Climate Emergency

18 August 2021

Cheshire West and Chester has hosted a visit from the judges for this year’s North West in Bloom competition.

North West in Bloom is the voluntary regional organisation that administers the Britain in Bloom competition in Lancashire, Cheshire, Greater Manchester and Merseyside, and is one of the 18 regions and nations that comprise Britain in Bloom.

Britain in Bloom is one of the most effective, and longest running environmental competitions in the United Kingdom and each year it grows in size and importance and involves more people, groups and organisations within the community.

The aim of the competition is to encourage the improvement of our surroundings through the imaginative use of trees, shrubs, flowers and landscaping. It also aims to achieve a litter free and sustainable environment.
Entries in the competition are asked to focus on its three key areas: Horticulture, Environment and Community.

The Council has four entries in the competition this year – a whole borough entry and entries for Grosvenor Park, Chester, Marbury Park and Alexandra Park, Hoole.

The Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategic Transport, Councillor Karen Shore said: “Of course, all our parks and greenspaces are wonderful assets to the Borough and it was difficult deciding which locations to enter into the competition, however the whole borough entry was a great opportunity to showcase all the amazing work that takes place throughout the entire borough.

“Teams from across the Council have contributed ideas for projects and schemes to be included in the entries.

“Our entries are also strengthened by close partnership working with organisations like Cheshire Oaks, Barons Quay, Northwich BID and, of course, the various ‘Friends of’ groups and volunteers, who make a huge contribution to maintaining and caring for these much-loved parks and greenspaces. A big thank you to everyone who has been involved.”

The entries focus on meeting the three Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) themes and are very much not just about horticulture but also how the Council engages with communities and its work to tackle the Climate Emergency.

North West in Bloom judges, Bernard Pendleton (Chair of North West in Bloom) and Neil Harvey visited the borough over two days this week to meet Council representatives, businesses, volunteers and community organisations.

Judges assess entries against the RHS criteria but also provide constructive feedback and suggestions to help the entrants improve for next year. Results will be announced in October this year.

10 August 2021

Waste and recycling collections in west Cheshire are about to be transformed to create a greener, more efficient service for residents.

Approximately 60 per cent of all properties in the borough will receive a new collection day.

Cheshire West Recycling (CWR) has reviewed the existing arrangements and proposed a new model. It will increase working efficiency and create a fairer system for collection staff. This will reduce CO2 emissions and contribute to the borough’s Climate Emergency agenda.

The changes are also a response to the increased number of properties in the borough. Between 2012 and 2020, the number of households in the borough increased by 13,000. This has resulted in a nine per cent rise in the demand for the waste and recycling service.

Cheshire West Recycling Managing Director, Rob Edmondson, said: “The increase in demand means we have had to rebalance the collection rounds to provide a better value for money and more efficient service. It means we can reduce the number of collection rounds, which in turn results in reducing costs and will have a beneficial effect on the environment.”

“It is standard practice for waste and recycling collections services to periodically review their rounds to ensure they are maximising resources. It will also support the long term changes to the service introduced through the new Waste Management Strategy.”

Mr Edmondson added: “We would like to thank all our customers in advance for continuing to work with us to help create the best collection service we can.”

Last month, Cheshire West and Chester Full Council approved plans for the new Waste Management Strategy, which seeks to encourage residents to reduce the amount of waste the borough produces and to recycle more. The changes include the introduction of larger capacity recycling bins. Food waste collections will continue to be weekly and there will be the introduction of a charge for the garden waste collection service, which residents can choose to take up or make their own arrangements.

Householders in the borough affected by the changes will be notified by a tag fixed to their bins. New waste and recycling collection calendars outlining the changes will also be delivered to residents. Householders with bag collections will be informed by letter.

The bin tags and letters informing residents of the changes to their collections will be delivered to residents between Monday 30 August and Friday 10 September.

Delivery of the new waste and recycling collection calendars will begin on Monday 20 September. These will also include information about the annual suspension of the garden waste collection service and collection arrangements during the festive period.

