Positive News Autumn 2025

I Forecast Good News Coming Your Way!

I don't know about you but the constant drip of bad news can be quite a Debbie Downer. So perk yaself up with some feel good stories..

1. Recycle Microfibres in your Wash

Microfibres can be found in all sorts of places including washed up in beaches from discarded waste, or even from simply washing our clothes. A start up company in Cornwall have designed a new filter to catch microfibres - they can be sent in for recycling to help make construction or packaging materials.

https://www.positive.news/society/good-news-stories-from-week-25-of-2025/

Check out our post on ‘The Story of Microfibres’ by Lovelier Planet.

2. A Tidal Energy Milestone

Scotland is one of the world leaders in tidal energy – not reliant on sun or wind but making energy from strong tidal currents. The MeyGen site off the Scottish coast are delighted that their turbines have exceeded six years in sea water without needing any maintenance.

https://www.euronews.com/green/2025/07/08/turbine-in-scotland-hits-very-significant-milestone-in-a-breakthrough-for-tidal-energy

Check out our ‘Eco News in Scotland’ post for some more great achievements!


3. Conservation Bringing Back Species across The UK

A Species Recovery Programme funded £13m from 2023 to 2025 which supported over 150 species according to Natural England. The project include building tunnels for Adders to safely navigate roads, to supporting rare species such as water voles, oyster catchers & orchids.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c5ypkx206r4o

Check out these other feel good stories on the benefits of supporting nature:

Water Voles Returning to England: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c5yd3zdlw46o

Golden Eagle Chick Born in Scotland: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2pxwl09w3o

Beavers Help Water Voles Survive: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c0ddyl83jjro

Other Positive News for Wildlife by Lovelier Planet:
https://www.lovelierplanet.com/2020/06/positive-news-for-wildlife.html


4. Peatland Recovery through Wet Farming!

The PaluWise Project EU will transform rewetted peatland into ‘wet farming’ which involves growing crops on wetlands without draining them.

The Great Fen across Cambridgeshire will join sites in Poland, Finland and the Netherlands to take part in the four-year pilot.

Quoted in Positive News ‘Besides locking up carbon in restored peat soil, it has the potential to create havens for wetland wildlife such as birds, voles and insects.’

https://www.positive.news/society/good-news-stories-from-week-26-of-2025/


5. Garbage Cafes – Food in Exchange for Plastic Waste

New garbage cafes are popping up in India. Volunteers are rewarded with food in exchange for plastic waste that is brought in. 

The plastic waste is cleaned up from the streets by volunteers & sent off to be recycled, helping to clean the streets & fill hungry tums at the same time. Bravo!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20250818-the-indian-garbage-cafes-giving-out-food-in-exchange-for-plastic-waste


6. Flexible Plastics Recycling in your Bin Collection

10 local authorities took part in trials in the UK to collect flexible (soft) plastics from households in their normal bin collection. 

Over 400 tonnes of flexible plastic packaging was collected from 160,000 households during the trials – equivalent to more than 50 million bread bags.

The UK government is hoping to introduce this country wide by 2027.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/uk-flexible-plastic-recycling-trials-172025421.html


7. Recycling Fishing Nets through Ocean Recovery Project

Tidy Britian via the Ocean Recovery Project have rescued & recycled fishing nets & body boards from UK beaches. Did you know that fishing nets contain plastics which can be washed, ground up into pellets & re-used for another purpose?

https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/uk-fishing-net-recycling /

To discourage beach goers from buying body boards (shipped over from China en masse) & discarding them onto British beaches, a new scheme to hire a board for £1 was introduced to beaches across the South West which has helped cut down waste at an affordable price.

https://www.keepbritaintidy.org/news/keep-britain-tidy-fights-back-against-polluting-bodyboard-wave-waste

8. NHS Plants 1 Million Trees via Ecosia

The NHS have pledged to use the online search engine Ecosia for web searches to help fund tree planting across the world. In return, Ecosia donated trees to be planted around NHS Trusts. Imperial College NHS Trust helped plant over 229,000 trees thanks to more than 11 million searches made by staff.

https://www.essexmagazine.co.uk/2025/09/nhs-staff-help-plant-1-million-trees-through-ecosia-partnership/


9. More than 10 Million Trees Planted in Northern Forest

In our Save The Trees article in 2019 we spoke of the Woodland Trusts plan to plant 50 million trees in a Northern Forest (an area spreading across from Liverpool to Hull). In July 2025 a milestone has been reached of 10 million trees planted to date.

