Climate change emergency declared

Climate change emergency declared

Residents urged to get involved

The Council has declared a Climate Change and Environmental Emergency. Our aim is to be carbon neutral by 2025 and support communities and businesses across the Borough to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030.

Following the unanimous decision at its July meeting, the Council has formed an all party working group led by the Liberal Democrat Cabinet Lead for the Environment, Cllr Rupert Kyrle alongside the Independent Cllr Gin Tidridge and Conservative Cllr Margaret Atkinson.

The scale of the challenge means the Council will need to work together with local businesses and residents to help save our environment. Over the next few months, we’ll be developing a new strategy and action plan and

we would like your involvement in shaping this.

We are already ahead of the government’s 2020 target on greenhouse gas emissions, are one of Hampshire’s leading local authorities for levels of recycling (including the county’s only collection of food waste) and we have a substantial renewable energy portfolio, but realise there is more that can be done.

Cllr Kyrle said: “We recognise that this is a hugely important issue

facing not just our residents, but also our environment, our wildlife and the planet. As a council, we work hard to reduce the environmental impact of our day-to-day operations and to support our residents and businesses in being greener.”

See page 15 to find out how a local primary school are helping to protect the planet.

If you’d like to help shape our response to the climate and environment emergency, please complete a short online survey by following this link: eastleigh.gov.uk/cesurvey