded if the council has banned the use of all of following at these external events: plastic cutlery (forks, knives, spoons, chopsticks), plates, straws, beverage stirrers, balloon sticks or food and cup containers made of expanded polystyrene; including their covers and lids.

REPLY

Do you think the council are doing enough?

We can’t see anything in its current Events Guide which talks about Single Use plastics. Do you think the Council should require events on its land to be single use plastic free?

We have created this handy events guide for anyone putting on an event in the region.

We are now working on achieving Plastic Free Cheshire West or the big picture Plastic Free Cheshire.

The following places are working on accreditation and we need your help.

• Chester – achieved in 2018
• Neston – have done enough and we hope will be accredited soon
• Tattenhall – are so so close to achieving status.
• Ellesmere Port – we all need to get behind this region to help.
• Frodsham – we all need to get behind this region to help.
• Willaston- we all need to get behind this region to help.
• Hoole – a new one which was previously under Chester, we are now working on it’s own seperate accreditation.

Reusable Hire

We will have a batch of our reusable, returnable coffee cups, Cheshire Cup so organisations can provide hot drinks free of single use cups.

We will also have our first batch of Reusable Pint Glasses, thanks to Biffa for supporting batch one. These will also be available for use by events for a small fee.

View below or download.

Helen Tandy, Director, Eco Communities

Green Expo is now in its second year and Sustainable Cheshire (an Eco Communities project) have embedded the Exposition (stalls part) into our annual events programme.

The Expo is a mix of stalls along the River Dee and separate Youth Conference. It is taking place over 3 days from Thursday 15th June to Saturday 17th June from 10am to 6pm.

It also has a range of awards, and this year in the build up to the event a Photography Competition.

The idea of Green Expo came from CHASE the team looking to get the Hydro Hub working on the River Dee. Chester has been generating renewable energy for centuries. It has plans to restore a hydro electric building once used to generate over a third of Chester’s electrical needs.

The Green Expo was created to raise both the profile for the need for the HydroHub and funds for the development. The hope is that the hub can become a centre for learning about renewable energy technology and provide a live demonstration of hydro electric power generation, supporting the Green Expo over the long term.

As our aims are closely aligned with what Green Expo (CHASE) are hoping to achieve we feel working with them was a great fit for us both.

Green Expo & Sustainable Cheshire wants Chester to become the Green Heart of England, nestled between the industrial heartland of Ellesmere Port around the Mersey and the salt cavern storage and bio methane generation of the Cheshire plain.

Sustainable Cheshire are now key organisers of the Exposition side of the event. As a not-for-profit organisation our aims are to support residents understanding of climate change and sustainability. We feel the Green Expo was a great way to do this, bringing together all size of businesses in the sustainable space, plus artisan sellers that are making a positive change for people and planet.

Sustainable Cheshire are supporting the Circular Economy, Energy Efficiency and Sustainability. Plus, some issues that are close to our hearts such as low carbon production, eating healthily and for the planet. Choosing goods which are plastic free, sustainable and with local provenance. We are also great advocates of Fairtrade.

We are now actively booking stalls, which you can do through the links below. SMEs need to book a Green Pitch via the Green Expo website.

If you are a sole trader, artisan business etc please use the link below.

Gazebo’s are 3ft by 3ft with a table per booking. A Gazebo for the 3 days for any sole trade/charity is £100. You can share a Gazebo for £50 for the 3 days. Security will be in place overnight and so stalls don’t need to be cleared each night.

Deadline 19^th May to get stalls booked and fees paid.

“It was fantastic to have a stall last year, to be part of a team of like minded stall holders. I have also had some great conversation with customers that wanted to buy more sustainably. It resulted in some long-term new customers that value the product I make, plus some great business contacts with my fellow Sustainable Cheshire businesses”

“It has been so fantastic getting to know the Sustainable Cheshire team I have also now started to support the not-for-profit organisation itself with its social media” Angharad, The End of the Avenue.

Download our Event Guide for Stalls

CHASE CIC (Cheshire Heritage and Sustainability Enterprises) is the managing company for the Hydro Hub scheme a fellow Community Interest Company (CIC).

Angharad, Eco Communities

As I live in the area, the Neston Earth Festival is close to my heart and I had a fantastic Sunday afternoon meeting lots of Neston residents who came out to talk with Helen T and I about Plastic Free Neston, a project we started only in January 2023.  While we were there we spoke a lot about the problem with plastic and what we can do to help reduce plastic waste, especially single use plastic?

