- 18/06/2025
Catch up on all the latest news across the county with Gabriel Morris.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00Hello and welcome to Kent on Climate live on KMTV. I'm Daisy Page and in this show we discuss all
00:20things related to environmental issues in the county. How is climate change impacting Kent?
00:25What are communities in the county doing to tackle it and how can you help at home?
00:29Each week we'll be taking a deep dive into new environmental issues in the county and I'll be
00:33joined by expert guests. First this evening, daily power cuts, water issues, poor roads and concerns
00:39for wildlife. These are just some of the reasons that locals are furious with plans for more than
00:44more houses in All Hallows. An action group says the area simply doesn't have the infrastructure
00:50to cope with 350 new homes. Catsby Estates have only made an initial proposal alongside a public
00:57consultation but residents say they will stop at nothing to keep the grass growing and not
01:03the population. Finn McDermott has the story.
01:07The sound of birdsong could turn into the blaring of car horns as the village of All Hallows that
01:17currently has only 700 houses could see another 350 added to its number. Now the proposal for the
01:24homes is only part of a consultation with residents but with local services already struggling it
01:29certainly has locals worried. When you heard the news that this consultation was happening what was your
01:34first immediate thought? I felt absolutely sick. I was very sad. We don't need houses here.
01:41Catsby Estates are running the online consultation about the proposed homes but several All Hallows
01:46residents formed an action group to oppose any plans as they say the village just isn't suitable for
01:51any more people. We haven't got the infrastructure. We have a bus every two hours. We don't have a doctor's
01:58surgery. We have a small tiny score. We have blips in power because we're on the end of the Thames Estuary.
02:08The supply is always breaking and that's daily. That's not just once a week or once a month. That's
02:15once a day we have blips in the electric. Along the edge of fields marked for housing is a row of homes
02:21on Binney Road some of which have been lived in for nearly 50 years. I love it. It's my home and the
02:28thought of another 350 houses at the back bottom of my garden really frightens me if you like because
02:35we don't know who will be coming. We don't know the effect it will have on the village. It's just not
02:42viable. Now this is the farmland where the 350 homes are set to go and locals are telling me it's not just
02:47the impact on people that they're worried about but how it will affect the local wildlife as well.
02:52All of the summer it's full of skylarks. The skylarks nest in those fields as they do in this field
03:01and they are on the endangered bird list. So from a habitat point of view, yeah, horrified.
03:07According to Catesby Estates, the consultation is still running until the 15th of June. The Medway
03:12local plan is currently out of date and in line with new national policy introduced by the Labour
03:17Government, Medway Council will need to plan for at least 1658 new homes a year. While the consultation
03:23is ongoing, local officials are urging people to respond to it, making sure they outline exactly
03:27what the area needs. You know, we have a pop-up nursery in the village hall. How about a customised
03:32nursery? What are they going to do to try and alleviate things like lack of G people? All these
03:38things need to go into the consultation so that when the application comes in, which will be an outline
03:43application, the planning committee has enough scope to consider it in detail and then it's up to them
03:50whether they approve it or they refuse it. While the initial proposals do offer other amenities like
03:55community orchards, sports pitches and play areas, it's the essentials like power, water and roads that
04:01have residents frightened for the future of their village. Finn McDermid for KMTV in All Hallows.
04:06Now, over 200 years ago, we lost a red-billed chuff from our county skies. Despite the loss,
04:13the bird remained deeply rooted in Kent's cultural history, appearing on pub signs and on the Canterbury
04:19coat of arms. But one conservation project has been reintroducing the species at the cliffs of Dover.
04:25World of Trust Conservation Officer Suzanne Kingston joined me earlier to tell us more.
04:30So, thank you for joining me today, Suzanne. Firstly, can you tell me why the chuff project
04:37started and when it began? Well, it began initially probably 2019 was when we started planning.
04:46And it began because the chuff had found their way back to Cornwall after being extinct, but they found
04:53their own way there. We thought it was going to take quite a long time for them to travel along
04:57the south coast to get to Kent. And we knew they'd been reintroduced to Jersey and that had been a
05:03successful model. They started the releases in Jersey in 2013 and we thought we should
05:10restore them to Kent essentially because they do have a cultural importance here. They actually
05:17appear on their Canterbury coat of arms due to their link with Thomas Beckett. And they also appear in
05:23in King Lear, which was based on the White Cliffs at Dover. And we thought it was important to have
05:30the chuff back in its rightful place in Kent because it's been missing here for 200 years.
