Warwickshire County Council Working across Boundaries and Sectors
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Transcript of Warwickshire County Council Working across Boundaries and Sectors
Warwickshire County Council
Warwickshire County Council
Working across Boundaries and Sectors
Councillor Alan Cockburn
Deputy Leader of Warwickshire County Council
With Assistance from Dave Lowe
Warwickshire County Council
Proud History
• In 1974 WCC established the Warwickshire Biological Record Centre
• 5 Country Parks & 3 Greenways on 1,500 acres accessed by over 800,000 people each year
• In 1994 Established an Ecology Unit• Placed solar panels on its Barrack Street building• 2014 Piloting national Biodiversity Offsetting
initiative
Warwickshire County Council
Biodiversity Duty
Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006
Section 40 Duty to conserve biodiversity
“Every public authority must, in exercising its functions, have regard, so far as is consistent with the proper exercise of those
functions, to the purpose of conserving biodiversity.”
Warwickshire County Council
Warwickshire County Council
Biodiversity StrategyAims and Objectives
“To work with partners to protect and enhance existing and future wildlife populations and habitats in Warwickshire, within a resilient landscape”
Our Strategy to achieve this aim is to increase the amount of land and buildings positively managed for biodiversity, averting local extinction of species and reducing the number of species on the danger list.
Warwickshire County Council
The Council grouped the 12 Government ‘Aspects where LA’s should integrate biodiversity’ into 6 key strands and set objectives:
Data and information – To obtain, manage, maintain and disseminate environmental data to inform decision-making and monitor changes.
Regulation– To ensure that the Council considers biodiversity in exercising all of its statutory regulatory functions
Management of our own Estate – To improve the management of all current and future council owned land and buildings with regard to biodiversity.
Education and Learning – To build upon existing opportunities for both formal and informal learning with regard to the natural world.
Community Leadership – To act as an exemplar to others in incorporating biodiversity into strategies and within partnership working by promoting best practice for the protection of Warwickshire’s biodiversity.
Reporting and Review – To establish and maintain an internal reporting mechanism to inform and report on how WCC is actively considering biodiversity.
Biodiversity Strategy
Warwickshire County Council
Biodiversity Strategy
Warwickshire County Council
Waste Prevention / Reuse Schemes introduced
New re-use shops installed at the HWRCsLove Food, Hate WasteSupport to open new reuse warehousesHome Composting/Master Composter SchemeMaster Gardener SchemeHome Chipping serviceJunk MailReal Nappies
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Over 26,000 compost bins sold since 200517% households compostingSaving over 5100 tonnes of waste per year going to landfill30 Master Composters trained and activeOver 200 community events attended
Home Composting
Warwickshire County Council
Trading Standards ServiceAnimal Health Officers attend livestock markets, farms and shows ensuring the welfare of animals. provides consumer confidence in the foodallows rural businesses to thrive and grow
Provides advice and guidance to Livestock farms claiming Single Payment Scheme helping them comply with cross compliance inspections.helps farmers with the upkeep of the countrysideenables the community to enjoy all of its benefits.
Warwickshire County Council
Sub-regional GI StrategyVisionA diverse and well-managed Warwickshire, Coventry and Solihull Green Infrastructure network that underpins the quality of life for communities. This will be the result of a well-connected, accessible and biodiversity resilient landscape, supporting economic growth, social health and climate change adaptation.
The strategy covers the disciplines of
•Landscape•Biodiversity•Accessibility
Warwickshire County Council
Biodiversity OffsettingThe Warwickshire, Coventry and Solihull sub-region was chosen as one of the 6 national pilot areas to trial biodiversity offsetting for 2 years. (April 2012 to March 2014).
Biodiversity offsetting is where conservation activities deliver biodiversity benefits in compensation for biodiversity loss, in a measurable way. It has the potential to deliver effective, widespread biodiversity gain.
Warwickshire County Council
WCC Flood Risk Management• Flood risk management schemes seeking to work with natural processes
wherever possible.• Looking for opportunities for biodiversity enhancement as part of flood
risk management schemes.• Seeking to work in partnership with the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust and
Woodlands for Water project to identify mutual wins for flood risk management and biodiversity.
• Investigating options for a catchment management pilot study working with the Environment Agency.
• Encouraging above-the-ground sustainable drainage on new developments.• Working closely with the NFU to try to improve land management for
flood risk management purposes while keeping biodiversity in view (for example, ditch clearance outside the nesting season).
Warwickshire County Council
Environmental ManagementWCC is certified to the international environmental management system standard ISO 14001 as an auditable way of reducing risks and implementing improvements: •Prevent pollution •Reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill•Reduce energy/fuel use
Examples of initiatives are:-•Registration as a centre to deliver Waste Smart course•Corporate recycling scheme in place•Chemical-free cleaning in corporate buildings•Solar PV on suitable buildings•Energy efficient lighting
Warwickshire County Council
Campaign for the Farmed Environment (CFE)
The Council has attended the Warwickshire pilot area steering group since its inception in 2009:
The Campaign for the Farmed Environment (CFE) is encouraging farmers and land managers across England to protect and enhance the environmental value of farmland, through measures that sit alongside productive agriculture.
Warwickshire County Council
Marsh Christian Awards 2013Promotion of Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
Awarded to Warwickshire County Council for:•Ecology Unit being proactive in Butterfly Conservation and biological record exchange projects
•Country Parks being proactive in the Silver-washed Fritillary Princethorpe Woodlands Project 26 breeding sites
•Highways being proactive in the SITA Small Blue project where at Southam Bypass
•Country Parks and some WCC Farms are inHigher Level Stewardships
•Ecology Unit involving Warks Butterfly Conservationin planning decisions and compensation schemes
Warwickshire County Council
“We think that Warwickshire County Council are doing a tremendous job, and are extremely worthy winners of this award. We want to build upon Warwickshire's exemplar work by spreading their good practice to other regions.”
Marsh Christian Awards 2013Promotion of Lepidoptera (Butterflies and Moths)
David Dennis's(Chair of Butterfly Conservation)
Clearance and wild strawberry planting, at Paget’s Pool (Ryton)
Warwickshire County Council
High Speed Train (HS2)• Listening to Local Action Groups and Parish Councils
• WCC to scrutinise Heritage Memorandum and Environmental Statements being produced by HS2
• HS2 close to several Listed Buildings
• Mitigation measures required to reduce severed wildlife corridors
• WCC also Chairs the Line-wide Ecology Technical Group
Warwickshire County Council
plus more “Green” Tunnels and Bridges to increase provision of wildlife corridors
HS propose the use of retaining walls at South Cubbington Wood; WCC is supportive of a bored tunnel or at least a Green Tunnel
Route in typical cutting showing Fencing and electrification
“Features such as the use of green bridges, tunnels, ‘buffering’ habitats and green boundary features such as hedges and trees must be included in the design to make the design more environmentally and wildlife friendly,”
High Speed Train (HS2)
Warwickshire County Council
Local Enterprise Partnership
The LEP acknowledges the importance of the environment in their Strategic Economic Plan:CWLEP recognises that green infrastructure (GI) and the historic environment play important roles in attracting and retaining industry and labour within the area and can provide many other social, economic and environmental benefits and Tourism opportunities. The LEP will promote sustainable development in both the existing sites and future employment and residential developments.
Warwickshire County Council
Working across Boundaries and Sectors
Thank you for listening
blackthorn planting for brown hairstreaks, at Ryton Pools