It is anticipated that the new routes and rounds will be introduced from Monday 11 October.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategic Transport, Cllr Karen Shore, said: “The transformation of the waste and recycling collections in Cheshire West and Chester will provide us with a modern service that will help us to meet the challenges we face both in terms of reducing costs and in supporting our ambitions around climate change.

“There will be several changes to the waste and recycling service over the coming months that will transform the service. We want people to embrace these changes. We will continue to listen to our residents throughout this process and keep them updated on any developments.”

• For more information about changes to the Waste and Recycling Service in Cheshire West and Chester, visit: https://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/residents/waste-and-recycling/waste-management-strategy-your-questions-answered.aspx

28 July 2021

Councillors have approved plans for the future Waste Management Strategy for west Cheshire following a special Full Council meeting.

At the meeting held at Chester Racecourse on Tuesday 27 July, the majority of council members voted to accept the new strategy.

The move means that the Council can now progress with its plans to transform the way waste and recycling services in the borough are delivered.

The new model will support residents in reducing the amount of household waste the borough produces and give people more capacity to recycle.

It will help the borough to respond to the challenges of climate change through waste reduction and by cutting Carbon Dioxide emissions.

The Council will work alongside its waste and recycling partner Cheshire West Recycling to deliver a range of innovative new measures. These will be designed to encourage community recycling and tackle litter.

The plans also reaffirm the Council’s commitment to continue its good performance in diverting as much waste as possible from costly disposal in landfill sites.

The Council will continue to explore opportunities to use energy from waste and emerging technology to further reduce costly waste processing and treatment.

The strategy will also review the borough’s Household Waste Recycling Centres, looking at their locations, access and opening times.

The Council’s fleet of refuse collection vehicles will be updated to make it more efficient and cost-effective. This will include options for new energy-efficient and electric vehicles.

There will be an ongoing education campaign to encourage people to reuse and recycle more.

The current system of kerbside sorting of waste and recycling will be replaced. The new service will respond to residents’ concerns by removing the existing boxes that some people find difficult to carry and are easily damaged.

The key changes approved by Full Council include:

• Household waste will be collected fortnightly using a 180 litre wheeled bin (as per the current arrangement).
• Two larger capacity recycling bins on wheels, which will be collected fortnightly to replace existing 55-litre boxes.
• Food collections weekly using existing small food bin (as per the current arrangement).
• People will be supported with special arrangements if their housing circumstances make it more difficult to accommodate larger bins.
• A chargeable garden waste collection service to be provided over 40 weeks of the year, covering the growing season between March and November. Residents would be able to opt into this service or make their own arrangements.
• The garden waste collections to continue fortnightly, in line with the frequency of the proposed kerbside collection service
• There would be a charge of £40 per year per container for garden waste collections. This equates to £2 per collection and is in line with the current additional capacity charge.
• The changes to the services would reduce carbon emissions by 220,000kg a year. This supports the Council’s ambition of making west Cheshire a carbon-neutral borough by 2045.

Cheshire West and Chester Council is facing unprecedented pressure on its budgets. The Council faces a funding gap of up to £31m between 2021 and 2024. The new strategy will help the Council reduce the cost pressures surrounding the Waste Management Service.

The changes will be introduced in 2022, with the charge for garden waste starting from March 2022.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategic Transport, Cllr Karen Shore said: “The decision by Full Council to approve the plans for the new Waste Management Strategy means we can now move forward and start to make the changes.

“We know that people in our borough feel strongly about waste reduction and recycling and we would like to thank everyone who has taken an active role in shaping our new strategy. It represents the best option for the future of our borough if we are to meet our climate change commitments.

“Given the financial pressures the Council faces, we have had to make some tough decisions if we are to continue to provide those services people in our borough rely upon.

“We now need to work together as a community to embrace the changes the new strategy suggests and safeguard the future of our borough.

“We have consulted with our residents throughout this process and we will keep this conversation going as we move towards implementing the new strategy.”

Cheshire West Recycling Manager Director, Rob Edmondson, added: "The focus of the company is now to work collaboratively with the Council to ensure the new services are implemented effectively and with minimum disruption to our residents. I would also like to thank everybody within the Cheshire West Recycling for their personal commitment to maintaining essential waste services throughout the pandemic and know that they will embrace this new challenge with the same level of enthusiasm."

