15/06/2011 BBC Points West

. Good evening and welcome to BBC Points West.

Our headlines tonight: Plans to take methane out of the

Mendips, but campaigners say look what can happen if the gas leaks

into the water supply. Fears for missing William, another

student disappears after a night out.

A series of police drugs raids in Swindon today.

And a "didgeridoo" of a row, after art gallery bosses walk out over

plans to showcase work from the Hello. Plans are being put forward

to drill for natural gas in the Mendip Hills. A company hopes to

extract methane from deep in the earth in Somerset which could be

used to power homes and create hundreds of jobs. The practice

known as "fracking" is widely used in America, but is proving

controversial and the proposals here have already run into problems

too with campaigners warning the drilling could prove dangerous and

threaten water supplies. John Even on a day like today the

Mendips offer spectacular views from the Bristol Channel to

Dorset's Jurassic coast. The hills provide water, tourism, farming,

but could they provide so much more? A huge gas supply?

The company UK Methane wants to sink test holes across 564

kilometres of Somerset in search of gas that it would access through

fracking. So what is fracking? Well, its full name is hydraulic

fracturing. Bores drill down 9,000 feet to access the gas. Explosions

strip the rock and water, sand and other chemical are pumped in to

release the gas. And my concern is that any activity,

is going to come back and through the caves and pollute the water and

out into the atmosphere. Explosives expert, Nigel Taylor

says the geology in the Mendips is just too unstable to handle process.

The fracking will damage the limestone and the gases will expand

out through the rocks. These gases will come out and

pollute the water supplies and the area. It is not to be treated

lightly. We must get the checks and balances in place before

permissions are given. In America, there are claims that

the methane can leak into the domestic water supply with alarming

And in Lancashire, drilling has stopped for an investigation after

two small earthquakes occurred in recent months. The company mined

the Somerset plans says its work is approved by the Government and is

tightly controlled. I know there has been a lot of

controversy over fracking, but if you go by the Government Select

Committee's report and the Environment Agency comments, then

it is quite safe and this is all very, very strictly governed. We

wouldn't be able to do do anything that was not safe.

If fracking comes here, UK Methane says thousands of jobs will be

created and the the gasworks could be concealed underground. Right now,

there are more questions than answers. Crucially, is there gas in

the hills in the the first place? Friends and family of a Bristol

student, who has now been missing for four days, say they're

extremely concerned for his safety. 19-year-old William Appleby was

last seen inside a nightclub in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Laura Lyon is in St Philips for us now. Laura, what's the latest

Well, David, this is Motion Nightclub and on Saturday night

there were 1700 people out here enjoying themselves. Among them was

William Appleby with his group of friends. They were celebrating the

end of their first year at university. We are told it wasn't a

wild night out, but we know that William had been drinking. None of

his friends saw him leave the club and it was later on Sunday that the

alarm was raised. A a keen skateboarder, William

Appleby and his friends regularly go to Motion Nightclub in Bristol.

The club has a skate park inside and is busy on Saturday nights. He

is a student at UWE studying for a media degree and he and his friends

were relaxing before starting their summer break. They saw him inside

the club at around 2.30 am. Usually after nights out, he would

be the first one awake. He would be knocking on our doors trying to get

us up and stuff. For him to go the opposite and not be about is out of

character. Avon and Somerset Police say his

mobile phone was in use at 3.30 am. We know Will had been drinking with

his friends. It wasn't unusual for Will to leave the nightclub by

himself and his friends who tried to text him were not concerned at

the time, but it wasn't until the following morning that Will wasn't

at their accommodation that they raised the alarm and we were aware

and we started the investigation. William's family family contacted

police after he failed to catch a bus. In the back of their minds

students like James Bubear and Casper Flagg who died in Bath after

after nights out. Although term has finished at UWE. The university is

advising students to be careful. We have a clear message around that

which is about, if it feels unsafe then you know, think twice about it.

So we encourage our our to go in -- students to go in pairs and you

know, we hope that is what they do. For now, William's family and

friends are hoping the police appeal and a Facebook campaign will

help jog people's memories and they Well, Avon and Somerset Police say

they want to hear from anyone that was inside the club and might have

seen William on his way home. It is likely he headed back to the city

as that's where his student residence is. This evening missing

posters are going up around Park Street and the city centre hoping

to jog people's attention. William's family, his twin brother

and parents were due to be going on holiday on Friday. Instead they are

making plans to come to Bristol to Let's hope for good news soon.

