Nailsea Methodist Church’s second community Eco Fair brought together twenty organisations involved in different aspects of environmental work.  The Avon Wildlife Trust, The Bumblebee Conservation Society, Bristol Ornithological Club, Friends of Stockway North, Friends of Trendlewood Park and WWF are all involved nature conservation, in the management of local nature reserves and rewilding projects. Nailsea & District Horticultural Society and North Somerset Master Composters  were on hand to offer advice and guidance to gardeners.

The Nailsea Shedders focus is on repairing, recycling and repurposing cherished or broken items. Burnham and Weston Energy and Low Carbon Gordano offered advice on clean energy and energy saving.  The climate crisis featured on the Greenpeace , Nailsea Climate Emergency Group and Christian Climate Action campaign stalls and The Green Party were there along with Christian group Green Christian and the Diocese of Bath & Wells Eco Team.   Nailsea Methodist Church also had a display telling the story of its journey to becoming a Silver Award winning Eco Congregation.

There was a chance to buy bags made from recycled materials at The Bag Revival and hand-made Eco-Friendy Candles and Diffusers from LA Candles and zero-waste shop Replenish showcased a wide range of their eco-friendly products.

In addition to the stalls there were a range of Eco-themed crafts and activities for Children. 

This year's Programme of talks featured 

·         10:30 to 11:00am                        "Nailsea Climate Emergency Group – Kingsley Belton - "Why are we here?"

·         11:15am to 11:45am                  Bristol Ornithological Club - Rob Martin - "BOC and Watercress Farm"

·         12noon to 12:30pm                    Avon Wildlife Trust – Jen Robertson - "Magical Moors and Wildlife Champions"

·         12:45pm to 1:15pm                    Friends of Trendlewood - Neil Ingram - "Stories from Nowhere Wood"

·         1:30pm to 2:00pm                      Greenpeace - Richard Lancaster - "Plastics, Climate Change and Human Health"

·         2:15pm to 2:45pm                       Green Christian - John Dorry - “Using your LOAF- different ways of thinking about food” 

Clare kindly shared the following information with us after the weekend 

Caring for God’s creation - protecting our precious water When people act together, change is possible. So what might our response be? There are many ways we can respond. None of us can do everything, but all of us can do something.

1. Tackling climate change also combats ocean warming

Not flying, using renewable energy, avoiding petrol and diesel cars, eating less meat and dairy - it all helps protect our water sources too. It’s also worth asking whether our bank account or pension funds are supporting fossil fuel companies. If so, can we switch to a fossil free bank? Or write to our pension providers to ask where our pension pot is invested?

● Join the Big Bank Switch: www.operationnoah.org/partnership-campaigns/bigbankswitch/

● Write to your pension provider: https://justmoney.org.uk/money-makes-change-hub/pensions/

2. Reduce our water and energy use, and make simple changes to our diets.

We can use water and energy carefully in our daily lives. For example, shorter showers, washing clothes less frequently, and using water wisely in our gardens. And making better food choices, as all foods have different water footprints. According to Defra, in the UK it takes 15 times more water to produce a kilo of beef than it does a kilo of wheat.

● Water saving tips: https://www.wwf.org.uk/what-can-i-do/top-ten-water-saving-tips

● Energy saving tips: https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/hub/quick-tips-to-save-energy/

● Low carbon food: https://greenchristian.org.uk/introduction/resources/loaf-2/

3. Ban single use plastic

Let’s avoid buying water in bottles, and thank God for the precious gift of water on tap. Let’s get involved in clean ups and put pressure on companies to stop single use plastic. Over the past couple of years the UK government has brought in a partial ban on some plastic items - but groups like Surfers Against Sewage are calling for a legally-binding Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) covering all container sizes and materials, expected to capture at least 55 % of polluting packaging and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) so polluting companies pay for their plastic.

4. Get involved in cleaning your local waterways, and measuring pollution

River Action run citizen science groups monitoring water quality to call for greater protections for our rivers. And there may be other local schemes to be part of in the Nailsea area!

5. Write to our MPs to ratify the High Seas Treaty

Finally, we can raise our voices. Governments are currently negotiating and implementing international agreements to protect the oceans, such as the High Seas Treaty, which aims to safeguard marine life in international waters. We can write to our MPs to urge the government to ratify the High Seas Treaty into UK law. Public support matters in making sure these protections become reality.