• You can read the full report into the Waste Management Strategy here: http://cmttpublic.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/documents/s73318/

23 July 2021

Plans for a new cycle route through the centre of Chester are about to be unveiled by Cheshire West and Chester Council.

The new route will run along St Martin's Way in the city centre, from the Grosvenor roundabout to the City Walls roundabout.

As part of Chester's new Northgate development and the Clockwise traffic management system, highways engineers have removed the central barrier that runs along the middle of St Martin's Way.

The £72m Northgate project includes a new indoor market, a six-screen cinema, cafes, restaurants and officer space. It is expected to be completed in 2022.

The one-way Clockwise traffic management system through the city centre has been implemented to support the development and the installation of a new drainage tunnel.

The new cycle lane will be part of Cheshire West and Chester Council's ongoing Active Travel initiative. This aims to encourage more residents to choose greener forms of transport such as cycling over the car.

The plan is to make the borough's towns and city centre accessible for everyone and support the Council's Climate Emergency pledges.

Council planners have consulted with local residents and sustainable transport groups over the proposed new cycleway.

Cheshire West and Chester Council's Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Inclusive Economy said: "The Northgate development is a once in a generation opportunity to create an exciting and dynamic shopping and leisure attraction for Chester City Centre.

"We want as many people as possible to be able to access the new development. We also need to reduce traffic congestion on our roads, which will contribute to cleaning the air and reducing CO2 emissions."

"The ongoing roadworks in Chester City Centre allowed us to look at the central reservation on St Martin's Way to create the new cycleway."

"We will be publishing more detailed plans soon, which we will share with residents and other road users."

For more information on Active Travel in Cheshire West and Chester, visit: https://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/residents/transport-and-roads/highways/major-road-schemes/active-travel/active-travel.aspx

14 July 2021

Highway engineers with Cheshire West and Chester Council are to introduce a series of changes to the cycle lanes along the A41 at the Long Lane and Mannings Lane junction in Upton, to improve traffic flow and speed up journey times.

The Council introduced the cycle lane as part of a road resurfacing project. The aim of the plan was to allow cyclists to use the road safely.

The scheme encourages commuters to leave the car at home for short journeys into the city. This helps to reduce congestion and contributes to the borough’s climate change commitments for reducing carbon emissions from vehicles.

Council engineers have been reviewing the cycle lane scheme since its introduction and listening to the comments of residents and road users.

As a result, improvements have been proposed at the junction of Mannings Lane. The original plan saw the introduction of a left-turn only lane at the junction, which reduced capacity to a single lane for cars passing through.

Council workers will now change the road markings to allow two cars to pass through the junction at the same time. This will increase the capacity of the junction and speed up the flow of traffic, reducing congestion.

The two lanes will be extended beyond the junction in the direction of Chester, before returning to a mandatory cycle lane. The cycle lane will continue up to the Greenway overbridge at which point cyclists are encouraged to use the wide shared footpath.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategic Transport, Cllr Karen Shore, said: “The cycle lanes were introduced to encourage commuters to ditch the car for short journeys and use their bikes instead. Schemes such as this reduce the number of cars on the road and keep the air cleaner for residents."

“We promised to work with residents and road users and listen to their feedback about such schemes. As part of this process, we have identified where we can make further improvements at this junction which should benefit motorists and cyclists alike.”

"If we are to meet the challenges posed by climate change, we all need to think about how we can improve our environment. Choosing greener ways of travelling is a great way to start. We would encourage everyone to start thinking about using alternative methods of transport for short journeys. Not only is walking and cycling good for the environment but it's great for your physical and mental health and wellbeing. If you are travelling into work and need the car, why not think about car sharing with colleagues to help cut down the amount of cars on the road. These may be small changes to the daily routine but they can make a big difference to our climate change agenda."

Work on the junction improvements is due to begin later this month or in early August. For more information about sustainable transport in Cheshire West and Chester, visit:

https://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/residents/transport-and-roads/highways/major-road-schemes/active-travel/active-travel.aspx

14 July 2021

Cheshire and Merseyside are set to benefit from £90,000 of funding for nature projects in the area that will drive investment in nature and tackle climate change.

