Environment

Environment

How to Choose an Electricity Tariff and Cut Your Energy Costs

Barbara Greenwood of the Crediton u3a Energy Saving Group reports on the changing world of meters and tariffs and offers some advice on how to cut your costs.
Environment

How to Save Energy 2 - Reduce Draughts, Improve Ventilation

Lower your energy bills by reducing draughts but still ventilating your house
Environment

How to Reduce Your Energy Bills and Stay Warm

Practical tips on how to save money while keeping warm.
Environment

A Fuel’s Paradise – The Basic Facts About Climate Change

Prof Tom Davies offers his perspective on the climate change debate.
Environment

Volunteering at Crediton’s Community Allotment is Good for Wellbeing

Bracken Jelier has discovered a lifeline for local people when she visited the Barnfield community allotment in Crediton.
Environment

Sustainable Crediton Brightens Crediton with Flowers and Insects 

Neglected parts of Crediton are coming alive with flowers thanks to a group of keen volunteer gardeners who want to brighten up the town and, more importantly, create valuable habitats for insects. The work is being done by Sustainable Crediton’s Pollinator group, so we asked group member Esther Mann to tell us what they hoped to achieve. 
Environment

The Dog Poo Debate and Why it Matters

Devon Dog Training recently moved into new premises in Upton Hellions on the outskirts of Crediton. We’re delighted that Daryl Cook the founder will be sharing his tips, thoughts and expertise regularly on this website. Here he tackles the subject of dog mess - always a hot topic on the local social media channels!
Environment

Moths to a Flame - a Creative Response to the Climate Emergency

A nationwide art project is inviting people to learn about climate change by exploring the world of moths. Moths to a Flame will lead to the creation of a massive art installation to be displayed at the United Nations Climate Conference in Glasgow in November. Local artist and ecologist Naomi Wright is one of the organisers of this ambitious project, which aims to make 20,000 moths out of recycled milk bottles and send a powerful message to world leaders. Here she explains how to get involved.
Environment

Have You Ever Seen an Otter?

A few weeks after his first blog on otters was published on this site, ecologist Paul Chanin was delighted to receive an email from a reader. Not only because it proved that he had at least one reader but also because she had just seen otters on a tributary of the Creedy. Since then he has had a couple of other records of otters seen in the catchment this year, something that would have been unheard of when he first came to the area in the 1980s.
Environment

Will Beavers Return To The Creedy?

The first beavers to live wild in England for centuries are to be allowed to remain on the River Otter in East Devon after a five-year reintroduction trial. Ecologist Paul Chanin reports on the Crediton link to this recent government announcement, the environmental benefits and challenges of beavers and the prospects of them returning to the River Creedy. 
Environment

Thinking Globally, Acting Locally - Introducing Sustainable Crediton

Sustainable Crediton is a voluntary group working to help local people lead more sustainable lifestyles. SusCred member John Craythorne explains how the group has both a global and local perspective.
Environment

Dragons In The Pond

It’s been a bumper year for dragonflies and local ecologist Paul Chanin has been observing and photographing them in his garden. In this report, he explains how to tell a dragon from a damselfly and gives us a fascinating insight into the habits and lifecycle of these remarkable insects.
Environment

There’s a Hedgehog in My Woodpile

Like many species, hedgehog populations have declined in recent years, but they are still doing quite well in urban areas. They are certainly present in Crediton and if your garden is not too isolated nor tidy, it is quite likely that you too have a spiny nocturnal visitor, as ecologist Paul Chanin discovered.
Environment

The Return of the Otter

Local ecologist Paul Chanin has taken a special interest in otters and reports here on his research work to track them across the country.