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Friday 30 November 2018

France and nuclear power

France is very dependent on nuclear power:
Macron’s France: where now for nuclear power?

Will it go the way of Germany?
France: A Study of French Nuclear Policy After Fukushima | K=1 Project
Can France Move Away From Nuclear Energy? | OilPrice.com

Meanwhile, on the north Somerset coast, France's nuclear industry is hard at work:
Futures Forum: Devolution for Devon and Somerset? >>> and EDF at Hinkley Point
Futures Forum: Keeping Hinkley off the Treasury's balance sheet

Something seems to be shifting across the Channel, though:

France announces plans to reduce reliance on nuclear power, increase investment in EDF

By HARRY MENEAR . Nov 29, 2018



President Emmanuel Macron announced this week that France will reduce its national dependence on nuclear power to 50% of its energy mix by 2035 from 75% today, Reuters reports. The plan includes provisions to close two nuclear reactors by 2020.

Sources also indicate the French government intends to boost its 83.7% stake in UK gas and electric company EDF to compensate. Reuters’ report also confirmed that the state will “ask the firm to make proposals about changing its structure” in response to the larger investment.

Reuters states that “any alterations to the structure proposed by EDF would have to preserve the integrity of the utility and allocate adequate financing for each of its activities,” continuing that “the state will consider boosting its stake in the capital of the company in line with the challenges and risks linked to the nuclear activity”.

Industry specialists suspect the proposed restructuring would involve EDF creating a seperate legal entity for its nuclear activities, in which the French government would then increase its stake to 100%.

The report states that “That would take the nuclear risk off the market and could make it easier for the French state to put in place a support mechanism for the… nuclear industry.”

In his press release, President Macron said “France would not phase out nuclear entirely, as its neighbour and economic partner Germany plans to do.”

Macron continued, explaining that “the closure schedule would depend on the evolution of France’s energy mix, including the planned increase of renewable energy sources and the expansion of interconnection capacity with neighbouring countries.”

“It is a pragmatic approach ... which takes into account security of supply,” he said, reinforcing the government’s policy that nuclear power in France will not be reduced to the point that the country has to import power from abroad.


France announces plans to reduce reliance on nuclear power, increase investment in EDF | Power Generation | Energy Digital

Not everyone is happy:

EDF restructuring expected as France reduces reliance on nuclear

Geert De Clercq, Bate Felix

PARIS (Reuters) - France is considering restructuring state-owned utility EDF and plans a steady reduction to the country’s reliance on nuclear power, the government said on Tuesday.

In a long-awaited speech on energy strategy, President Emmanuel Macron said France would reduce the share of nuclear in the power mix to 50 percent by 2035, down from 75 percent today, rather than the total phasing out planned by neighbour Germany.

The fate of EDF, long a symbol of French industrial might and a world leader in nuclear technology, is a politically sensitive issue in France. It has already led to the resignation of Macron’s former ecology minister, Nicolas Hulot, who accused the president of dragging his feet on nuclear power.

“I was not elected on a promise to exit nuclear power but to reduce the share of nuclear in our energy mix to 50 percent,” Macron said in an hour-long address, adding that 14 of EDF’s 58 nuclear reactors would be closed by 2035.

EDF shares fell up to 4 percent on news of the plans, which a source close to the president’s office said could involve the state increasing its stake in the company. By 1630 GMT the shares were down 0.25 percent.

Macron’s action plan is broadly in line with EDF’s desire not to close any reactors before 2029, besides the previously scheduled closure of Fessenheim’s two reactors near the German border. No further closures are planned before the end of Macron’s term in 2022. Another two will be shut down over 2027-28 and a further two could face closure as early as 2025-26 if there is no risk of jeopardising France’s power supply.

In his election campaign, Macron promised to stick to the former Socialist government’s target of reducing the share of nuclear to 50 percent by 2025. But he rowed back on the pledge a few months after taking office, angering environmentalists.

‘PRAGMATIC APPROACH’

As France reduces its dependence on nuclear energy, EDF is wooing overseas markets with the EPR model of reactor it is building at Hinkley Point, Britain’s first new plant in decades.

Macron said the schedule for shutting down reactors would depend on the evolution of France’s energy mix, including the planned increase of renewable energy and the expansion of interconnection capacity with neighbouring countries. “It is a pragmatic approach ... which takes into account security of supply,” he said.

An Elysee note on the long-term strategy said the closures would focus on the oldest reactors, including at the Tricastin, Bugey, Gravelines and Chinon plants. 

