Ecological emergency could be declared in Oxford

On Monday, October 3, Oxford City Council will debate a motion which would see the council declare an ecological emergency and take a series of significant steps to protect biodiversity in the city.

The motion has been submitted by Green Party councillors Lucy pegg and Rosie Rawle.

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If passed, the motion would see the council declare an ecological emergency and publicly recognise that nature is declining faster than at any previous time.

The motion would also commit to giving nature recovery a central place in all of the council’s strategic plans and to devising an action plan to tackle the ecological emergency.

That plan would ensure 30 per cent of land owned or managed by the city council is protected for nature by 2030, in line with national and international commitments to biodiversity.

It would also strive to ensure that everyone living in Oxford has doorstep access to nature.

Currently the independent Climate Scorecard website scores Oxford City Council zero out of four for its action on the ecological emergency.

Deputy leader of the Green Party group Lucy Pegg said: “We are living through nothing short of an ecological emergency.

“We are currently experiencing unprecedented loss of nature and biodiversity, with one in ten species in England at risk of extinction.

“Left unchecked we could see major species loss, generations of children growing up without being able to regularly interact with nature, and a continually worsening climate crisis.

“Oxford City Council can be a leader in protecting and enhancing biodiversity and the natural environment if it takes the right decisions today.

“That’s why we’re calling for the council to back this motion and to formally declare an ecological emergency.”

In 2019, Oxford City Council declared a climate emergency following a motion submitted by then Green Councillor Craig Simmons.

Green Councillor Emily Kerr said: “In 2019, Oxford City Council demonstrated it understood the scale of the climate crisis we are in the midst of by declaring a climate emergency.

“Now it must also show the same recognition of the ecological emergency – if we don’t, it will be impossible to tackle climate change effectively.

“Imagine living in a city where every child has doorstep access to nature.

“Imagine living in a city where our air is kept clean and healthy by a canopy of trees.

“Imagine living in a city where beautiful animas are able to thrive – from badgers to otters, bats to hedgehogs.

“This isn’t a pipedream, this is what can be delivered if the council takes the ecological emergency seriously and starts taking real action now.”

Read more from this author

This story was written by Matthew Norman, he joined the team in 2022 as a Facebook community reporter.

Matthew covers Bicester and focuses on finding stories from diverse communities.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Matthew.norman@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @OxMailMattN1

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