1 August 2019
Press release
Wealden Green Party [1]
1 August 2019
Contact: media@wealden.greenparty.org.uk
Photo available: Green Party District Councillors Patricia Patterson-Vanegas and Keith Obbard on Ashdown Forest, where vulnerable habitats are under threat from the climate crisis.
GREEN PARTY LAUNCH PETITION CALLING ON EAST SUSSEX COUNTY COUNCIL TO DECLARE CLIMATE EMERGENCY
Petition supported by Green Parties across East Sussex
This week Wealden Green Party joined Green Parties throughout East Sussex in calling on East Sussex County Council (ESCC) to declare a climate emergency and act urgently to reduce greenhouse emissions. They are asking for a target of zero emissions by 2030, following the recommendations of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) [2]. Together, the local Green Parties invite people working or living in East Sussex to sign a petition to ESCC to take immediate action in this crisis.
Earlier in July, Wealden Green Party played a key role in helping Wealden District Council pass a climate emergency motion [3] and similar motions have been passed by Lewes, Eastbourne and Hastings councils.
East Sussex County Council meets on October 15 in Lewes and the local Green Parties will be campaigning hard for it not only to declare a climate emergency but also to take seriously the IPCC’s report and aim for zero greenhouse emissions by 2030.
Wealden Green councillor Patricia Patterson-Vanegas said: “Our local area is at risk from the effects of climate and ecological degradation. Changes in world ecosystems are not only affecting the Amazon rainforest and the coral reefs, they are also changing the unique area in which we live. For example, 47 plant species have been lost from the Ashdown Forest in the last hundred years and once common species such as water voles have declined by over 90% in Sussex, whilst nightingales and turtle doves once found all over the county are now highly endangered, with over 90% decline in their populations since the 1960s
The petition is supported by Hastings, Lewes, Rother and Wealden Green Party groups. Amongst other points, it calls on ESCC to set a target for East Sussex to be carbon neutral by 2030 and to put a plan in place within six months to achieve this. It also asks ESCC to convene countywide citizens’ assemblies on the climate crisis, as well as to revise the transport strategy to reduce car use and put walking, cycling and sustainable transport at the centre of future plans for the county.
The petition can be signed by anyone who lives or works in East Sussex. It can be found at https://tinyurl.com/climateeastsussex
Notes:
[1] https://wealden.greenparty.org.uk
[3] https://wealden.greenparty.org.uk/campaigns.html
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