Ranger Events

Feed the Birds

Aberdeen’s Environmental News and Events

Sustainable Transport

Click side arrows to navigate &corners to return to this page

><

Winter 2014Autumn 2017

Powering Aberdeen

Duthie Park Events

Aberdeen’s environmental efforts were recognised at the 2017 Beautiful Scotland Awards.

This was the 51st year for the award scheme, which recognise the work of communities in Scotland to help deliver environmental improvements in their local area.

Entrants are judged on year round achievements and contributions to improving local environmental quality.

The theme this year was birds, bees and trees and award entries were assessed on; horticultural achievement; environmental responsibility and community participation.

Aberdeen was selected for the “best city” award also achieved the Royal Horticultural Society award.

The local winners were: Growing Smarter, Granite City Aberdeen – Gold, City Category Award Winner and the Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society Trophy, presented for demonstrating the highest quality of horticultural

standards in public open spaces.

Dyce in Bloom – Gold, Urban Community Award Winner

Powis Residents Group – Gold, Residential Community Category Award Winner

Aberdeen Inspired – Silver Gilt, VisitScotland

Award for Tourism

Brighter Bucksburn – Silver

Cove in Bloom – Silver Gilt

The Beautiful Scotland competition, is run by Keep Scotland

Beautiful, in partnership with the

Royal Horticultural Society (RHS).

Mammal Atlas

Next issue...Reuse and recycling

Celebrating Beautiful Scotland awards success

Take part in Climate Week North EastIn Aberdeen and Aberdeen-shire, a wide

number of organisations are

working together to develop a

programme of fun and informative

events for the region’s own Climate Week, in March next year.

Climate Week North East is

planned for 16–25 March 2018 and this will be the fourth local climate week. The event is timed to coincide with local activities to promote the Earth Hour on 24 March, a global switch off of lights for one hour, to highlight the need for action on climate change.

If you are interested in putting together an event during the week or would like to find out how you can take part, contact Alison Stuart at Aberdeen Climate Action, alison@aberdeenclimateaction.org or Amy Gray at Aberdeen City Council, amgray@aberdeencity.gov.uk

Photograph by Ian Talboys

perfectly edible, in-date surplus food from the food industry and from donations. This goes to charities and community organisations throughout the north east through FareShare.

Operating a food bank from their premises in Aberdeen, they distribute emergency food parcels to those in need.

The team took time to find out about the food bank provided to citizens in Grampian, learned about the other services on offer, whilst also helping to volunteer in food parcel preparation. The opportunity offered insights into this social enterprise and charity, enabling links to be made with Council corporate plans, policies and strategies.

Further information on CFINE is available here at www.cfine.org/

Aberdeen City Council’s, Sustainable Development team took a new approach to their team meeting, as part of a quarterly ‘get out and about’ slot.

A walking team meeting was held on route to the Community Food Initiative North East (CFINE), located on Poynernook Road.

CFINE is a social enterprise and charity who redistribute

Centre for hosting the Yoga afterwards.

To get involved in any of the litter pick events email: contact@rotaractaberdeen.org.uk or visit Facebook @rotaractaberdeen

research into participants’

physical activity levels before and after the challenge. They found that those taking part walked over one and half hours more and sat for six hours less each week.

To register go to www.stepcount.org.uk For information contact walkatwork@pathsforall.org.uk

Volunteers taking part in a litter pick at the Torry battery in August, were rewarded for their efforts with a free Karma yoga session, courtesy of Jenny at Ecowarrior Yoga.

12 bags of rubbish were collected from the clean up event. Event organisers, the Rotaract club of Aberdeen, expressed thanks to the volunteers. They acknowledged the help of RSPB Aberdeen and North East Scotland Dolphin Watch Team and Old Torry Community

Paths for All have launched the autumn Step Count Challenge.