Plans are in place to look at developing local approaches and innovation in attracting new, additional private sector investment in the natural environment to reduce flood risk, improve air quality and lock up carbon.

Cheshire West and Chester Council, alongside Cheshire East Council, The Mersey Forest Partnership, Tatton Estates, Liverpool John Moore’s University, Natural Capital Solutions and the Environment Agency, secured the grant from the Government’s £10 million Natural Environment Investment Readiness Fund.

Paul Nolan, Director of The Mersey Forest, said: “There is overwhelming evidence to support investment in the natural environment to help tackle some of our most difficult challenges, climate change, loss of wildlife, health inequalities and wellbeing. This funding will enable us to work with the private sector to develop robust mechanisms that will enable more investment and, we hope, an acceleration in environmental improvements.”

Funding will be invested in a range of initiatives that deliver environmental benefits, while also demonstrating innovative approaches to private investment in nature projects. These will protect and enhance the environment in line with the Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan.

One example could be the creation of new woodland, which provides habitats for wildlife, improves access to nature for residents whilst also capturing carbon. This could benefit both local businesses, allowing them to offset the impacts of their own operations by contributing to local environmental improvements, and enhance biodiversity in the area.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Climate Emergency Response Plan includes a target for the borough to be carbon neutral by 2045 and sets out what the Council, partners, residents, industry, and businesses need to do, collectively, to achieve this. The Council is the host partner for The Mersey Forest and The Mersey Forest Plan, which covers Merseyside and the whole of Cheshire, shares the same ambitious targets. As an organisation, the Council aims to be carbon neutral by 2030.

Identifying sustainable, long-term, private sector investment is a key element of both plans and will play a major part in helping to restore nature and provide environmental improvements in the area.

Councillor Matt Bryan, Cabinet Member for Housing, Planning and the Climate Emergency, said: “We recognise that the actions in our Climate Emergency Response plan are ambitious for us to be carbon neutral as a borough by 2045. To achieve this, additional funding, above what the Council can provide, is needed to meet our targets. Many private organisations are looking for opportunities to invest in sustainable projects in this country and we have a fantastic opportunity to benefit from this and play our part to tackle the climate emergency whilst restoring nature and improving the area for our residents.”

8 July 2021

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s vision for a greener and more environmentally-friendly waste collection service will be presented to the authority’s informal Full Council next week.

The new Waste Management Strategy seeks to respond to the challenges of climate change by supporting residents in reducing the amount of waste they produce and recycling more.

The strategy, which will run for the next 20 years, has already been approved by the Council’s Cabinet and now faces the final hurdle of being debated by all councillors.

Due to the rising number of COVID infections in the borough and the need to keep everyone safe, the authority has decided to hold the Full Council meeting on Thursday 15 July remotely, rather than meeting in person.

Government regulations mean that the decision to adopt the new Waste Management Strategy will be taken by the Council’s Chief Executive following a debate by members.

The new model seeks to provide a fairer and more efficient waste and recycling service that will give great value for money.

It will also help the authority reduce significant cost pressures on the service due to cuts to the Council’s budget.

The key recommendations include:

Household waste collected fortnightly using a 180 litre wheeled bin (as per the current arrangement).

Two larger capacity recycling bins on wheels collected fortnightly to replace existing 55-litre boxes.

Food waste will be collected weekly using the existing small food bin (as per the current arrangement).

The Council would introduce an optional chargeable garden waste collection service over 40 weeks of the year, covering the ‘growing season’ between March and November.

There would be a charge of £40 per year per container for green waste collections. This equates to £2 per collection and is in line with the current additional capacity charge. Residents will be able to choose to pay for this service or to make alternative arrangements.

The garden waste collections continue fortnightly, in line with the frequency of the proposed kerbside collection service.

Alternative arrangements will be made for properties that cannot accommodate the new service.

If adopted, the new service would reduce carbon emissions by 220,000kg a year and reduce the cost pressures on the service by almost £1m.

