FLOODS, draughts and global catastrophe could threaten the well being of people within a generation unless significant progress is made in the fight against global warming, a group meeting for the first time heard.

The group met at Winton School in Andover, at the behest of Test Valley Friends of the Earth.

It discussed the problems and looked at how the topic might be passed on to others in the community.

Carol Bartholomew, who works at Andover War Memorial Hospital, said: "It is a great day for me to find some other people who have got similar interests.

"Hopefully we can now take steps to get things going in Andover."

She told the gathering that the impact of global warming was already being felt in the seas around the UK with thousands of sea-birds unable to breed this year because of a severe shortage of sand eels, the staple food of many especially, off the coast of Scotland.

It is now widely recognised that global warming is one of the biggest, if not the biggest issue, facing the planet.

But the challenge can be met if people pulled together.

"If you look back to the Second World War everybody had to work together to make a difference. People today can work together for an aim," she added.

"People can ask themselves if they need to use a car to do something, decide to use their community shop or even make friends where you are, rather than dashing off all over the country."

Another Friends of the Earth speaker, Jim Todd, said: "There is a possibility that climate change will make a significant difference to our landscape within 20 years. "Beech trees, which have a shallow root system, could be some of the first things to succumb."

For the full story see Friday's Andover Advertiser