Heroin and crack dealers were the target in Swindon early this

morningas police mounted the biggest operation of its kind in

the town for ten years. It follows a rise in violent crime in the last

year linked to street dealing. A door opens on Swindon's illegal

and violent Class A drugs trade. This, one of 16, suspected dealers

targeted by 130 police officers. They have to break in quickly using

what they call the big red key. It creates a shock for them, but

also they will get rid of evidence. They will flush it or they will

swallow it. They will try and distribute it to other people in

the house. At this home, hours of searching.

Officers find a set of weighing scales. An estimated �6,000 in this

bundle. Then bags buried in the garden.

A lot of dealers bury their drugs because they are not in the house.

Operation was launched after a series of stabbings in Swindon

linked to street drug dealing. It is known that dealers from London,

Reading and Birmingham are now targeting the town. On this estate,

neighbours were glad something is being done.

It should make life safer for everybody, shouldn't it and less

hassle. Normal Syringes and with three

young kids, it is worrying. I don't think they get stiff enough

penalties to be honest with you. You know, if you don't really stamp

down on them as Nick just said, the next one will come along.

Officers admit they will only disrupt drugs trading for 24 hours.

Soon someone else will be supplying, but they say it is worth of months

of surveillance. This case isn't just about drugs

supply, it is about reducing violence with drugs supply and I

think that is going to have a significant impact because the

people we've gone after are the people that we have got that cause

people's lives a misery. 14 arrests were made including one

in London and two of inmates already doing time at Bristol

Well, you are watching BBC Points West.

It is a rather grey Wednesday, but stay with us as there is more,

including: 25 years on, find out how plans for

a science park are becoming a reality.

We meet the boxer called Bang Bang Blackwell.

Stay with us. Last year, more than 1,300 elderly

people in the West were reported as abused, neglected or swindled. The

BBC has obtained the figures from local authorities who are trying to

highlight the issue. Here's our Health Correspondent, Matthew Hill,

Today has been dubbed national Elder Abuse Dayand to give you an

indication of how widespread the problem is here in the West, we've

been number crunching all the figures from local councils.

Overall there were 1,306 reports of safeguarding concerns for the over

65s to local authorities in the last year. More than half were

found to be true. 594 of them were categorised as Physical abuse. 402

were financial and 342 were about neglect. We've all been shocked by

the cases of abuse of elderly people in our care homes, most

recently at the hands of nurse manager, Rachel Baker. She is

serving ten years after the manslaughter of an elderly resident

at Parkfields Care home in Somerset. Concerns have also been raised

about a number of homes run by Mimosa Health Care in Bristol

including worries about the alleged neglect of a patient. They have

been told to improve by the regulator or face legal action. Now

we also have data from Bristol City Council revealed under the Freedom

of Information Act which shows that last year 654 vulnerable adults

were referred to Social Services because of suspected abuse, but

there was not a single serious case review. That's something which

review. That's something which concerns the charity, Elder Abuse.

That's a concerning statistic for Action on Eld abuse. Within child

pro tux, serious case reviews are are mandatory.

But we are concerned out of that many referrals, there hasn't been a

Serious Case Review because serious case reviews are about learning

lessons and ensuring there is better protection for other older

people. Bristol City Council says there

would only be a serious case review if there was a death caused by

institutional failure, but one thing all parties do agree on is

the need for people report concerns to councils and if that abuse could

be life threatening then the police should also be involved and on this

day, all believe more must be done A man has been jailed for two years

for his part in the violence in the Stokes Croft area of Bristol

earlier this year. Steven Farthing, who is 32, was charged with violent

disorder, burglary and possessing cannabis. So far 60 people have

been arrested in connection with the protests in April.

The Bristol DJ Roni Size was back in court today to challenge claims

by his former girlfriend that he threw her down the stairs of his

home in a jealous rage. 32-year-old Jane Andrews claims the musician

caused her to shatter her heel when he pushed her during an argument.

He denies grievous bodily harm and says she fell during a row. The

case at Bristol Crown Court continues.

