The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change is unequivocal that “climate change is real and human activities are the main cause.”
Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council declared a climate change emergency in June 2019. The possible local implications for Welwyn Hatfield include heat, drought, flooding, impact on ecosystems and biodiversity, water supply, river quality, soil quality, agriculture, air pollution, pests, diseases and invasive species.
The purpose of this strategy is to introduce the concept of climate change and the various international agreements and national policies that exist to tackle it, before focusing on the practical things that the Council and its partners can do at a county and borough level: the “think global, act local” mantra.
The Council has set itself five ambitious and strategic objectives:
1. To reduce carbon emissions from our own estate and operations to net zero by 2030.
2. To comply with statutory obligations to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
3. To work with, support, encourage and engage residents, communities, businesses and other partners in initiatives to reduce carbon emissions.
4. To embed climate change mitigation and adaptation into our plans, strategies and policies.
5. To reduce carbon emissions across the borough by promoting energy efficiency measures, sustainable construction, renewable energy, sustainable transport and behavioural change.
Our climate change strategy can be found here:
Climate Change Strategy