Now is the time to plan an Exit Strategy

"When we start a process as destructive to the economy as a full closure, there must be a clear exit strategy, with an array of possible scenarios depending on events. Any step must be aimed at reaching a clear endgame that presages a new, long-term routine." -- Ran Balicer 

Lock downs and The Invisible Enemy

The problem with lock-downs is how to come out of them. And here testing is the key. Virus testing will be key to lock down exit strategies.

At the moment the corona virus is like John Wyndham's short story "The Invisible Monster" when invisible creatures run riot in a rural landscape until a scientist comes up with a way of making them visible, and hence enabling them to be dealt with.

We have no way of knowing how far the corona virus has run though the population, and who now has immunity as a result of fighting off the infection, especially as we know it can be very mild. It is the invisible monster in our midst.

Take these words from John Le Fondre's statement:

"Most Islanders will need to contract the virus at some stage over the next few months."
"That is how we build immunity"
"There is no other choice."

But how do we know who has immunity and could therefore be released back into the community?
Epidemiologist David Heymann, head of the WHO's Scientific and Technical Advisory Group for Infectious Hazards. This is his outline for an exit strategy:

"Once lock down has blunted the first wave of the outbreak, he says, the idea is to consider unlocking certain sectors of the economy slowly, all the while measuring the virus's response to the loosening of restrictions. If infections rise precipitously, health systems would have to jump on them to avoid a resurgence of the disease. Before taking any measures, he says, a risk assessment would have to be made. If, say, offices are going to reopen, how much virus-swapping is likely to take place on the buses and trains and around the water cooler? And will that activity prompt a second spike in cases?"

"An essential element of such a plan, he says, is a surveillance system that gives health officials an accurate view of how many people are infected at any one time. (That much is clear from the rise of COVID-19 infections in Amazon warehouses.)"

"Prolific testing is key. It's not enough to know how many people have COVID-19 in a particular city or state; health officials need to know what percentage of the population is carrying the virus, and how they're distributed among cities and counties."

Immunity Certificates and Testing

Germany's strategy could hold the key:

"German researchers plan to introduce corona virus ‘immunity certificates’ to facilitate a proper transition into post-lockdown life."

"The antibodies will indicate that the test participants have had the virus, have healed and are thereby ready to re-enter society and the workforce. The researchers plan to test 100,000 members of the public at a time, issuing documentation to those who have overcome the virus. "

"The researchers will use the information to determine how to properly end the county’s lockdown, including re-opening schools and allowing mass gatherings."

“Those who are immune can then be given a vaccination certificate that would, for example, allow them to be exempt from any (lockdown-related) restrictions on their work,” said Gerard Krause, the epidemiologist leading the project.

"The test will give researchers a better idea of how many people have contracted the virus, with indications in Germany and elsewhere that large proportions of the population may have contracted it without knowing."

Issues with Testing

With the time lag of five days on testing, we are, as James Filleul notes, "flying blind". The key, as the UK government has now acknowledged, and shown by South Korea, is the WHO advice: test, test, test. Guernsey will have its testing facility open soon, they have the kit, and it will deliver results around 6 hours, which is enough to put in place the second part of a decent strategy: contact tracing.

Contract tracing is of little or no use if you have a 5 day delay. And yet as Singapore has shown, as South Korea has shown, and as Guernsey is doing - contact tracing is key to control. Those countries are making the contact tracing public - to alert people to the possibility they may have been in a location where the infected person was over the last day or so. South Korea even has detectives doing the work!

It must be public to work, as those countries demonstrate. There is no evidence of any transparent and thereby effective contact tracing in Jersey.

So we need two things: good local testing, with rapid results, and good open contact tracing. You can see from Worldometer statistics that it works. South Korea is keeping a lid on new infections, and they rarely rise above a hundred  a day. But unless you test, you cannot tell where you are. 

To build confidence, the Jersey government should outline the ETA for bringing in testing, and outline procedures for good contact tracing. I would very much like to see an announcement on that.

