North Hill Parish Newsletter July 2021 Issue #251 FREE
Covering: BATHPOOL, BERRIOWBRIDGE, BOTTERNELL, COADS GREEN, CONGDON’S SHOP, ILLAND, KINGBEAR, LANDREYNE, MIDDLEWOOD, NEWTOWN, NORTH HILL, PENHOLE, SLIPPER HILL, STONAFORD, TREBARTHA, TREFURSDEN, TREKERNELL AND TREMOLLET Welcome to NorthHillParish.News Notes from the Barn July 2021 It will have come as no surprise to most of us, after weeks of speculation and watching the Covid case numbers rising again around the county and nationwide, that we enter July with the same level of restrictions as we had in June. This will be such a disappointment to many venues around the county as we reach the peak summer months. Many indoor and outdoor events which were due to be held will now have been cancelled, and who knows how long it will be before groups of more than 6 people will be able to meet privately?
Nevertheless, we have lots of great articles for you this month. Our Climate Emergency contributor has brought you a valuable insight into COP26, the UN Climate Change Conference and the important contributions that we in the Parish can make. We have news of an interesting visitor from Honolulu, and some very special nature reports from around the Parish.
I hope we will continue to enjoy some lovely summer weather and the ability to get out and about to enjoy our beautiful surroundings!
Jan
Editor
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IN THIS EDITION…….
Page 3 Climate Emergency – COP26 and why it’s important
4 Kehaulani Kamaunu - aka Lorene – to pay us a visit in July!
5 June Meeting of the Coads Green W.I.
6 Cuckoos, Jackdaws and Long-Tailed Tits!
7 Hedgerow Trees
8 Wildlife Notes for July
9 Dog Bins in North Hill Parish
10 Coads Green Chapel News
12 Lost Item
13 Events Calendar
Contacting the newsletter remains the same: by email: [email protected], or Via the Contact Us page on the website. The deadline date for information remains the 23rd of the month. 2 | P a g e
Climate Emergency – COP26 and Why It’s Important
Ripening barley in North Hill Parish
I hope you feel that Cornwall held its head high as the G7 summit was held at Carbis Bay, that our landscape and hospitality were appreciated, and that some useful progress was made. If you’re interested in climate change, you may not be so sure about the last point, especially as the UN Secretary General himself described it as an “unforgivable lost opportunity". David Attenborough made powerful statements on our behalf as the ‘People’s Advocate’, but many feel bitterly disappointed that the G7 leaders could not convey the determination to mobilise against climate change at the pace required.
The news is not all bad. Prince Charles has set up the Terra Carta (or ‘Earth Charter’) that calls for businesses to address people’s rights and enhance the natural world. The recently announced Sustainable Markets Initiative (SMI) encourages investment pipelines that will move funds away from fossil fuels towards green technologies.
So we should not do ourselves down too much. The UK has always played a leading role in helping to mobilise a global response. On 27 June 2019 the UK became the first major economy to pass a net zero emissions law requiring that all greenhouse gas emissions are brought to net zero by 2050. The UK was instrumental in the successful outcomes at COP 21 (the famous ‘Conference of the Parties ’in Paris), when the international community suddenly appeared to be capable of working together and tackling climate change head on.
This was December 2015. One of the key realisations was that rising global temperatures would reach the point where air temperatures at night would be too high for flowering rice plants and the rice crop, the staple food of the whole of Asia, would start to die. This happens when the global temperature reaches about 1.5 degrees Centigrade above pre- industrial levels, one of several reasons why 1.5 degrees features in any discussion about the climate emergency.
There is less than half a degree to go before this threshold is passed. The ice is melting at the Poles and the waters over the Siberian continental shelf are warming the sea bed where the permafrost holds large quantities of methane. As the permafrost in shallow water melts, the methane released could unavoidably continue global warming towards the 1.5 degree limit.
COP26 is the last realistic chance to avoid this threat. The event is to be held in Glasgow on 1 – 12 November this year and will be chaired by the UK. 3 | P a g e
Our role at home is modest but important. We have to recognise that the climate emergency we have declared is indeed an emergency and give our full support to those trying to introduce the changes needed. If your instincts are sufficiently activist, do write to your MP and add your voice to the many that are clamoring for COP26 to be successful.
