| Topic: | Paving over front gardens is damaging to the environment - yet these people are encouraging it! | |
| Posted by: | Richard Carter | |
| Date/Time: | 13/06/19 11:28:00 |
How very disappointing to read the piece on the news section of PutneySW15 encouraging people to pave their front gardens over to make money, despite the very damaging effect on the environment (http://www.putneysw15.com/default.asp?section=info&link=http://neighbournet.com/server/common/conoffstreetparking001.htm). What's more, this article appears on the very day that judging is taking place in Putney Society's front garden competition! The damage to the environment is caused, as the Royal Horticultural Society points out, by the fact that materials like paving, tarmac and concrete, which are being increasingly used to pave gardens, are less porous than the earth they replace (which can soak up rain). The result is that the amount of rainwater that runs off is increased by as much as 50 per cent, with the additional water usually flowing into street drains which can't always cope, leading to flash floods (https://www.rhs.org.uk/science/pdf/Gardening-matters-Front-Gardens-urban-greening.pdf). The advice being peddled by this Harrison Woods, that “I would encourage homeowners with an empty driveway to register it for renting as soon as possible and see how much money they can make from it. It doesn't cost anything to list a driveway with YourParkingSpace.co.uk, so there's nothing to lose." No, there's nothing to lose but the damage caused by this idiotic and irresponsible advice, which encourages people to act selfishly, and Woods should be ashamed. And it's all the worse because the "news" piece ends with the mealy-mouthed statement that "there may be a negative effect on the environment". |