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/press-centre/2025/07/more-than-10-million-trees-planted-across-the-northern-forest/


10. Halloween Clothes Swap in Devon

For families living in Devon, local libraries are hosting Halloween costume swaps for children to bring their old costume & choose something new. This helps to reduce waste & is great for growing kids, as they step into something new. Ghoulishly good idea!

https://uk.yahoo.com/news/families-devon-urged-join-library-040000407.html

Some Extra Goodies for You

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How to build an ARK (Acts of Restorative Kindness):

https://wearetheark.org/

New life for old plastic – how plastics are recycled: https://britishrecycledplastic.co.uk/about-us/plastic-recycling-process/

Re-used paint network (donate unused paint to a worthy cause):

https://communityrepaint.org.uk/the-uks-paint-reuse-network/

Ideas for Recycling Old Tyres:

https://www.boredpanda.com/recycling-tires-upcycling-diy-ideas/

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Check out more of our Positive News to keep you in the mood

All Things Christmas!

Check out our Home Made Products too

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Have a Great Autumn

Good News for 2025

Welcome to our good news blog to keep you in high spirits!

1) UK’s electricity cleanest ever in 2024

Fossil fuels made up 29% of the UK’s electricity in 2024 – the lowest level on record. A Carbon Brief report showed renewable sources more than doubled from 65TWh in 2014 to 143TWh in 2024 (+122%).

https://www.carbonbrief.org/analysis-uks-electricity-was-cleanest-ever-in-2024/

2) Bumblebee populations increase 116 times in Scotland

Surveys of bumblebees in a 90 acre site near Perth, recorded around 50 bees in 2021. By 2023, after the site was rewilded, bumblebee numbers had topped 4000, with the number of different bee species doubling.

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/bumblebees-increase-by-more-than-100x-in-remarkable-scotland-rewilding-project-from-35-bees-to-over-4000/

3) Bee corridor in Letchworth wins award

Letchworth was granted ‘Bee Friendly’ status from the Bee Friendly Trust in 2024. 

North Herts council planted more bee friendly shrubs on roundabouts, rewilded grass verges, put up more bee hotels, and made and gave away bee seed bombs.

The council allocated £10,000 to develop more bee corridors in North Herts, with Royston next on the list!

https://www.north-herts.gov.uk/news/award-winning-letchworth-bee-corridor-coming-royston

4) Funding in Hackney for bees

£250k worth of funding was allocated to create bee corridors around Hackney in 2024. Funded by the National Lottery Grant, the 3 year project aims to plant a green passageway with the help of local residents, to encourage bees and other wildlife.

https://www.hackneycitizen.co.uk/2024/04/08/environmentalists-buzzing-250k-funding-bee-corridor-hackney/

See a bug-life video below about b-lines & how local corridors can help insects flourish: 

5) Community windfarm to fund a million trees in Hebrides

Trees are being planted in the Western Isles of Scotland in old abandoned crofts. The seeds, sourced by Hebridean Tree Ark, are harvested from local trees found clinging to cliffs as well as from uninhabited islands.

Four-fifths of the funding is from the £900,000 annual profits, made by three wind turbines owned by Point and Sandwick trust.

https://www.theenergymix.com/community-wind-farm-empowers-hebrides-reforestation-effort/

6) New rainforest in UK funded by Government Species Fund planted by drones

In a project led by the Woodland Trust, high-tech drones scattered 75,000 seeds across Bodmin in Cornwall.

The Woodland Trust hopes the new seeds will triple the area of temperate rainforest in Devon and Cornwall, to 24% of land area by 2050.

https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/press-centre/2025/03/drone-sows-75000-native-tree-seeds-in-cornwall-and-devon/

Learn more about English rainforest conservation below:
https://www.positive.news/environment/restoring-britains-lost-rainforests/

7) 20 million trees will be planted a new Western Forest

In 2024, the West of England became the first region to publish a Local Nature Recovery Strategy. They’re aiming to create a new forest area of 2,500 hectares of woodland by 2030 - with a longer term plan to plant 20 million trees by 2050.

https://www.wenp.org.uk/priority-programmes/western-forest

8) Irish company giving a new life to wind turbines

Decommissioned wind turbines can be put to good use. Bladebridge (which is a spin off of Re-Wind) is giving new life to old blades, including parts of a bridge, bike stores & an e-hub. 

