Environment Agency: Rising sea levels will wash away 7,000 UK homes

Some 7,000 homes around the UK will be swept away by the sea over the next century because it will be too expensive build sea defences, according to a report from the Environment Agency.

The research, contained in an unpublished agency report seen by The Guardian newspaper, also predicts that more than 800 buildings will be lost during in the next 20 years.

Chris Blunkell, a coastal community campaigner, told The Guardian that the government should learn from the “overwhelming” impact of last year’s storms. 

“Last winter’s storms saw the eastern seaboard overwhelmed,” he said. “If government won’t defend all people living on the coast, then it must make sure that they can move elsewhere, and that means compensating them for their loss. It’s wrong that the costs of climate change should be borne by the most vulnerable.”

Earlier this month, seven homes were badly damaged as the biggest tidal surge in 60 years hit the Norfolk coast. Three properties fell into the sea at the village of Hemsby and four more were seriously undermined.

Ray Mooney, who was inside his home as the storm hit, told the BBC: “I heard a crash and the whole back part of the floor caved in. Everything went down.”

He said he was assessing the damage but expected the property to be either demolished or washed out to sea. “This is my only asset,” he said. “That’s it, I haven’t got anything else. I had just done the house up to sell but now I have nothing. I’m homeless.”

Blunkell contrasted the sea defences for London with the rest of the country. He said: “During last year’s tidal surge, the biggest since 1953, some people on the east coast were evacuated from their homes and given a biscuit in the church hall. Yet Londoners could sleep easy protected by the Thames Barrier. A biscuit for some and a barrier for others is unjust, and such injustice will grow with rising sea levels.”

The population of London is protected by Treasury rules that say any coastal defence work must save £8 for every pound spent. This means that built-up areas with valuable houses are more likely to benefit from what public spending there is on sea defences. 

At present there is no compensation scheme for people who lose their homes to the sea. 

According to the report, the county most at risk from sea surges was Cornwall; more than 70 homes are expected to be swept away.

Bodies Found In AirAsia Missing Plane Search

At least 40 bodies and wreckage including a plane door and oxygen tanks have been recovered in the search for missing AirAsia Flight QZ8501.

The bodies - which were not wearing life jackets - have been brought on board a navy ship, said Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Director SB Supriyadi. 

Local television broadcast pictures of the bodies floating in the sea.

"The warship Bung Tomo has retrieved 40 bodies and the number is growing. They are very busy now," said a navy spokesman.

They were found in the Java Sea about six miles (10km) from where the plane last communicated with air traffic control.

Search chief SB Supriyadi also said an air force Hercules had "found an object described as a shadow at the bottom of the sea in the form of a plane".

Objects spotted earlier  have also been confirmed as wreckage from the plane and some have been taken away by helicopter for testing.

AirAsia boss Tony Fernandes said he was rushing to the scene and wrote on Twitter: "My heart is filled with sadness for all the families involved in QZ 8501.

"On behalf of AirAsia my condolences to all. Words cannot express how sorry I am."

The Airbus A320-200 disappeared from radar on Sunday morning, on its way from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore.

There were 162 people on board, including one British man, Hull-born Chi Man Choi, and his two-year-old daughter.

The aircraft's last request - to climb higher to avoid a storm - was turned down.

Minutes later it fell off the radar without giving any distress call.

Geoffrey Thomas, editor of AirlineRatings.com, told Sky News: "We have a radar plot which shows the plane actually climbing through 36,300ft - it wasn't given permission to do that.

"It also shows that its speed had decayed by 134mph and dropped dramatically to a level where it couldn't sustain flight."

Some 30 ships and 21 aircraft from South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and Indonesia have been involved in searching 10,000 nautical miles of ocean.

Source: Sky News

ECG Energy Saving Tips

1. Use low energy compact fluorescent lamps as replacements for traditional incandescent lamps.

2. Install low-flow shower heads and faucet aerators to reduce water usage and its associated energy for heating.

3. Ensure that hot water cylinders and hot water pipes are well insulated.

4. Ensure that thermostats for appliances are effective and set at moderate levels.

5. Use energy saving settings on refrigerators/freezers, air conditioners, dishwashers, clothes washers, and clothes dryers

6. Reduce air conditioning costs by
a) Cleaning or replacing the filter once a month
b) Sealing air leaks through the doorways, window, wall cracks etc.
c) Planting shade trees and shrubs around the house especially on the west side

7. Replace ageing inefficient appliances, especially when they need major repairs, with the most energy-efficient models

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CAF writes to Ghana to host AFCON 2015

The government of Ghana has confirmed the receipt of a letter from the Confederation of African football to be on standby to host the next African Cup of Nations.

