How Green is Our Borough
Eve Taylor

How green is our Borough? Is it barren and bare?
Is it stripped of its beauty? Do we really care?
Dereliction and eyesores mount up everyday,
Made worse by the rubbish that we throw away.

In each empty garden or plot of waste land,
We could plant flowers to make it look grand.
Don't fill up our air with car fumes and smoke,
It's polluting the atmosphere, which isn't a joke.

Global warming, right now, dominates the news,
So stop and look at the items you use.
Is it CFC free?....... Is it harmful to man?
Just read all the labels, it helps if you can.

Lovely young trees line the road to the strand,
Put there for our pleasure, and all open planned.
They'll look so attractive, if allowed to grow,
If they are not damaged by children we know.

Our Borough is changing so much day by day,
So if we all help in our own little way,
By keeping the environment clean and protected,
We'll reap the rewards, just as expected.

about this poem

In the year 2004, the Sefton Metropolitan Borough Council of the United Kingdom held a poetry contest for World Environment Day (5 June).  Everyone in the community was invited to write poems that commented on various aspects of the local environment.  One of the winners of this contest was Eve Taylor, whose poem How Green is Our Borough focused attention on maintaining a clean, healthy and beautiful environment. 

Photograph:  The students of Formby High School in Sefton Borough have created a wildlife conservation area on their own school grounds, using native flora and fauna, which enables them to learn about birds, plants and other organisms at close quarters year-round.  Photo by Lisa Bradshaw.