The Need for A Plan

"The next weeks and maybe months will be hard. None of us really know precisely what lies ahead, but I firmly believe in the strength of our Island Community spirit which will pull us through."

We cannot just rely on "community spirit". We don't know precisely what lies ahead, but we can plan better to see what does lie ahead. We need a strategy and a timeline for:

• Local and timely testing
• Open and transparent contact tracing
• Immunity certificates for those who are now clear and can go out and about to help restore the economy.

It is like the difference between the Carpathia and the Titanic. Neither new what lay ahead, but the Titanic only had ill-equipped lookouts who had even lost their binoculars. The Carpathia, just as much as risk as she steamed at speed to attempt rescue, had many lookouts, well placed all about. He had a clearly worked out strategy to navigate troubled waters.

The ship of state needs a Captain who is like Captain Roston of the Carpathia not Captain Smith of the Titanic. I believe John  Le Fondre can do that, but he needs to be more decisive in outlining an exit strategy, and how it will be planned.

I hope he and the Council of Ministers will prove my confidence in them right. I know it is difficult, but they must do better still.

Otherwise, we may founder on an iceberg and our community spirit won't be much use at all.

https://www.newsweek.com/amid-coronavirus-experts-question-when-its-safe-go-back-work-lockdown-had-no-exit-strategy-1494342
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/03/29/germany-will-issue-coronavirus-antibody-certificates-allow-quarantined/
https://www.haaretz.com/world-news/.premium-coronavirus-lockdown-expert-1.8703537

The Isolate Tower

Obviously prompted by the lock downs in place, but looking at a particular kind of solitude as well, and with a small nod to Ursula Le Guin and Theresa of Avila, today's poem explores isolation. There is poetic licence here too: I am not as isolated as the protagonist of the poem - that is an exploration of the imagination.

The Isolate Tower

Alone, alone, and no one here:
All alone through time of fear;
And as the plague rages outside,
Alone, inside, it is time to hide;
The sun is shining upon the land,
But days are trickling by like sand;
And yet the words still coming out,
As if there’s time for final shout;
A secure tower of words, turrets tall,
But a lightning stricken tower fall,
As in the cards, turned one by one,
As clouds across blot out the sun;
And night is falling, ending day,
I want to speak, but cannot say
What must be said, wherein I dwell,
For in isolation, I find my hell:
Devoid of hug, of touch, of feel,
A closed door, with waxen seal;
And yet I hear the distant cry,
The seagull wheeling in the sky,
And I write down the words again,
As joy returns with quiet amen.

St Ouen's Church Guide by Dennis Guerney - Part 5

This guide book to St Ouen's church was produced in the 1980s by the Rector Denis Gurney (Rector 1977-1984). A later guide book was produced by John Wileman. At present there is no guide book available within the church.

The last part of the guide looks at other Churches and Chapels within the Parish of St Ouen which come under the umbrella of the Rector.

St. George's Church, St. Ouen, situated about two miles from the Parish Church at Portinfer. 

The interior of St. George's Church decorated to celebrate the Centenary of the opening of the Church on July 20th, 1880. 

Chapel dedicated to St. Anne in the grounds of St. Ouen's Manor. Built about 1300 AD; desecrated during the Reformation and used as a barn until 1914, when it was re-consecrated by the Bishop of Winchester.

Interior of St. Anne's Chapel showing the 12^th century Granite Altar Stone with its five consecration crosses from St. George's Chapel, Vinchelez de Bas Manor.

The grounds of St. Ouen's Manor are open every Tuesday from 2 to 6 p.m.

A Time of Balance

A poem for the spring equinox. 

A Time of Balance

The old saying: See saw, Margery Daw
Finely balanced between day and night
Entering the long snows before the thaw
The Equinox: balance of dark and light

The cold wind blows, and frost on stone
And harvests fail, there is no bread
The ancient dolmen, the fragment bone
Balance: between living and dead

This is the point where the seasons turn
And heat waves come, a land of fire
And people riot, and townships burn
And the church is closed, a rusty spire

Spring equinox: a balance so very fine
And in the dark, will a candle shine?