Kicking off on 30 October, the challenge runs for 4 weeks and aims to get people walking more in and around the working day. From walking to work, going for a lunchtime stroll or using the stairs rather than the lift.

Teams of five, from workplaces across Scotland can make a change by

walking more, tracking and recording their daily step count, and taking part in weekly challenges with the chance to win prizes.

The outcome of the challenge is to make a difference to people’s health.

The University of Edinburgh carried out

Litter pick at Torry Battery

Step into a healthier workplace

Volunteering at CFINE

Focus on district heatingIt is a little known fact that Aberdeen has the most extensive district heating network in Scotland. This edition of Green Times looks at district heating in our city:

What is district heating?A district heating network is where heat is generated centrally within a community and transported as hot water, through pipes, to individual houses and buildings, as a source of heating which can replace gas boilers.

District heating generates less carbon emissions than a standard gas boiler system and is a more energy efficient solution. If the heat is generated from renewable sources, emissions can be close to zero.

Aberdeen’s district heating network The city started its district heating journey in 2002, when Aberdeen City Council created Aberdeen Heat & Power (AHP), a not-for-profit independent company. This was to develop a district heating system to provide heat to 59 multi storey blocks spread across the city.

The aim was to provide lower, cost heat to tenants, thus alleviating fuel poverty, while at the same time reducing carbon emissions. The district heating system replaced inefficient and costly electric storage heaters, with efficient, controllable and affordable systems for heat and hot water.

In the AHP network, the heat is generated by very efficient combined heat and power plants, currently the most competitive, reliable technology. This saves around 30-40% of carbon emissions compared with

conventional gas boiler systems. The district heating system or communal heating systems, where the heat is generated at local block level, is now providing heat to 46 multi story blocks and 17 public buildings in Aberdeen.

As well as an on-going programme to connect to additional buildings, AHP has been looking at ways to make the current heating system even more efficient, maximising use of the heat generated.

With money from the Sottish Government a heat storage system is being installed in Seaton. This stores excess heat for when it is needed, saving the energy required to produce additional heat.

Another exciting new project is taking place at the ice rink. The process of keeping the ice cold generates excess heat which is usually wasted.

AHP is installing a heat pump at the ice rink, to capture this heat so it can be reused to heat local buildings, including; the ice rink, Beach Leisure Centre and Beach Ballroom. This will significantly reduce the carbon emissions associated with heating these buildings. Electricity will also be supplied directly to this complex through a private wire arrangement from the local generator.

Research is continuing, looking at options to extend the heat network into the city centre. City centre businesses interested in finding out more should contact Catherine Fitzgerald 01224 580058.

Powering Aberdeen is Aberdeen City Council’s city wide programme to reduce carbon emissions.

Powering AberdeenFocus on district heating

Getting Recycling RightAberdeen City Council has introduced a Mixed Recycling service across the city.

This is part of the Council’s Zero Waste Project which includes the development of a new, Materials Recycling Facility (MRF); and a proposed energy from waste facility.

The new MRF sorts mixed recycling into its different source materials. This makes recycling easier for residents and enables the Council to collect more materials, including plastic pots, tubs and trays and cartons.

One of the biggest challenges is contamination of the recyclable materials with items that are non-recyclable, such as soft plastic food wrappers. Contamination increases the cost of collection and disposal; and it reduces the quality of materials sent on for recycling.

To combat this issue, the Council’s Waste and Recycling Team has developed a bin hanger system to communicate with residents and work with them to address the problem.

Collection crews have 2 colours of bin hangers, blue and red, for moderately and heavily contaminated recycling bins.

If a bin is so contaminated, it would affect the quality of the load the collection crew will attach a red bin hanger and log it on their system, so the resident can receive recycling information.

Residents should remove the incorrect materials and the red bin hanger and put the bin out on their next scheduled collection day. Local recycling points or Household Waste and Recycling Centres can be used for excess recycling.

