Lagan Valley Greens in Towpath Cleanup

Members of the Lagan Valley Green Party recently completed a litter collection in Lagan Valley Regional Park. Working from Warren Gardens to Union Bridge along the towpath the team collected a range of litter including one shopping trolley. The collected material was segregated to allow the recycling of cans and plastic material.

Chair of the Lagan Valley branch, Mr Conor Quinn, explained, “The Green Party is a party of principles and policies. However we must also be a party of practical local action.  Our regular litter collections reflect our commitment to improving the local environment for all residents of Lisburn”.

Lagan Valley Greens condemn incinerator decision

The Lagan Valley Green Party has condemned the decision by Environment Minister Edwin Poots to recommend the planning application for a chicken waste incinerator on the shores of Lough Neagh.

Mr Conor Quinn, Chair of the Lagan Valley Greens, stated, “The refusal of the Minister to grant a public inquiry into this industrial complex in an Area of High Scenic Value beggars belief. This project has raised complex questions regarding location, technology and economics that require open investigation through a public inquiry. Portraying biomass incinerators as renewable energy does not reflect the uncertainty of the sustainability of the feedstock or fuel.  Having visited the site, I cannot think of a more unsuitable location for such an industrial complex. There are major questions over the impact the proposed facility will have on Lough Neagh through water abstraction. That such a project is not deemed viable without significant public subsidy should raise real concerns”.

Mr Quinn continued, “This decision would seem to have more to do with internal DUP politics than the concerns of residents. Having granted a public inquiry into the extension of the runway at Belfast City Airport, in Peter Robinson’s constituency, it appears that Mr Poots has felt compelled to expedite this project to compensate. Quite simply, this is the wrong technology, in the wrong location and with the wrong economics. Rather than listen to the voices of the 7,000 people that objected to the project, the Minister has bowed to powerful industrial and agricultural lobbies and adopted a ‘sweep under the carpet’ approach to the issue of poultry litter through large scale burning. The Green Party believes that innovative, smaller scale, sustainable solutions to the issue of poultry litter are available. Quite simply, this planning application should have been refused.”

Lagan Valley Greens have chosen to use the Co-operative Bank for their general banking needs.

“The Co-op’s social and environmental policies are second to none”, said LVG treasurer Steven Wise, “and it has the best range of ethical investment products on the market.”

For more information on the Co-op Bank, visit http://www.co-operativebank.co.uk .

Lagan Valley Greens walk in support of Belfast Hills

Local Greens supported The Belfast Hills Partnership by “voting with their feet”, taking part in the Save the Belfast Hills 10 mile challenge walk on Saturday 5th June.

The Belfast Hills Partnership is facing serious funding cuts and £30,000 is needed to ensure that the work of the Partnership continues. Members of the local Green Party groups helped the Save The Belfast Hills campaign by hiking from Divis and the Black Mountain to Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park and raised sponsorship to ensure that the hills are looked after for future generations to enjoy.

The Divis to Dixon Link is a new hilltop pass that connects the heathland summits of Divis and Black Mountain in west Belfast with Sir Thomas and Lady Dixon Park in the south of the city.

Click here for more information.

LAGAN VALLEY GREENS CALL ON POOTS TO END UNCERTAINTY OVER LOCAL GOVERNMENT REFORM

Conor Quinn, spokesperson for Lagan Valley Greens

Conor Quinn said: “While canvassing during the past Westminster election I found there was total confusion as to the future of local government. It was clear that the vast majority of people are unaware that Lisburn and Castlereagh were to be partners in a shotgun marriage, in order to create an oddly shaped council stretching from Moira to Dundonald. This council would be 33 percent larger than the Lagan Valley constituency.”

The Lagan Valley spokesperson said: “The Green Party believes in strong local representation with decisions being taken at the lowest effective level and have opposed the so called super councils from the outset. There is also considerable concern amongst existing staff as to the future of their jobs, and where they may be based in the new council area. I believe that these issues must be clarified immediately and call on Minister Poots to stop dithering and make a decision.”

John Lewis Enquiry to Begin

John Lewis finds decisions in Northern Ireland never knowingly rushed

The public enquiry into the John Lewis development at Sprucefield is due to begin on Monday (7th June 2010).

It means a decision on the controversial £150m Sprucefield Park expansion could be made within 6-8 weeks, once the Planning Appeals Commission (PAC) makes its recommendations following the long-awaited enquiry.

Although the scheme and the associated jobs would provide a boost to the local economy, the Green Party argue that any new store should be located within Lisburn City Centre, rather than on the out-of-town Sprucefield Park site.

Conor Quinn of Lagan Valley Greens said “We are not objecting to John Lewis, who are a very responsible employer, but to the Westfield development as a whole. Nineteen extra retail units at Sprucefield can only have a seriously detrimental effect on the shops and businesses located within Lisburn itself.”

The public enquiry was due to go ahead in November, but was called off at the last minute after it emerged that a key document was submitted after the deadline.

If the enquiry finds in favour of the new store, it would make a recommendation to the Department of the Environment, which would make the final decision.

The Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association (NIIRTA) is also opposed to the Sprucefield plan. Spokesperson Glyn Roberts said “We’re happy to abide by whatever comes out of the public enquiry.”

He added “The impact of the John Lewis development is different from an out-of-town Tesco store and needs a different approach. However, I think we still would much rather see John Lewis in a town centre.”

Lagan Valley MP Jeffrey Donaldson is backing the scheme.

Plans to reduce the number of local council areas in Northern Ireland from 26 to 11 have been delayed until 2015 at the earliest, it was announced today by Edwin Poots, Environment Minister in the Stormont Assembly.

The changes would have meant a merger of Lisburn and Castlereagh councils, to create a strange horseshoe-shaped council area around Belfast.

The Green Party welcomes the delay. The Greens will always be in favour of doing things as locally as possible, and on one level this means smaller council areas. In addition to this, some viewed the move as a plan by the Nationalist and Unionist majorities at Stormont to divide up the council areas to their own advantage, with smaller parties less likely to gain any ground in such large local councils.

The plans to re-align the council areas have already cost £90M.