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategic Transport, Cllr Karen Shore, said: “Our current Waste Strategy is nearly 20 years old and no longer meets the challenges we face as a community.

“The new Waste Management Strategy provides the borough with a solution that will help us to meet our climate change commitments and the budget pressures we face.

“We have consulted widely on our plans for the new strategy, we have listened to what people have said and we have used this information to develop our plan.

“Some of the decisions we have made have been extremely difficult but they have been made in the interests of our borough. The Council cannot resolve all the issues we face on its own, which is why we are asking people in our borough to work with us and contribute a little more.

“We know our residents want to work together for a greener future. We know they want less waste and more recycling. We will continue to listen to our residents and work with them throughout this process.”

If the new Waste Management Strategy is approved following Full Council, it will be implemented from 2022 onwards.

• The informal Full Council meeting begins at 6pm on Thursday 15 July and can be viewed through the Council’s website: www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk
• You can read the report into the Waste Management Strategy here: http://cmttpublic.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/documents/g6472/Public%20reports%20pack%2015th-Jul-2021%2018.00%20Council.pdf?T=10
• You can find out more about Waste and Recycling in Cheshire West and Chester here: https://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/residents/waste-and-recycling/waste-and-recycling.aspx

2 July 2021

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s Library Service is launching this year’s Summer Reading Challenge for children from 10 July.

This year’s Challenge ‘Wild World Heroes’ will be a celebration of reading, nature and action for the environment. Developed in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund, Wild World Heroes will inspire children to stand up for the future of our planet.

The Wild World Heroes live in Wilderville, a pretty cool place, but there are lots of things that they can do to make their town even better for the people and animals that live there.

The challenge is organised by The Reading Agency and is in partnership with local libraries across the UK. It is open to all children, free of charge.

Children will receive a collector’s pack for joining, stickers as a reward for reading books and a certificate and a medal after completing the challenge of reading six books.

For the first time, children under four can take part in a special Mini Challenge, with stickers for reading books and a special golden sticker when they have completed.

The challenge can be joined online via: www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/read or in a library, from Saturday 10 July.

Council Leader and Cabinet Member for Wellbeing, Councillor Louise Gittins said: “Children's reading can 'dip' during the long summer holidays if they do not have regular access to books and encouragement to read for pleasure and this can be a problem for schools to put right in the new term. The disruption of education for pupils caused by COVID-19 makes this challenge even greater.

“Our Libraries have lots of exciting events and activities planned to help get children reading over the summer holidays. Get them involved by either coming to your local library or joining in on-line. The Wild World Heroes are coming to a library near you this summer.”

Where possible some events will take place outdoors. Events include the “Same Same … But Different” theatre show, Animals Takeover, Mama G, storytelling, crafts and treasure hunts.

Places can be booked for the physical events in the relevant library. You can book for the “Same Same … But Different” show and online events via: www.ticketsource.co.uk/cwaclibraries . All events will be free, with more being announced soon. All will be risk assessed and in line with any Covid-19 guidance.

The award-winning author of “The Boy At The Back Of The Class” and “Night Bus Hero”, Onjali Q Rauf, will be doing a special question and answer session via Zoom and bookable via Ticketsource. Children can submit their questions for her by emailing libraryevents@cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk, with those doing so being entered into a prize draw for her books. Those joining Wild World Heroes will also be in with a chance to win tickets to the Bewilderwood Adventure Park, and bundles of the Bewilderwood books.

Children under the age of 12 are not charged late fees for books.

30 June 2021

Cheshire West and Chester Council’s crackdown on fly-tippers is set to intensify with mobile CCTV cameras to be used at well-known hotspots around the borough.

Anyone caught illegally dumping waste in west Cheshire could face a fine and even a prison sentence for the most severe cases.

The Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Environment, Highways and Strategic Transport, Councillor Karen Shore said: “There is absolutely no excuse for fly tipping, it is a nuisance to our communities and costs money to clear away. That is why we will take any steps necessary to find and prosecute offenders.

“The message is clear…Fly-tippers beware! We are watching and will do all we can to track you down, and make sure you pay for what you have done.”