For moderately contaminated bins that can still be emptied, the collection crew will attach a blue hanger to alert the resident that there are some incorrect items in the bin.

For more information about waste and recycling, visit www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/wasteandrecycling email wasteandrecycling@aberdeencity.gov.uk or contact 03000 200 292.

A hackathon event took place in August, at Aberdeen City Hydrogen Energy Storage (ACHES) in Cove.

Participating young people, aged 8-18, received a tour of the hydrogen refuelling station while taking part in the event.

Fuel cell developer Arcola Energy is the company behind the hackathon event, which saw 100 young inventors take on the challenge across the UK.

Supported by some of the world’s global technology giants including Toyota and Shell, the Arcola Energy Hydrogen Hack is an extension of the firm’s long-running, not-for-profit Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) education programme. The event in Aberdeen was also supported by Aberdeen City Council and Hydrogenics, the company that built and operate ACHES.

Hacks took place at centres across the country including Aberdeen, Bolton, Newcastle, Monmouth and London.

The events aimed to raise awareness of the benefits of hydrogen fuel cell technology and to inspire young people into further study and careers in engineering.

Youngsters had the opportunity to use hydrogen fuel cells, Raspberry Pi and Arduino mini computers to re-engineer everyday objects to do something new.

During this week-long event, the young people applied their creativity and engineering skills to hack gadgets, appliances and toys to make them move faster, longer or to take first steps as an animate object.

Arcola Energy’s Managing Director, Dr Ben Todd said: “The Hydrogen Hack is an exciting development of our long-running Schools Hydrogen Challenge programme.

“The Hydrogen Hack is a creative, innovative and fun way for young people to learn more about renewable energy, hydrogen and fuel cells. Arcola Energy plans to make the Hydrogen Hack an annual event, establishing it as a core part of the UK’s STEM education calendar.”

The Hydrogen Hack took place in centres across the UK, with the teams attending a national final hack event at Ravensbourne College in London on Saturday 26 August, where the winner received the inaugural Arcola Cup.

Aberdeen is a partner in an EU-funded project to design, demonstrate and evaluate sustainable measures that address the mobility challenges of port cities in Europe.

CIVITAS PORTIS is a four year project, working to show other port cities in Europe and beyond, how to develop and implement a vision of sustainable mobility.

The project aims to increase functional and social cohesion between city centres and ports, while driving economic growth and improving the attractiveness of urban environments.

The project is 100% funded by the EU, under the Horizon 2020 funding programme and a grant of approximately £3.2 million has been awarded to Council and its local partners for the project.

Locally, the project is being led by Aberdeen City Council, along with partners including: Robert Gordon University, Aberdeenshire Council, NESTRANS, Aberdeen Harbour Board and University of Aberdeen.

The partners are involved in delivering different parts of the project, while working together to ensure the solutions are integrated and are meaningful across the city and shire.

More information on CIVITAS PORTIS and Aberdeen’s role can be found at http://civitas.eu/portis

90% local authority schools in Aberdeen are registered for the EcoSchools Scotland programme, encouraging whole school action on sustainable development.

The EcoSchools programme has been undergoing a refresh, providing a link to the UN 17 Sustainable Development goals,

to prioritise learning about sustainability. EcoSchools Scotland has launched a new online application system, making the application process paperless.

Find out about Eco Schools Scotland at www.keepscotlandbeautiful.org

44Bronze

41Silver

19Green Flag

Young engineers took part in ‘Hydrogen Hack’

THE CIVITAS INITIATIVE

IS CO-FINANCED BY THE

EUROPEAN UNION

Sustainable Transport Solutions

The Duthie Park Rangers Service hosted a Willow Workshop, at Duthie Park in August.

Taking advantage of one of the warmer days in the month, the Park Rangers were joined by members of the public for the workshop which was held on the old bowling green at Duthie Park.

The workshop tutor, Jane Wilkinson of

Special Branch Baskets, helped the group to make a willow fruit bowl and a bird feeder holder.