St Ouen's Church Guide by Dennis Guerney - Part 4

This guide book to St Ouen's church was produced in the 1980s by the Rector Denis Gurney (Rector 1977-1984). A later guide book was produced by John Wileman. At present there is no guide book available within the church.

The Epiphany Chapel, magnificent in its simplicity and essentially practical, was dedicated by the Right Reverend Faulkner Allison, Bishop of Winchester on the 26th July, 1971.

... and they met together for the breaking of bread ...

"As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." I Corinthians. 11:26.

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"... and the prayers."

"Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made to God." Philippians.4:6.

Jesus said: "Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: . . . and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you." Matthew 28:19-20.

As a Church in recent years we have given regular support in prayer and giving to societies working in the British Isles; the Church Pastoral Aid Society - the oldest home missionary society of the Church of England; the London City Mission with great opportunities and responsibilities, with over one hundred men in strategic centres in London. On the Continent of Europe through the Inter-Continental Church Society ministering to British people working or holidaying abroad; to St. John's College, Nottingham, training men for leadership and ministry in the Church of England. We support TEAR Fund as our main agency working to alleviate hardship in disaster areas and Third World countries.

Our overseas missionary interests are wide, embracing the Church's Ministry among the Jews; South Eastern Asian Outreach; L'Eau Vive, Provence, in southern France; work in eastern Europe, but our major support has been for the Church Missionary Society and the South American Missionary Society.

Andrew and Rosalind Richardson working with the Church Missionary Society in Kenya.

Joyce Illingworth working in Argentina, training teachers and pastors with the South American Missionary Society. (In nine months, from July 1980, over 14,000 has been given for her support).

Some Experience of Covid-19

What’s it like? That I suppose is a question we are all asking. Here's a quick gleaning of case studies from online news. It can be rough... but it can be survived.

https://nypost.com/2020/02/29/wuhan-man-details-what-it-feels-like-to-have-coronavirus/

A Wuhan man who came down with the coronavirus in mid-January said he spent three agonizing weeks with worsening symptoms that began when he woke up one day feeling “sore all over.”

The coronavirus had yet to sweep China when Tiger Ye began feeling ill on Jan. 17, and he suspected nothing more than the common cold or flu, he told the Guardian.

Doctors prescribed him medication and sent him to quarantine at home, where his family stocked up on food and Ye retreated to his room.

A week later, he began to develop a cough and fever, and was re-admitted to the hospital. Tests showed the infection had spread throughout his lungs, but he had yet to be diagnosed with coronavirus.

Ye said that from Jan. 21-26 was “the worst time.”

“I coughed so bad my stomach was hurting and my back ached,” he said, adding, “I thought I may have to say goodbye to this life forever.”

On Jan. 29, his older brother and grandmother — who had been delivering him food to his room — came down with symptoms. On the same day, doctors officially diagnosed Ye with the virus, and prescribed him five days of anti-HIV medication.

By Feb. 4, a test showed improvements in Ye’s lungs. His family also began to feel better. Three days later, doctors declared him coronavirus-free.

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/tanyachen/ohio-woman-with-covid-19-wrote-viral-facebook

A 48-year-old woman from a small town in Ohio is recovering in quarantine after a scary diagnosis of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus. She's only the second known victim in Summit County.

“I became sick quickly Wednesday afternoon. I felt run down and feverish. By the time I got home I had a fever of 99.2. I was uncomfortable, headache, and a cough that was heavy but not producing anything. I fell asleep and woke at 3 am. My heart was racing. I had trouble catching my breath and my chest felt tight every time I coughed. I contacted a great nurse I know...she said go in, but call first. I called the ER, told them my symptoms and the had me call a closed ohio dept of health number. I was clearly in distress so my nurse called them back and said I was coming in. It's a good thing I did. My BP was very low and my heart rate was very high. These are not good signs on top of fever and cough. They admitted me and I was tested for every single other thing and then they ran the covid test.”