Plastic can be incredibly useful. Diabetics use it for syringes, arthritic patients rely on it for hip replacements, and construction workers wear it to protect their heads, without it, we wouldn’t have computers, mobile phones or cars. The problem is single-use plastics and the eye-watering quantities we consume. Every week you may purchase a plastic bag , use it for just 15 minutes, dispose of it, but it could take 100-300 years to degrade. If we could reduce, or eliminate single use plastic we could significantly reduce legacy waste and our plastic free pledge is looking to do just that.                                       

We don’t expect Neston to be totally plastic free. Our aim is to tackle the single-use plastic crisis, so that’s the avoidable stuff that’s everywhere. Things like plastic drinks bottles, disposable coffee cups, sachets, bathroom plastics, excessive food packaging, takeaway containers etc. These are the things that have a huge impact on our environment and which we can make changes to eliminate.

Neston businesses and community groups have really got on board with Plastic Free Neston. We have our first Plastic Free hairdresser, which is quite an achievement in a industry heavily consuming plastic, even the Rainbows and Scout group are looking at how they can reduce their single use plastic. It really is something every business and group can achieve.

If you’re a business in Cheshire and you would like to be accredited a plastic free champion we’re asking you to eliminate 3 single use items from your business operations. Permanently.  If you are already doing lots of good stuff, those items could be something you don’t use that a similar business might. You can register your business with surfers against sewage, and add your information or allow Sustainable Cheshire to support you.

As a community, Neston has done enough to achieved Plastic Free status, we are just waiting for confirmation. Even so we are still looking to continue growing our plastic free champions. So, if you want to reduce your single plastic usage, and get the credit you deserve, then please do get in touch with us.

Download and share issue one from the below.

Chester Sling Library is here to help you make the most of carrying your little one, from their early weeks and months until you and they no longer need it. We can help you find a suitable sling or carrier to hire or you can also get help with your own slings. Want to learn to breast/chestfeed in a sling, or not sure how to get your baby on your back, or want explore the world of woven wraps? We’d be delighted to help with all that and more!

Chester Sling Library is run by Lizzy Allen, an experienced Babywearing Consultant and mum of two carried babies. https://www.chesterslinglibrary.co.uk/

Baby Facts by Lizzie

Did you know that every year 3 billion disposable nappies are thrown away in the UK? That’s an awful lot of single-use plastic ending up in landfill after just a few hours use. Reusable nappies (also known as cloth nappies or real nappies) are a fantastic alternative and modern types are easy to use, simple to wash and come in lots of very cute designs!

Modern reusable nappies and how to care for them

It can be a bit mind-boggling when you first look at all the types of reusable nappies! Flats, pre-flats, terries, all-in-ones, two-parters, pocket nappies…the list goes on. But don’t let that put you off – modern types are simple to use as they are already shaped and fasten with poppers or velcro. The size can be adjusted as your baby grows so one nappy can fit for years.

Washing is simple too – once used, nappies can be stored in a lidded pail or wet bag until wash day (maybe every 2-3 days). Nappies should be washed on a vigorous cycle with plenty of water to get them clean, but there is no need for extra soaking. Some kinds can be dried in a tumble drier, but line drying in the sun is the best as the UV rays naturally bleach any stains.

No more poonamis (and other benefits of reusable nappies)!

One of my favourite benefits of reusable nappies is no more poonamis! You know that newborn poo which shoots straight out the back of a disposable nappy and covers your baby? Not in reusable nappies: the elasticated waist and leg openings keep that poo well inside!

Some other benefits include:

• Saving money: in the long run reusable nappies will save you £1000 over 2.5 years vs disposable nappies. Even more can be saved if you use the same nappies for multiple children or buy preloved.
• Reducing your carbon footprint: the carbon footprint of nappy usage can be reduced by 40% if reusable nappies are used instead of single-use nappies.
• Reducing single-use plastic and waste going to landfill
• No plastic or chemicals against your baby’s skin, which is more comfortable and can reduce nappy rash.

Reusable wipes

These are small squares of cloth that can be wetted and used to wipe baby’s bottom instead of disposable baby wipes. They are also fantastic for wiping hands and faces.

At Chester Sling Library we sell handmade reusable wipes from MooMo Baby in a variety of cute designs, or many of the nappy manufacturers also make wipes.

