Chris Monk
Well-known member
Blackpool Today
Turning a new leaf
DO you live five minutes walk from Blackpool's green and pleasant pastures?
According to a new government tsar, we should all have access to green space on our doorsteps.
And Natural England – a new agency set up to protect the environment – even reckons doctors should write prescriptions for people to spend more time in the great outdoors as part of their recovery.
Natural
Richard Leafe, North West regional director for Natural England, said: "We have set ourselves a target to try to provide a bit of natural green space within five minutes walk of everyone's home.
"That will be a real challenge. We hope to work with local authorities and voluntary bodies and create local nature reserves so that we can improve and create natural green space.
"Access to natural greenery is very important to people's health. We're even trying to persuade doctors to prescribe some time in the natural environment as part of a patient's recovery programme.
"Around the Fylde coast there is the huge nature reserve in the Ribble Estuary and getting people to know and use that more is one of our aims.
"We want to connect up to the urban population of Blackpool and the surrounding areas and get them to use the natural assets around them."
Dr William Bird, Natural England's health adviser, added: "Increasing evidence suggests that both physical and mental health are improved through contact with nature. "Yet people are having less contact with nature than at any other time in the past. "This has to change!"
Despite Blackpool being one of the most-densely populated towns in the UK it boasts a network of parks within a short walking distance of most homes.
Campaigners are bidding to get town green status for Bispham Gala Field while the opening of the George Bancroft Park in Bloomfield Ward, South Shore has provided valuable open space in one of the most deprived inner wards.
Grange Park has Boundary Park, Mereside has the Clifton Road playing fields, North Shore, is home to Claremont Park, Revoe Park sits close to the local primary school, Layton has Kingscote Park while the mass playing fields of Moor Park provides Bispham folk with plenty of strolling space.
And then of course there is the jewel in the crown, Stanley Park.
Another of Natural England's priorities is protecting marine life.
Birds
Mr Leafe said: "We are consulting on a special protection area for birds off the coast of Blackpool. There are two species of sea bird in particular, the red throated diver and the common scoter, which we have a lot of in the sea off Blackpool. We have been trying to reconcile issues for some time between safeguarding these birds and wind farm development."
Natural England has been formed by bringing together English Nature, the landscape, access and recreation elements of the Countryside Agency and the environmental land management functions of the Rural Development Service.
It has a budget of £500m.
n Opinion – Page 10
07 November 2006
Turning a new leaf
DO you live five minutes walk from Blackpool's green and pleasant pastures?
According to a new government tsar, we should all have access to green space on our doorsteps.
And Natural England – a new agency set up to protect the environment – even reckons doctors should write prescriptions for people to spend more time in the great outdoors as part of their recovery.
Natural
Richard Leafe, North West regional director for Natural England, said: "We have set ourselves a target to try to provide a bit of natural green space within five minutes walk of everyone's home.
"That will be a real challenge. We hope to work with local authorities and voluntary bodies and create local nature reserves so that we can improve and create natural green space.
"Access to natural greenery is very important to people's health. We're even trying to persuade doctors to prescribe some time in the natural environment as part of a patient's recovery programme.
"Around the Fylde coast there is the huge nature reserve in the Ribble Estuary and getting people to know and use that more is one of our aims.
"We want to connect up to the urban population of Blackpool and the surrounding areas and get them to use the natural assets around them."
Dr William Bird, Natural England's health adviser, added: "Increasing evidence suggests that both physical and mental health are improved through contact with nature. "Yet people are having less contact with nature than at any other time in the past. "This has to change!"
Despite Blackpool being one of the most-densely populated towns in the UK it boasts a network of parks within a short walking distance of most homes.
Campaigners are bidding to get town green status for Bispham Gala Field while the opening of the George Bancroft Park in Bloomfield Ward, South Shore has provided valuable open space in one of the most deprived inner wards.
Grange Park has Boundary Park, Mereside has the Clifton Road playing fields, North Shore, is home to Claremont Park, Revoe Park sits close to the local primary school, Layton has Kingscote Park while the mass playing fields of Moor Park provides Bispham folk with plenty of strolling space.
And then of course there is the jewel in the crown, Stanley Park.
Another of Natural England's priorities is protecting marine life.
Birds
Mr Leafe said: "We are consulting on a special protection area for birds off the coast of Blackpool. There are two species of sea bird in particular, the red throated diver and the common scoter, which we have a lot of in the sea off Blackpool. We have been trying to reconcile issues for some time between safeguarding these birds and wind farm development."
Natural England has been formed by bringing together English Nature, the landscape, access and recreation elements of the Countryside Agency and the environmental land management functions of the Rural Development Service.
It has a budget of £500m.
n Opinion – Page 10
07 November 2006