05:36It's really fascinating to hear the county's links and the historical links that the chuff has had.
05:43Can you give us an update on the project so far? And how many releases have you done
05:47currently and where have they been released? So they've been released on a location on the
05:54the White Cliffs of Dover. It's actually a private landowner so we don't disclose the actual release
06:00location. But it's been, this is our third year of releases now. We started releasing officially 2023
06:09and we're going to be doing another release again this year and potentially one again next year as
06:17well. So yes, it's very, very exciting and the chuffs have responded really well to being out on
06:23the White Cliffs and behaving, you know, like proper wild birds now. It's really exciting. I see
06:31photos on social media where people have spotted them every now and then. And obviously Dover is well known
06:37for its cliffs but does this area have an importance to the chuffs? Does the cliffs play an important
06:41role in this reintroduction? Yeah, the cliffs are important. Obviously the cliffs themselves will
06:48provide nesting cavities for the chuffs but also there's a lot of short grazed grassland on the White
06:56Cliffs and it's really this grazed habitat which is very, very important for the chuffs because they're
07:02invertebrate feeders. They need to access invertebrates in the soil and so having just a short grazed
07:09grass is perfect for them but they have this long curve bill which they probe to get the insects out
07:15of the soil. So anywhere where the grass has kind of grown too long or scrubby then they can't access
07:20those invertebrates. So it's sort of, yeah, all part of that landscape in Dover which is important for the
07:27chuffs. And the chuffs reintroduction here in Kent obviously is helping the species grow but how will
07:34it also help other wildlife here? So we want to use the chuffs basically as a flagship species for
07:43the chalk grassland habitat and obviously there's lots of different species that will use that so
07:48the chuff being there will again help to drive that habitat restoration but also as the chuff is an
07:55invertebrate feeder we'd like to sort of use the chuff really again as a flagship species to try and
08:01reduce the amount of pesticides that are used in the environment you know particularly on livestock
08:08they use something called avamectins essentially which acts as a worm and that once that's in the
08:14environment it will kill all the other invertebrates in that environment for some time after
08:19and it's not always necessary to use these chemicals so obviously with the chemicals
08:25affecting the invertebrates that's going to affect the chuff directly because their food
08:29you know will will disappear will will decline so actually yeah using the having the chuff out in
08:37the landscape in that way will really help that conversation get started I'm hoping.
08:42And are there any threats that they face today as well?
08:47I think so historically the threats have been from habitat loss and we're obviously working
08:54on habitat restoration now I think again the chemicals I you know too much use of chemicals
08:59in the environment will be bad for the chuffs and actually some of the population so the population
09:05in Scotland is quite inbred now so low genetic diversity is a threat to the chuff but we're
09:12hoping with these captive bred releases we can go some way to sort of reversing you know that threat
09:20and help with the with the genetic diversity. And if people are out and about and spot these birds
09:26is there anything that they can do to help this species? Yes absolutely so we want to know you know how
09:33the chuffs are doing they all have their individual rings so you kind of you just need to get in touch
09:39if you do spot one of the birds then you get in touch um with Wildwood there's information on our
09:44website to tell you there's a phone number to call so Liz Corrie is our um project manager and she's um
09:51calculating all the all the observations that we get it's very very important and we have um we do have a
09:58a large group of volunteers now who are helping us with those observations as well and they've been
10:03absolutely brilliant for us we couldn't have we couldn't have done it without them I don't think
10:08thank you very much for your time today Suzanne we look forward to following this story along and
10:12seeing the reintroductions in the coming months and years as well that's great thanks Daisy
10:21now it's time for this week's creature feature this week's species is a beetle and not a bug their
10:26iconic red and black markings make them stand out amongst the nettles and undergrowth where they
10:31spend most their time well have you guessed it if not let's take a look closer with this week's
10:35creature feature if you happen to take a wilderness stroll this summer you may find this week's
10:40creature nestled within the nettles the uk has around 4 000 species of beetle 47 of them are different
10:47types of ladybirds and the most common one you'll find is the iconic seven spot ladybird as with
10:53butterflies ladybirds have a four stage life cycle the egg larva pupa and adult stages and can live
11:00up to three years of age on average ladybirds grow between one millimeter and 10 millimeters in size
11:06out of the 47 species of ladybird 20 of them are smaller than three millimeters and are darker in color
11:12so often go unrecognized as ladybirds many gardeners and farmers welcome ladybirds on their crops as they eat
11:19aphids and help to move down to pollinate plants the harlequin ladybird is an invasive non-native species
11:25to the uk they originated in asia but became a commonly seen species around the uk in 2004
11:31the easiest way to tell harlequins apart from the typical ladybird is their brown legs
11:36that's all for this week's creature feature well it's time for us to take a break when we're back we'll be
11:43bringing you an update on the residents call for a ban on catapults after a rise in bird attacks
11:48we'll be hearing about maystone borough council new fun to tackle chewing gum on the streets
11:52all that and more we'll see you soon
12:18you
17:34Thank you, thank you.
