14. Highlights
1. Waitrose Donation July 2012
2. Alaw Estuary New Footpath
3. The Rolling Walk Mar-May 2012
4. Environmental Agency Awards 2012
5. Waitrose Charity Donation from green tokens (February 2012)
1. Waitrose donates almost £8,000 from plastic carrier bag charge to The Friends of the Anglesey Coastal Path
On Friday, 13th July,2012 Waitrose Menai Bridge Department Manager Richard Beckmann and Local MP, Albert Owen presented a cheque for almost £8,000 to Mike Russell the Chairman of The Friends of the Anglesey Coastal Path.
This money was donated from the proceeds of the plastic carrier bag charge, which was put in place by the Assembly in October last year. Waitrose took the decision to donate all of the proceeds from the 5p charge to environmental causes in Wales and Partners from Waitrose Menai Bridge voted to donate the money to The Friends of the Anglesey Coastal Path in recognition of the excellent work they do in the area.
Waitrose will also be donating the same amount to Keep Wales Tidy. These were the first awards made.
Here are some reactions to the news of this award:
Waitrose Menai Bridge Department Manager, Richard Beckmann, said: “We are delighted to donate the entire proceeds to environmental charities which have been nominated by our Welsh shops. As a co-owned business, we wanted our Partners to have a say in which causes they wanted our donation to go to. The Friends of the Anglesey Coastal Path are committed to encouraging greater appreciation of the unique and beautiful environment in which we live. It is great that this money will be used to help carry on their fantastic work.”
Secretary of The Friends of the Isle of Anglesey Coastal Path, John Payne, said: “FOACP are absolutely delighted and hugely excited to receive this unexpected accolade. This donation opens up a universe of new opportunities, beyond any previous expectations. All Friends will be invited to suggest novel ideas and innovative schemes, and with such a range of expertise, breadth of knowledge, diverse interests, imagination and energies to call upon, who knows what may be possible? No doubt, a particular aim would be to provide opportunities for youngsters to experience and to enjoy the natural wonders, history and culture to be found in Anglesey’s unique coastal environment.”
Environment Minister, John Griffiths said: "I am delighted with the way that the Welsh public have adapted to the carrier bag charge. Recent figures and research show that 70% of people in Wales now support the charge and that carrier bag use has reduced by up to 96% in some retail sectors. However we know there will always be occasions when we get caught out without a bag and have to pay the 5p. In these instances it is comforting to know that retailers like Waitrose are passing proceeds of the charge on to charities like Friends of Anglesey Coastal Path who are making important environmental improvements to local communities."
Local MP, Albert Owen said: “As a keen and regular walker, may I first congratulate the Friends of the Anglesey Coastal Path for their hard work and dedication in keeping our walkways in such good condition and for their vision to encourage our young people to become custodians of our natural assets. I pay tribute to the Volunteers who brave the elements throughout the year to construct and maintain our footpaths, many of which are in remote and difficult areas.
And of course I also pay tribute to Waitrose for their donation and their commitment to important environmental issues, which are not only on our doorstep but are vital to our economy in these difficult times. Waitrose has built up a rapport with our community which should be commended and long may it continue.”
2.The New Footpath along the Alaw Estuary
There is now a good footpath along the Alaw Estuary from the end of Gorad beach to the new footbridge over Afon Alaw and this links up with the path from Llanfachraeth. This means that the Coastal Path is now complete and does not have to be broken by a road journey to Llanfachraeth.
The artwork adorning the bridge was designed by artists Ann Catrin Evans and Catrin Meirion. They are made up of a series od shields depicting scenes of wildlife and scenes from the story of of Branwen,from the Welsh folk tales 'Y Mabinogion'. There are strong links to this area and the tale claims that her resting place is on the banks of the Alaw estuary.