“I am the face of this infection. It is brutal and I'm a healthy 48 year old with no underlying conditions. I'm not 100% better but I'm home resting. Please take this seriously. People you love, their lives may depend on it.”

"Quarantine is not fun, but I would much rather be in quarantine and know I’m not exposing anyone else to this — and I’ll take that," she added.

https://www.clickorlando.com/news/local/2020/03/18/what-people-who-have-been-diagnosed-with-coronavirus-are-saying-about-the-respiratory-illness/

CBS News spoke with three individuals who have contracted COVID-19 and found out how the illness is affecting them.

A woman named A.N. preferred to use only her initials and said she’s had the virus for more than two weeks.

She said she was initially treated in a Seattle-area hospital in early March but was not offered a test for COVID-19, even though the medical staff was concerned.

"I could see them through the window and they were utterly panicked and they had no idea what they were doing. It was unnerving to be completely honest,” A.N. said.

She said she dialed into a telehealth appointment where she was told to report to a clinic where she was swabbed in her car and confirmed positive in less than 24 hours.

"Excuse me, but it feels like hell. I've had the flu before, it's not even comparable. The fever is so high you hallucinate,” she said. "I'm still having a fever, but it's coming down slowly. I'm only at 100.8 at the moment, which is a dramatic improvement."

Clay Bentley is still hospitalized in Rome, Georgia. He said you’ll know it if you get it.

Bentley said symptoms developed a day after he sang with his church choir. He was first diagnosed with pneumonia and was sent home from the hospital.

"Four days later I got to a point where I couldn’t get out of bed and I said to them ‘Ya’ll sent me home to die.’ And I said, ‘I can’t even move or breathe. Can’t catch my breath,’” Bentley said.

When Bentley returned to the hospital, he realized several other members of his church were also there. The other members also tested positive for coronavirus.

Bentley is now in recovery and looking forward to getting home to his family.

"I felt like today that I have turned third base and I’m headed for home. I felt like I’m through the hard part and ready to go home,” Bentley said.

Elizabeth Schneider believes she and a number of her friends contracted coronavirus while at a party in Seattle. She tested for COVID-19 after her symptoms had subsided.

"When I had the most severe symptoms, it literally felt like I had a different strain of the flu,” Schneider said.

Schneider has a background in microbiology, so through her experience, she does have some advice for those who are anxious.

“If we look at the long term here, I think things will improve,” Schneider said. “This is a fact, I did not have to buy any toilet paper while I was sick. I just got by with the regular stash of toilet paper that I have. It’s good to tell people out there and it’s good to smile and have a laugh.”

Schneider is now donating her blood to help with the quest to develop a coronavirus vaccine.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2020/03/17/ohio-coronavirus-patient-describes-experience-covid-19-symptoms/5061770002/

AKRON, Ohio – Amy Driscoll followed all the recommended protocols.

Wash your hands. Use hand sanitizer. Don’t touch your face.

The Hudson, Ohio, resident still contracted COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus that has caused daily life in many places around the world to come to a screeching halt.

Her first reaction when her test results came back: “Are you kidding me?”

Driscoll became the second confirmed case of COVID-19 in Ohio's Summit County last week, posting about her experience on Facebook – under her maiden name of Brock – as a way to encourage others to take the disease seriously.

“I was really sick,” she said. “I was really scared there for a little while about how sick I was.”

Driscoll is 48 and provided the Akron Beacon Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network, with documentation from her hospitalization. The paperwork indicates she is to remain quarantined and that she is required to notify anyone who treats her that she is under investigation for COVID-19.

Driscoll, who is home now under quarantine, said she is starting to feel better but is still exhausted and dealing with symptoms like fatigue and headaches.

“Just like my body has been through a battle,” she said.