Macron did not mention a possible EDF restructuring but the Elysee note said the state could raise its 83.7 percent stake. “The state will consider boosting its stake in the capital of the company in line with the challenges and risks linked to the nuclear activity,” the note said.

Ecology Minister Francois de Rugy told a news conference that EDF’s structure was not necessarily the most efficient in the long run. “We want EDF to remain an integrated group. There could be a parent company and subsidiaries,” he said.

Financial markets have long speculated that EDF’s nuclear activities could be put into a separate legal structure and renationalised, which would allow the state to subsidise the business and make nuclear energy available to EDF as well as its competitors.

Several of EDF’s major business activities are already operating as separate legal units, such as power grid operators RTE and Enedis, as well as its renewable energy division.

Greenpeace said that Macron had fallen prey to corporate interests. “For the umpteenth time, the government has caved in to the nuclear industry lobby,” said Alix Mazounie, head of Greenpeace France’s nuclear campaign.


EDF restructuring expected as France reduces reliance on nuclear | Reuters 

But, then, infrastructure is so political:
Futures Forum: Finance, ideology and infrastructure
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The Sidmouth Arboretum looks at Christmas trees

A very enjoyable festival of trees was had earlier this evening:
Celebration of Trees held by Sidmouth Arboretum | Latest Sidmouth and Ottery News - Sidmouth Herald
Futures Forum: A Celebration of Trees > Friday 30th November > stalls, songs, talks, quiz, snacks, bar...

The Arboretum's monthly piece in the Herald's magazine has taken us to things festive:

Evergreen essentials for the festive season

PUBLISHED: 07:00 25 November 2018 | UPDATED: 09:22 26 November 2018
Weeds need to be kept in check. Picture: Ed Dolphin







Weeds need to be kept in check. Picture: Ed Dolphin


Ed Dolphin, treasurer of Sidmouth Arboretum and volunteer Sid Valley Tree Warden, takes a look at growing Christmas trees

Like all living things, Christmas trees grow at different rates. Picture: Ed Dolphin
Like all living things, Christmas trees grow at different rates. Picture: Ed Dolphin
Pagans of Northern Europe have used evergreen trees and shrubs in their winter festivals for millennia.
The popularity of Christmas trees in UK homes is credited to Prince Albert having a tree decorated with candles and treats at Windsor Castle in 1841, but Queen Charlotte had decorated yew trees in royal residences as early as the 1790s and Victoria’s diaries mention decorated trees in the 1830s.
Coming forward a ‘few’ years to my childhood of the 1950s, a Christmas tree was always a Norway Spruce (Picea abies). What you never knew was how long it would last before dropped needles were stabbing through your socks into the soles of your feet.
This is a particular problem with trees bought in places such as supermarkets, where the trees can stand around for quite a while to dry out before they are sold.
Three-year-old Christmas trees, growing in their plot. Picture: Ed Dolphin
Three-year-old Christmas trees, growing in their plot. Picture: Ed Dolphin
In the 1990s, an enterprising forester introduced us to the Nordmann Fir (Abies nordmanniana) from the Caucasus.
Being a fir tree rather than a spruce, the needles are soft, blunt and attached by a small woody pad which means they are much less likely to drop. The one downside is that the Nordmann cannot match the lovely resinous smell of the Norway Spruce. Nordmanns now represent more than 80 per cent of the UK Christmas tree market.
To farmers, Christmas trees are a crop, but they need a very different style of farming to arable or livestock as it takes at least seven years from planting to harvest.
To find out more, I visited Lester Bowker, of Cotley Farm Christmas, near Whimple, and he very kindly showed me round one of their plantations.
Bending down to finger-prune 3,000 trees must be back breaking work. Picture: Ed Dolphin
Bending down to finger-prune 3,000 trees must be back breaking work. Picture: Ed Dolphin
Cotley Farm plant about 3,000 Nordmann fir and 5-600 Norway spruce seedlings each year. This means they have more than 20,000 trees growing at any one time. They need regular attention to promote a good pyramidal shape and much of this work has to be done by hand.
When the seedlings are established, the first job is finger pruning to establish a balanced shape. This involves working along the rows of young trees, bending over to pinch out any unwanted shoots using finger and thumb. To sustain a good shape, this process is repeated twice as the trees grow to maturity, secateurs replacing the fingers as the trees grow.
Leaving a crop in the ground for seven years means weeds can be a real problem. Weeding is done with a hand driven machine at Cotley to avoid chemical treatments where they can.
Other threats to the crop are aphids, rabbits and deer. Any trees that fail to grow into a saleable state are used for wreaths and other decorations. When the trees have been cut, a stump grinder returns the remaining stump and roots to the soil ready for the next crop.
The trees grow at about 30cm (one foot) per year. Picture: Ed Dolphin
The trees grow at about 30cm (one foot) per year. Picture: Ed Dolphin
The fresher a tree, the less likely is it to drop its needles, even a Norway spruce. At Cotley you can actually go into the field to pick your tree and take it home straight away.
Wherever you source your tree, it will last longer if you treat it like a cut flower when you get it home. Saw off the bottom 25mm (one inch) of the trunk and stand the tree in water for a while. Do not have the tree near to a radiator and try to keep the base watered.
You can find out more about the Cotley Farm Christmas experience at www.cotleychristmas.co.uk 