Youth and Sports Minister Mahama Ayariga told Citi News in an exclusive interview that the football governing body saw Ghana as one country with a potential to quickly host the showpiece.

But first, he dropped a strong hint that Morocco will not host the event. "It is only today that I'm hearing of the formal refusal of Morocco to budge on the issue of the date which means that Caf would definitely need to look at an alternate venue."

Based on that, Caf started quickly contacting nations they see fit to step in. "Caf wrote to us a few days ago actually and indicated that Morocco had given strong indications that they will pull out if Caf did not change the date.

"And Caf also indicated that it was firm on those dates but they will meet the Moroccan authorities and take a decision at that meeting. "But in the meantime they are writing to a number of countries that they think have the capacity to be an alternative venue… in the event of Morocco actually pulling out," the minister told Citi Prime News on Thursday.

The minister confirmed the Caf letter came through the Ghana Football Association, and it also said that other countries were being considered.

What will make Ghana host it?

Morocco requested Caf to postpone the tournament which was set for January next year, due to the Ebola epidemic, which Caf has turned a blind eye to.

Ayariga says should Ghana choose to host, there would be two key considerations. "I have been looking at the two key issues involved. One, the cost of hosting it and secondly, the very health issues that is making Morocco to renege on the commitment they made to Caf."

Sources say that such an emergency hosting will cost Ghana about $10 million. But Ghanaians have been voicing immense displeasure at the very prospect of taking the next Afcon, which many see as a poisoned chalice.

Why is Ghana even thinking of Afcon?

Ayariga told Citi Sports' Gary Al-Smith that Ghana's government are sensitive to fears about the country's readiness and will leave nothing to chance. "That is why we are evaluating the request. Guinea is a country that has a problem with Ebola. Morocco hosted Ghana to play Guinea in Casablanca. Guinea came to Ghana and played here yesterday.

"Sierra Leone is a country is a country that has a problem with Ebola and they were also in Cameroon. And so I think that we need to look at it in terms of the health issues and in terms of the financial implications too."

Earlier reports also said that South African Football Association (SAFA) president Danny Jordaan is set to meet with the Caf boss Issa Hayatou to discuss a way forward as South Africa is set to replace the North African giants.

Source:supersports

A Review of Television Awards Ghana

TELEVISION AWARDS GHANA FESTIVAL is designed to engage all relevant stakeholders in television broadcasting and set to conduct structured annual awards for deserving television stations, programs, production crew and individuals in the industry. The Project also gives television viewers nationwide an opportunity to interface with their favourite TV Stations and Programs.

The project is being held in partnership with various industry stakeholders including the Ministry of Communications, National Communications Authority, the National Media Commission, Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association among others to establish clear guidelines for Ghana's migration from analog broadcasting to digital terrestrial transmission (DTT). This platform will also serve as an exciting medium to promote approved and trending industry information from the regulatory bodies for the consumption of the general public.

The project implementation strategy for the awards festival captures key inputs of both analog and digital television networks broadcasting in Ghana by enforcing the board directive that television stations shall appoint two members each to serve on the Faculty which decides ultimately on nominations and awards. This exciting platform also creates a healthy interface with the general public as "4 Popular Award Categories" shall be exclusively voted for by television viewers nationwide with The Faculty deciding on the "30 Outstanding Industry and Primetime Award Categories" approved by The Board through a technical peer review electoral college

Review :

The awards show,which was the first of its kind was held at the National Theatre on 10th of October 2014 .MC for the night was a former housemate of Big Brother Africa fame, assisted by a lady. It was beamed live on several television networks across the country. The stage and lighting was not extraordinary

Due to broadcasting time constraints, the nominees who where were earlier on being displayed on the giant screen ,had to be stopped. The MC's assistant, took over the responsibility of mentioning the names of nominees.