A Wiltshire MP has called for a new Bank Holiday to be created to

remember the armed forces. Claire Perry, who represents Devizes,

today asked Parliament to make the Monday after Remembrance Day an

official public holiday. She says it would be the best way of

bringing people together to support the military. A big celebration was

held today at the Bristol and Bath Bath Science Park. Developers and

the three universities behind the scheme say the park will bring

6,000 hi-tech jobs into the region. The Bristol, and Bath region is a

very, very strong region economically and we are one of the

only science city that is doesn't have a science park and we have

needed one for a long time. These events are always a big deal

when a big construction project comes to an en. Scientists and

industrialists waited 25 years for this moment.

He. A guided tour for the physicist who has been dreaming of this place

since 1987. It is wonderful to see the flesh on

the bare bones on what I have been working on for many years.

Soon this room will be filled with brand-new hi-tech companies. The

decades of delay cost the West Country dear.

We have lost a lot of our industrial strength. We need to

have new industries and have employment for local people, but

also for the bright people people at the three three academic

institutions who migrate, often going overseas for employment.

This is the kind of company they are looking for.

This is some exciting data coming from our first patients in our

second trial for multiple sclerosis. It takes year to to develop a

treatment like there, but if they are right, they will change the

lives of MS sufferers and make money and employ a lot of people.

To get there, they don't only need science, they need investment.

Recently they raised 10 million euros, if the company is anymore

successful, it will be too big for the university.

We have grown from two people and we have now got 28 people working

for the company. As you continue to grow, you have got to have space to

do that in and clearly that needs to be in something like the science

park. It is not just small companies

coming to the park, yesterday this 9 tonne flat bed -- 92 tonne

flatbed truck left Filton head to go Emerson's Green. On board a

giant oven. Airbus use it to cook their carbon-fibre components

creating light aircraft. They brought it here, the new National

Research Centre on the other side of the Science Park.

Bristol is first class in research. It is a real academic centre for it,

but the UK is not great at at bridging the golf between academic

research and industry application. The NCC is here to fill that void.

It was all smiles today at the science park, but they know their

job starts now. Getting the brightest hi-tech entrepreneurs to

The science park 25 years in the making.

Now to the world of art. It has emerged that for the first

time in over 150 years the President of the Royal West of

England Art Academy has resigned. Simon Quadrat quit in protest at

the artistic direction the Academy was taking. Its new management team

has been trying to attract more visitors by showing works by

popular artists like Jack Vettriano and possibly Rolf Harris. But some

local painters claim it amounts to There is over 150 years of history

that's here, but but its the future that's at stake. The current

exhibition includes the giant Damian Hirst sculpture outside plus

work by painter Mary Fedden and sculptor Elisabeth Frink. But its

plans to bring in more popular artists and change the way they're

chosen that have angered many and caused president and painter Simon

Quadrat to resign.. It would be foolish to say the only way of

bringing people through the door is putting on populist art. Anything

like that that undermines the integrity of the art we show, where

the academy has no opportunity to say one way or the other, whether

they approve or disapprove of it, well these are not to the credit of

the current regime of this academy. In terms of the programme and

planning, we want to have a cross- fertilisation between audiences.

Somebody might see something like the Damien Hirst and hopefully

develop a bigger understanding of the visual arts.

The upcoming exhibition by Jack Vettriano has caused problems.

You'll probably recognise his pictures, they're hugely popular,

but not critically acclaimed and there was even talk of bringing in

Rolf Harris. The fascinating thing about art is that there is so much

agreement and disagreement about it. Often it is very subjective. What

one thinks is popular another person says, "That's not for me."

Of course, I understand that they can have different views and

different tastes. Some artists fear their views and

experience are being ignored at the academy, but the board and the

director say the majority of the public have never set foot through

the doors of the gallery so they have no modernise and change to

The Trowbridge boxer Nick Blackwell is confident he can spring a

surprise despite being the under dog for this weekend's fight. The

20-year-old made headlines last November when he became the

youngest winner of the English middleweight belt. This next big

opportunity has come quickly. He found a way to keep any nerves in

Far from the toil and sweat of the boxing ring, this is where Nick

Blackwell comes to relax. A keen fisherman since he was young,

it is the perfect way to clear his head days before the biggest fight

of his life. It takes your mind off it out in

the countryside and yeah, just think about fushing and just to

chill out. Especially when it is a big fight like this, but I deal

with them this the right way. If I win, it opens so many more doors

for me. Getting a British title chance

after just eight professional fights is virtually unheard of. The

man he is fighting Martin Murray, is eight years older than him and

had three times as many bouts, but it seems the Murray camp may have

underestimated their opponent's background.

