Postbag, printed Friday 12th December 2008

'Get real over carbon footprint'

Dear Editor,

What planet are these Colchester2020 people on - or hope to be on if most of them carry on as they are? They held a meeting at a venue with no public transport access and talked about businesses cutting their carbon footprint (letter 10/12)!

The Government has just agreed the Climate Change Act. Friends of the Earth campaigned hard for an 80% reduction in climate change gases by 2050, and to include aviation and shipping - all of which were included at the last stages.

The EU has just set out a target for 20% reduction in climate change gases by 2020. In Essex a third of climate change gases come from traffic. This requires a major change in people's travelling behaviour now.

We need action now by our council to support bus use - to draw up a new legal agreement with the county council to keep our vital bus/coach station with its central facilities, and 'enhance it for the 21st century' as set out in our transport policy.

To give priority to the buses and stop town centre congestion, our council must ensure the county council urgently makes the High Street carfree as planned over a decade ago.

Yours sincerely,

Paula Whitney, Co-ordinator,
Colchester Friends of the Earth,
4 Shears Crescent, West Mersea.