Manchester Sustainable Living?

When asked to describe Manchester, many people would think of an image like this. Dirty, polluted, poor, run-down….

But….. Does Manchester meet criteria for Sustainable Urban Living? Sustainable City = ‘An urban area where residents have a way of life which does not damage the environment for future generations. Due to local involvement, the economy and social fabric are also able to stand the test of time”

1. Conserving the historic and natural environment Which would you save?

Historic Buildings Manchester Historic Buildings Trust received £1.8m grant from the lottery to help preserve famous landmark buildings with new uses Hacienda nightclub/appartments

Q1. To what extent does Manchester meet this requirement of preserving historic buildings? Remember the Urban Splash development (Sustainable communities)? They wanted to demolish the Ancoats Dispensary to build more garish apartments. After sit-in protests and a petition, the local council agreed to use lottery funding to restore the building to include studio space for artists and a small cafe

Natural – The Green Belt Town and Country Act of 1947 Established in Manchester ins 1980’s Aim to stop cities from expanding and preserve green spaces surrounding large urban areas

Manchester Airport City Large expansion to Manchester airport including manufacturing units, offices and hotels. Has been given planning permission within the green belt despite protests from local residents Q2. To what extent does Manchester meet the criteria of protecting the natural environment?

2. Reducing and safely disposing of waste Recycling League Tables ow-are-we-doing.html ow-are-we-doing.html Ranked 7 th out of 353 local authorities (Manchester is 188, Kirklees is 292, Leeds is 214) Calderdale recycles 61% of its waste. Q3. How can recycling rates be improved?

Calderdale – Most improved recycling award 2010 Leaflet and advert campaign (multi-lingual) Prize draw for those houses who recycle Cartoon character aimed at children Trained collectors to ensure recycling boxes etc are cared for Negotiations and partnership with Bradford to ensure a wider range can be collected Residents meeting to involve the local community Weekly collection of recyclables

And for waste that can’t be recycled? LandfillIncineration

Incineration Q4. What are the arguments for and against landfill v incineration? (Think about different groups of people) NIMBY!!!!!

3. Involving local people In order for any sustainable initiative to succeed, it is vital to involve local people. E.G attempts to bring in a bin tax in Bolton resulted in an increase in fly tipping

Q5. To what extent do Manchester consult local people in their planning? Example 1 = Calderdale tweaking their recycling scheme based on a series of local residents meetings (Residents chose which items to collect weekly and which to collect bi-weekly) Example 2 = Manchester proposed to introduce a congestion charge to lower air pollution. They ran a series of local meetings and an advertisement campaign and then put it to the vote Congestion Charge in Manchester At first, Manchester council were not happy, but instead went back to residents and got them involved in planning the metrolink expansion and new bus services timetables.

4. Providing Adequate open spaces Manchester run and maintain a range of parks in all parts of the region. Each park has a large budget for planting, upkeep etc. This includes clean public toilets, children’s play areas, walking and cycling areas. They also use signs to educate people on the history of the park and encourage healthy and environmentally friendly lifestyles.

Heaton Park Heaton Park is the biggest of the parks in Manchester. It includes a small farm, museums, boating lake and hosts various concerts such as the Stone Roses Q6. To what extent does Manchester provide access to green space?

5. Providing an efficient public transport system Integrated management of bus, tram and train Web, App, Text service for timetabling Public consultation on routes/times Extra capacity at peak times “System One” pass for multiple forms of trasnport. £8.60 a day for any bus, tam or train

Metrolink expansion ngnews.co.uk/news/greater- manchester-news/metrolink- tram-second-city-crossing ngnews.co.uk/news/greater- manchester-news/metrolink- tram-second-city-crossing Facelift for train stations (Piccadilly done, Deansgate and Victoria next 2 years)

Q7. To what extent does Manchester meet the goal of providing an efficient public transport system? To what extent is Manchester an example of a sustainable City? (6 marks)