Green county councillor Jonathan Elmer is leading calls to declare an ecological emergency in County Durham.
Near the end of 2021, Jonathan addressed the full Council to highlight the ecological plight of the county.
As a result of his address, a report on the state of Durham’s biodiversity has now been prepared and agreed unanimously by the Council’s own Environmental and Sustainable Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee to go to the Cabinet for approval in April.
Jonathan said: “This is a huge achievement for Durham Greens. The local data shows that the ecology of the County is in a poor condition with many species on the decline and habitats under threat.
“This justifies the declaration of an ecological emergency by Durham County Council.
“Once the Cabinet has made the declaration of an ecological emergency it will lead to a cross Council review of service provision to identify opportunities for revising council practice to benefit ecosystems,
“Changes to service will form the basis of an ‘Ecological Emergency Response Plan’ and an officer position will be created to conduct the review and develop the response plan.”
See also Northern Echo article from September 2021.