Red Rise Brook

You wouldn't believe a stream ran directly through here, a deep banked, straight cut, quite sterile, remodelled waterway, a Victorian era drain dug to aid forestry. Red Rise Brook now runs free again in it's pre Victorian channel meandering along the nearby edge of the woodland, and brimming with diversity. The sections of stream, east and west of Markway Bridge (Ober to the east and Red Rise to the west) were restored about 15 years or so ago, and with their restoration now entering maturity, the only semblance of the Victorian drain are their occasional earthwork remains, which themselves are fading. Nature’s (apparent) ability to regenerate, to mutate and survive the changes thrown at it, and to heal, is a thing that keeps me buoyant in the face of our environmental rampage, she may not look the same, though I'm sure she'll endure and flourish. It would be nice if our species could flourish along with her, we could be giants, you know, though I think we're too stupid, or maybe merely wilfully ignorant. Never mind, maybe the moles or shrews can have a go next time around.

St Aldhelms Head and Winspit

The sun shone hot today, like it was summer, and the air was warm and thin, even on the coast no refreshing breeze was to be had; the cool sea looked so inviting as it rolled gently over the rocky shore, that if I'd brought a towel, which I'd considered though then thought, no, I'd have braved a dip. But, it's not summer is it, and that nagging thought wouldn't leave my mind; no matter how wonderful, or welcomed, days like these are, they're not right and there'll no doubt be consequences, that I know. Our climate is changing, no one can't, with any honesty, deny that; though many still do either through willful ignorance or greed. You certainly couldn't deny our part in it standing here on St Aldhelms Head with a thick band of ugly coloured filth hanging in the air a few miles of shore and extending as far as you could see in both directions along the coast; that's pollution for sure, that is, our pollution.

Like many others I do what I can to limit my 'carbon footprint' as we call it; well, as with most of us, not what a 'could', more what I'm prepared to whilst still maintaining as comfortable a lifestyle as my conscience allows. For instance, I could not have driven here today; I cycle and walk when I can, but still without a car I couldn't get to places like this and I really don't know how I'd manage that. Like the green prozac of the woodland, these environments keep me sane(ish) in our increasingly psychologically damaging and spiritually oppressive world. It's easy to justify our actions, look, I just did; we make fine and sound arguments as to why we do what we do and that's why the climate's fucked in the first place and why technological solutions to our problems look so appealing to many; we all want to save the world, as long as that also maintains our status quo; we can sacrifice a few islands, some low lying landscapes, so some places get a touch arid or some icebergs melt, that's not too much to loose to keep the lights on, surely? Particularly if all those things happen 'over there'. Of course, I'm being silly and that's not how I think, not at all; and climate change, although people would like to think so, doesn't just happen 'over there', it happens all over, including here; and where ever it happens we're all culpable. I, like so many, try to negate, as much as I can, my complicity in our climates degradation; I drive as little as I can, meaningless?; I recycle, worthless?; I turn things off when not using them, delusional?; I try not to consume too much, pointless?; the problems are systemic and therefore as laudable as all our individual efforts are, the solutions have to be systemic if any chances of realistic change are to be achieved. Don't get me wrong, I'll still try to limit my impact, though in the honest knowledge that I'm only really easing my conscience and of course doing what's right, rather than actually easing the planets burden to any real extent.

Still, it was a lovely day at the coast.

Water level

It's been a dry winter really, the ground is wet, yes, but not sodden, and the streams, the streams, other than the occasional overflow, have stayed firmly within their banks. In fact, on the whole, the streams have shown gravel for months now.  I know that such things can, and will, fluctuate, although you can't help wondering if what we're seeing is a more permanent shift to cycles of more extreme episodes as a consequence of climate change kicking in.  Extended periods of dry, punctuated by episodes, long and short, of inundation and flooding; it's these extremes butting up against each other which create the right condition for environmental degradation and erosion. In recent years the number of trees slighted by the combination of adverse environmental conditions have soared, and the number of stream side trees undermined and now laying prostrate across the streams has increased too. The wooded parts of the forest look battered. Still, it's a lovely day and following Highland Water above Millyford Bridge, along some of its upper stretches, the forest stirs. The Sun has broken through, giving a sense of approaching spring, and it feels good.

Shell

Shell, contributing to environment degradation since 1907.  I maybe singling out Shell here, that's because its friendly corporate logo was easy to identify amongst the human detritus scattered along the beach, this beach, or any beach really, our species are feckless, though efficient polluters. Though Shell was by no means alone, with many other recognizable logos visible, along with those unfamiliar; to record them all would be a tedious and misery/anger inducing enterprise.  It's sad that we're so stupid.

