Decision details

1)    That with regards to Climate Emergency, Cabinet;

(i)            notes the content of this report and progress made to date regarding the Council's Climate Emergency Declaration in accordance with the Council resolution dated 16 January 2019, including progress on; publicising the Climate Emergency declaration, the work undertaken regarding the environmental audit of Kirklees Council, the reporting on progress on improving our recycling rate, the setting up of a Councillor Working Party, the reporting of agreement on protocols regarding Environmental Impact of new Council policy and the reporting of progress on collaboration with other Local and Regional authorities on emission reduction projects as appropriate

(ii)          approves the actions as set out at section 5 of the considered report, which will form 'Phase 1'of the climate emergency work programme, and agrees that the work will commence immediately

(iii)         pursuant to (ii) above, delegates authority for the development and resourcing of further phases of the climate change emergency work programme to the Strategic Director (Economy and Infrastructure), in conjunction with the Cabinet Portfolio Holders for Greener Kirklees, and Culture and Environment

(iv)         agrees to prioritise the budget setting requirements deriving from both the Climate Emergency and Air Quality proposals in this report as part of the budget setting process for Council to consider in February 2020

2)    That with regards to Air Quality, Cabinet;

(i)            notes the content of the report, approves the Kirklees Council Air Quality Action Plan and resolves that the Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Greener Kirklees and the Strategic Director (Economy and Infrastructure) jointly sign Kirklees Council Air Quality Action Plan

(ii)          delegates authority to Service Director (Environment) to make

                           arrangements for the signed and approved

                            ‘Kirklees Council Air Quality Action Plan’ to be sent

                            to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural

                            Affairs (DEFRA) for assessment

(iii)         delegates authority to Service Director (Environment) in consultation with Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Greener Kirklees to amend the ‘Kirklees Council Air Quality Action Plan’, if upon assessment by Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs the assessment requires the action plan to be amended

(iv)         delegates authority to Head of Public Protection in consultation with Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Greener Kirklees to make future amendments or updates to the Action Plan as part of on-going review of air quality and the actions Kirklees Council is taking, and that updates to the Action Plan be reported to DEFRA through Annual Status Reporting.

(v)          delegates authority to Head of Public Protection to make arrangements for the approved action plan and any future amendments to the approved action plan to be published on the Council’s Website

(vi)         notes the content of the report and approves the Kirklees Council Air Quality Strategy

(vii)        delegates authority to Service Director (Environment) to publish

                           the aforementioned strategy on the Council’s

                           Website

(viii)      delegates authority to Service Director (Environment) in consultation with the Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Greener Kirklees to make future changes to the Air Quality Strategy and decisions in respect of the strategy

(ix)         notes the contents of the report and that the progress on the commitments within the Air Quality Action Plan will be reported each year to the Department of Environment and Rural Affairs through the publication of the Annual Status Report.

3)    That Officers be requested to report to future meetings of Cabinet with detailed proposals in relation to (i) step-change in electric vehicle charging infrastructure (ii) a further increase in the Council’s electric vehicle fleet and (iii) encouraging the use of electric and low-emission vehicles

4)    That the report and resolutions of this meeting be referred to the meeting of Council on 13 November 2019, for information