The Council is again urging residents to not be tempted to use the services of Illegal waste carriers who often target people on social media.

Unlicensed carriers often simply dump the waste along country lanes or in alleyways leaving the bill for removal and disposal with the Council.

The Council’s Regulatory Services team will look for any evidence they can find in fly tips and any householder or small businesses found to be using rogue traders to dispose of their waste can be prosecuted.

Cllr Shore added: “Please check anyone disposing of waste for you is a licensed waste carrier – always be wary if you are approached by an individual to take your rubbish away.”

If you discover illegal tipping of waste or see it being tipped, report it 24 hours a day on the Council’s website or ‘Report It’ app.

Check a waste carrier is registered on the Environment Agency’s website: environment.data.gov.uk/public-register/view/search-waste-carriers-brokers

22 June 2021

The Mersey Dee Alliance, representing the interests of the unique, cross border, functional economy in Flintshire and Wrexham in North Wales and Cheshire West and Chester and Wirral in the Northwest of England today launched a transformational plan for a £400m Fiscal Stimulus Package for the Mersey Dee Economy. The proposal has been submitted to Ministers in the UK and Welsh Governments.

Councillor Mark Pritchard, Chair of the Mersey Dee Alliance said: “The MDA economy has been hit hard by Covid 19. Our GVA has contracted by 15%, equivalent to £3.5bn of the pre-pandemic, £22bn value of the economy. Thousands of jobs have been lost. Deeds not words are needed now to deliver an urgent fiscal stimulus to the MDA economy to save jobs and secure the future of our world class, manufacturing industry cluster.

"Our proposals to the UK and Welsh Governments will create and safeguard 5,000 jobs and generate £1.2bn of net economic value in a short space of time.

"The package aligns with UK Government priorities to strengthen the union, deliver 'levelling up' and implement the 10-point plan for a 'green industrial revolution'.

"We will meet the needs of future generations with inclusive and sustainable growth as required by the Welsh Government’s Future Generations Act.”

Councillor Louise Gittins, Leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council said: "I am passionate about climate change and sustainable growth. The MDA Fiscal Stimulus Package will accelerate investment in switching from carbon-based fuels to renewables and greener fuels like hydrogen, with carbon capture and storage for initial phases of hydrogen production.

"We are proposing a major investment in cycleways and public transport to reduce carbon and noxious emissions from cars. Our Active travel proposals will enable delivery of a strategic cycling corridor linking Birkenhead to Chester and Ellesmere Port, and from West Kirby through to Deeside in Flintshire, removing barriers and opening-up employment opportunities."

Councillor Stuart Whittingham, Wirral Council and Vice Chair of the MDA said: “Businesses and residents of the MDA area do not see a border between England and Wales. They just see enterprise, supply chain, employment and leisure opportunities in an area with an integrated economy and close cultural ties. That’s why there are 153,000 inter regional journeys both ways over a 24-hour period per day.

"Our economy will prosper more with a strong partnership between the UK and Welsh governments. The MDA Proposition is not only an opportunity to maximise sustainable and inclusive growth but also an opportunity to develop a positive partnership between the UK and Welsh Governments.

"The Mersey Dee Alliance is a high performing partnership between Councils, businesses and universities. We are a model partnership that the UK and Welsh governments can build on.”

Ian Roberts, Leader of Flintshire County Council said: “We have worked with neighbouring local growth partnerships to develop our proposals. The MDA will continue to work closely with the North Wales Economic Ambition Board, the Cheshire and Warrington LEP and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. We will avoid duplication and complement the programmes of our partners.

"Flintshire supports this package as the home of Airbus. We must do everything we can to support our excellent manufacturing firms who provide skilled work with good pay.”

Councillor Mark Pritchard concluded: “The MDA economy faces big challenges to recover from Covid-19 and to adjust to 'net zero' operations. We have made transformational and innovative proposals to meet those challenges.

"We want to get things done and we will work creatively and flexibly with both governments to deliver investment from multiple sources at pace. This will include seeking some investment via a future fiscal event with provision made for the MDA in the Comprehensive Spending Review to be announced in the autumn of 2021."