During Monday nights Full Council meeting, Councillor David Selby brought forward a motion to the council surrounding the Climate & Ecological Emergency Bill, the motion was seconded by The Mayor Councillor Richard Williams.
The Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill, initially presented to Parliament in September 2020, now has the support of over 100 MPs across eight political parties and over 100 local Councils. The Bill asks the UK to take responsibility for its fair share of greenhouse gas emissions, to actively restore biodiverse habitats in the UK and to stop damage to the environment through the production, transportation, and disposal of the goods we consume.
Unless we drastically change course, the world is set to exceed the Paris Agreement’s safe 1.5°C limit. Pledges like the Paris Agreement and updated emissions targets are not legally binding. The gap between pledges and policies leaves the world on course for catastrophic warming of near 3%. As the 2018 report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) made clear, every half a degree makes a world of difference: severe climate impacts with 1.5°C of warming, such as extreme weather patterns causing flooding and heat waves, get significantly worse with 2°C. According to the IPCC, limiting heating to 1.5°C may still be possible with ambitious action from national and sub-national authorities, civil society, the private sector and local communities.
Cllr David Selby set out to encourage Newtown & Llanllwchaiarn Town Council to consider the importance of the recent Bill initially presented to Parliament in September 2020 and to look to formally show support to the Ecological & Emergency Bill.
Following healthy discussion and debate by the councillors, Newtown & Llanllwchaiarn Town Council have pledged and resolved to:
- Continue to demonstrate its commitment to protecting Newtown’s natural environment, biodiversity and wildlife
- Ask the Services Committee to review its Ground Maintenance procedures in conjunction with the Operations Manager
- Ask the Climate Emergency Lead Councillors to include these issues within their remit
- Inform the local media of this decision, including sharing information on social media
By bringing forward the motion for debate Cllr David Selby, seconded by Cllr Richard Williams, has re-highlighted the importance of the Council actively reviewing its procedures and making conscious efforts to demonstrate a commitment to protecting the biodiversity of Newtown and surrounding areas.