You are welcome to check out the points raised in this article by visiting our website: www.northhillclimate.org
North Hill Parish is fortunate to be an area which will benefit from many of the actions needed. However the situation plays out in coming months and years, there will be pressures to increase local food production and bio-diversity.
Please support the local economy wherever you can, buy local produce, reduce your carbon footprint and re-cycle as much as possible. Article such as this may send out a sense of urgency, but it's the actions and teamwork that will make the difference.
Ralph Hudson
Kehaulani Kamaunu - aka Lorene
Those local folk with longish memories may have spotted a lady walking around North Hill and Coad's Green wearing a Hawaiian garland about her neck. This would have been about five years ago and about five years before that as well. That lady, who can be seen in the centre of this photograph, is Lorene who rejoices in the name of Kehaulani Kamaunu, a resident of Honolulu. She will be making her third visit to the area on the 27th of July and if you see her do stop and say "Hello". She should be with her daughter, Lori (on the right of the photograph), and her granddaughter, Pomaika'i (second from the left in the photograph).
You'll be wondering why she would come half way around the world from her island paradise to our own little bit of Cornish paradise. Lorene's great great grandfather was Edward Budge Caunter who was born at Botternell and baptised in St Torney's on 23rd January 1829. The Caunter family lived in Linkinhorne and settled in North Hill in the 1760s when Richard Caunter married Agnes Craddock in St Torney’s. There are
4 | P a g e many descendants of this family scattered across the world but none remain in Cornwall - as far as we know. Do you know anything different? Lorene's known Cornish ancestry goes back to the late 1400's. Through her connections with the Spoure and Vincent families of North Hill, the Lampen family of Linkinhorne and the Lower family of St Winnow we have been able to trace her earliest known ancestors to John Lampen of Padrieda in Linkinhorne and Nicholas Lower of Polscoth in St Winnow in the late 1400's who are her 16 times great grandfathers. A notable ancestor is Thomas Vincent who died in 1607 and whose magnificent slate tomb is in the north aisle of St Torney's.
Ken Ripper (North Hill Local History Group)
June Meeting of the Coads Green W.I.
On Wednesday, June 9th, members of the Coads Green W.I. met at Siblyback to enjoy one another’s company and to walk around the lake. It was just as well that there was a clear path, around the lake, as the misty conditions would have , otherwise, been a test for their navigational skills! President, Daphne Tucker, organised the afternoon and everyone set off at a brisk pace. There was much to discuss during the walk, including future plans for the rest of the year. The afternoon finished with a welcome drink and a piece of cake at the café and a chance to relax, as the skies cleared. The next meeting will take place on Wednesday, July 14th, when local apiarist, Dale Wood, will be talking on the topic of Bees. The meeting will take place in the chapel parlour, at Coads Green, at 7.30 p.m. In the event of continuing restrictions the meeting will take place on Zoom.
Enjoying a well earned coffee, at the end of the walk are, from left to right, Vivienne Daniel, Margaret Hopes, Margaret Ridley and President, Daphne Tucker.
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Some of Our Local Birds – Cuckoos, Jackdaws and Long-Tailed Tits Judith and Keith Woods and I were walking on Bodmin Moor on the 29th April, and we heard a cuckoo, then saw one perched on top of a tree about 10 metres away, silhouetted against a bright sky. I took a photo using a 2000mm zoom lens, and after brightening it up, a second cuckoo was revealed, sitting in the same tree. One cuckoo then flew off down into the valley, landing on another tree, and began to call, then it was mobbed by a couple of smaller birds, and flew off into the distance. This is the first time in my 70 years I have actually seen a cuckoo.
The local jackdaws like to perch on the church tower, and sometimes roost there. Last year, one kept flying in and out of a hole in the shuttering of the bell-chamber, indicating a nest inside, and this year, the same thing is happening again. I took this picture of it just perching on the hole (which looks too small) before it expertly squeezed inside.