Amy Driscoll looks on from inside her house as son Cade, 14, grabs food dropped off by her friends.

The mother of four said she was at work at an insurance company on Wednesday when around 3 p.m. she started to feel tired as if she was starting to get sick.

She went home at the end of the day and took her temperature, which was 99.2 degrees, just above normal. She said she took Motrin and fell asleep.

When she woke up at 3 a.m., she was coughing and her chest hurt.

“It was hard to get a breath in and my chest felt constricted,” Driscoll said. “It was like nothing I had ever quite experienced.”

he called her cousin, who is a nurse, and then University Hospitals’ Ahuja Medical Center. The hospital, she said, initially told her to call the Ohio Department of Health’s call center number, but at 3 a.m., there was no answer. Her cousin called Ahuja Medical Center back and told them Driscoll was on her way.

On arrival, Driscoll said, the hospital immediately put her into isolation. They informed her they needed to run a litany of other tests to rule out diseases like the flu and pneumonia, which she has had before. If all were negative, she could be tested for COVID-19.

https://fox17.com/news/local/surviving-covid-19-reporter-aj-abell

On Monday, March 9, I became sick while skiing with my family in Aspen, Colorado.

My symptoms began with a light cough and, in a couple of days, progressed to body aches, chills and a much more painful cough.However, at that point, I did not think of the possibility that I could have contracted the virus because I still did not have a fever or shortness of breath -- two of its hallmark symptoms.

That Monday night, I flew back to Nashville and that's when things started getting worse.

By Wednesday, I had terrible body aches, a very productive cough and terrible night sweats; I was regularly coughing up golf-ball sized chunks of mucus.

Many times throughout the night I would wake up so sweaty that it was easier to get in the shower and rinse off before going back to bed, a process that would repeat itself three or four times throughout the night.

I was tired, achy and was dizzy/nauseous throughout the next couple of days. My cough felt like someone set my chest on fire and my bed felt like I had just gotten out of the pool and lay down without drying off.

On Thursday afternoon, I went to an Urgent Care clinic. They tested me for the flu, which came back negative, and later prescribed some steroids and cough medicine for the coughing discharge.

On Thursday evening, however, I was reading the Aspen Times and other local Colorado newspapers when I found out that Aspen had the largest COVID-19 cluster outbreak in Colorado: 9 people were presumed-positive for the virus. Also, two guests at a resort in which we had dinner and drinks several times self-quarantined. Adding up the symptoms and my possible exposure, I began to think I may have it.

On Friday, I went to Vanderbilt to get tested for COVID-19. The wait was long and the test isn't pleasant.

The test is a two-part swab: one swab of the back of your throat and one swab of the inside of your nose -- very, very deep inside your nose. Deep enough that it still hurt an hour later.

By now, my symptoms have started getting better: the coughing discharge was getting smaller and the cough was less painful. Though I was still tired and a bit dizzy, I had more energy. The night sweats were also getting less aggressive.

I have been quarantined since coming back and will stay quarantined until March 26, assuming things don't take an unexpected turn for the worst.

By now, many of my symptoms have gone away. The cough is now mostly dry and the night sweats are less aggressive, though they are still there.

I feel like I am through the worst and have made it to the other side, but only time will tell what will happen next.

Apocalypse Now

Apocalypse Now

Astounding fears. That rasping sound
That infects both you and me
I coughed and coughed, and so I found
That peril which all see

That virus spread, and caused such fear
That no words yet relieved
The death toll rose, numbers appear
Far worse than we believed.

The government promised much to me
That safety that secures
But badly planned, it failed to be
As spreading still endures

When our age ends, ten thousand years,
Still shining on the sun
Then will there still be men to praise
Or has the end begun?

St Ouen's Church Guide by Dennis Guerney - Part 3

This guide book to St Ouen's church was produced in the 1980s by the Rector Denis Gurney (Rector 1977-1984). A later guide book was produced by John Wileman. At present there is no guide book available within the church.