They haven't seen a lot of me. They have been asking for tapes and we

haven't given them any. Their attitude is starting to change and

they are getting more worried and they have respect for me. I'm

trying to play with his head really and it is working.

Nick had the assistance of a top conditioning coach for the last six

months. He is around the same weight as his last fight, but it is

now muscle. We have got him leaner so he is

quicker when he is he is throwing punches. His hands are quicker than

they were previously. The whole package has improved another 20%

from where he was five or six months.

Commonwealth Intercontinental belts are on the line on Saturday.

A win would give Nick a world ranking and then he would be with

Now, in tonight's Twenty20 cricket, Gloucestershire are batting first

in their match against Kent. Somerset's game away to Essex

It has been billed as Bristol's flagship museum and on Friday the M

Shed will open. Some of the items on display have been donated by the

public. We will give you a sneak pre-view. First, a bike used in

Bristol and used by three The bike was made for me in 1946 by

my father who was a fitter at the Bristol Aeroplane Company. The bike

used to have ordinary forks, but because I kept on going over the

payments and breaking -- pavements and breaking the forks, my father

put the forks on for me. I remember riding it on the Downs with my

mother and father down Lady's Mile and place like that.

My son rode it afterwards when he was three. My grandson has just

ridden it. Very well done, Thomas, I am very proud of you.

Today was the first day that Thomas rode the bike and I was privileged

to see that. I am glad we have the tune to have

this day with them -- opportunity to have this day with them to be

honest. I decided to donate it for posterity and everybody can admire

British workmanship from the 19 hos. I am proud that my father made it

and it is there for everybody to Now we have seen pigs and lions if

Bath. Now life sized gorillas are to be place d around Bristol. The

trail is being set-up to celebrate Bristol Zoo's 175th birthday.

Businesses, charities and children are helping to hand pain the --

hand-paint the animals. Why gorillas? We were looking for a

project that would help celebrate the zoo's 175th anniversary. We

thought the gorillas are big creatures and they would make a big

impact. At the end of the trail, we will bring them back in and auction

them off at end of September and proceeds are going to gorilla

conservation projects and the Wallace and Gromit appeal.

There are 100 smaller gorillas. This one, King Alfred, was made in

Bristol. They will be on display from the start of July for ten

weeks. Don't they look great!

Let's move on to the weather. It has been really gloomy today. Not

has been really gloomy today. Not much rain, but just grey.

Well, we have had a fair few showers. We have had everything

this week. It has been a mixed bag and there is more unsettled weather

on the way. Today's unsettled weather was the legacy of several

systems. One that came in overnight. That was a Warm Front. Several more

behind and more tomorrow. The last one really, really dragging its

heels and bringing cloudy and wet weather on the way. We have cloudy

and wet weather tonight. If you are an amateur astronomer, there is a

possibility we might have just enough visibility at times to see

it. It is a significant one, but the moon is low in the sky at this

time of year and we have the showers to contend. For those 100

minutes while there is breaks in the sky, you might see T for tonne,

we see a continuation of the showers. A few breaks here and

there but a band of rain spreads in. Heavy at times, especially over

Somerset, but the cloud coverage means our overnight lows not

particularly low, typically between 10 and 12 Celsius. The rain lingers

on into the first part of Wednesday. Early doors, rather wet. Then

things brighten up, but behind that, more showers to come. The showers

tomorrow heavier than today. I wouldn't be surprised if we see

hail and hear a rumble or two of thunder. With a brisk westerly,

temperatures take ago tumble. It was warm and sticky today and we

got to 20 Celsius. Tomorrow, 16 and 17 Celsius at best.

The outlook after that, there is your stats again for tomorrow. The

sun index low despite the fact that we will be seeing sunny spells. The

grass pollen is low. After that, more low pressure coming in. We end

the week on a grey, gloomy, wet and windy note and rather chilly as

well on Friday. Saturday and Sunday, more showers

to come. Accompanied by once again a still south-westerly wind. The

showers should make a disappearance by Sunday. At least ending the

I am really excited about the lunar Thank you very much.

Get your telescope out. Hopefully we won't need to.