A couple of long-tailed tits and their 3 juveniles visited our bird feeder on the 24th May. They stayed a long time, and were feeding three youngsters, and also encouraging the youngsters to use the bird feeder. There are some very close-up photos and three videos here: https://1drv.ms/u/s!AhhHMCyt5Wf02XDdYiX7EqePBMHK?e=JvH4Wi
Brian Pollard
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HEDGEROW TREES
‘Back along’ in the days when the size of the average field was between one and two acres, an area that could be ploughed with horses in a day, and when hedges had to be trimmed by hand, labourers relied on the offcuts to fuel their home fires for cooking and heating. With mechanisation many of our Cornish hedges were grubbed up to increase field sizes (often encouraged by government subsidies!). Most of those hedges that we see today contain the original rootstock of shrubs and trees that our ancestors would have recognised centuries earlier.
Modern machinery and high labour costs have contributed to the look of many of the ‘neat and tidy’ hedge banks that surround some fields, particularly those adjacent to roads. A lot of mature trees that featured in photographs of yesteryear have either succumbed to storm damage or been felled for one reason or another. In very few instances have they been replaced.
The excellent article by Ralph Hudson in the last edition of the parish newsletter extols the virtue of trees for their role in reducing carbon dioxide and encourages us all to plant them. Whilst few of us are fortunate enough to be landowners who have the option to set aside good agricultural land for this purpose there is a way by which, without cost, we could all contribute to this worthwhile objective. However, it does involve getting ‘on-side’ farmers and those who cut their hedges each spring. Desired species and specimens from the previous season can readily be identified during winter months and ‘tagged’ accordingly in order for them to be spared by the flail. If single sturdy specimens are selected, the mature root structure ensures rapid growth which, in but a few years, will result in a substantial tree, usually in a much shorter timeframe than than those purpose-planted. If considered as a lasting legacy, nothing can beat oak, which perhaps supports a greater variety of insect and other wildlife than any other species. It is said that with the right conditions this tree spends the first hundred years growing, the second hundred in maturity, and the last hundred dying!
Mike Anderson
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Wildlife notes for July
As we dip in and out of summer, it is good to hear that all our summer visitors of the feathered kind have arrived and are nesting although in smaller numbers. We were concerned about the lack of butterflies up on the moor so it was reassuring to count at least eleven Small Pearl-bordered Fritillaries on the small marsh but two weeks later than last year, same as the orchids. Green Hair- streak butterflies were seen up there in late May, one of my favourite butterflies (See photo on the cover page – Ed). And what of the dormice? By June last year there were babies or ‘pinks’, as they are called, in big nursery nests but I had the only two active dormice here in one of our garden boxes; all the others were ‘torpid’, a deep sleep but not as in hibernation. They had made some lovely nests in May of tamarisk moss and woodrush leaves and most were of a good weight so they were feeding well on flowers, buds and insects but they were saving energy by spending their days fast asleep. We expect to find one or two but I have never found so many before. It was May when I first met ‘Grumpy’ in one of our boxes and he bit me three times; this month he was still in his nest but with a friend. There was no biting so we have great expectations for next month and of course, as I’m sure you all realise, this handling of a highly protected animal is carried out under license according to a strict protocol; ‘Grumpy’ had not had time to read the rules….
Jen Bousfield
Photos (L to R) Pearl-bordered Fritillary, Fast Asleep!, Grumpy and Friend
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Dog Bins in North Hill Parish
The Parish Council own 7 bins, 5 x bins in North Hill including Bathpool, 1 x bin Middlewood and 1 bin in Coads Green, these bins are which the Parish Council have bought, installed and pay for Biffa to empty/collect on a weekly basis, the remaining bins belong to Cornwall Council.
As you all may know, we have had several issues over the years for the emptying of the Bins in the Parish, as Biffa which they have recently admitted have not been emptying. As you can quite imagine it has been a stressful time trying to get them emptied especially during the lockdown and with the dog bin being used more. The Parish Council have spent several years trying to sort out collections and requesting invoices going back to 2015. During April 2020 the whole situation, unfortunately got worse, has it seemed no bins were being emptied regularly, and in September the Parish Council was given a bill from Biffa totalling £6444.32 covering the years 2019 – 2020 and 2020 – 2021, Biffa had not charged the Parish Council for the years between 2015 – 2019 for their collections as it was their error not to invoice.
