Climate plan will build resilience, says council

Telford and Wrekin Council declared a climate emergency in 2019

A new climate change adaption plan for Telford and Wrekin has been approved by the council.

Telford & Wrekin Council declared a climate emergency in 2019, setting out a target for its operations to become carbon neutral by 2030.

The plan includes measures to identify and manage the effects of climate change, and ensure consideration is given to climate change when developing new council policies, the authority said.

It will focus on the four key areas of warmer, wetter winters; hotter, drier summers; heatwaves; and flooding and storms.

Councillor Carolyn Healy, cabinet member responsible for climate action, said 2023 was the hottest year on record with global ice sea coverage dropping to a record low.

She added Telford and Wrekin was not immune to the impact of climate change.

“With summers predicted to get hotter, winters expected to get wetter and the increasing frequency of both significant storms and heatwaves, climate change is set to have a significant effect on the way we deliver services as a council," she said.

“It is vital that we take action now to ensure council services and the delivery of them are able to adapt to climate change, to ensure the resilience of those services for our local communities."