First virtual Chichester climate change conference hailed a success

Over the two hours last Friday (September 4), residents fired off a number of questions at the six-member panel.

These were Chichester MP Gillian Keegan, West Sussex County Council’s cabinet member for environment Deborah Urquhart, Penny Plant, Chichester District Council’s cabinet member for environment, Richard Craven, Chichester Harbour Conservancy director, Nick Gray, area flood and coastal risk manager at the Environment Agency, and Ian Phillips, chair of the South Downs National Park Authority.

Mrs Keegan said: “There’s a lot we can do here in Chichester. I wanted to start the discussion and continue the momentum and focus on locally what we can do.”

The conference heard how CDC is due to launch a programme offering households the chance to bulk buy solar panels for their roofs. A green recovery fund would be available to boost energy efficiency in the least efficient homes.

The district council is also creating a citizens’ jury, which will be asked to make recommendations on climate change, working groups made up of different organisations to help develop greenhouse gas mitigation projects and a public behaviour change campaign.

Asked about household waste collection, Mrs Plant said any major service changes would be made if and when separate food waste collections are introduced.

She added: “We are bringing the people and organisations together to work out how they want to reduce emissions in their own homes and workplaces and every other aspect of their lives.”

The panel heard about the national park’s plans to improve green infrastructure through a people and nature network, with significant tree planting planned in the South Downs, Chichester Harbour and both Goodwood and Cowdray estates.

Mr Phillips mentioned DEFRA’s consultation on a tree strategy and hoped the emerging agriculture bill would provide support for farmers to plant new trees.

Intertidal habitats were also mentioned as good carbon sinks with Chichester Harbour looking to create new salt marsh.

The importance of introducing more electric vehicles was stressed by several speakers and Mrs Urquhart said the county council could also look at hydrogen powered vehicles in the future.

Speakers also talked of the need to encourage more cycling and walking as well as a modal shift away from cars.

As well as investment on solar PV panels, plans in the pipeline to extend the Rampion Wind Farm were also mentioned.

The county council has already completed solar farms at Tangmere and Westhampnett, while Mrs Urquhart said Covid had given them insight in how work might look differently in the future, reducing a reliance on buildings and travel.

PV panels have also been installed at a number of schools across West Sussex.

Meanwhile CDC has installed LED lighting in its main offices and could do the same in its other buildings and car parks.

One question asked why money was due to be spent on the A27 when the national goal was to reduce emissions, with vehicles being a significant polluter.

Mrs Urquhart said they still needed roads to get goods and services around the country, foods to supermarkets and online deliveries to people’s homes.

She added: “Once we are on ultra low emission vehicles then roads are not going to be a problem, especially when all these are self-drivable.

“It’s a balance but we currently do need roads.”

The panel was asked about whether developments should be building up and not out.

Mrs Plant replied: “It would be a great shame to have Soviet-style tower blocks in our city. It would be a great shame and it would change it completely.

“It’s a balance. We do not want all our greenfields taken up but we do not want tower blocks.”

Afterwards Mrs Keegan said: “This conference was a fantastic opportunity for local stakeholders responsible for tackling climate change and improving our environment to share their work and explain the key challenges and priorities ahead. To reach our national goal of net-carbon zero by 2050, or sooner, we need to be working together at every level.

“Moving forward we will continue to work together to form a forward programme of meetings and events to track progress and develop detailed plans of key local issues to push this agenda forward.”

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