News

The impact of industrial development on the environment of Tees Valley

(11 November 2004)

The highly successful series of monthly events aimed at engaging the local community in conversation about current issues in science and technology, continues next Tuesday (16 November).

Stockton Café Scientifique is one of a growing network of Cafés Scientifiques throughout the UK and Europe aimed at bringing together a range of specialist speakers and the general public in a relaxed café setting.

The next session in the programme of monthly conversations organised by the University of Durham’s Queen’s Campus in Stockton is a talk by Professor Ray Hudson who will examine the impact of industrial development on the natural environment of the Tees Valley.

His talk, entitled “Tees Valley Where Nature Meets Industry”, looks at how the industrial development of the Tees Valley was based in its natural resource endowment and in turn explores how this development had considerable impacts upon the environment, via pollution, the development of major urban areas and industrial infrastructure.

For many years, the trade off between jobs, incomes and environmental impacts was seen as an acceptable one but as industrial employment began to decline, the effects of pollution became increasingly challenged. Industrial decline also led to large areas of derelict land.

This led to an increased emphasis on environmental improvement and the perception that a high quality environment is a necessary requirement of modern economic development, as well as helping to enhance health and the quality of life. This is leading to a search for environmentally sustainable forms of economic development to sustain the Tees Valley in the future.

Ray is an economic geographer with a long history of working on economic development and industry/environment relations. He is currently Director of the Wolfson Research Institute in Stockton and a Professor of Geography at the University of Durham. The November session at Café Scientifique takes place at The Point in the Arc, Dovecot Street, Stockton, starting at 8.00p.m.

Other speakers lined up in the Café Scientifique programme which runs until July 2005 include the University’s Vice Chancellor Sir Kenneth Calman who will discuss the evolution of medical ethics over the last 50 years at the January 18th sessions.

Details of the full programme for Café Scientifique are available at http://www.cafesci-stockton.org.uk. All sessions are free although those attending are invited to make a small contribution to cover costs.

Martin Dancey, Development Officer at John Snow College, said: “The whole aim of Café Scientifique is to give people from all walks of life and all age groups a chance to think about how science and technology impacts on all aspects of life. It is done in an informal and relaxed atmosphere with all the jargon and technical talk stripped away. We want to encourage more people from within Stockton and surrounding communities to come along and join in the discussions.”

ends

Contact for further information: Tom Fennelly, Public Relations Office, University of Durham.
Tel. 0191 334 6078 or e-mail: t.p.fennelly@durham.ac.uk