FFF Press release

TRANSITION PENWITH AND PLAN-IT EARTH

NEWS RELEASE

10 MAY 2009

 PENWITH'S FAIR FOR THE FUTURE PROVES EXCEPTIONALLY SUCCESSFUL.

The Fair for the Future held last Saturday (9 May) proved to be the largest, most successful and enjoyable celebration of sustainability and local business Penwith has seen.

The event was a joint venture by Transition Penwith and the Plan-it Earth Environmental Education Project and was held at Plan-it Earth's Chy Ena site at Sancreed near Penzance. Over 1,000 visitors - 5% of the population of Penzance - arrived to see how local organisations and businesses are working together to reduce the impacts of climate change and fossil fuel depletion in an enjoyable and informative way.

There were local craft demonstrations, lots of sustainable food and drink from local suppliers and farms, and music from local bands. The event was opened by Sancreed Parish Councillor and Tree Warden Tony Hole, who arrived in a Pony and Trap.  Visitors included the Mayor of Penzance and local MP Andrew George who arrived on his bicycle. 

A free bus service was provided from Penzance every half hour throughout the day, with modern low floor buses provided by Western Greyhound.  This proved exceptionally popular with many buses leaving full with standing room only.It was estimated that the free buses would have reduced the number of cars travelling to the event by around 200. Many other visitors walked and cycled to the event. 

All the electricity used by stallholders was provided entirely by the sun.Tony Fleming of South West Solar Solutions provided a specially adapted van with Photo-voltaic cells on the roof using the sun's energy to generate power for the day.  This is supported by battery back-up, but the fine weather meant the batteries were not required.

A 'Well-Dressing' took place during the day, an ancient custom popular in the Peak District, that blesses the purity of the local water supply.  The well at Sancreed was decorated by a colourful and beautiful display created from petals and seeds by Jo Tagney.

Children had a particularly enjoyable time with face painting and making fairy wings from recycled materials in the Cornish Pirates Learning Zone.They also had fun on the Human Powered Carousel.

The Penzance Market and Coastal Towns Initiative had a stand at the event where volunteers Fiona Thomas-Lambourn and Ann Haycock explained the community plan for Penzance and the surrounding area for the next 20 years.This included a sustainability theme group The voice of local business, the Penzance Chamber of Commerce's stand waswell attended with many visitors signing up to the Penzance Shoppers Loyalty Card. This offers discounts in local shops and businesses. So far 89 businesses have joined the scheme and over 8,000 shoppers have got a card.

There was hardly any rubbish at the event as most people took their litter home or used the extensive recycling facilities at the site.  Recyclable crockery was used instead of disposable Plastic cups and containers.

Rachel Smart-Knight of Plan-it Earth said:

"This was an amazing event that took almost three months to plan and I would like to thank all the volunteers, businesses and organisations that took part for their enthusiastic support.  We had visitors from all over the community, ranging from those already aware of climate change, sustainability and promoting the local economy, to those who knew little about the subject and wanted to find out more.  We had a wide range of local businesses and voluntary organisations from throughout Penwith who gave their time free of charge to be at the event and we cannot thank them enough for their support. There were smiles all round from the visitors and everyone had a really enjoyable day".

Stuart Walker Chairman of Transition Penwith said:"The Fair for the Future proves that there are a large number of businesses and organisations in Penwith who are enthusiastically embracing the challenges of fossil fuel depletion and climate change in a positive way. It was amazing to see all the visitors making such a great effort to minimise their impact on the environment and proves that there is a strong community spirit in Penwith to meet these challenges in a fun and enjoyable way".

Stuart was particularly pleased with the free bus service."The free buses proved to be exceptionally popular with most of the morning and lunch time buses leaving Penzance full and standing.  This removed the congestion that might have occurred in the village and proves that where frequent and convenient public transport is available, people will leave their cars at home and use the bus and train.  If we run a similar event next year we will look at providing more buses to ensure everyone has a comfortable journey. I would particularly like to thank the drivers from Western Greyhound who operated the service in a friendly and professional way".

If you would like to get involved or find out more about Transition Penwith and Plan-it Earth, visit their websites www.plan-itearth.org.uk, www.transitionpenwith.org.uk  or Email enquiries@plan-itearth.org.uk