See more at: https://www.bladebridge.ie/

Another cool idea is a small house built inside one of the blades, developed by a Swedish company in the Netherlands https://www.positive.news/society/the-decommissioned-wind-turbine-that-became-a-tiny-home/

9) Prisoners help to recycle old fishing nets

A recycling scheme that collects & sorts fishing equipment has been renewed for another 3 years. Port of Jersey started the scheme in 2023 & 430 lobster pots, 66 tonnes of rope & 9000m of nets, had been collected through the scheme.

The project is run by the Jersey port; alongside the government, Jersey Fishermen's Association and the prison service.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cwydjv94q22o

10) Green washing to be banned in the EU

The EU wants to make sure that all information on a product’s impact on the environment, longevity, repairability, composition, production and usage is backed up by verifiable sources.

MEPs approved the agreement in January 2024 - EU countries have 24 months to incorporate the update into their national law.

https://www.europarl.europa.eu/topics/en/article/20240111STO16722/stopping-greenwashing-how-the-eu-regulates-green-claims

Can you spot green wash claims? Try this quiz by Greenpeace: 
https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/news/spot-the-greenwashing-quiz/

Check out our post too on green washing: Green Wash and Wish Cycling

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⚘⚘ Reasons for climate hope in 2025 ⚘⚘

https://blog.ecosia.org/why-theres-reasons-for-climate-hope-in-2025/

  Ignore your lawn in May, to help pollinators thrive! 

https://www.plantlife.org.uk/campaigns/nomowmay/

 Did you know 4th–10th May 2025 is British Hedgehog Awareness Week 

https://www.britishhedgehogs.org.uk/give-hedgehogs-the-edge-this-hedgehog-awareness-week/

https://www.hedgehogstreet.org/ is a great resource too!

Click here to see more good news - enjoy!

🦔 Thank you for visiting 🦔

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Good News for 2024

Positive Eco news for 2024

I don't know about you but the constant trickle of bad news can't be good for us so every now & then I like to add a bit of positivity to our lives. 

Here's some feel good stories for this year - hope you enjoy!

1) Could Cement be used to Store Energy?

Renewable energy solutions often involve sun & wind power but these can be unreliable due to fluctuating weather conditions. 

These innovative concrete batteries can be used to store energy & in turn could prevent our over reliance on lithium batteries.

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240610-how-the-concrete-in-your-house-could-be-turned-into-a-battery

Also check out this article on sand batteries – it’s great to see such innovative ideas!

https://happyeconews.com/sand-battery-energy-storage-for-renewables/

2) Harnessing Energy from Bacteria

Soil microbial fuel cells are being developed on farms, which can capture energy from chemical reactions occurring naturally in soil. 

When connected to carbon-based electrodes the electrons created by microorganisms in the soil are turned into energy, which can then be used by the farm.

https://www.euronews.com/green/2024/06/12/install-and-forget-soil-powered-batteries-could-bring-cheap-clean-energy-to-farms-in-europ

3) Scotland Exceeds Energy in Renewables

Recently released data shows that Scotland covered over 100% of its energy needs in 2022. 

Wind and hydro power helped them generate the equivalent of 113 per cent of Scotland’s gross electricity consumption. That’s wonderful news!

https://www.euronews.com/green/2024/01/29/enormous-potential-inside-scotlands-green-strategy-to-power-the-nation-solely-with-renewab

4) Gas Emissions Dropping in Europe

Greenhouse gas emissions in the EU dropped 8% last year. 

This brings greenhouse gas pollution below 1990 levels. Mostly driven by the use of renewable energy, I’m hoping the trend continues!

https://www.positive.news/society/total-net-greenhouse-gas-emissions-in-the-eu-dropped-last-year/

5) Is your Wallpaper Electric?

An innovative project in Glasgow is trialling eco friendly electric wallpaper to heat tenement housing. The paper can be added to ceilings & creates heat within minutes.

Made from copper strips & graphene, it has a surface that emits invisible infra red into the home helping to warm the property & thereby reducing mould.

https://www.euronews.com/green/2024/10/19/glasgow-is-trialling-eco-friendly-electric-wallpaper-to-heat-its-ageing-homes

6) Animal Friendly Wind Turbines

Wind turbines can disturb animals, particularly in the flight paths of birds. A new motionless turbine has been developed which collects wind via airfoils in a sleek design. 

