Dorset Council’s (DC) Climate Change Executive Advisory Panel met on Friday 13 September to listen to members from Extinction Rebellion and discuss the Council’s progress with their plans to tackle climate change.
The panel, made up of councillors from across the political divide, is responsible for working with officers to gather information and make recommendations on how the Council can help fight against climate change and support communities to do the same.
Friday afternoon’s session began with Cllr Ray Bryan reminding the panel of its role and how it fits into the council’s democratic process, making recommendations to Dorset Council’s Cabinet.
Next was an emotive and well-received presentation from members of Extinction Rebellion, urging that action be taken to overcome the public’s collective denial of the seriousness of climate change and get to grips with the problem. They also outlined the catastrophic consequences of failing to act and provided broad ideas for how Dorset can play its part.
The panel then discussed Dorset Council’s role in supporting town and parish councils who have declared their own climate emergencies and wish to reduce their carbon footprint. Plans are being drawn up for DC councillors and officers to meet with these councils and further promote the good work of the Low Carbon Dorset programme, which has already helped many public sector organisations.
Members of Dorset Council’s Climate Change Technical Officers group then presented a summary of their work so far, including feedback on the ideas and priorities of the panel itself. Common themes have been gathered under five key areas: Buildings, Waste & Energy, Leadership & Influence, Transport, and the Natural Environment.
Officers also commented on the Friends of the Earth 33 Actions Local Authorities Can Take on Climate Change paper, outlining what Dorset Council is already doing and what other actions could potentially be investigated and developed.
The panel session closed with councillors discussing the importance of continued input from community groups and organisations, with a focus on engaging with young people. There was discussion of an upcoming Inquiry Day to be held in late November, inviting members of the public to present their ideas for fighting climate change directly to the panel. Further details on how people can get involved will be publicised in due course.
Members also made it clear that the work of the group needs to be collated and published online so the public can see what is happening.
Cllr Ray Bryan, panel chairman and Cabinet Member for Highways, Travel and Environment, said:
“I’m really pleased with the progress being made by both the panel and our Technical Officers group. Despite the sheer scale of the challenge ahead of us, we’re gathering real momentum and I’m pleased that we’ll be getting some information regarding our progress on the website soon.
I’d like to thank Extinction Rebellion for coming in to speak to us and we’re really looking forward to inviting other organisations and individuals to present their ideas and priorities to the panel to help us develop our approach. We’re especially keen to engage with local young people and are now looking at ways to get them involved in helping us draw up our climate change mitigation plans.
Climate change will affect all of us in some way in the future. Dorset Council has an important role to play in helping fight against this existential threat and we have a responsibility to support our residents and communities to do the same.”
This press release suggests that the Dorset Council is doing a lot of talking, but not taking any action on this vital issue. Very disappointing 5 months after an EMERGENCY was announced. Seems the Council is using a different definition of the word emergency than is normal.
Well said.
I find it interesting that the five key areas listed for potential action does not include divestment of invested council funds, and would like to know why this appears not to have been considered.
We’re especially keen to engage with local young people and are now looking at ways to get them involved in helping us draw up our climate change mitigation plans.
Do these “young people” even know how to draw up a climate change mitigation plan or even know what that even means?
I doubt even Extinction Rebelion does in a local setting, perhaps at over arching Governmental level covering emission testing & tax breaks for electric or Hydrogen powered cars perhaps.
It is no good just trying to limit co2 emissions, without limiting the phenominal explosion in population and the escape of the insulation gas used in high voltage applications including Wind Turbines. This gas stays once escaped, stays in the atmosphere for over 1000 years adding to global warming unlike CO2 which can be captured by trees and broken down into Oxygen and Carbon.
Extinction rebellion.
Why is the council meeting with knoen criminals who are happy to disrupt our way of life? The council would do better yo put their efforts into caring for the aged and stopping anti social behaviour.
Dorset’s action is a drop inthe ocean. Stop Russia, China,India and Brazil ruining the planet and the job will be done.
I feel very frustrated over the speed at which change is happening to reduce our carbon footprint. Why can’t Dorset be an early adopter and introduce solar powered buses, limit traffic flow through the main towns and convert some of the roads with traffic free, cycle and walking routes? Have subscription electric bike and electric scooter schemes been considered? We are blessed with a good climate. It should be possible to get people out of their cars. Dorset County Show was packed with local food producers. But where are they now? Are high business rates making it impossible for them to attend regular farmers markets throughout the county. This would surely have an impact on transport and cut down our total reliance on the national supermarket chains which churn out so much single use plastic. Has the council any plans to address the single use plastic production by supermarkets (e.g. packaged fruit & veg) and other national traders throughout the county?
Get people out of their cars and onto their bikes by investing in safe cycle lanes. Send a delegation to the Netherlands to see what a difference cycling makes to health and climate.
What an utter waste of Officer and Member time and money. Climate Emergency huh? If you want to reduce the effects of humanity on the earth quite simply you need to substantially reduce (or ideally eliminate) net population growth, growth which is most certainly not happening in the UK. Not much Dorset Council can do about that I would suggest. Squandering of public funds just like all the other ‘flavour of the month’ initiatives which have come and gone in Local Government in the last 40 years. Concentrate on local services not issues well out of your hands and capabilities!
As Ralph Watts has already commented, what does this actually tell us is being done. This piece just describes presentation and some talking. Don’t be fooled by mention of Low Carbon Dorset, this programme has been running for some time, is enabled by European funding and was pulled together by a poorly resourced Sustainability Team (now one full time, DC funded member of staff). Low Carbon Dorset is not a response to the discussions described in this piece.
So what, with new impetus and new resource is actually being done?
I would like to question if this panel accept that the greatest change has to be to stop building on Green Belt land. Existing trees on this land must be protected and the land used for more tree planting.
Much of the Green Belt land considered for development in the East of Dorset is flood plain and with the threat of rising water levels and more flood events this land is vital run off to protect existing housing and infrastructure.
If anyone is in doubt about this I suggest they watch Margaret Thatchers speech on Climate Change and the steps needed to halt it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fys5Z63xCvA
Whilst it’s admirable that the council itself adopts climate friendly initiatives this is to say the least a drop in the ocean. They must focus on what natural environment we have left