The monument at the east end of exterior of south aisle to M. de la Place. The Parish Register records:

 "On the 6th January 1652, Monsr. Pierre De La Place received the laying on of hands in the church of the Parish of St. Ouen, by his brother Mr. Josue De La Place; on which occasion the pastors, M. D'Assigny and M. Bon-Homme, were present, who gave him the hand of fellowship. Thus he remained in office in the Parish of St. Ouen by order of Colonel James Haines, the Parliamentary Governor. This took place after the death of Charles I, and whilst Cromwell was Protector. Hence Monsr. De La Place did not belong to the Anglican Church, but was a Presbyterian, and there was no Dean in the Island at this time. He continued as Rector until the time of Charles II."

Later we find in the Register:

"On the 6th September 1663, Matth. Jean was buried, the service being taken by Mr. Gruchy, in the absence of Monsr. De La Place, who had been suspended by the Dean, and allowed 40 days to consider whether he would take the oath to the Bishop of Winchester."

This he evidently refused to do, as some eleven months later, Monsr. Jean Francois Guillet was inducted to the benefice by the Dean. Mons. De La Place continued to reside in the Parish and died in 1681. His burial is recorded: "Le Mardi 28me jour de juin 1681 fut enterre Mr. Pierre De La Place qui avail ete ministre en cette Paroisse et avait quitte Le Place environ seize ou dix-sept ans auparavant."

Family Service (March 1981).

And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship.. ...." Acts.2:42

... and fellowship .. .

Coronavirus and Flu: The Essential Differences

I've heard other people say things very much like Donald Trump's infamous tweet:

"So last year 37,000 Americans died from the common Flu. It averages between 27,000 and 70,000 per year. Nothing is shut down, life & the economy go on. At this moment there are 546 confirmed cases of CoronaVirus, with 22 deaths. Think about that!"

So what are the differences, and what are the facts?

Dr Leana Wen, an emergency physician and public health professor at George Washington University in the USA notes the differences:

"It is true, that at the moment, any individual in the US is more likely to contract the flu than contract coronavirus, but this is essentially a pandemic that is spreading around the world."

The key words are "at the moment" because flu is already out there and widespread, but the coronavirus is new and still spreading. It's not comparing like with like. And looking at last years statistics against this years spread of the coronavirus is doing just that.

"You cannot compare the impact or the potential effect of this [coronavirus] to the flu, because this is a new virus that is spreading around the world that does not have a vaccine or treatment".

"The major difference is that the new coronavirus is exactly that: it’s new. We have no idea yet about the trajectory of the disease, how severe it’s going to be, and how much it will spread."

Unlike flu, there is no such vaccine or established treatment protocol for the coronavirus:

"When you think about how we stop the spread of a disease, prevention is key, and treatment is very important, too," said Wen. "It will take at least a year, and up to a year and half to develop [a coronavirus vaccine]. While trials for treatment are in progress, we do not yet have a treatment for it either."

According to the most recent data worldwide, "the [COVID-19] death rate appears to be far greater than the flu", Wen said. "It appears that out of 1,000 people who have this coronavirus, somewhere between 10 to 30 people will die, compared to one person [out of 1,000] who has the flu," she said.

Al Jazeera News notes the statistics so far:

According to Chinese statistics, about 2 percent of people infected with COVID-19 have died so far. In comparison, about 10 percent of the 8,437 people infected with SARS during the 2002-2003 outbreak died, while the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), which originated in Saudi Arabia in 2012, had a fatality rate of about 35 percent.

Seasonal influenza outbreaks, meanwhile, kill less than 0.1 percent of people who fall ill, but as many as one billion people are estimated to catch the flu virus annually. That means between 290,000 and 650,000 people could die from the common cold every year.

Links
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/03/experts-trump-wrong-compare-coronavirus-flu-200309145951552.html
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/02/dangerous-coronavirus-200205205234883.html?utm_source=website&utm_medium=article_page&utm_campaign=read_more_links

Silence

This poem draws on the Jewish idea of the Shevirat haKeilim.

