Declaring a Climate Emergency in Derbyshire

Nearly 40 people from across the county, from New Mills to Melbourne, met in Derby last month to launch Derbyshire Climate Coalition. People came together desperate to get action to address the Climate Emergency which is threatening the whole world.  They are calling for local councils to take a lead and are asking all councils in Derbyshire to develop plans to make their local areas ‘net zero carbon’ by 2030.

Locally Wirksworth Town Council is leading the way, having formally declared a climate emergency recently. So far nearly 40 councils across the UK have declared an emergency.

The first step is to get political support for making a council area carbon neutral. The next step is to develop a carbon budget and action plan. The group hopes to get a motion debated by Derbyshire County Council (and Derby City Council) and win support for a declaration before focussing on district councils

Peter Robinson of Derby Climate Coalition said, ‘With CO2 levels now at over 412 parts per million – the highest CO2 level for 35 million years – there is a climate emergency now. Many other areas are already taking action including Nottingham, Leicester, Sheffield and Bristol. Derby and Derbyshire must take action too. We were really encouraged by the enthusiasm from people from all parts of Derbyshire. We encourage everyone who wants action in their area to get in touch and join us.”

If anyone is interested in joining or helping with the campaign please contact Lisa at transitionchesterfield@yahoo.co.uk
 
www.facebook.com/groups/DerbyshireClimateCoalition