The 1st UK prototype has been installed in Oxford on the roof of BMW’s car plant.

https://www.euronews.com/green/2024/09/05/could-these-motionless-turbines-solve-wind-energys-noise-and-wildlife-problems

7) Wind Power in a Tree Design?

Sometimes nature can inspire us to up our game & this nature inspired ‘tree’ may fit the bill. It has micro turbines to convert wind into energy & could be used in built up areas. They run silently & benches can be placed underneath. 

One ‘leaf’ on the tree can produce 1,000 kilowatts per year. Not suited to be connected to the grid but they can power buildings individually.

https://www.euronews.com/green/2023/11/12/could-wind-trees-with-micro-turbines-be-a-solution-to-green-energy-in-tight-urban-spaces

8) Spoonbills born in the UK

Spoonbills were previously extinct with no chicks born since 1668. The RSPB have celebrated the birth of spoonbill chicks in Cambridgeshire this year!

Chicks have also been born in wetland reserves in Yorkshire, Suffolk & Norfolk.

https://www.rspb.org.uk/media-centre/spoonbill-breeding-success-sparks-renewed-hope

9) Tree sleeves made from British wool

British Wool have collaborated with a company to produce eco wool-based tree guards. These will help prevent young saplings being nibbled by passing animals or trampled underfoot.

The new tree sleeves will be biodegradeable & made using wool from British farms.

https://www.farminguk.com/news/british-wool-invests-in-firm-behind-eco-wool-based-tree-guards_64897.html

10) Cosy Houses from Tennis Balls

Wimbledon goes through many tennis balls (55k per year). They become less efficient when they lose their smoothness so often get discarded. However, they’ve been found to make perfect homes for field mice & they’re waterproof too.

Field mice can help aerate the soil & disperse seeds so they’re useful for supporting eco systems, a win-win for all!

https://happyeconews.com/wimbledon-donates-tennis-balls-to-be-used-as-homes-for-field-mice/

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Lots more news to keep ya positivity chips re-charged in the link below:

https://www.euronews.com/green/2024/10/31/positive-environmental-stories-from-2024

Happy Christmas & thank you so much for reading

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(Check out some of our previous posts to help you make eco friendly choices this Christmas):

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Books Galore

Festive Dreams

Green Christmas

Cost of Living Tips!

Less Waste at Xmas

Have an Eco Christmas

 Homemade Items for Sale 

 

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Positive News Spring 24

Yay for Positive News!

Summer is just around the corner & I felt it time to bring some uplifting news onto your 'ickle screens! 

Check out our Positive News Section for some other Feel Good Stories too 😊

1) Plastics Ban 1st October 2023

The single used plastics ban has finally taken effect in England from Autumn 2023. 

Previous bans have been introduced in Europe, Scotland & Wales so we’re a little behind the curve ball but good news all the same. 

Some items are restricted rather than banned such as plastic containers for catering as long as it’s pre-packaged or packaged at point of sale.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/far-reaching-ban-on-single-use-plastics-in-england

20 useful tips on how to reduce your plastics can be found here at:

https://www.positive.news/society/20-ways-to-go-beyond-englands-new-single-use-plastic-ban/

2) EU Vote to Reduce Plastic Pellet Spills

MEPs voted in favour April 2024 to place stricter penalties on plastic pellet spills. 

Plastic is frequently transported in small pellet form, known as nurdles which can be spilled during loading or shipping & can make its way into water ways. 

They can easily be mistaken for food by marine life & additionally add to our plastic pollution.

It's great to see that 538 MEPS voted in favour, with only 32 against the proposed restrictions. More details will emerge after the June sittings.

https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20240419IPR20570/microplastics-meps-want-stricter-rules-to-reduce-plastic-pellet-losses

Read more about hidden plastics including nurdles in my blog post:

https://www.lovelierplanet.com/2020/02/beware-of-hidden-plastics.html

3) Cargo Ships Could be Powered by Wings?

A new wind powered cargo ship set off on its maiden voyage during Summer 2023. 123ft wings (made from the same material as wind turbines) are folded out to enable the ship to be powered by wind, cutting down its emissions by 30%.