Jane showed the group how to work with the different

kinds of willow; keeping the willow soft while you work with

it and how to twine willow together.

It is hoped to hold other willow making workshops in the future.

Willow Workshop

It was a fun, filled summer at Duthie Park, with the Duthie Park Ranger Service hosting a variety of environmentally-themed activities for children throughout the school holidays.

The 7 and Under age group: charmed worms in the Community Garden, met Queeny the Royal Python, puzzled out some ‘fairy tale food chains’, and identified hundreds of bumble and honey bees in the Floral Courtyard.

The 8 to 12 years were equally as busy, taking part in a giant game of ‘snakes and lizards’, and completing OPAL (Open Air Laboratory) soil and pond surveys. They also had the

opportunity to experience ‘bee vision’ by following a UV trail around the Winter Gardens and also to dissect Barn Owl pellets.

All of the children that attended the Brilliant Birds and Birdy Bonanza event helped to create a ‘gulp’ of swallows. Their beautiful work is on show now in the Education Glasshouse, within the Winter Gardens.

If you would like more information about the activities the Duthie Park Ranger Service offers, or would like to be added to the mailing list please email; DuthieParkRangerService@aberdeencity.gov.uk

Summer Fun at the Park

A family Environment Day, was hosted by the Duthie Park Rangers in July.

Members of the public got the opportunity to meet birds of prey, including owls and kestrels that were on show from the Owl & the Pussycat.

There were also animals from further afield. Animates, who have a number of exotic animals, brought along an African Pigmy Hedgehog, Hissing Cockroaches and Giant Millipedes.

A range of organisations took part in the event including; Opal, Nesbrec, Aberdeen City Council Countryside Rangers, the Royal Horticulture Society of Aberdeen and SRUC. The Aberdeen Beekeepers Society also attended, bringing a range of honey for tasting and purchasing.

This is the fourth Environment Day and although it was a miserable morning, the afternoon brightened up and good crowd turned out for the event.

The Duthie Park Ranger Service is grateful to Travelstock and Friends of Duthie Park for sponsoring the event.

Environment Day

A number of the Countryside Ranger Service sites suffer from garden waste being dumped over garden fences and onto Council land.

Dumping garden waste in countryside areas is against the law and can cause harm. It smothers the native wild flowers and could lead to garden plants becoming established. These can become invasive, causing harm to our native plants.

Species including; giant hogweed, Japanese knotweed and Himalayan balsam are all garden escapees that now cause serious damage to our countryside. In the case of Japanese knotweed, they can cause harm to

buildings and roads too.

Over the coming months, efforts will be stepped up to identify properties where this is happening. This is so householders can be reminded to not

dump their rubbish on Council land and to remove

what is already there.

With a bit of planning and a small space, most garden waste can be recycled into compost that can be put back on the garden. Green waste can also be disposed of in the brown wheelie bins supplied by the Council or at many of the recycling centres around the city.

Garden waste over the fence!

Animals as varied as pine martens, wildcats, bats, deer, seals – and even humans are showcased in a recently launched, comprehensive description of land mammals in North-East Scotland.

The Mammal Atlas of North-East Scotland and the Cairngorms, was launched in Aberdeen. This is a fully-illustrated book, compiled and published by the North East Scotland Biological Records Centre (NESBReC). It maps 43 mammals found in the north east, using 77,592 records, gathered from 1,472 observers across the area and beyond.

It tells some fascinating stories of the many amazing mammals found throughout North-East Scotland. It includes the recovery of red squirrels; the recent significant spread of pine martens eastward to the outskirts of Aberdeen; and the discovery of a new bat species for the area.

The project, which began in 2013, encouraged the public to report animal sightings, with submissions from those who had never before submitted a mammal sighting, through to experienced biological recorders.