On receiving this invoice, the Parish Council turned to Cllr Parsons and Donna Latham, Waste & Environment Contracts Officer Cornwall Council, it came to light that North Hill Parish was not the only one being affected by Biffa’s lack of business management, neighbouring Parish, Altarnun had also received a large invoice with irregular collections, on which Waste & Environment took over aided by the Clerk and Councillors, gathering information i.e. number of collections, location of bins etc. and presented the facts to Biffa on which they could invoice Parish Council the correct amount, per bin, per annum.
Finally, 14th June 2021, the Parish Council have received an email from Biffa detailing the following the data:
North Hill
Period Number of bins £ Notes Visits per annum April 2019 – March 5 1170.00 Includes emptying 260 2020 and disposal charges
April 2020 – 5 1004.25 Includes emptying 215 (pro rata) January 2021 and disposal charges
February 2021 – 5 502.13 Includes emptying 85 (pro rata) June 2021 and disposal charges
Coads Green:
Period Number of bins £ Notes Visits per annum April 2019 – March 1 234.00 Includes emptying 52 2020 and disposal charges
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April 2020 – 1 200.85 Includes emptying 43 (pro rata) January 2021 and disposal charges
February 2021 – 1 100.43 Includes emptying 15 (pro rata) June 2021 and disposal charges
Middlewood
Period Number of bins £ Notes Visits per annum April 2019 – March 0 0.00 Includes emptying 0 2020 and disposal charges
April 2020 – 1 143.69 Includes emptying 31 (pro rata) January 2021 and disposal charges
February 2021 – 1 100.43 Includes emptying 15 (pro rata) June 2021 and disposal charges
Total for the 3 areas over 2019 -2020, 2020 -2021 = £3455.77
After 30th June 2021 Biffa and Cornwall Council will be reviewing on how Parish Councils will be invoiced, the Parish Council will be discussing the above correspondence at the next Parish Council meeting which is to be held on Monday 12th July North Hill Village Hall at 7.30pm.
Coads Green Chapel News
With no services at Coads Green chapel since Christmas Eve 2020 because of the Covid pandemic, several members of the congregation were ready to return to live worship on Sundays, starting on May 16th and 30th, with all the Covid restrictions in place. With no singing allowed indoors, video clips were used for some of the hymns and the virtual choir (seen on the zoom services over the last few months) sang 'Faithful One' and 'Holy, Holy, Holy'. On one Sunday, the last hymn was sung outside. The congregation were encouraged to look forward and think about moving onwards.
On Trinity Sunday ice cubes, hot water and steam were used to illustrate Father, Son and Holy Spirit; the 3 in 1. People drew around their hands onto off cuts of material, cut them out and then
10 | P a g e they were hung over the gates to the entrance of the chapel, making an eye catching 'Wave of Hope' display.
With some not yet ready to worship in a building, it was decided to have an open air service on Sunday morning June 13th. With blue skies above, sunshine, birds singing and the shade of the trees in the chapel field, an ideal setting was set. People soon started to arrive with their own seating in hand and it was so good to see so many of all ages coming to worship. This was an own arrangement service where we sang 5 hymns, which were introduced by various people who said why it was their favourite hymn. Comments included: • The influence they had been given by their grandparents. • How well the hymn 'Hear us , O Lord, from heaven thy dwelling place' had been written. • How we need to take notice of the words we are singing and how powerful they can be. • How important it is to breathe at the right time when singing, otherwise the words can have a completely different meaning. • What the hymn means to them throughout each and every day.
During the service, others spoke of their experiences throughout the pandemic by relating to how much more time they had spent together at home and how they value the church family at Coads Green. The Bible passage read to us was about the calling of the first disciples and later in the service we were challenged to think about our calling and what we as individuals have to offer. We are all very different but each one of us has a gift that makes us special. Prayers of praise, forgiveness, commitment and praying for individuals were made. Some stayed on after the service and enjoyed their picnic lunches, with the children providing their own entertainment.
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Lost Item: A member of the walking group has lost her walking pole – it was last seen propped up against a vehicle in the North Hill Village Hall car park. If you have seen it please contact Annette on 01566782182
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