17:36Thank you, Simon.
17:37You've been on Your dropdown.
17:38Thank you for Brighton and Tutorials to stop and search
17:41people for them.
17:42I've lobbied the government to change the law to make it illegal to
17:43carry these in public and give the police more powers to stop and
17:44search people for them.
17:45Kent Police will respond and investigate and they will target
17:46those areas where they're seeing them happen
17:50the most but we desperately need more people to report them so
17:53that we can deal with this blight on our community.
17:56With this wave of killing for sports in some cases it
18:00a waiting game to see if the trend will end and if it can continue to be a harmless sport
18:04for enthusiasts.
18:09Now according to Keep Britain Tidy, around 77% of England's streets and 99% of retail
18:15sites are stained with gum. Gum can take years to decompose naturally and becomes costly
18:20when it comes to clearing it up. Well Maidstone Borough Council has been awarded funding by
18:25an environmental charity to help reduce the littering of gum. Carl McCloy joined me earlier
18:30to tell us more. So thank you for joining me today Carl. Firstly, can you tell us a bit
18:35about the Chewing Gum force and how the grant you receive will be supporting this?
18:41Yes, so about March time, Keep Britain Tidy put out a note to all councils asking who would
18:53like to apply for a grant. So the Chewing Gum Task Force grant is supported and funded by
19:00chewing gum manufacturers across the country. So Miles Wrigley, amongst others, give money
19:08in support of Keep Britain Tidy to try and encourage the removal of chewing gum. Which, again, if
19:20anyone's walked down a high street, they'll know that everywhere they walk, there's always going to
19:26be dried gum sticking on the pavement, which no one likes to see. And as long as any, every council works
19:35really hard to do it, but this funding allows them to just spend a little extra time or buy equipment that
19:42they maybe wouldn't normally be able to afford in order to help clean. So we put in a bid.
19:50We were successful with our bid. We were funded the full amount that we asked for, which was really,
19:55really good, really pleased. This is the fourth year out of a five year program. This is the first time that
20:03Maidstone Borough Council had bid, and we were fortunate to get the grant. And what we're going
20:09to do is use the money to buy some equipment, some eco equipment that's going to help us to clean the
20:17streets. And can you tell me a bit about the impact littering of gum has had on Maidstone and its
20:23environment so far? Well, so Maidstone Borough Council will spend in excess of £30,000 per year just to
20:35remove gum. So we've got specialist machinery. It takes a machinery that has a very powerful
20:48scrubbing mechanism, which will obviously pick up the gum and remove it. Or you need machinery that
20:59kind of heats the gum so that the gum goes soft, so that it can be scraped up and removed. So it's
21:06very time consuming to do. And all that, you know, anyone wants is for people to put gum in the right
21:15receptacle. Part of the chewing gum task force, part of the campaign, and those who are successful in
21:22the bid are receiving support from Behaviour Change. And Behaviour Change are a charity, and they supply
21:30literature and media material that does that, does exactly what it says, and that is to encourage
21:37changes of behaviour. In the first couple of years that Behaviour Change put this
21:44this chewing gum task force into into practice. In a couple of the areas where they did some monitoring,
21:53the chewing gum disposal on the floor was reduced by about 80%. Now, you're one of 52 councils which were
22:01successfully when they applied for the force. And so what would this mean? What does this mean to Maidstone?
