TOP of the agenda at the Launceston Community Network Panel on June 20 was the climate change emergency.
Mr Farmer said he believes carbon neutrality is achievable by 2030 as set out by Cornwall Council’s motion but says it is ‘a significant target to aim for’.
He told the group that to avoid exceeding the 1.5 degrees celsius target, global CO2 emissions need to drop by 45% by 2030. More than 113 parish and town councils, including Stoke Climsland, have declared a ‘climate emergency’. Mr Farmer commended Stoke Climsland for being among the first in Cornwall to push this agenda forward and was pleased to see others showing a keen interest with a number of parish councils due to discuss the topic in the near future.
He said: “So what does climate change mean for Cornwall? Well, with a shift in weather, like increased wind, rain and storm intensities, comes a shift in how it impacts us. Flooding and storm damage can tie up council resources.
“Issues that have less of a visible impact right now on communities include an increased risk of fire and drought and seasonal changes which could cause disruption to tourism — that would be a big one for Cornwall as its main industry is tourism.”
Mr Farmer gave a detailed break down of what work is being carried out in the development phase of the county’s plan to counter climate change.
He said: “Major work is being done in homes now with an increase in the use of renewable energy to phase out oil, gas and coal, but there is still much more work to be done in that sector. Car charging points are also important to look at as more people switch to electric cars. As a council we are committed to rolling this out when funding is available, which is increasing the more electric cars come to Cornwall. The only issue with funding is that you are usually tied to working with that provider.”
Mr Farmer said the council were working alongside many different stakeholders to get an overall perspective on what needs to change in the county: “We are talking with communities and looking at big stakeholders like the NHS and Police, organisations like that, to see what they can do and we want to get the support of councils like yourselves as you will have better local knowledge — you can also use funding available to you to influence green projects.”
Mr Farmer explained these steps were all part of the first phase: “We will look to drive bigger projects through the development phase and use our shared resources, values and goals to get the outcome we need.
“The team are in the process of preparing a report for cabinet in July to conclude the discovery phase to outline how far we have progressed and what we need to do to achieve carbon neutrality, the short and long term actions needed to be taken by council, what changes are needed from government to support these actions and how we can work together to provide a solution moving forward.”
Mr Farmer encouraged those present, and the wider community, to visit www.cornwall.gov.uk/climatechange to discover what Cornwall Council is doing towards solving the climate emergency and to make their views heard.
Network panel chair Neil Burden thanked Mr Farmer and invited Charlotte Barry from ‘Good Companions’ to build on what Mr Farmer had said on the important role town and parish councils can take in supporting Cornwall Council tackle climate change.
She said: “We do have a problem in Cornwall, this is not just about what is happening ‘over there’ anymore, it’s happening here — you may have noticed there aren’t butterflies on your buddleia any more, or many bees flying around. It is happening now and we need to be doing something about it. We only have 11 years left according to, I won’t use the word ‘experts’ but, people who know what they are talking about.”
She said it is important that town and parish councils support Cornwall Council’s agenda to tackle climate change but that they ‘don’t wait to be told what to do’. She commended Stoke Climsland for being the ‘only parish so far to have declared an emergency in Cornwall’.
She said there was support out there and gave details of projects town and parish councils could undertake, using Bodmin as an example.
“Other action groups are being set up for example in Bodmin they are looking at bits of ground space around the town that could potentially have vegetables grown on them that people can take and share. It is very important that we change our attitudes, encourage people to shop locally and I think it is worthwhile looking into setting up a community allotment site, if you don’t already have one. If a community is going to be resilient in the future we have to be thinking about how we can work collectively.”
She suggested a ‘climate change action group’ be set up, adding that it would be important for town and parish councils to engage with young people.
“People think parish and town councils are boring. We need to engage with younger people, that’s the way forward. I would suggest you set up a climate change action group, I think that is the way to go. You are busy as a council, we get that, so utilise the people in the town, get them to take the lead — we all need to work together!”
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