Silence

There was the void, empty, still
Darkness over the great deep
And an absence, ready to fill
Awakening from ages sleep

The vessels, shining in the night
In the beginning, the first matter
Filled to overflowing with light
Breaking apart, fragments scatter

A silence, then the cosmos sang
Broken shards, scattered light
Exploding outwards in big bang
The universe came into sight

Silence: then the void was broken
A universe by First Word spoken

St Ouen's Church Guide by Dennis Guerney - Part 2

This guide book to St Ouen's church was produced in the 1980s by the Rector Denis Gurney (Rector 1977-1984). A later guide book was produced by John Wileman. At present there is no guide book available within the church.

The Pulpit in Caen stone features panels enclosed by marble pillars, each containing a statue. These statues represent eight writers of the New Testament with their symbolical figures:

St. Matthew (a Man)

St. Mark (a Lion)

St. Luke (an Ox)

St. John (an Eagle)

St. Peter (the Keys)

St. Paul (the Sword)

St. James (the Scrip)

St. Jude (the Staff)

A constant reminder to those who preach, and all who listen, that this pulpit is for the preaching of the Word of God as revealed to us in the Holy Scriptures.

The Font of Jersey granite was the gift of Mr. Philip Le Feuvre of Trodez. Set against the west wall this picture shows the perished cement rendering and highlights the need to restore the Nave. This final stage of the restoration of the interior will be carried out during the summer of 1981.

The exterior of two windows in the south aisle, which particularly interesting because of the Norman window (right) and the Pointed window (left), surmounted by the ancient stone coffin lid. The fact that most of the windows are pointed while others are Early English lancet suggests a transition period.

The exterior of two windows in the north aisle, which illustrate the ornamental dripstones of various designs. The dripstone over the left hand window pictured above displays armorial and religious features. The right hand picture clearly depicts a rabbit and a dog, and this is identical with the stonework over the entrance gate to the Keep of Mont Orgueil Castle. Similar ornaments are found at Avranches and Coutances.

Flushable Certification: A step towards plastic reduction

ITV's news report states

"What a waste: £250k spent towards removing wipes from sewage"

It reports:

"Wet wipes and other items, flushed down toilets, costs Jersey's waste team £250,000 a year to clear up. States workers are finding it hard to maintain, after people continually putting items down the toilet that cannot be easily broken down. Wet wipes are one of the biggest problems, however items like sanitary towels, cotton buds and dental floss have also been found in the system. Staff say they have found towels, underwear, nappies and even jeans in the sewer too."

It's a problem in Guernsey too, where Madeleine Norman writes:

"People think they're just made of wet tissue but unfortunately they've got quite a high plastic component to them. A lot of them do say they're flush-able but actually they're not and they take a long time to break down."

But there is an alternative on the horizon. Plastic free, certified flushable items. Having fallen foul of the ABA last November for claiming by EU standards, their products were "flushable", Andrex Washlets now have British certification:

"British toiletries brand Andrex has today (27 February) announced that its washlet wipes range has achieved Water UK's 'Fine to Flush' certification, which symbolises that flushing them won't contribute to damage to UK sewers. Andrex, owned by American corporate giant Kimberly-Clark, will place the Fine to Flush logo on its Washlet products from today. The wipes were independently tested by technical experts WRc, with the results finding that the products break down upon entering UK sewer systems and won't contribute to “fatbergs” that clog up sewer systems or seep into the natural environment."

“Our Andrex Washlets have adhered to international flushable standards for many years and we are very proud of the investment we have made to now also secure Water UK’s ‘Fine to Flush’ certification,” Kimberly-Clark UK’s vice president and managing director Ori Ben Shai said. “We want other companies to follow the example of Andrex and make sure their products pass the ‘Fine to Flush’ test too. Everyone wants a future without fatbergs, and this will help make that a reality.”

