Stop the Thames Estuary Airport!

The campaign to prevent our area being destroyed by a Thames Estuary Airport has really taken off!

Medway Council, the RSPB and Friends of the North Kent Marshes continue to work hard, and in partnership with local residents, to prevent this catastrophe from happening.

My Photo Wall - a work in progress!

Although the media hype has calmed down in recent weeks, local residents are being encouraged to ‘keep up the pressure’ and maintain the campaign momentum.

That's why it is great to see more and more residents and businesses across the Hoo Peninsula displaying posters, leaflets and car stickers.

The dedicated Stop Estuary Airport campaign website, run by Medway Council, provides detailed information about where you can pick up leaflets, posters and car stickers. It also explains how you can get involved in the campaign.

As well as the Medway Council site, it’s also worth taking a look at the website run by the Friends of the North Kent Marshes by clicking here. The RSPB website also has an interesting section about the Estuary Airport proposals, with lots of useful and detailed analysis and information.

Step up, get up and together let’s Stop the Thames Estuary Airport from becoming a reality.
  

No Estuary Airport - local artists have their say!

As part of the campaign objecting to an airport being built in the Thames Estuary, local artists have joined forces to present ‘Beauty or the Beast’ - an anti airport art exhibition.

Artists and photographers will be sharing their own interpretations about what an airport would mean to them and they hope to highlight what they say are the ‘inconvenient truths’ behind such a scheme.

Click the image below to see the promotional flyer.

Organisers of the exhibition, which will run from Friday 30 March for one week, hope to counter the glossy artist impressions produced by those who have proposed the building of a Thames Estuary airport.

The opening event will be on Friday 30 March (7pm to 9pm) at Nucleus Arts (Chatham Art Centre, 272 High Street, Chatham, ME4 4BP).

  

E.ON Public Exhibitions

I went to Lower Stoke last week to take at look at the E.ON public exhibition about their pipeline proposals on the Hoo Peninsula. This exhibition, along with one held in Hoo the day before, was part of E.ON’s consultation into proposals for a Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) pipeline. The pipeline could run from Kingsnorth to St. Mary’s Marshes and out into the North Sea, if a new cleaner-coal power station were built after the existing Kingsnorth Power Station closes in 2015.

As well as talking through issues and concerns regarding the impact on the landscape and disruption to residents, I was particularly interested to hear about the work to survey the seabed from St. Mary’s Marshes, out into the North Sea and up towards the North Norfolk coast. I knew there must be quite a few shipwrecks in that area, but didn’t expect such a huge number dotted around the maps on display.

If anyone would like more information about the recent exhibitions, contact E.ON on 0800 019 8315 or by email here.

To find out more about Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) click here and here.
 

Morning Walk - Yantlet Creek, Allhallows

With the weather looking good (at long last), I decided to head over to Allhallows this morning for a walk along Yantlet Creek. Other than a couple of people fishing near Allhallows, I didn't encounter anyone else during the walk, which is always refreshing! The views of the Thames Estuary, Isle of Grain and Allhallows Marshes were stunning and, most importantly of all, relaxing! Returning from the walk, I encountered a couple of dozen cows near Allhallows - quietly enjoying their Saturday lunch!

The memorial stone (photograph below) states: "Southern Water Authority, Kent Division. This stone commemorating the completion of the raising of the Thames Flood Defences between 1975 - 1985 was unveiled by Mr H. J. L. Harris, Chairman, Regional Land Drainage Committee on the 1st May 1986".

Homewards Road, Allhallows

A beautiful sunny day out on the Hoo Peninsula!  Out for a stroll near Allhallows, on a footpath located off Homewards Road.  I took these photographs behind Dagnam Farm, which overlooks the River Thames.  There are also good, but distant, views of St. Mary's Marshes and Allhallows on Sea.