In the book, each mammal species is depicted by a photograph, a distribution map and a short account of its ecology, in both the local and British Isles contexts. The data from the project will continue to be held by NESBReC and can be used by planners, researchers, conservation agencies, students and environmental consultancies, who all need access to wildlife data.

To keep in touch with NESBReC, visit www.nesbrec.org.uk or www.facebook.com/nesbrec

Mammal Atlas now published

Litter in the countryside

Free trees for schools and communities

Clearing up litter is one of the bugbears of the Countryside Rangers. Too often they find discarded drinks bottles, cans, sweet wrappers or fast food containers dumped in the beautiful countryside.

By disposing of litter responsibly in a bin or by taking it home:• many injuries to wildlife could be avoided. • huge amounts of money saved, by

not having to clear it up.

You can do your bit by making sure you do not drop litter. If you want to do more, then why not organise a community litter pick with your friends or neighbours.

You can borrow litter pickers and gloves from the Council Environmental Services team, by contacting CleanAberdeen@aberdeencity.gov.uk The team will also arrange collection of the bags of rubbish after the event.

Schools and communities can apply for free tree packs, on offer from the Woodland Trust.

School trees can be planted on either the school grounds or land the school has arranged regular access to. Community groups, should plant the trees on land that is accessible to the public.

To find out more about the tree packs go to www.woodlandtrust.org.uk

This summer the Countryside Rangers joined forces with Sport Aberdeen to help set up a series of free walks exploring Aberdeen City’s historic March Stones.

This unusual and little-known walking route offered local residents a chance to explore a secret of the city, whilst participating in outdoor physical activity.

This historical boundary for the City of Aberdeen, as granted by Robert the Bruce in the 14th century, is marked by a ring of stones (the “March Stones”) running from the Dee to the Don.

The stones are often mistaken for mile markers or ignored completely, yet they offer an intriguing adventure into the city’s history.

The name derives from the 16th century meaning of “march” as a boundary, which measures 26 miles in total.

The majority of the March Stones are to be found in built up areas of Aberdeen, however some are more remote.

Countryside Ranger Jen was enlisted to find 13 stones in the countryside and lead the walks in the area around Brimmond Hill.

The historical walks with a wildlife slant were a great success and the project aims to raise awareness of the March Stones in time for their 700 year anniversary in 2019.

Now that the autumn is on its way, it is a good time to start feeding the birds in your garden. Feeding garden birds with appropriate food is a good way to help them survive the colder weather.

Putting up bird feeders will attract many more birds into your garden and even if you don’t have a garden, you can use feeders which attach to a window.

Here are a few tips to give the wildlife in your garden a little extra help:

• Try bird seed mixes, these mimic the birds natural foods and you can try different types to see what is popular in your area. A mix of seeds may be good in one area, whereas in another, sunflower seeds or peanut kernels are better.

• Avoid putting out too much bread or cake as most birds are not adapted to eat this type of food and it can cause them problems. Don’t put out salty food such as salted peanuts as this could kill the birds.

• If you have some apples or pears that have gone past their best put them out and the thrushes will love them!

• Once you start feeding the birds keep feeding them regularly, but don’t put out too

much at once so it is left lying for several days.

• A shallow dish of clean water will provide water for the birds to drink.

• Place feeders and the water in places where cats can’t get to them or where cats can hide to pounce on the unwary birds from nearby cover.

Encouraging birds and other wildlife into your garden can help to keep slugs, snails and caterpillars at a level where they can all survive in balance and not cause too much damage to your vegetables and flowers.

This will reduce the amount of slug pellets and insecticides you will need to use, save you money and save insects that are good for pollination and eat greenfly and blackfly!

Feed the

birds!

Aberdeen’s Historical March Stones

Green Times is produced in March, June, September and December each year and includes information on local transport, energy, waste, Eco Schools and biodiversity events and initiatives.