It might feel less of a lead to start using reusable wipes, rather than going full-out and ditching disposables completely. It’s also a low-cost introduction to the world of reusable nappies that allows you to make a difference without a big outlay.

My own reusable nappy journey

I’m a mum to two children, who both wore reusable nappies as infants. When I was pregnant with our first child (now aged 7) I already knew I wanted to use reusable nappies and we purchased a set ready for when our baby was born. Like most “birth-to-potty” nappies they didn’t fit great from newborn so we used disposables until she grew into them. Soon, after some expert advice from the brilliant Hayley at Wrexham Nappy Library to stop night-time leaks, she was in reusable nappies full time. Plus we used reusable baby wipes.

That might sound like a lot of washing, but honestly alongside all the extra laundry a baby creates it didn’t really feel like it made much difference. I quite enjoyed hanging them on the washing line to dry outside and stuffing the nappies in the evening ready for the next day!

When our son was born a few years later we used reusable nappies right from the start. I bought some second hand newborn size nappies from a friend which fitted him straight away, and then he moved into the ones his sister had used, plus a few extras I had bought along the way (mainly for cute patterns…I did say reusable nappies are cute!).

Alongside using reusable nappies we practised elimination communication (EC or baby pottying), especially for poos. Because scraping weaning poo off a nappy wasn’t for me! I know some people rinse or scrape poos off the nappy into the toilet, which works for them.

It’s been a while since I had to wash a nappy load and to be honest I don’t miss it, but I have no regrets about using reusable nappies. I loved knowing that I was reducing our plastic waste, the cute designs and never having to remember to buy nappies or wipes. I was really glad many of our nappies were used by two children, and some of our cloth wipes are now nearly 8 years old and still going strong!

In 2019 10.8 million people took away a coffee from a coffee shop in the UK. We can’t keep creating this single use cup waste. Switching to a returnable cup eliminates billions of cups from landfill. We think Cheshire needs and deserves a reuse system that works.

A returnable is an item of food or drink packaging that is designed to be returned to a business for multiple re-use, eliminating the need for single-use packaging.

What is a Returnable Cup System?

After significant additional research and price increases from our original submission we are excited to be moving ahead with Circular & CO’s Returnable Cup. Designed to be returned and reused just like the milk bottles of old, a returnable cup means single-use paper cups are replaced by a much more sustainable option. Your local café will serve your take away beverage in a reusable cup which can be returned and commercially washed, ready for another serving.

The Circular & Co cup is made from recycled paper cups, designed to last at least 5 years and is 100% recyclable. The organisation are pioneering the Circular Design movement because it’s the sustainable solution to living within our planet’s limits; their mission is for everyone else to know it too.

I’m a Chester business how can I get involved?

We have linked with some of our existing Plastic Free Chester businesses in Chester to help us with the trial. We own the cups. Cafes & businesses become members of the circular cup scheme paying a monthly membership fee with the hope that this is less than the cost of single use cups, and much less waste.

If you want to trial the Cheshire Cup with us contact office@sustainablecheshire.uk

I’m an individual can I help with the trial?

We need as many Chester residents or anyone shopping in Chester to get involved in the trail and help us to take it wider in the region. The key to the scheme is that the cups are returned. These cups can be used more than 500 times so to make it work keeping them on the circular cup loop is key.

From research we’ve found the best way for this to work is for users to become members of our Cheshire Cup Club Scheme. Members pay £2.50 to Eco Communities to join the scheme. You use a token to swap for your take away drink in our Cheshire Cup. Drop the empty cup at any participating businesses to get a token in return. The business will wash the cup and put it back into circulation.

We have the following businesses signed up, more info on our map.

Bean & Cole, Cheshire Ice Cream Farm Chester Market, Crustum, Fika, Fish & Chips @ Weston Grove, Ginger Monkey 31, Hanky Panky, Jaunty Goat, Little Yellow Pig, Oh Concept, Rainbow Tea Rooms, Sandstone, Short & Stout……. SEE MAP

We hope you will join and donate your membership to Eco Communities but if not we have two options:

• You can join and donate – donate the fee after card transaction costs and then we can use the money towards growing the scheme.

We hope long term to find a cost effective tech solution but this isn’t possible just yet.

Support our fantastic local independent businesses and share pictures on social media. #cheshirecupclub #sustainablecheshire #plasticfreecheshire