Concern over dumping of clinical waste

For the second time in recent weeks, a bag of clinical waste has been dumped next to a litter bin in the Nelsons Lane / Little Hob Moor area of Dringhouses.

On 26 August volunteers from the Mayfield Community Trust found a bag next to the bin near to the Nelsons Lane playground. This was reported to the council’s Neighbourhood Enforcement team who undertook to investigate the matter.

Waste dumped on 26 August at Nelsons Lane

Then on 18 September Cllr Stephen Fenton was contacted by a resident about a bag of clinical waste that had been placed on top of the litter bin on Little Hob Moor at the entrance to the railway underpass. On further inspection, items including used incontinence products and a urine bottle had been placed in the bin itself.

A local resident has also reported that used incontinence products have been found dumped on Hob Moor in recent weeks.

This latest incident has again been reported to the council’s Neighbourhood Enforcement team to investigate.

One possible scenario is that a resident is being cared for at home and is struggling to safely dispose of clinical waste, leading to it being disposed of inappropriately. They may be unaware that the council can offer help with clinical waste collection – further information HERE.

Green spaces of Dringhouses

Local volunteers have produced a pamphlet containing information on the fantastic green spaces around Dringhouses.

Local residents who are not familiar with some of these locations may wish to pay them a visit as part of their permitted daily exercise – whilst maintaining social distancing of course!

The leaflet was produced before the Covid-19 pandemic, so it should be noted that the Nelsons Lane children’s playground is currently closed and fishing is currently prohibited at Railway Pond and Chapman’s Pond.

Call to ‘Unite and Protect’ our local hospice

St Leonard’s Hospice, located on Tadcaster Road, is calling on residents to support efforts to maintain its valuable services during these unprecedented times.

The Hospice has issued the following appeal:

“At this time of great national concern, we hope that you and your loved ones are staying safe. In terms of St Leonard’s Hospice, we can assure you that we are following NHS guidance and have put strict measures in place to protect our patients, visitors and staff.

The need for the care we deliver has never been greater
We know that in the coming weeks and months, our services will be more in demand than ever as we support the NHS to ensure that only those patients who specifically need hospital care are admitted and remain in hospital beds. 

As well as protecting patients, staff and visitors, we must also consider the financial impact of COVID-19 on the Hospice
Fundraising events scheduled to take place over the coming months have been postponed and our shops have all been closed as we follow. Government guidance on social distancing. Please see our FAQs which may be useful if you have been planning to attend any of these events.

If you can, we are asking you to please unite behind your Hospice today
At this time of increased need and reduced income, please unite behind your local Hospice, so our fantastic staff can care for everyone that needs us. I know that we all have financial concerns at the moment, but we’ve been truly humbled by the urge people have to help each other at this time. That’s why we’ll be launching a number of new ways for everyone to get involved in supporting St Leonard’s Hospice.

Most importantly, we want to make sure you know that St Leonard’s Hospice is here for you
Whether it’s providing activities for kids to do whilst schools are closed, or virtual challenges to create a sense of community to replace the events we can’t host in person, we will be doing all we can to support you.

We are enormously proud of our community, and of the tireless work our staff are still undertaking every day. We are currently working hard to ensure that we can continue to provide the care needed by our patients and their families, not only during the current crisis but long into the future as well. We truly hope you’ll join us in any way you can.

St Leonard’s Hospice has been part of your local community for 35 years and, with your support, we will be here for the next 35 and beyond. We need you now more than ever. You can give now by making a donation online, sending a cheque to St Leonard’s Hospice, 185 Tadcaster Road, YO24 1GL or calling 01904 777 777 – but please bear with our Fundraising Team as they are currently working remotely. 

Thank you for your understanding and continued support.”

Knights report back on summer activities

During the Spring and Summer of 2018, York City Knights Foundation delivered a number of activity sessions for young people across Dringhouses & Woodthorpe, funded from the ward budget.

These included mobile skate park sessions at Moor Lane Youth Centre and on the Revival estate, and outdoor inflatable sessions at Woodthorpe Green and Foxwood Park.

The Foundation has produced a summary of the activities that took place, with some key learning points for the future.

Expansion of York’s Air Quality Management Area

York’s city centre Air Quality Management Area (AQMA) has been expanded, after a decision was taken to include Coppergate.  This comes after a recent presentation of York’s Annual Air Quality Status Report, which commends the Council’s successful approach to tackling poor air quality.

In a decision taken by Lib Dem Cllr Andrew Waller at his Environment Decision Session on 1 October, Coppergate will now be included in the city centre’s AQMA in order to tackle air pollution from diesel vehicles in the area and maintain progress in improving the city’s air quality. Time had been allowed since last year’s decision session on the annual review of Air Quality to see if the enforcement of the bus lane had a positive impact on air pollution levels.

Cllr Waller with staff from Amey on Clean Air Day 2018

As part of the decision session, it was also decided to retain the Fulford AQMA for a further 12 months, despite NO2 in the area remaining below the Council’s health bases objectives.  This is to ensure that Fulford’s air quality is monitored in view of future nearby developments in the city.

At the meeting, Cllr Waller asked for future reports on how the new traffic lights systems and charging points for electric cars especially for people living in terraced areas can be delivered to make further improvements.

The decisions come as the Annual Air Quality Report highlights consistent improvement in York’s air quality, when compared to the previous years.  The Department for Environment and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) even added that:

‘The Council are taking exceptional steps and effort to actively tackle air quality within the city and the success of this approach is reflected in their results.’

Cllr Andrew Waller, Liberal Democrat Executive Member for Environment, commented:

“It is good to see that our approach has had such an impact in improving the city’s air quality and that it has been recognised by DEFRA.  I would like to thank the officers involved for their hard work in achieving this progress, however, we all accept that more work needs to be done to continue these improvements and ensure that future developments do not reverse our position.”

“The importance of ‘good’ Air Quality cannot be understated and we must continue to maintain these improvements through the use of our AQMA’s. We will continue to monitor in the Salisbury Terrace area”

“There is more public interest in particulates and unlike other authorities, York measures these, so we know the PM10 and PM2.5 levels at hotspots. Particulates will continue to be reported annually with the World Health Organisation and EU guidelines.”

“Looking further down the line, as we work to create the UK’s first voluntary Clean Air Zone, York will continue to lead the line in the fight to tackle poor air quality, with a report coming later this year to the Executive following the public consultation.”

For further information on the AQMA decisions that were made, or for more information on the Air Quality Annual Status Report, please visit: http://democracy.york.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?MId=10835&x=1.