Previous editions are available on the Aberdeen City Council website www.aberdeencity.gov.uk

To make sure you receive a copy of this publication when it is released or if you would like to contribute to future

editions contact:

email: thegreentimes@aberdeencity.gov.uk

telephone: 01224 522792

or write to the editor: Business Hub 4, Ground Floor North, Marischal College, Broad Street, Aberdeen AB10 1AB

About Green Times

In Aberdeen we are lucky to have four designated Local Nature Reserves, Den of Maidencraig, Donmouth, Kincorth Hill and Scotstown Moor.

Each of these sites has its own committee made up of local people who enjoy the reserves, go walking, take their dog for a walk, watch wildlife or may be go jogging on the reserves.

If you enjoy one or more of these sites why not join the committee and have some

input into what happens on the reserve, the plans for the future, give feedback from the community or just find out more about your local area.

The committees meet in the evening three times a year. One of the meetings is a site meeting where the group has a walk around the reserve to see what has happened and discuss future plans. If you would like to know more contact the Countryside Officer at countrysideranger@aberdeencity.gov.uk

Local Nature Reserve Committees

What’s OnOutdoor AdventuresThe Autumn and Winter Outdoor Adventures with the Countryside Ranger Service leaflet is available on the Ranger Service website at www.aberdeencity.gov.uk/rangerservice and will be available in hard copy from local libraries and community centres.

Booking is essential for all events. To book a place or find out more phone or email:

01224 326429countrysideranger@ aberdeencity.gov.uk

OctoberSaturday 7 | 10am-3pm Help the Heather on Kincorth HillKincorth Hill Local Nature ReserveAn opportunity to get yourself and Kincorth Hill Local Nature Reserve into shape. Help the Rangers protect the beautiful heather habitats by cutting down invasive gorse and broom bushes. If we can get a fire going we will burn the cut material on site and have baked potatoes and toasted marshmallows.Gloves, tools and hot drinks will be provided but please bring a packed lunch. Please wear sturdy footwear and clothing suitable for the weather. Meet at the Reserve car park at Abbotswell Crescent. First Bus 18 bus stops next to the car park.

Saturday 14 | 10am-3pm East Tullos Burn Tidy Up

Help the Countryside Rangers tidy up the site by clearing

back some vegetation from the burn to allow better flow and more space for wildlife. Remember to bring wellies!Meet at the ruined kirk in St Fittick’s Park.

First Bus 12 stops on Balnagask Road for access

to the meeting point.

Wednesday 18 | 1pm-3pmAutumn AdventureSeaton ParkFind out how the wildlife near River Don is preparing for winter on a stroll around the park. See what treasures you can find from autumn activities. Please wear clothing suitable for the weather, and bring a packed lunch.Meet at the Seaton Park car park. First Bus 1 & 2 will take you to King Street for access to Seaton Park.

Wednesday 25 | 10am-1pm Hallowe’en Decorations!Pets Corner Education RoomIf you’re planning a Hallowe’en party or are just feeling crafty come down to Hazlehead Park to make some spooky Hallowe’en decorations and find out about some real life autumn creatures. A charge of £3 per child is required to cover material costs. Meet at the entrance to the

Pet’s Corner Education Room in Hazlehead Park. First Bus 11 will take you to Queen’s Road for access to Hazlehead Park.

Saturday 28 | 10am-3pm East Tullos Burn Tidy UpHelp the Countryside Rangers tidy up the site by clearing back some vegetation from the burn to allow better flow and more space for wildlife. Remember to bring wellies!Meet at the ruined kirk in St Fittick’s Park. First Bus 12 stops on Balnagask Road for access to the meeting point.

To book a place or find out more:

01224 326429 countrysideranger@ aberdeencity.gov.uk

NB All out door events will require warm clothes sturdy footwear and waterproofs.

Young people under the age of 16 must be accompanied by a responsible adult. If, after you have booked, you are not able to attend, please phone to cancel your booking as there may be others on a waiting list.Photograph by Ian Talboys