Several awards were given, interestingly, almost all the awards had the prefix 'Outstanding' this or that. The repetitive mentioning of 'outstanding' by the Mc started to make the event boring.
There were some musical interludes including a culture dance

The MC, who is also known to be a stand up comedian, occasionally dropped one or two jokes which most of the audience didn't get it, only a few laughed. At times he himself tells them not to worry if they didn't get the joke. Some of the jokes were what are described as 'expensive jokes' , of which he had to make it clear at the of the event its all for fun , nothing personal. He seemed to be 'talking too much' ,which once again he acknowledged.

Some of the award winners took the opportunity to advertise for free their upcoming show. One musician who performed also took the same step to advertise. That was quite opportunistic to do that on tv , wondering if they would be given an invoice to pay for that advert. 
During the tail end of the event, one could not hear the names of the nominees. The award presenters just mentions the winners.

The last award which was the ultimate was a little marred by the person who presented it. In her bid to be 'funny' ,ended up screaming  for the MC's assistant to mention the nominees. The request was never met, was a little embarrassing for that to happen on live tv.

On the whole, the event would be rated 5/10 , just average. Since this is the foremost event, they would be pardoned a little although there is more room for improvement. Lessons would be learnt by the organisers to make the next one better. They were also racing against time because GTv stops transmission at 1am, one could see the way the MC was trying his best to speed up the event. The event actually ended at 1:04 am.

We hope this awards scheme has come to stay and would see a better one next time around

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Electricity And Water Tariffs Go Up 9 (Last Time Was July 2014)

The Public Utilities and Regulatory Commission has reviewed upwards, electricity and water tariffs. The cost of electricity has gone up by 6.54 percent while that of water has been increased by 4.54 percent. The Ghana Water Company will, however, not be able to charge the new rates until certain challenges are fixed. The PURC says the marginal increases have been necessitated by the shift to crude oil for generation of power occasioned by erratic gas supply from Nigeria. Public Affairs Director of the PURC, Nana Yaa Gyantuah, said the Commission recognised that electricity consumers, for instance, are spending money on alternative sources of energy anyway, which costs them more. The last time the PURC adjusted utility tariffs was July this year. Electricity tariffs went up by 6.1 percent while water tariffs were increased by 12 percent. Ghanaians are currently enduring, they have been for more than a year now, power and water rationing. Many have expressed frustrations about the development, but the managers of the power systems say there is little they can do under the circumstances. These increases in tariffs are set to annoy many.

Fuel prices could go up soon

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has asked government to strongly consider scrapping subsidies on energy and petroleum products in order to contain the country's ballooning budget deficit.

The recommendation proffered after an IMF team led by Joël Toujas-Bernaté concluded its preliminary discussions with government on a possible intervention by the Bretton-Wood institution, could lead to an increase in energy and fuel prices.

Already, Senyo Hossi, CEO of the Ghana Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors- the lobbyist arm of bulk oil dealers- has asked Ghanaians to brace themselves for the fallout of an IMF programme that will eliminate subsidies on fuel products.

Since the year began, prices of petroleum products have been adjusted upwards by four times, which sums up to about 40 percent as a result of the slide in the currency, which has fuelled inflationary pressures.

However, the IMF has observed that due to the untargeted nature of the subsidies, it will be prudent for government to do away with the subsidies through what it called a "front-loaded fiscal consolidation."

Mr. Toujas-Bernaté said: "A more ambitious and front-loaded fiscal consolidation is needed to help place public debt on a sustainable path, and to allow monetary policy to be more effective in bringing down inflation, including by strictly limiting budget deficit financing by the Bank of Ghana.

"Front-loaded adjustment should be realized through reductions in Ghana's comparatively high public sector wage costs, the elimination of costly and untargeted subsidies for energy and petroleum products, and a better prioritization of capital spending."

Ghana's government reintroduced fuel subsidies in April this year, without announcing the action, and since then spent several hundreds of dollars in extra payments.

Ghana, which is a major exporter of oil, gold and cocoa is now struggling with a persistent budget deficit and rising public debt.

According to the Bank of Ghana, as at the second week of September this year, government's total revenue and grants was GH¢13.3 billion as against its expenditure of GH¢19.3 billion.

At the same time, total public sector debt was 55.4 percent of GDP.

Mr. Toujas-Bernaté said there will be further talks on a possible program that could be supported by the IMF will continue at the annual general meetings of the World Bank and IMF in Washington DC in October.