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Climate change target for Local Plan

Cllr Swift

The Local Plan may include a tough new target to tackle climate change if it is agreed by Calderdale Council’s Cabinet at a meeting on Monday 30 September 2019.

The Council’s Climate Change Working Party has made the recommendation to include a local carbon reduction target within the Local Plan at its inaugural meeting on 10 July 2019.

Leader of Calderdale Council, Cllr Tim Swift said:

“The Council declared a climate emergency in January 2019.  This is the greatest threat that our communities face and it’s our responsibility to make sure that all our decisions consider the potential impact which they may have on the environment.

“We know Calderdale needs more homes and more employment opportunities in line with the predicted increase in our population and to deliver our ambitions for economic growth over the next 15 years.

“The Local Plan gives us the opportunity to manage this development to reduce the environmental impact and to protect the green spaces which are so vital for our communities and for future generations.”

The Local Plan and its Climate Change chapter in particular already  covers the use of renewable and low carbon energy within development sites and a range of other stringent environmental requirements across the sustainability agenda.

Calderdale’s Local Plan was submitted to the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government on 11 January 2019 and is now being examined by an independent Planning Inspector.

Any significant changes to the Local Plan can only be made by the Inspector; however the Council is able to raise potential changes during the examination process.

The Climate Change Working Party will request that the Cabinet asks the Inspector to update the Climate Change chapter of the Local Plan to include a commitment within Calderdale to reduce greenhouse gases by 60% to 2032 compared to levels in 2005.

This would then be discussed with the Inspector during the examination hearings.

The Cabinet will consider the request at a meeting at Halifax Town Hall on Monday 30 September 2019, starting at 6pm.

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