Agenda item

Report of the Director - Neighbourhoods

The Senior Ecology and Sustainability Officer presented the report of the Director – Neighbourhoods and delivered a presentation on the Council’s Environment Policy for the period 2023-2028.

The Group were asked to consider whether the updated Environment Policy meets the overarching aims of the Council in relation to the environment in which it operates. 

The Senior Ecology and Sustainability Officer explained that the Environment is one of the Council’s strategic priorities and as an employer and a provider of services, the Council needs to ensure its activities do not harm, but positively enhance the environment and by adopting the Environment Policy as set out in the report it will assist in the direction of other policies, procedures and working practices, including the influence we can have on the community through our own actions.

The Group were reminded of the Council’s commitments 1 -7 as follows:

1.     Environmental Improvement

2.     Legislation

3.     Energy and Water

4.     Waste Management and Recycling

5.     Environment Protection

6.     Use of Materials

7.     Planning and Transportation

With two additional commitments derived from Motions passed at Council:

8.     Natural Environment

9.     Climate Change

The Senior Ecology and Sustainability Officer explained that delivery of the policy would be various officers and Council services, including Planning Policy, Planning and Growth, Environmental Health, Property Services and Streetwise.

Members expressed how pleased they were to see the additional commitments and acknowledged the Council has a legal duty and moral responsibility to protect the environment now and for future communities.

Councillor Mallender asked a specific question in relation to a baseline for where the Council needs to be looking to make improvements and whether there were any records of animal habitats that have been affected or destroyed due to environmental changes, (providing the absence of hedgehogs in urban areas as an example). The Senior Ecology and Sustainability Officer informed the Group that there are only limited historical records on animals, with wild birds better recorded, and that the baseline would need to be developed.

Councillor Mallender in response expressed this gives the Council a great opportunity for increasing biodiversity by reintroducing absent or declining species.

Councillor Mallender suggested ecological surveys be done on areas before any development starts and prevent land from purposefully being degraded for development. Councillor Mallender requested that developers should be discouraged from putting up solid fencing and encouraged to replace marked boundaries with new hedgerows. The Senior Ecology and Sustainability Officer explained that in relation to land being degraded for future development the Council can use aerial photography from 2022 as a baseline.

The Group also noted the Council’s commitment to increase hedgerows across the Borough by 40%.

Councillor Jones raised concerns in relation to the development at Sharphill, where subsoil/topsoil has been removed for landscaping and tree planting, thus removing the health of the original habitats of birds, insects and small animals. The Senior Ecology and Sustainability Officer advised that there was no legislation in place ensuring and improvement of biodiversity when Sharphill was granted planning, going forward biodiversity checks will be made prior to development with follow on checks during and after development has commenced. In addition, under new legislation and planning policies, biodiversity will be supported by conditions imposed on developers at the planning stage. It was noted that under new legislation developers have to demonstrate biodiversity net gains to the planning authority.

The Group questioned, how would Officers/Councillors know if these policies were being met and where is the detail of each policy and how are they measured. The Communities Manager explained that the Environment Policy is the umbrella policy, and any detail would be picked up by other policies sitting within it.

The Group agreed this was a starting point that requires the support and commitment of developers and communities too and that the Council can only encourage and educate communities to do their bit to improve and preserve the environment in which they live now and for future generations.

It was RESOLVED that the Communities Scrutiny Group:

a)    Reviewed the updated draft Environment Policy

b)    Made suggestions to officers where the draft Policy does not yet meet the needs of the Council

c)     Recommends the Council adopts the updated Environment Policy