This new innovation was designed by a team in the UK headed by John Cooper, who used to work with McLaren Team Formula One.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-66543643

4) Textiles More Eco Friendly

Clothing can often be discarded when no longer used & according to this BBC article less than 1% is recycled into new clothes. What a shocking waste! Some natural materials will eventually break down however products such as polyester are synthetic & won’t easily decompose.

Items such as spandex are nylon (synthetic) based however the Lycra team are looking at ways to use corn based material to create a more environmentally friendly product in the future.

Other innovative ideas to reduce wasteful products include: A U.S. company using material made from the roots of mushrooms, a U.K. company taking advantage of soil based bacteria to help dye products, as it naturally produces rainbow colours.  

Plus a Finnish company using wood pulp which is spun into thread for making textiles. The only by-product from this process is heat which is pumped into the local heating system. Win, win! 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66985595

Meanwhile Alison Coomber a design graduate from University of Bristol has made highly colourful blinds using old Sainsbury’s shopping bags.

https://www.positive.news/lifestyle/the-green-grads-designing-the-future/

Additionally, Justine Aldersey-Williams, an artist based in the Wirral managed to create her own pair of jeans made from indigo & flax grown in her own allotment!

https://www.positive.news/economics/the-woman-who-grew-her-own-pair-of-jeans

If you have any clothes to get rid of & don’t have a clothes bank near you, why not order a free donation bag from Oxfam & bung it in the post free! 

https://www.oxfam.org.uk/donate/donate-by-post-for-free/

5) Using eDNA to Track Biodiversity

The Natural History Museum are looking at innovative ways to track species in various environments using eDNA. This can help build up a picture of plants & wildlife that are in threat & need our help, whilst also tracking down where species may be thriving. Biodiversity is key to a healthy eco system.

https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/what-is-environmental-dna-edna.html

Check out this video to learn more: 

6) Renewables Reaching New Highs

The world got more than 30% of its electricity from renewables last year (in 2023). According to Positive News 'China, led the charge, accounting for 51% of additional global solar generation & 60% of new global wind generation'.

Let’s hope the momentum continues 💚

https://www.positive.news/society/good-news-stories-from-week-19-of-2024/

What's Happening this Spring?

🦋 No Mow May! - This is a campaign to encourage gardeners to leave their lawns un-mown each May, which is a great time to allow for lawn flowers to feed the emerging insects from their Winter slumber.

Councils are also joining the movement & wildflowers are becoming more abundant which is great for bees, butterflies & moths which ultimately helps with pollination. https://www.plantlife.org.uk/campaigns/nomowmay/

Did You Know 'We’ve lost approximately 97% of flower-rich meadows since the 1930’s'?

🌼 World Bee Day – Look out for World Bee Day on 20th May 2024

For stories, infographics & factsheets why not check out the following bee-lightful website! https://www.fao.org/world-bee-day/en/ 

🌱 World Biodiversity Day

The International Day for Biological Diversity on 22nd May 2024 (or World Biodiversity Day) is a United Nations international day for the promotion of biodiversity issues. 

The theme this year is Be Part of the Plan, encouraging all stakeholders to come together for a solution. https://www.undp.org/biodiversity-day-2024


🌍 World Environment Day

The World Environment Day will be on 5th June 2024. The theme in 2023 was on Plastic Pollution. https://www.worldenvironmentday.global/

Check out this video for 2024 - 'We Are Generation Restoration'.

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Did you know we have a little shop? 

We have home made washing up cloths, wildflower seed balls, fabric crackers (more available at Christmas) plus upcycled fairy light bottles. Available at:

https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/LovelierPlanet

Save 12% when you order 2 or more items -
use SAVE12 code during checkout

Thank you for reading my blog!

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Positive News for July 2023

Positive News July 2023

This time of year is so uplifting but there’s always space for more good things so here’s our latest round up of good news 😊

1) King’s college Meadow - A New Study

We previously reported on wildflower meadows taking shape in Kings College Cambridge. As part of a study, King’s Research Fellow Dr Cicely Marshall, found that in spite of its small size, the wildflower meadow supported three times as many species of plants, spiders and bugs, including 14 species with conservation designations.