Evergreen essentials for the festive season | Latest Sidmouth and Ottery News - Sidmouth Herald
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The rise of the 'meanwhile space': how empty properties are finding second lives

The notion of 'meanwhile space' is gaining ground:
Meanwhile Spaces Report Launch | London Enterprise Panel
Centre for London | Meanwhile use in London

Here's a handy definition:


Meanwhile use of buildings

Commercial spaces can remain empty when one occupant leaves and another has yet to be found. These empty spaces can blight local areas, particularly in town and city centres, where vacant spaces such as shops can give a very bad impression. This can be a serious problem during recessions, when a number of properties in one area may remain empty.
The term ‘meanwhile use’ refers to the short-term use of temporarily empty buildings such as shops until they can be brought back into commercial use. It takes a potential problem and turns it into an opportunity and helps keep an area vibrant. The landlord will continue to look for a new commercial occupant for the space during the meanwhile use.
Meanwhile uses are generally for the benefit of the local community, for example; meeting spaces, informal training and learning spaces, temporary rehearsal spaces, pop-up shops and exhibitions, and so on. They can offer a breeding ground for innovative ideas and empower the local community. They can last just a few days or several years.
The agreement with the landlord might give the user responsibility for paying business rates and utilities costs but might not require payment of rentservice charges or building insurance. It might specify that the property can only be used for non-commercial purposes.
This can be to the benefit of the landlord who will no longer be liable for empty property business rates, may have lower security costs, and so on. This means they may be better off, even if they do not charge rent.

Meanwhile use of buildings - Designing Buildings Wiki

And here's a piece from the Guardian looking at projects in Paris:

The rise of the 'meanwhile space': how empty properties are finding second lives



A market at Les Grands Voisins in Paris, formerly the Saint-Vincent-de-Paul hospital. Photograph: -

Rather than let properties lie empty, Paris is learning to hand them over temporarily to community groups and startups

H ospitals are rarely places of cheer and creativity, but the former Saint-Vincent-de-Paul hospital in Paris’s 14th district is one of the most exciting places on the left bank. Former ambulance bays and car parks now house allotments, a boules court, a makeshift football pitch and an urban campsite, and up to 1,000 visitors a day come to browse its market, eat at its cafes or catch a free live performance.


Renamed Les Grands Voisins, or The Great Neighbours, the site is a magnet for Parisians and tourists alike, its former treatment rooms, A&E building and wards now a hub of social and commercial enterprise. Alongside a hostel providing 600 beds for the homeless are artisan studios, pop-up shops and startups.
“It’s like a village, an inclusive space with social areas and job opportunities where different people can interact,” says William Dufourcq, director of Aurore, the charity that runs the homeless shelter. “We were overwhelmed with its success.”
Closed since 2011, the hospital is slated for redevelopment into a new neighbourhood with eco credentials, private and social housing, shops, commercial and public facilities and green space. Planning, clearance and construction on such a large scale takes time and, rather than leave the 3.4-hectare site empty for years, the developer, Paris Batignolles Aménagement, opened it to local organisations rent-free. The lease was scheduled to end this year, but has been extended until mid-2020 while construction begins on other parts of the site.

