Author Topic: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!  (Read 29696 times)

Graham

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #11 on: December 14, 2006, 07:02:39 PM »
John, you have forgotten a lot about Brum. If you think back you have forgotten the number of 'bars' down Winson Green and the forests surrounding Balsall Heath, I once got lost in them. Warwickshire got it's, world famous, name 'Leafy Warwickshire' from all trees in the area. Don't they have skiing anymore at the 'Licky's'? I'll bet global warming has stopped that now. I think that Brum got it's name 'Greenest city in the UK' from all the corporation green paint that they used to daub everywhere.

As for those Dutch mountains; have you ever climbed the 22 km 'Col du Kanaal' running from Terneuzen to Sas van Gent? When the wind blows down there it is leg breaking.

Living near the Dutch border I often jump into my car and go deep sea diving on the old coral reef in Flevoland. http://www.dutchdeepseadiving/flevoland.htm My grand kids love to watch the Dutch world championships 'Koeien Vla Werpen' held every spring in Stront Wei, not far from Schijthausen.

This is getting off thread now John so I'll leave you with this; Sheffield is well know for it's invigorating open-air swimming (see photo). The original 'Two Towers' with it's 'Hobbits' can be found, not as everyone thinks in Brum, but in Sheffield. On the right you can just about see a tree to prove it, and I'll bet that you have never been up north and seen those wonderful sunsets behind the slag heaps. Breath taking!

roy one

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #12 on: December 15, 2006, 12:44:45 AM »
hi surg
              so Sheffield has a low crime rate from what iv seen of the place its got nothing worth nicking the governments took it all
each day is a blessing and I bless each day when it comes

Jacqueline

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #13 on: December 15, 2006, 01:46:38 AM »
John you say Brum has a low crime rate? I don't think so. However you are right about the tree lined roads but even those are a danger. Our half baked council do not check the older oak trees. A few years ago a huge tree blew over in Kings Heath crushing a car and killing the occupants waiting at traffic lights.

Surg you sure love Sheffield. Funnily enough my next door neighbour comes from there. I always said the Yorkshire men had real sexy accents but sadly my neighbour has been in brum for a number of years so his accent is a strange mix of the two.

I do know that trees are important as they give oxygen but as for green belt does that matter? We so need housing so provided we have the trees along with the houses do the grassed areas matter that much? People go [censored] if the council threaten to close a park. Yet those same people would not set foot in the parks for fear of attack from the yob element that hang around there. I was gonna say bring back the parkies but they would probably get beaten up also.

surg

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #14 on: December 15, 2006, 12:38:37 PM »
Great jesting Graham. We Sheffielder's (known as 'dee dahs' to other Yorkshire folk) can take a joke.
However it's noticeable that the images you've selected represent an extremely small part of the city centred around the industrial Lower Don Valley in the east end.
If you go back to my first link and look at the map of the city you'll see what I mean. Or alternatively look at this site;
http://www.g7smy.co.uk/panoramics/

The top panorama gives a good idea of west Sheffield but the description is a little misleading. The valley on the extreme left is the Rivelin Valley, then Stannington village with the 3 brick tower blocks (views are stunning 360 degree panoramas from here) then the middle valley is the Loxley with Hillsborough on the extreme right and the Upper Don Valley in the distance. Hopefully this image (and others on this site) give you an understanding of how the topography, countryside and greeness dominate the city, not the other way round.This was (and still is) my playground as a child and so I do feel fortunate to grow up in a place where the city and country blend seamlessley into one.
Oh and by the way, the image described is facing west and the sunsets are spectacular with not a slag heap in site!

surg

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #15 on: December 15, 2006, 03:31:24 PM »
To Jacqueline I would say that to build large swathes of high density housing in the countryside with just a few avenues of trees is not environmentally sustainable. Wildlife needs a wide variety of habitats and the link on my first message explains why Sheffield is good at providing this.
As regarding Birmingham's parks; in Sheffield virtually every major park has a strong Friends group which has reduced vandalism and brought in large amounts of Lottery money enabling a number of parks to receive Green Flag awards and the city to win Entente Floral last year!
Here are some more links;
http://www.rivelinvalley.org.uk/
http://www.sbg.org.uk/
http://www.norfolk-park.com/
http://sheffieldportervalley.org.uk/index.html
http://www.makingsense.co.uk/vr/whirlow/
http://www.millhousespark.co.uk/
http://www.hillsboroughpark.org/

Graham

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #16 on: December 15, 2006, 09:46:01 PM »
surg, wonderful to hear that there are still people like you that can take a joke, they are getting pretty thin these days.

What I wrote was indeed meant to be humorous, but the point is that I don't think that anyone on this forum gives two firtrees if Sheffield has 10 million more trees than Brum! If you look at the very top of this page you will see in big letters 'BIRMINGHAM FORUM' and most of the threads are about Brum, past & present. Though it's very interesting to read about other parts of this globe we don't need to be reminded every day that Sheffield is greener than Brum, we believe you, but we are not going to visit or move there!

Where I live, near Ghent, Belgium, is as flat as a pancake yet it is the best and one of the most beautiful cities that I have ever seen, not to mention the friendship of the people. You should get out more and see the world.

PS If I want to see trees then I can drive or rail, TGV, to some of the most breath taking scenery in Europe, for instance the Black Forest is only a 3 hour drive.

surg

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #17 on: December 18, 2006, 12:37:39 PM »
Do I sense a tinge of homesickness Graham?
You are quite right though this site is primarily for 'Brummies' hence my original question;
Do you actually believe this bare-faced lie?;
 http://www.birmingham.gov.uk/parks.bcc
Whoops, just checked this link again. Where once it stated 'Birmingham is the greenest city in the UK', it now states 'Birmingham is one of the greenest cities in the UK'!
VICTORY AT LAST!!!
And just to reinforce my point here's another link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheffield#Geography

roy one

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #18 on: December 18, 2006, 08:05:38 PM »
hi surg   we in brum will let you win it is xmas good will and all that and we do not wish to up set you or spoil your xmas but in the new year we will take it up again and the truth will out  so untill the new year  have a good xmas  from all in the GREENEST CITY IN THE UK
each day is a blessing and I bless each day when it comes

surg

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #19 on: December 19, 2006, 11:32:01 AM »
Cheers roy ben. Merry xmas from THE GREENEST CITY IN EUROPE!

roy one

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #20 on: December 19, 2006, 11:59:14 AM »
Cheers roy ben. Merry xmas from THE GREENEST CITY IN EUROPE!
in your dreams happy new year
each day is a blessing and I bless each day when it comes

john2000

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Re: BIRMINGHAM-Greenest UK city?!
« Reply #21 on: December 19, 2006, 12:08:11 PM »
Surg......Did'nt know you where back in Birmingham ...... ;D
Growing old is mandatory..........Growing up is optional


 

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