Terrestrial invertebrate biomass was found to be 25 times higher in the meadow, with bat activity over the meadow also being three times higher than over the remaining lawn. 

https://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/news/2023/study-shows-impact-kings-wildflower-meadow

I love the fact they use horses to harvest the meadow at the end of the season with the bales offered to locals to create a meadow of their own: 

https://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/a-greener-kings/kings-wildflower-meadow

2) Postcode Gardeners

Friends of the Earth & Co-Operative Bank have partnered together to place Postcode Gardeners into the most nature deprived neighbourhoods, helping to green the area & also bring neighbours together. Trial projects have taken place in Hackney, Chester & Bideford, Devon with more being planned in Birmingham, Bristol & London.

https://friendsoftheearth.uk/nature/planting-more-postcode-gardeners-create-greener-streets

3) Chocolate Wrappers to go Plastic Free

For the first time since its launch in 1936, Nestlé is changing the packaging of their famous Mars bar wrapper. Traditionally wrappers are made from aluminium & plastic which are hard to recycle although they can be recycled via Terracycle collection points (if there’s one in your area) who shred the wrappers & melt the plastic element into pellets.

Nestlé are piloting a new recyclable paper wrapper which will be available at 500 Tesco stores in the UK for a limited time.

https://happyeconews.com/candy-bar-wrapper-plastic-free/

Have you seen the new Smarties packaging? Smarties was the first global confectionery brand to switch to recyclable paper packaging, removing approximately 250 million plastic packs sold globally every year.

https://www.nestle.com/media/news/smarties-first-global-confectionery-brand-recyclable-paper-packaging

4) How to Recycle Old Credit Cards

HSBC are providing a new drop off point in selected branches for people to recycle their old debit & credit cards. The recycling scheme is in unison with Terracycle. Old cards will be shredded & turned into plastic pellets.

https://uk.pcmag.com/e-commerce-payments/147433/mastercard-is-encouraging-us-to-shred-our-credit-and-debit-cards

5) Royal Mail Pledges to Achieve Net Zero

Royal Mail are hoping to achieve net zero operations by using 100% renewable energy, switching to more trains (& less planes) for the movement of parcels & using electric vehicles for deliveries.

According to their site ‘We have the UK’s largest electric fleet of any major UK parcel operator, with almost 5,000 electric vans in service today. We continue to trial other alternative fuel vehicles such as micro electric and hydrogen vehicles, as well as other delivery models – including delivery by drone!’

https://www.royalmail.com/sustainability/stepstozero/net-zero-operations

6) UK's First 100 Per Cent Sustainably-Fuelled Aircraft Takes to the Skies

The UK’s first ‘waste-fuelled’ aircraft piloted by the RAF took to the skies over Oxfordshire using 100 per cent sustainable fuel last year. Sustainable fuels using waste based fuels such as used cooking oil have the potential to reduce carbon emissions by up to 80 per cent, according to the RAF.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/uks-first-100-per-cent-200000100.html

7) Carbon Zero Fuel for Cars?

Former Formula One engineer Paddy Lowe hopes to start production of a new type of e-fuel this Autumn, which uses green electricity and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to make a carbon-neutral alternative to petrol. The fuel is seen as attractive as it can be used in existing cars & passenger jets which could help reduce scrappage of usable vehicles.

https://uk.style.yahoo.com/british-lab-synthetic-petrol-race-065424482.html

8) Turning Carbon Dioxide into Cleaner Fuel

A team from University of Cambridge have discovered how to create clean, sustainable fuels using carbon dioxide captured from the air and energy from the Sun.

Passing the gas through an alkaline solution, the researchers were able to concentrate the CO2 to make it easier to convert into syngas fuel using sunlight. Adding plastic waste to the system enabled the team to create useful chemicals like glycolic acid, which is widely used in the cosmetics industry.

“This solar-powered system takes two harmful waste products – plastic and carbon emissions – and converts them into something truly useful,” said co-first author Dr Sayan Kar. 

https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/scientists-create-clean-fuel-thin-150153623.html

9) Electricity from Humidity! (Air-Gen )

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts have discovered how to generate electricity from humidity. The researchers claim that just about any surface can be turned into a generator by replicating the electrical properties of storm clouds. Sounds very promising...

https://happyeconews.com/the-air-gen-device-that-converts-humidity-into-energy/

10) Irish Native Bee Sanctuary

To save the bees it’s important to protect native wild bees including bumble bees & solitary bees. Paul Hendrick has set up a bee sanctuary with 55 acres of organic land in County Wicklow Ireland. They purposefully do not cater for honey bees (no hives) but focus on wild native bees using meadows, flowering weeds, wetlands + trees, bushes & hedgerows to give them places to thrive all year round.

https://www.positive.news/environment/the-worlds-first-native-bee-sanctuary-how-to-save-bees/

11) Earn Eco Rewards at Bracknell Forest

Choosing to walk, cycle or take public transport in Martins Heron (Bracknell Forest) just got more rewarding, with the introduction of new Eco Rewards QR codes around the area. Residents who walk or cycle to local amenities, such as the shops, parks, schools or station, will also be rewarded for choosing active travel routes.

