Ancient stone bridges with water pouring over the parapets, their narrow arches choked by fallen trees and debris washed down swollen rivers, have been recurring images in reporting the myriad floods of the past sodden years – and the bridges have often been blamed for damming the rivers' flow and causing misery to nearby communities.
As torrential rains wash away the snows, causing more floods in many parts of the country, English Heritage is launching a pilot study to establish whether the 7,000 listed bridges in its care are the villains or the victims of flooding.
The Green Deal needs to involve more small, local builders to work, as red-tape and negative publicity threaten to scupper the Government’s flagship energy-efficiency policy before it gets off the ground, says the Federation of Master Builders (FMB).
Scientists have identified willow trees that yield five times as much sugar as ordinary varieties, "drastically reducing" the impact of biofuels.
Solar companies are planning to sue the government for £140m in damages, because of the cuts to subsidies in 2011 that were subsequently ruled "legally flawed" in the high court.
AQE 2013, the Air Quality & Emissions Show (formerly ‘MCERTS’) has announced a partnership with The Institute of Air Quality Management (IAQM), which organiser Marcus Pattison says “will make a major contribution to the new expanded remit for the event, which now includes all aspects of ambient air quality in addition to its traditional focus on industrial emissions.”