Parisians enjoy the sunshine at Les Grands Voisins.
Pinterest
 Parisians enjoy the sunshine at Les Grands Voisins

Les Grands Voisins is an example of a “meanwhile space”: a disused site temporarily leased or loaned by developers or the public sector to local community groups, arts organisations, start-ups and charities. Calls for making use of such spaces in other crowded urban centres are getting louder. A report published in October by the thinktank Centre for London highlights both the need for and positive possibilities of utilising empty urban sites and how this could transform the landscape of cities around the globe.
“The aim was to show the value ‘meanwhile use’ can add in cities where there is pressure on space,” says Nicolas Bosetti, one of the report researchers. He says public and private operators in Paris are more ambitious than those in London in exploring the use of disused buildings from metro stations to former nightclubs for short-term use as charity and cultural venues.
Other meanwhile spaces in Paris include Exelmans, a former police residence repurposed as a shelter for the homeless and refugees, run by Aurore on a two-year lease, and the Parmentier electricity substation, where the art collective La Générale has operated since 2008.
The substation, which is soon to be redeveloped, was included in Paris Reinvented, an initiative from the mayor’s office currently in its second year. Disused public sites are put up for auction to developers and architects who compete with plans for their redevelopment. “Les Grands Voisins showed how something like this can change an area and help plan future urban projects,” says Marion Waller, adviser to Paris’s deputy mayor for urban planning. “We didn’t want to sell buildings to the highest bidder but to the most innovative solution.”

A community graden at Les Grands Voisins
The idea of loaning empty urban spaces to worthwhile causes is gaining ground elsewhere, with thriving projects in the Danish city of Aarhus and Philadelphia in the US, where it’s called “temporary urbanism”. However, in space-squeezed London, urban sites can remain empty for years, mainly because they have no obvious commercial potential or are waiting for permission to be developed.
The Centre for London found that an estimated 24,400 commercial properties in London are currently empty, with around half having been unused for more than two years. The total available vacant space, 6.5m sq metres, is equivalent to 27 times the footprint of Westfield London, Europe’s largest shopping centre. The majority of such places are owned by local authorities and developers. “Only one of 33 London borough councils publishes a database of vacant property and only one council keeps a list of groups interested in vacant spaces,” says Bosetti.
Bosetti thinks property owners could do more to match available sites with needy groups but says local authorities are afraid of squatters or allowing in destructive elements. “One of the main barriers to meanwhile use is the perception that hoarding a site is safer,” he says. “Often the opposite is true. Opening a site to a community and encouraging interaction with residents usually sees a reduction in antisocial activity.”
Squatting and vandalism are more likely if a building remains empty for too long, so one benefit of temporary tenants is the reduction in security costs. Another, according to Simon Hesketh, director of regeneration with the British developer U+I, is the connection a meanwhile space can forge with the community prior to redevelopment.
“We’ll try to organise events in temporary spaces for the widest cross-section of residents, to get their views and ask what they’d like and what works,” he says. “Not just to smooth the planning process, but because we can learn what we might include in our proposals.”

A former fire engine workshop on Lambeth High Street in London is temporarily hosting the Migration Museum and the Fire Brigade Museum.
Pinterest
 A former fire engine workshop on Lambeth High Street in London is temporarily hosting the Migration Museum and the Fire Brigade Museum. Photograph: Mark Kerrison/Alamy

U+I, one of the sponsors of the Centre for London report, has already leased several sites awaiting redevelopment to small businesses and community organisations for temporary use. Hesketh acknowledges property owners worry about reclaiming the space when the tenancy ends but says everyone involved needs to be clear that the situation is temporary.
The Migration Museum in Lambeth is currently occupying part of the former engine workshop for the London fire service. “Having this site has been totally transformative for us,” says director Sophie Henderson. “It has allowed us to prove the concept of what we’re doing, while we look for a permanent home.”
The building is slated for redevelopment by U+I into a mixed-use scheme but is still going through the planning process. Until construction starts, the museum is one of several thriving community organisations granted the option to use it. “It’s been a tremendous gift,” says Henderson. “We couldn’t possibly have done what we have in the past year without it.”
Follow Guardian Cities on TwitterFacebook and Instagram to join the discussion, and explore our archive here

The rise of the 'meanwhile space': how empty properties are finding second lives | Cities | The Guardian
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Thursday 29 November 2018

A Celebration of Trees > Friday 30th November > stalls, songs, talks, quiz, snacks, bar...

Last Saturday saw Sidmouth's first Tree Dressing:

Sidmouth Arboretum added 7 new photos to the album Tree Dressing 2018 — at Sidmouth Parish Church
24 November at 10:42
The Arboretum's first annual tree dressing to celebrate Tree Charter Day. The awful weather didn't dampen enthusiasm.