22:10Well, I mean, it's the first time that we have been able to concentrate, you know, to receive money
22:16where we can concentrate on a problem. We work really closely with partners, in particular, one Maidstone,
22:25who are the business improvement district, who run the business improvement district. They also contribute
22:32to the cleaning up of Maidstone Town Centre. And so with the help of One Maidstone and their ambassadors,
22:41what we are going to try and do is obviously where we can find influence and behaviour of people,
22:48try and get them to put gum out, to put their gum into the bins and into other receptacles.
22:54And this will be done by dealing with people, just talking to people, also by using literature. So
23:04we're going to be putting sticker in, we're going to be putting poster in and other forms of media
23:15in and around Maidstone to encourage people to deposit their gum properly. And this is something that
23:24keep it entirely, I've been doing for years now, trying to get, trying to just change behaviour,
23:30change behaviours from, from not just, not just chewing gum, which we're talking about today,
23:37but obviously things like cigarette, cigarette butts, putting cigarette butts in the right place
23:41as to put them down on the floor.
23:43Now, when you think of iconic duos, you might think of classics such as cartoon characters,
23:49Tom and Jerry. However, a rescue farm in Chessfield have gained an unexpected duo,
23:55a dog and a sheep. The dog is often seen on the sheep's back and if not,
23:59sharing the love with giving them some licks.
24:14How lovely. Well, now it's time to catch up with all the latest nature news from around the county.
24:19We want to appeal for fresh food and for other homes for over 70 guinea pigs to the county reaching
24:24temperatures hotter than I'd be for this weekend. It's time for this week's climate catch up.
24:30Welcome to this week's climate catch up. First, the RSPCA Labor and Animal Centre has launched an
24:37urgent appeal for homes for more than 70 guinea pigs. The 72 were amongst 100 that were rescued
24:43from a property elsewhere in the UK. The RSPCA are now looking to find them all new homes once they've
24:48been neutered. In the meantime, the centre is appealing for fresh food donations to help feed the herd.
24:54Next, SouthEast Water is urging residents to capture and reuse water to avoid a hosepipe ban
24:59as dry weather hits record levels. The warning applies to large parts of the county from Sevenoaks
25:04to Herne Bay, telling people to be water smart and keep use to a minimum. Last month saw the greatest
25:10demand for drinking water the company has seen and, according to the Met Office, rainfall is 40%
25:15below the average. The warning advises to reuse cooking water in the garden and shorten showers,
25:20but wouldn't confirm if in fact a hosepipe ban is imminent. And finally,
25:25Kent is set to be hotter than Ibiza. This weekend, temperatures could reach up to 30 degrees
25:31Celsius. The average temperatures for Kent in June are around 20, but Tunbridge, Sevenoaks and Maidstone
25:36are set to see 28, while Ashford, Folkestone and Canterbury could be reaching 27. According to
25:43Forecasters, Ibiza will be reaching highs of 26 from Thursday into the weekend.
25:47This has been Tim Forster on this week's Climate Catch-Up.
25:52Well, with the weekend seeing highs of 30 and Kent being hotter than Ibiza,
25:57we've been speaking with the Met Office to see if these temperatures are regular for June.
26:05No worries, I think we're having a little bit of an issue there. However,
26:08you can keep up to date with that on our website, kmtv.co.uk. You'll be able to find that in our
26:15previous show, Kent tonight, and we had that on there as well. Unfortunately, we won't be able
26:21to get that loaded for this time. But that's all we have time for on this week's episode of Kent on
26:25Climate. We'll be back next week with another episode discussing more matters relevant to
26:29environmental issues in the county. In the meantime, you can keep up to date with all things climate
26:33related by visiting our website, kmtv.co.uk, or follow us on Facebook and TikTok by searching
26:40KMTV, Kent. I'll see you soon. But for now, have a very lovely evening and goodbye.
Recommended
57:04
|
Up next
27:06
27:12
27:03
58:02
27:02
27:11
24:19
27:12
57:04
57:19
12:02
57:05
27:06
57:02
57:03
57:08
57:11
27:02
57:02
53:56
27:07
57:06
57:18
27:59