24 May Essex launches Climate Focus Area to accelerate the journey to net zero
Another major environmental project aimed at improving the county’s resilience to climate change has been unveiled by Essex County Council. The project aims to enhance biodiversity, improve carbon capture and strengthen natural habitats by 2030.
The creation of a ‘Climate Focus Area’ covering almost a third of the county, cutting through the districts of Maldon, Colchester Tendring, Braintree and Uttlesford, focuses on ‘green infrastructure’ and will look at ways of changing land use to create better natural ecosystems for people, plants and animals and address some of the climate issues that we face.
Currently, at the centre of the effort to improve biodiversity is the development of Local Nature Plans in parishes across the county. Three parishes – Wivenhoe, Tiptree and Stisted – will be the first to develop their plans following a series of ‘Talking About Nature’ workshops, which kicked off with Wivenhoe and Stisted Saturday 13 and Sunday 14 May, followed by Tiptree on Saturday 20 May.
Cllr Peter Schwier, Essex County Council Climate Czar, who attended the workshop in Wivenhoe said: “These workshops are a great example of how local Essex residents can get directly involved in the decision-making process and help us fight climate change and improve the quality of their local environment. The energy in the room during the workshop was fantastic to see and I was really impressed to learn how much is already being done across the town, paired with the desire to still do more.
“I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the opinions of local residents and experts on how we can work together to improve Wivenhoe’s natural environment and I’m really excited to see the results in the Local Nature Plan, as well as Stisted’s and Tiptree’s.
“This project will directly benefit residents in these areas by making where they live greener and healthier. With this success we look forward to rolling out the project across the Climate Focus Area, and the rest of Essex”
What will happen in the Climate Focus Area?
Creating a Climate Focus Area allows Essex County Council and partners to accelerate pilot projects to test and learn how better habitats and climate change resilience can be achieved through local partnerships. The council will facilitate the roll out of the successes of the project to the wider county and share learnings beyond its borders to support the UK drive toward net zero.
By working with businesses, residents, farmers and landowners, local councils and community groups in the designated Climate Focus Area, the council will:
Support communities to deliver new planting programmes to improve the natural environment for plants and animals.
Work with farmers to change how some agricultural land is used and managed to improve biodiversity, make farming more sustainable and improve the land to make it more resistant to extreme weather caused by climate change.
Liaise with landowners to manage waterways and wetlands to create better habitats, improve carbon capture and provide flood defences.
What will the Climate Focus Area aim to deliver?
9.2m trees and hedgerows planted by 2030 covering the equivalent of more than 5,000 football pitches of land, including agro-forestry (tree or hedge planting and farming on the same land).
100% of farmland to adopt sustainable farming practices resulting in improved soil quality which is better for the future of food production and flooding prevention, better biodiversity, more tree cover and improved water quality in local rivers and streams.
30% of land cover to be managed as Natural Green Infrastructure – natural or semi-natural environments which deliver and support ecosystems, biodiversity and carbon capture.
Every parish to have a local nature plan which supports ecosystems, biodiversity and carbon capture in their local area.
If we succeed, the Climate Focus Area will be net zero by 2046 in line with the aim of achieving net zero emissions from land use in Essex by 2050.
Cllr Peter Schwier, added: “Essex has comparatively little land given over to trees and hedgerows compared to the rest of the UK. By setting aside space for natural ecosystems to re-establish themselves we can improve biodiversity, increase carbon capture and make sure the land is more resilient to climate change. We all have a part to play in this.
“By working with farmers and landowners, residents, councils and housebuilders we can improve local environments for the benefit of everyone. Creating a pilot area within the county will allow us to quickly roll out the successes from what we learn in the coming months and years.”
How can residents get involved?
The workshops in Wivenhoe, Stisted and Tiptree gave residents the opportunity to have their say on what should happen in their local area to support the aims of the CFA, including the identification of land which can be used to improve biodiversity, capture carbon and improve local climate change resilience.
These discussions will inform a Local Nature Plan developed by each parish or town council, detailing the outcomes of the workshop alongside recommendations and priorities.
The sessions are being delivered in partnership with the public participation charity Involve as well as the town and parish councils.
Kathryn Hughes, a member of Climate and Nature for Stisted said “Thank you all so much for a great workshop. It was lovely to see the knowledge, enthusiasm and depth of feeling of the facilitators, participants and speakers. We really look forward to seeing the report and implementing the ideas.”