The expansion of Eco-Rewards programme comes after the council secured funding through South Western Railway’s Customer and Communities Improvement Fund (CCIF). Points earned can lead to discounts, prizes, or cash-back rewards!

https://www.bracknell-forest.gov.uk/news/2023/07/eco-rewards-expansion-martins-heron

12) Rewilding at Northwood – Nurturing Nature

The Northwoods Rewilding Network was set up in 2021 to harness the growing appetite for nature restoration among farms, crofts, smaller estates and community landholdings. Northwoods now consists of over 60 land partners stewarding 14,000 acres.

In their recent email they cited the following key points:

In 2022, Northwoods land partners planted 108,000 native trees and set aside 4,800 acres for natural woodland regeneration plus 70 new ponds & scrapes, 22 ‘leaky’ dams & 130 acres of restored peatland means more homes for wildlife and a reduced risk of flooding.

9km of new hedgerows were planted & 10km of redundant fencing removed, allowing wildlife to expand and disperse (all with the help of land partners & 500 volunteers!)

https://www.scotlandbigpicture.com/

What is Happening in July?

🦋 The Big Butterfly Count is now on - Between Friday 14th July and Sunday 6th August, choose a place to spot butterflies and moths. Watch for 15 minutes. Then submit a record of the species you see!

An ID guide can be downloaded online or you can use their app to identify & report your findings. https://bigbutterflycount.butterfly-conservation.org/

🌞 Check out Plastic Free July – a movement that began in Australia which has since grown to 100+ million participants in 190 countries. 

Get some tips on how to reduce plastics at home, in the office or at school here at https://www.plasticfreejuly.org/

Some Useful Apps For You to Try

If you’re out & about in the garden or nature reserve why not try these interesting apps that help you identify plants or bird song?

🐦 Merlin bird app helps you identify birds. I found the ‘record bird song’ element really helpful & manages to pick up bird song even when there’s traffic noise in the background. It highlights which bird is singing & keeps a record of your spottings you can refer back to later. https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/

🌻 Plant Net app helps you take photos of weeds & flowers in your garden & instantly tells you what it may be (with a ranking so you can see other suggestions). I have found it to be user friendly - some weeds I have deliberately left for insects after learning more about them. https://identify.plantnet.org/

Check out our directory for lots more useful links - enjoy!

💚💗💜

Positive News Autumn 2022

 Positive News October 2022

Rest your soul a little by reading something positive 🌎

1.     Super Reserve in Somerset

In May 2022, Natural England announced a new 'super' nature reserve to be created in Somerset, protecting over 6000 hectares of precious saltmarsh, heath and wetland habitats, home to nationally significant wildlife populations.

The site will link six nature reserves and managed land in the Somerset levels, coast and moors and will join England’s developing Nature Recovery Network.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/new-super-national-nature-reserve-created-to-protect-rare-wildlife

Various Nature Recovery projects will extend across 99,000 hectares of land in total over time – this is equivalent to all the 219 current national nature reserves in England.

2.     Bee Numbers Increasing in Sussex

Community funded projects have led to an increase in bee numbers in the South Downs. Sussex residents raised £75,000 to help a young charity, Bee Lines, plant wildflower oases across the South Downs national park.

There has been a 72% rise in bees and other pollinators since the projects began.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/aug/22/new-wildflower-havens-in-south-downs-national-park-boost-bee-numbers

3.     Large Blue Butterfly Making a Comeback

Large blue butterflies were previously very rare in the UK. During an re-introduction program, around 1,100 of butterfly larvae were released at West Country locations, with 750 butterflies successfully emerging.

It is the first time for 150 years that the large blue butterfly - the largest and rarest of all nine British blue butterflies - has been recorded at Minchinhampton and Rodborough Common (Stroud in Gloucestershire).
 