And they are not the only ones. The Daily Mail reports that:

"'Fine to flush' wet wipes will hit UK stores for the first time next month after being given official certification for passing strict sewer tests. Organic health and beauty brand Natracare are the first to carry the symbol and claim that the moist tissue wipes, which cost £1.99, will fully break down in drains."

The Fine to Flush website notes:

"Although there has been an increase in products being labelled ‘Do Not Flush’, there are many wipes on the market labelled ‘Flushable’ which do not break down quickly when they enter the sewer system, and which would not pass the stringent tests which meet the standard to receive the ‘Fine to Flush’ symbol. The labelling of these products can cause confusion amongst consumers, increasing the problem of sewer blockages."

It is clearly better NOT to flush items down the toilet, but given the problems with persuading consumers in the long term, where a certified flushable alternative exists, it might be easier to persuade consumers to opt for those products, as they contain no plastic. The other products, even when binned, contain plastics which are not good for the environment.

Links
https://www.itv.com/news/channel/2020-03-03/what-a-waste-250m-spent-towards-removing-wipes-from-sewage/
https://www.edie.net/news/5/Andrex-wet-wipes-certified-as--fine-to-flush--by-Water-UK/
https://www.water.org.uk/policy-topics/managing-sewage-and-drainage/fine-to-flush/

Land Reclamation for Housing: Caution in an Age of Climate Change

Land Reclamation for Housing: Caution in an Age of Climate Change

“Jersey to reclaim more land to support housing needs?” said the headline.

"LAND reclamation to support the Island’s future housing and planning needs cannot be ruled out in the long term, the Environment Minister has said, but the immediate focus will be on the ‘current land-base’. "(JEP)

When I heard that, I wondered what was going on, especially as climate change and rising sea levels mean that creating housing on reclaimed land could be very like building on flood plains – that is to say, unwise.

I was pleased to see that when you see what John Young actually says, he is well aware of the problems with

“It is pretty complex and is not just about reclaiming land, as we would need to look at our Shoreline Management Strategy. We know our south coast is vulnerable to flooding and rising sea levels. ‘We are looking, I think, at the long term. That will be a consideration beyond the ten years of this Island Plan. For now, it is time to look at opportunities that exist within the current land-base.”

Jonathan Watts, writing in the Guardian, notes that:

“Land that is currently home to 300 million people will flood at least once a year by 2050 unless carbon emissions are cut significantly and coastal defences strengthened, says the study, published in Nature Communications. This is far above the previous estimate of 80 million. The upward revision is based on a more sophisticated assessment of the topography of coastlines around the world.”

An example where past land reclamation is now proving problematic is Boston. The city is already feeling the pressure of climate change. In the three centuries following Boston’s founding in 1630, the city’s footprint increased by nearly 50 percent, with much of the land along the coastline and riverbanks filled to just above high tide.

A recent report by Steven Mufson notes that:

“Boston is raising streets, building berms and even requiring that new high-rise condominium developments on its harbor acquire “aqua fences” — portable metal barriers that can be dragged to the street and anchored to the pavement to deflect incoming waves.”

“A surging sea could wreak havoc in a place where half the city is built on low-lying landfill. Among the vulnerable spots are commercial piers, Logan International Airport, low-income neighborhoods, the South End, the New England Aquarium and pricey apartment buildings in the newly redeveloped Seaport area.”

“The effects are evident already; seawater at high tide has lapped up onto some streets even on days when the sun is shining.”

Scott Kulp, the lead author of the Nature study and a senior scientist at Climate Central warns that: ““As the tideline rises higher than the ground people call home, nations will increasingly confront questions about whether, how much and how long coastal defences can protect them.”

The literature suggests that land reclamation can provide a buffer against storm surges and rising sea levels by pushing back the coastline which would otherwise be flooded. But what you don’t want to do is to build housing on that. 

The headlines in the JEP, apparently prompted by suggestions of the public looking for new locations for housing, do not seem to address what is surely an obvious danger inherent in that strategy.