Worked wood

As much as I love the wilder places, and I really do, I also love to see a managed deciduous woodland. Particularly woodland managed in a traditional way, by traditional means; horses to draw the timber, all the composite parts of the tree used to their best to create numerous products on site and all that, naturally in harmony, products which otherwise would require complexed environmentally damaging processes to produce. I see them as evidence that we can life in balance with our environment, in a sustainable way. What I'd advocate is a mosaic approach with mixed areas of wild and managed sustainable environments. In my model woods would provide us with a wide range of craft and food resources if managed well, they could go toward creating more locally produced resource based economies/communities.  I see neglected woodland all over, and for the most part I love them for their wildness and embrace their re-wilding, though I am also heartened to see an increase in woodland being brought back to sustainable productivity. Balance, man, that's were the future lays, balance and community.

Regeneration

Another landscape we see as natural, though is frequently not, is heathland. The lowland heaths found in this region are anthropogenic heathlands and are classified as a cultural landscape; being the result of successive generations of human activity. Granted, after the last ice age a tundra type landscape developed and that heathland plants were part of that, this was merely a transitory period and extensive woodland quickly became established as the climax community covering most of Britain. It wasn't until the introduction of farming with its associated woodland clearance in the Neolithic that we see heath as we know it developing; pollen analysis of soil samples from the period attests to a reduction in tree pollen and an increase in heather. And it's only through the continued intervention of man that lowland heath, and other heathland too, continues to exist; it's a totally unnatural landscape. Left alone, trees such as Pine and Birch quickly invade and establish, other plants too take the opportunity to move in and before you know it succession has begun the march towards diverse climax community woodland.  Some years back a heath near me was razed by fire, first the heather returned and thrived, though there's been no human intervention and Pine and Birch saplings have taken hold. Yearly more and more trees have established themselves and now the plant communities are beginning to change; you can see succession in action.

It’s the End

 Photo by Bridget McKenzie from NY Times article

An interesting article and well worth a read for those weary of standing against environmental or social wrongs and the endless onslaught of bad news in the media, and who are struggling to continue to remain positive whist things appear only to be getting worse.

It’s the End of the World as We Know It . . . and He Feels Fine

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/20/magazine/its-the-end-of-the-world-as-we-know-it-and-he-feels-fine.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0

Fracking!

Photo from Commonsensecanadian.ca

Fracking or to give it its proper name, Hydraulic fracturing is the process of vertically drilling for about 10,000 ft, then horizontally drilling for up to 2 miles and injecting a fluid mix of water, sand and a varied chemical combination, under pressure into the ground. Hundreds of well heads are required. The purpose, to fracture shale rocks with the pressurized mix, keep those fractures open and to release any natural gas trapped there in. A process which is resource exhaustive, using hundreds of tankers of water for each well head. A process which is environmentally damaging, with roads destroyed by mass heavy vehicle movements, increased occurrence of  earth tremors, failing wells leaking gas and chemicals with the potential to poison our water aquifers. Over 600 different chemicals can be used, with hundreds of gallons of these chemical cocktails employed for each well. A dirty and unpleasant process which is all round destructive to our planet, our environment and ourselves; and to cap it all totally unnecessary in light of the developments in sustainable energy technologies.

I've been opposed to fracking from when I first became aware of it about 2 years ago; opposed from the angle of someone who cares about the environment, from a spiritual angle and from a human angle. It's a process which is wrong on all levels, is unnecessary, and doesn't deal with the main issue which is our reckless and wasteful over use of resources. It's sold to the public as an opportunity for lower fuel prices and energy security; neither are grounded in fact, rather speculation. Local authorities are bribed with payments for each well; though the costs of repairing the environment could never be met, being potentially impossible. Finally, no open debate or discussion has been entered into nationally or locally; people are being kept in the dark....Mushroom Britain. Fracking, in recent months, has been brought into even sharper focus for me, with the announcement of the intension to frack in Purbeck, an area that if you have seen my blog before you'll understand I view as a magical and sacred landscape, close to my heart.  Also part of the Jurassic Coast, a World Heritage Landscape, unique. They plan to start exploratory drilling in Purbeck in September and I'll be writing more on the subject as that time draws nearer.

I've just scratched the surface here, I recommend that if you don't know about fracking, look into it, there's plenty of information about it on the web. The dangers are real, the perceived rewards are not and it does nothing to alter or alleviate the problem.....our behaviour.