Sidmouth Arboretum - Home | Facebook
Futures Forum: Tree-dressing at Sidmouth Parish Church > decorating a veteran yew > Saturday 24th November

And tomorrow sees more celebration of trees:



Sidmouth Arboretum 
Futures Forum: A Celebration of Trees > Friday 30th November
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Plastic-Free Christmas Hacks Yule Love

An Advent gift from SAS:

Plastic-Free Christmas Hacks Yule Love



We’ve Crowdsourced a Plastic Free Christmas!
Faced with the tidal wave of plastic that hits each of us each Christmas, this year we’ve taken inspiration from you, our Plastic Free Communities, on how to have a cracking Christmas with more time well spent and less plastic tat going straight in the bin.
With hundreds of communities around the UK working towards going Plastic Free we were bowled over by the response when we asked for your tips to make Christmas a) brilliant and b) as plastic free as possible.
We got so many festive ideas flying back at us, we decided we’d post one a day on our Instagram and Facebook through December to share the inspiration and hopefully give you a few ideas on doing things a little differently this year.
Make sure you’re following us on our SAS Instagram and Facebookthis December to get plenty of plastic free handy festive hacks yule love!
However, if you can’t wait (too excited!!!) then you can download our full Plastic Free Christmas Hack guide here: Plastic Free Christmas Hack
Please do help us share this as widely as possible and thanks for all the amazing ideas. Yule love it!

Plastic-Free Christmas Hacks Yule Love • Surfers Against Sewage
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RIBA House of the Year > 'the kind of architecture we can all easily learn from'

This evening's Grand Designs gave us the RIBA House of the Year: 
Grand Designs: House of the Year - All 4

The 'stunning' cottage which won is more than an architect's indulgence:

Grand Designs' Kevin McCloud said the house features 'the kind of architecture we can all easily learn from'

Stunning lochside retreat in Scottish Highlands named UK's best new home as winner of RIBA Grand Designs House Of The Year 2018 - The Sun

The Royal Institute of British Architects says:


Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects has won RIBA House of the Year 2018.

Lochside House is a modest, sustainable home which sits in a magical location on the edge of a Scottish lake in the West Highlands. Designed bespoke for the needs of the owner – a ceramic artist – the house is completely off-grid and engages with the wild landscape; from the roofs that echo the distant mountains to large windows which make the most of the stunning views.

The RIBA House of the Year is awarded to the best new house designed by an architect in the UK.


RIBA House of the Year

As covered by the Dezeen magazine:



House of the Year 2018: Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects

"Breathtaking" off-grid Lochside House wins RIBA House of the Year 2018

A humble cottage on the edge of a lake in the Scottish Highlands has been named as the UK's best house of 2018.
Lochside House, a cottage designed by Haysom Ward Millar Architects, was chosen from a shortlist of seven projects to win the RIBA House of the Year prize.
The announcement was made during the final episode of the Channel 4 television series Grand Designs: House of the Year this evening.
House of the Year 2018: Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects
Cambridge-based Haysom Ward Millar Architects designed the property as the home for a ceramic artist.
Made up of three humble buildings, the house is crafted from natural materials that complement its scenic location.
House of the Year 2018: Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects
Charred Scottish larch clads the building's exterior, which is shielded behind a traditional drystone wall. Inside is bright but pared-back, with highlights including ceilings lined in oiled timber, a focal fireplace and large windows framing views of the lake and mountains.
The house is also off-grid – it produces its own electricity from solar panels, and sources clean water from its own borehole.
House of the Year 2018: Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects
RIBA president Ben Derbyshire described the house as "the perfect addition to this dream landscape".
"Lochside House is truly breathtaking," he said.
"By containing its scale, sensitively positioning the crop of buildings on a promontory around established trees, and making use of local materials, HaysomWardMiller have created a home which perfectly responds to its exposed, unique location."
House of the Year 2018: Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects
The house was chosen for RIBA House of the Year by a panel of judges made up of architects Takero Shimazaki, Niall Maxwell and Chantal Wilkinson, curator and journalist Laura Mark, and engineer Paul Rogatzki.
Shimazaki described the building as "a well-designed home that is an example of humble, grounded, contextual yet powerful architecture that people can aspire to and be inspired by".
House of the Year 2018: Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects
"It is astonishing that the remoteness and challenging weather did not prevent the client's vision being achieved," he said. "The architect's off-grid solution seems almost effortless."
"Inside, the spaces merge with the artist owner's art collection, and there is an overwhelming sense of comfort, warmth and homeliness."
House of the Year 2018: Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects
Lochside House was one of 20 houses that featured in the Grand Designs: House of the Year series.
Over the four-week run, the list was whittled down to a shortlist of seven. These included Old Shed New House, a house built in the framework of an old barn by Tonkin Liu, and Red House, a London terrace property featuring a decorative relief facade by 31/44 Architects.
House of the Year 2018: Lochside House by HaysomWardMiller Architects
Lochside House by Haysom Ward Millar is RIBA House of the Year 2018
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