Co-op gives more than £14,500 to environmental projects

Environmental projects across the Channel Islands will benefit from more than £14,500 in funding from the Channel Islands Co-operative Society.

The Society has chosen seven benefactors in Jersey and three in Guernsey to receive a share of the EcoFund, which is in its seventh year.

In Jersey recipients include St Saviour’s Parish in Bloom, which has been given £500 towards its Woodland Conservation project, Shore Thing Schools Training received £1,200 to produce a video for A-level students and the Jersey Bat and Woodland Group, was given £650 for new bat boxes.

In Guernsey, Notre Dame de Rosaire Primary School has received £1,000 to create a sensory garden, designed by the children and which will be looked after by 'Green Team' - an eco-friendly after school club.

Also receiving funding for a garden project is St Saviour’s Community Centre. The Co-operative has allocated £2,850 for the felling of five large trees at the centre that have become dangerous. They will be replaced by native trees to attract wildlife and a second entrance will be created to encourage more people to visit the centre.

"This very generous donation from The Channel Islands Co-operative Society through its community EcoFund is a real boost to the centre. The felled trees will be turned into wood chips and these wood chips recycled by being used as tree root protection and path ways at the Glebe land below St Saviour’s Church. We are very pleased that through the wonderful support of The Co-operative we are able to make improvements which are safe and enhance the enjoyment of users at the Community Centre as well as users of the Parish facilities at the Glebe Land," said Phil Duquemin, managing director of St Saviour’s Community Centre.

Another recipient in Guernsey is La Société Guernesiaise, which has received £500 for a seabird web camera on a trial basis to monitor a breed of bird that appears to be declining on the island. The footage will be used for research purposes and also to raise public awareness as the public can watch it online.

The EcoFund was launched in 2008 when the Society led the way in recycling by levying a 5p charge on one-trip carrier bags, in an attempt to reduce the number used. In the first year alone bag consumption was cut by 90%. The ongoing funds raised each year since, from the combination of bag sales, are distributed on an annual basis to worthy environmental initiatives.

The Society’s Chief Commercial Officer, Jim Plumley, said as a major local employer The Channel Islands Co-operative Society was dedicated to the communities in which it operates.

"We’re very proud to be able to put something back into the communities we serve in Jersey and Guernsey, by assisting several organisations to carry out projects to the benefit of all islanders. It’s always difficult to choose which applications to support but we feel that once again this year we have chosen some very worthwhile initiatives," he said.

Since the fund’s inception, The Channel Islands Co-operative has paid out over £280,000 to assist environmental causes in the islands.