Hey.So I called to work to say I am sick today because I haven't had any rest this past week and I wanted to have some time for myself.Therefore I am chilling at home,cooking,cleaning and posting this new article which is finally school-related.
Last year we were told to write a feature story about green initiative in London.Believe me,it was quiet difficult to get the right person to do the interview with because most of the people were busy or didn't even answer my emails/pick up their phone.Fortunately this nice lady made some time in her busy schedule to answer few questions for me.I was little bit nervous,since it was my first real interview but I think it turned out really good.Deshni Nadar works as a character environmentalist for the borough of Tower Hamlets(East London) and she answered me few questions regarding her work as well as all the enhancements that are coming to the borough this year. However the story is not in an interview format, but it is rewrited into a feature article. Hope you will like it.
With
rising population in London, there is a need to build more and more
buildings, each year for both business and housing purposes. The
fumes from cars and factories, as well as those from constructions
are influencing air quality on a big scale.
Deshni
Nadar is a charter environmentalist and she works for a local
authority in the borough of Tower Hamlets. Her work is to ensure
environmental improvements with specialization on air quality.
Deshni
enjoys working in the environmental sector and she says that people's
interest in knowing more about the environment makes her job even
more interesting.
“People
are writing in about it, they contact their local MP's because they
really want to know about what we do for the local environment.”
According
to Deshni, most of the pollution comes from the main roads, also
called “air roads” and therefore the borough is working very
closely with Transport for London to reduce it.
They
recently established “20 miles per hour borough” which means that
people are allowed to drive only 20 mile per hour within the borough
and that assist good air quality.
One
of the services that has recently been established to inform people
about the air pollution in their area is AirText.
It's
a health information service for anyone who lives or works in the
borough.
”It's
based on pollution forecasting, so people who are subscribed to the
service get a text message or voice message saying that the next day
the pollution is going to be high, so for example asthmatic people
can avoid running on major roads.” says Deshni.
It's
done by monitoring air pollution via monitoring services near tube
stations and main roads. These are based in Mile End, Bethnal Green
and Poplar.
Shah
Kamal, a resident of Tower Hamlets is one of the users of AirText. He
says that:” I go running every day to stay in shape and because I
care about my health, I always check my phone to know what the
pollution is going to be.”
The
borough of Tower Hamlets had many projects in the past, one of them
was for example London Olympics in which they ensured that it was the
greenest game delivered.
Currently
they are working on improving air quality near Tower Bridge caused by
traffic while the bridge is opening and closing.
“We
are going to put up signs to say to turn off your engine while people
are waiting for the bridge to close and we believe it will reduce a
lot of pollution in the area.”
Because
most of the pollution comes from roads and cars, the borough is also
encouraging people to cycle and walk more. They are also working on
crossrail train line that is being built from East to West London.
”The
main idea is to try to get people out of their cars and into the
trains.”
While
many people want to know more about what is done to improve the
environment, still a big number of people have no idea how much of an
influence they have on it.
“I
think the biggest issue, is balancing economic activity with
environmental agenda. I suppose that we can prove that being green is
good for the economy.”
The
London Borough of Tower Hamlets also works in other environmental
areas, such as recycling.
They
have recycling targets, which they met and succeeded and helped to
increase recycling by 20 percent since last year. They have also
reduced carbon emissions from buildings and transport and pushed
towards using electric cars.
“We
comply with the environmental law and what is required, but we try to
go also behind the law for our own reputation.”
It's
good to know that there is so many projects going on to save the
environment in the city we live in and that people want to know more
about what is done and how could they help. It is important to spread
this message around and help to save our planet.
Domi.
