Architect Bill Dunster speaks with BBC Guernsey’s Kay Langlois about beautiful buildings that are eco-friendly and give us a good quality of life

September 15th, 2010 by Richard Lord

Bill Dunster OBE spoke to to Kay Langlois on BBC radio Guernsey about Beautiful buildings that are eco-friendly and give us a good quality of life.   Is that a pipe dream or could that happen in Guernsey?

The thoughtful and detailed “The ZEDbook” is available from Amazon UK.

What should Guernsey’s traffic strategy really be?

September 15th, 2010 by Peter Roffey

There has been a lot of talk recently about the disintegration of the States approved “Integrated Transport Strategy” and calls for a review of this whole area of policy to ensure that it is achieving what our government wants from it.

In reality it is far more fundamental than that. First the States need to revisit their whole philosophy on traffic and decide what their goals really are. At the moment their every action seems to be at odds with the officially agreed rhetoric. Until they can sort out and agree on their real “vision” then any detailed work on how to get there is so much wasted energy.

It wasn’t always such a confused situation. When the strategy was first approved – back in the days of Deputy Pat Mellor’s Traffic Committee – there was a very simple objective at its heart. “To reduce car use in Guernsey”.

Not everybody agreed with it. Some felt it was unnecessary because Guernsey didn’t have a real traffic problem. Others felt that a Guernseyman’s car was a sort of totem for his personal liberty and that efforts to reduce car use smacked of social engineering. Another group were worried less about the philosophical arguments than whether the strategy would end up hitting them in the pocket.

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Hansard Trust sets up beehive on their office roof to aid Guernsey bee population

September 15th, 2010 by Hansard Trust

Hansard Trust, based at Granary House, The Grange, has set up a new bee hive on the roof of their office building and staff think more local companies could do the same.

Hansard’s head beekeeper and General Counsel, Jonathan Hart said: “The recent significant decline in the global bee population is a serious problem for us all. Bees are a very necessary part of the ecosystem and are responsible for much of the pollination of flowers and other plants. The loss of this vital activity could be catastrophic for the food chain on which we, plants and animals rely.”

Hansard’s Managing Director, Philip Blows said “Setting up a hive on the roof has proved to be an easy and effective way of helping to combat this problem and it makes good use of the space which would otherwise be wasted. Using office buildings for this purpose is not a new idea, after all you can find hives on the roof of the Bank of England (a former Governor kept bees there) and on Fortnum & Mason in Piccadilly, but I think we are the first company in Guernsey to accommodate bees.

“At first we thought that the bees would invade the office but it is only very occasionally that one bothers to come in and we keep the windows and doors overlooking the roof open during this hot weather.”

Mr Blows added that the hive would eventually produce honey for the company: “Whilst the primary reason for our doing this is conservation, particularly as honey bees in Guernsey are still part of the original species from this area of Europe, we are producing honey, which we’ll share with clients and our staff.”

Jonathan Hart added “If we had a vineyard on our roof, we couldn’t hope to produce grapes or wine that was on a par with the great vineyards of France, but with honey that is not the case. The taste and texture is governed largely by the pollen collected by the bees and our bees have been spotted in some of the most beautiful gardens in town, which bodes well for the flavour. Honey that is produced in an apiary is an expression of the flowers in a three mile radius of the hive and in town there many exotic varieties of flowers from which pollen can be taken. I’m sure 2010 will be a very good year for our honey.”

The secret lives of our sea birds

September 15th, 2010 by States of Guernsey Environment Department

Next time you’re on Cobo enjoying a bag of chips take another look at that gull eagerly watching you. If it’s got a coloured ring on its leg this bird is part of a study to understand more about the habits and movements of sea birds. Note the number, let one of the ornithologists know and the results may surprise you.

For many years it was thought that gulls stayed close to home but Lesser Black-backed gulls ringed as chicks in Guernsey have been sighted in Spain, Portugal and even Morocco. These birds enjoy some winter sunshine before returning to the Channel Islands to breed. It’s amazing to think that a tiny helpless chick ringed on Burhou can fly to Spain after just a few weeks.

We now also know that gulls ringed in Iceland, Norway and Poland come to Guernsey during the autumn and winter months. The information from ringed birds usually only tells us when and where it was born and usually where it died when the ring is found but the highly visible coloured rings on sea birds can be read while the bird is still alive in the wild.

The Guernsey Seabird Team is a small group of dedicated ornithologists who ring seabird chicks through the Bailiwick, recording the site, the health of the bird and the breeding success of the colonies including small islands such as Burhou, Lihou, and rocky outcrops and outlets off Jethou and Sark. The seabird chicks ringed include Northern Gannets, European Shag, Great Cormorant, Razorbills, Common Guillemots and Atlantic Puffins but the Herring Gulls, Great Black-backed Gulls and Lesser Black-backed Gulls are of particular interest for the scientific studies underway feeding data into the British Seabird Monitoring Programme. Local researchers are also linking up with similar projects run across Western Europe.

One of the biggest colonies of Great Black-backed Gulls is on Lissroy shingle bank, Lihou, access to this area is restricted between 1st January and 1st August to allow the chicks to be reared in peace. Some birds are more adventurous, choosing to nest alongside footpaths so keep a careful eye out for eggs and small chicks when you’re walking around Lihou during June and July.

Richmond, Vazon, is another place where sea birds, particularly waders, need our help. The long gravelly stretch of sand and rock pools at Richmond provide the best feeding ground in Guernsey and the Environment Department works with the RSPB Guernsey Group and La Société Guernesiaise to raise awareness that birds in this area should be left in peace. Tired birds fly thousands of miles during spring and autumn migrations but if they’re disturbed regularly by dogs they lose valuable energy which weakens the birds. Most dog owners also love wildlife and are understanding once it’s explained why Richmond should be a dog-free beach to give these birds the best chance of survival.

If you note the letter and numbers on a colour ring on a bird, or you’re interested in finding out about Guernsey’s local bird scene contact La Société Guernesiaise or RSPB Guernsey Group

For news on the secret lives of our gulls go to www.guernseygulls.co.uk and www.guernseygulls.blogspot.com