Thames Life

Also in today's Barking and Dagenham Post, campaigners are backing an Alternative London Plan by that would put communities, affordable homes and climate action ahead of speculative development. A simple question: should London be built for investors, or for the people who live here?

Barking MP Nesil Caliskan has condemned Thames Water for effectively using London's third-largest river as a "sewage dump", citing years of pollution and sewage spills. Meanwhile, campaigner .powlesland faces possible prosecution after volunteers removed 200 bags of waste from a Roding tributary without a permit. The people cleaning the river are under investigation while sewage pollution continues.

hink left and think right, but remember: every major change in history began when ordinary people organised themselves and refused to wait for permission. ✊🌱🏘️

Today is Clean Air Day.
Clean air is about more than pollution. It is about fairness, health and environmental justice.

Barking Riverside sits alongside major transport routes, former landfill sites, industrial infrastructure, and four nearby waste and sewage sludge incinerators. Residents regularly report odours and concerns about air quality, while local monitoring continues to record episodes of elevated pollution.

The issue is not one single source. It is the cumulative impact of multiple environmental pressures concentrated in one community.

So we have to ask: are some neighbourhoods being asked to carry a greater share of London’s environmental burdens?

Waste incineration is often presented as a solution for managing residual waste. However, questions remain about long term reliance on incineration, its impact on waste reduction and recycling, and whether communities hosting this infrastructure are receiving adequate consideration.

There is also a wider planning question.
Historically, major waste and industrial facilities were often located away from densely populated areas to reduce their impact on communities. As local environmental campaigner Kevin highlighted in his appearance on The London Programme (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U11yq79gRIk), these sites were originally intended to remain separated from large centres of population.
This raises a fundamental question:

If these sites were originally considered more appropriate away from residential communities, why was a development of around 20,000 homes later planned and built alongside them at Barking Riverside?

This is not an argument against regeneration or new homes. It is a question about whether long term planning decisions properly considered cumulative environmental impacts, future growth and the health of residents.

Communities living near waste infrastructure, industry and busy transport routes experience the combined effects of pollution, noise, odours and other environmental pressures.

Clean air should not depend on your postcode.
This Clean Air Day, we need evidence based decisions, transparent monitoring, genuine recycling, cleaner industry and healthier communities for everyone.
(MP for Barking)



Thames View Ward Labour Team

Global Goals for Sustainable Development


Barking Riverside

Ripple Effect
B.D. Giving
Mayor of London
London's Air Ambulance
London Assembly
Asthma + Lung UK

🎭 **Carnival Arts Project 2026 – Upcoming Community Events** 🎶✨

Two exciting community events will be taking place as part of the **Carnival Arts Project 2026**, celebrating arts, culture, creativity, and community cohesion across Barking and Dagenham.

📍 **Pre-Carnival Launch Party Event**
🗓 Saturday 27 June 2026
🕐 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
📌 Valence Library, Becontree Avenue, Dagenham, RM8 3HT

A pre-carnival launch event will be held to bring together the community in celebration of creativity, culture, and engagement ahead of the main carnival.

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🎉 **Barking and Dagenham Carnival 2026**
🗓 Saturday 11 July 2026
📌 Barking Park, Longbridge Road, Barking, IG11 8TA

The Barking and Dagenham Carnival 2026 will be taking place, featuring music, dance, arts, wellbeing activities, and a celebration of community spirit for all ages.

🌟 These events are free and open to the community and aim to promote diversity, creativity, and inclusion through carnival arts and cultural celebration.

Police have said they will seek criminal charges against 57 individuals and 20 companies/organisations linked to the 2017 fire that killed 72 people.

[https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/may/19/grenfell-fire-police-criminal-charges-companies-individuals]

The Grenfell Inquiry exposed “systematic dishonesty” at the heart of companies that put profit above human life. If profit-driven corporations continue to ignore the health and safety of people and the planet, they must remember that the law applies to them too, and accountability will follow.