Combat climate change

Rother District Council leader Cllr Graham Gubby and Rother chief executive Derek Stevens, put their signatures to the Nottingham Declaration - a promise by local authorities to help protect the environment.

Authorities who sign up to the declaration, invented at a meeting hosted by Nottingham City Council, recognise the existence of climate change and the social and economic benefits which will come from tackling the problem.

Cllr Gubby and Mr Stevens were joined at the town hall by Rother officer, Scott Lavocah, who explained the action Rother will be taking.

He said: "It is voluntary and up to each local authority as to how they want to do it.

"Our approach is going to be to have our own internal action plan to reduce energy consumption.

"We will be looking as a whole at reducing our energy and water consumption and the waste we throw away. We had an energy audit by the Carbon Trust in 2004 and we have reductions suggested we are looking to implement. All of our electricity here comes from 100 per cent renewable sources.

"We are doing what we can to reduce our impact on the environment and we hope that other organisations can follow."