Permission to reproduce the map was kindly given by Dewi Williams of Anglesey County Council,
3. The Rolling Walk to mark the opening of the Wales Coast Path - March-May 2012
Friends walked daily starting on March 18th 2012 and finishing 7 weeks later on May 5th, to coincide with the opening of the WALES COAST PATH. In this time, we walked the entire Path in a clockwise direction starting and ending at the Menai Suspension Bridge, the point at which the Wales Coast Path joins. Along the way, we tidied the Path cutting back vegetation and clearing litter; over 350 bin bags were collected, with items being recycled whenever feasible, as well as a vast amount of other debris such as crates and car wheels . Over 50 members took part and they were joined by about 200 others from around the island including Guides, Scouts, Beavers, local schoolchildren and students.
We only had to abort two walks when gale force winds made it impossible and these sections were completed in the following days to ensure the entire Path was walked. Amazingly, for the wettest April in years, we were rained on for only half an hour and have all ended up with good sun tans!
Ann Harden produced these splendid collages, which illustrate the wonderful spirit and camaraderie that was engendered on the Walk.
The diagram below shows a map with O.S. Grid References of the starting points of the walks and the number of bin bags collected on each walk
and here is the 5th and last collection
ready to go
the schedule:
4.Environmental Agency Awards 2012
FOACP won the award for “Coastal Enhancement” and also “Overall Winner” for all Environmental Categories in Wales in 2012. These trophies have been displayed at Oriel Ynys Môn. They have since won the award for Coastal Enhancement twice more, on each time they have submitted an application.
(Extract from Press Release by Environmental Agency Wales. Complete reports available on Cardiff-based KWT web site. Photo below).
From 180 applications, a list of 28 community groups and schools were shortlisted in nine categories; FOACP were chosen as the winners of the Overall Tidy Wales Award Trophy as well as the Coastal Enhancement category sponsored by the Helping Hand Company. They were presented with their trophies by the Minister for the Environment and Sustainable Development, John Griffiths at a ceremony at the Pierhead Building, Cardiff Bay, January 18th. BBC television and radio personality Sian Thomas introduced the various categories.
The prestigious 21st Annual Tidy Wales Awards ceremony, sponsored by Environmental Agency Wales recognises community groups, schools and voluntary organisations from across Wales that have made real and lasting efforts to restore their local environments to their former glory. Many of the sites tackled will have suffered years of neglect and without the efforts of the award recipients, they would have remained blights on the landscape.
Environmental Minister, John Griffiths said:” I am delighted to present this year’s awards. The Welsh Government is committed to supporting initiatives that improve our environment. All the shortlisted groups should be proud of their achievements and I encourage other groups to follow their lead. The Wales Coast Path officially opens in May and so I’ve been delighted to learn about the work that the overall winners FOACP have done to improve their coastline.”
The Helping Hand Company representative said: We are delighted to be sponsoring the Tidy Wales Awards Ceremony, in the Coastal Enhancement Category and pleased to announce FOACP as the category winners. We are honoured to be part of such a prestigious ceremony. FOACP are no strangers to hard work and carry out regular litter picks around the entire 125 miles of Coastal Path on Anglesey, concentrating on the beaches and extending to stretches of the foreshore and footpaths. Over the last twelve months the group has collected over 400 bags of waste, they ensure way markers are in place and cut back overgrown vegetation.
In response FOACP were quoted as saying:” FOACP are proud to have won the Tidy Wales Award for Coastal Enhancement and thrilled to be Overall winners. One of our main objectives is to enhance the Coastal Path for everyone’s enjoyment and all those who have been involved in our various activities had already felt hugely rewarded at seeing what can be achieved when like-minded people come together. As individuals they may often have felt reticent to attempt things alone but together, as Friends, feel they can achieve almost anything. In launching their scheme, Adopt a Bit of the Coastal Path (ABC-Path), the entire 125 miles of the Coastal Path is now regularly monitored and improved by FOACP, working alongside and together with the invaluable support of the Council Coastal Path Team”
FOACP were presented with a splendid, carved wood trophy for Coastal Enhancement and a bronze trophy as Overall winners, together with two cheques for £250.
5. Waitrose Charity Donation - Dec 2011
During December 2011, FOACP was one of three local community groups promoted by Waitrose’s “green token” scheme. We are delighted at the level of support shown for our activities by Waitrose customers, with FOACP receiving £513 of the £1000 distributed. The scheme also gave us excellent publicity.
6. Saturday May 5th 2012. All Wales Coast Path is Opened.