Taking action on climate change in the Moorlands

Published on 4 October 2019

Addressing climate change is the defining issue of our time and the now is the defining moment to do something about it - so delegates at the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit were told.

This call to action echoes the increase in national awareness of the impact of climate change with more and more local councils, including Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, declaring climate emergencies and drawing up action plans.

The Council's Climate Change sub-committee met for the first time last week tasked with:

·         Working with partners across the District and the region to make Staffordshire Moorlands carbon neutral by 2030

·         Lobbying for the necessary guidance, powers and resources to meet this aim

·         Developing and implementing an effective, achievable and costed action plan

Councillor Joe Porter, Cabinet Member for Climate Change, said: "We had a very successful first meeting which, fittingly, took place during Climate Change Week and Recycle Week - events which really focussed attention on the issue and the things we can all do to address it.

"Climate change affects us all and I'm delighted that the Council is taking a lead by looking at the simple steps we can take in our day to day working lives and in our offices to reduce the impact - including stopping the use of single use plastic cups and turning monitors and lights off when they are not in use.

"On a wider level, we are working in partnership with experts, local businesses and the community to help us achieve our goal of being carbon neutral by 2030.

"In the last few days I have had very positive discussions with Staffordshire Wildlife Trust about a new partnership between our organisations to recover nature and leave our environment in a better state than we inherited.

"This productive meeting is just the latest in a series of meetings and discussions I am holding with groups and organisations across the district as we work up an achievable action plan to address the impact of climate change at a local level.