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/53757437

It was also announced in March 2020 that butterflies have bounced back to the best levels in 20 years after a monitoring survey took place in the UK. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/51987691

4.     Bison to Help With Rewilding in Kent

The UK is one of the most nature depleted areas and to help with re-wilding the Wilder Bean project have introduced wild bison to England, for the 1st time in thousands of years. 

Their grazing can help bring light to young shoots, their poop fertilises the land and their rolling (in dust baths) can help create habitats for lizards, birds, insects and other animals.

Three bison have been initially released in Blean Woods, Kent. The wardens were delighted to find a new calf was born in September (see video below)!

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/wild-bison-return-uk-first-054502529.html

5.     George Ezra Donates to National Trust

Partnering with You Tube's Sustainability Fund, George Ezra has donated £85,000 to the National Trust which will help them plant 17,000 more trees.

The trees will create a new woodland that will lock in carbon, help reduce flooding and create homes for wildlife, the National Trust said.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/61200564

6.     Fin Whales Returning in Large Numbers

A study published in July 2022 noted large numbers of fin whales in the Southern Ocean. Researchers estimate there could be at least 8,000 fin whales in the Antarctic, where they were hunted almost to extinction in the 20th century.

One group being spotted contained 150 whales - wowsa!

https://www.positive.news/society/positive-news-stories-from-week-28-of-2022/

7.     Glastonbury Festival's Social Housing Pledge

Michael Eavis, the founder of Glastonbury Festival has donated some land just two miles from the Glastonbury festival site to The Guinness Partnership (who build affordable social housing).

The new houses, flats and bungalows will be built and equipped with heat pumps. Michael has also generously donated £275,000 to help with development costs.

https://www.positive.news/society/glastonbury-founder-digs-deep-to-build-affordable-homes/

8.     Glasgow City Emissions Continues to Fall

Glasgow City, which is historically home to some of Scotland’s most polluted streets due to traffic emissions, reported that their CO2 emissions fell by 13% since 2020 and 50% since 2006.

The Scottish Environment and Protection Agency (Sepa) said their latest statistics across Scotland follow a downward trend in emissions since 2007.

https://uk.news.yahoo.com/scotlands-greenhouse-gas-emissions-continue-171614944.html

For other Scottish news head on down to: 

https://www.lovelierplanet.com/2021/12/2021-eco-news-in-scotland.html

9.     Salvaged Metal in Future Coins

A newly planned Royal Mint factory set to open in South Wales in 2023 will aim to use salvaged metals in the production of new coins. 

Precious metals (including gold) can be extracted from used mobile phones, laptops and circuit boards. They aim to process up to 90 tonnes of UK sourced circuit boards per week, to retrieve hundreds of kilograms of gold per year.

https://www.recycleyourelectricals.org.uk/royal-mint-to-turn-electronic-waste-into-gold/

10.     Milestone Reached in Great Pacific Garbage Patch

The Ocean Cleanup team released prototypes to skim plastics from an area in the North Pacific Ocean known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. 

Their first ocean plastic cleaning prototype (system 001 Wilson), was launched September 2018 which collected a little over 7,000 kilos of plastic. 

The 2nd system (system 002 Jenny), was released August 2021 and has collected over 100,000 kilos during its 45 extractions, which is equivalent in weight to 2.5 Boing 737-800s - wow!

1,000 more extractions will be needed to complete the mission but they are delighted a milestone of 100,000 kilos has been reached. 

The Ocean Cleanup Team are hoping to release system 003 soon for more sweeps to take place at a faster rate (at 3 times the size of system 002).

https://theoceancleanup.com/updates/first-100000-kg-removed-from-the-great-pacific-garbage-patch/

11.     The Great Bubble Barrier!

Meanwhile, entrepreneur Claar-els van Delft in the Netherlands devised a clever plastic catching device to be placed in rivers. 

Known as the Great Bubble Barrier it uses compressed air to push up plastics and push them to one side to be collected. This will help reduce the number of plastics that make it out to the oceans!

The project was part funded by the People's Postcode Lottery 'Green Challenge', so the UK played a part in making this happen too!

https://www.onlygoodnewsdaily.com/post/brilliant-bubble-barrier-stops-plastic-reaching-the-sea

Check out our positive news section for more encouraging reads. 
https://www.lovelierplanet.com/p/lovelier-news.html

Enjoy!

🍁