Southwark's Climate Emergency Strategy

[legalalien]

The current status of Southwark's Climate Emergency strategy has come up on a couple of other threads recently and I thought it might deserve one of its own.

I'm not any kind of climate campaigner but, after reading lots of LTN-related documents, thought it would be interesting to get an idea of how the council went about deciding who and how to consult local groups on issues, so put in an FOI back in November, asking what individuals and groups were part of the "Partnership Steering Committee" for the climate emergency strategy. After numerous emails (with no response) from Southwark, I involved the ICO and I miraculously got a response this week, on the afternoon of the tenth working day of the ten working day deadline that the ICO set. The response is pasted at the bottom of this message in case anyone is interested - I wasn't expecting a smoking gun, and there isn't one, but it's interesting all the same.

On a related note, the draft internal audit report that has just gone up on the website - https://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/documents/b50013238/Supplemental%20Agenda%20No.%201%20Wednesday%2002-Jun-2021%2018.30%20Audit%20Governance%20and%20Standards%20Committee.pdf?T=9 has this to say:

"Purpose of audit: advisory review of the Council?s planned governance

arrangements over the implementation of the council?s climate

emergency strategy, adequacy of stakeholder engagement and the

achievability of the plans in place to deliver the strategy.

Key observations:

? A number of draft climate emergency strategies were written

during 2020, which have been hindered in terms of engagement

with the members of the public due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

? The Council has not yet developed a communications plans or a

risk register to support the successful implementation of the

Strategy

? There were synergies between initiatives in the Transport and the

Movement Plan but these have not been harnessed so far although

they have the same lead cabinet member."

Amendments to Southwark's constitution to address Climate Emergency commitments were due to be tabled at the Council Assembly meeting earlier this month, but have been delayed until July 2021. The Cabinet Member who was responsible for this portfolio has stepped down and been replaced. I'm left wondering what on earth is going on.

I should add that the various red-flagged items in the internal audit report relating to other issues alarm me slightly as well. It is a document worth a read.

______________________________________________________________________________________________

Response to FoI request:

Your request:

I would like to know the names of the groups and individuals who are part of the Partnership Steering Committee for Southwark's climate emergency strategy and plans; and how those participants were identified and selected.

Our response:

The partnership steering group was set up last year to enable the council to bring together various groups with an interest in climate change to discuss issues facing the borough. The groups below were invited to join the PSG. The PSG has been an opportunity to share plans and to discuss how Southwark should respond to the climate emergency.

Officers in the council compiled the list based of groups it knew to be active on this area, and also to cover a range of interests including business, campaign groups and other key institutions in the borough. The group has grown in the last year as suggestions have been made on membership. Not every group on this list has chosen to take part.

Age UK Lewisham and Southwark

Arup

Bankside Open Space Trust

Bede House

Bermondsey BID

Better Bankside BID

Blue Bermondsey Improvement District

BOST

British Land

BYO

Citizens Advice Southwark

Client Earth

Community Southwark

Dulwich Hamlet

Extinction Rebellion

Fossil Free Southwark

Gowling WLG

Greater London Authority

GSTT

Keep Britain Tidy

Kings College Hospital NHS Foundation

King's College London

Lendlease

Living Streets

London College of Communication

London Councils

Makeshift

Morley College

Mountview

Multi Faith Forum

Mums for Lungs

Notting Hill Genesis

Nunhead Knocks

Plastic Free East Dulwich

Plastic Free Peckham

Pluvo

SGTO

SLAM

Southbank BID

Southwark Cyclists

Southwark Friends of the Earth

Southwark Greenpeace

Southwark Law Centre

Southwark London Gallery

Surrey Docks Farm

Sustainable Workspaces

Tate

Team London Bridge

Tenants Council

Thames Water

Unite

University of the Arts London

Veolia

We Are Waterloo BID

WRAP

[Chunx]

I notice they do not include groups to represent disabled people ie Altziemers society, carers uk, National Autistic Society, Scope to name but a few of many that are active in Southwark. But yet again you have a disability so you dont count and your needs are once again an after thought. Your challenges to live an independent life are over looked and not considered in any way when governing bodies review / change things.

[James Barber]

Hi Chunx,

One of the consultees is Community Southwark which is an umbrella group supporting all Southwark based charities. They have some great advice if you're involved with any of the charities you've mentioned. James.

[heartblock]

Why is Southwark planning to cut down 4 trees on Peckham Green, next to one of the most polluted roads in Southwark.

[legalalien]

No idea. Seems to be part of an ongoing pattern of tree destruction - see this recent article in Southwark News

https://www.southwarknews.co.uk/news/climate-emergency-southwark-lost-nearly-2000-trees-in-a-decade/

They committed earlier this year to planting 10000 trees by 2022, see https://www.southwark.gov.uk/news/2021/jan/southwark-council-to-plant-10-000-new-trees-by-2022.

On a related note, the tree management service is one of the items flagged red in the internal audit report that I linked to above:

"Purpose of audit:review of the adequacy of the Council?s Tree Management, ensuring key risks related to ETRP are being adequately addressed.

Key findings:

?The in house team was significantly under resourced to carry out the required ongoing maintenance of ageing and growing trees.

?There was an increasing backlog of tree inspections and resourcing gap due to the inability of in house team to complete the jobs allocated to them

?There was inaccurate calculation and inconsistent monthly KPI's within the "Performance Monitor" with no formal working papers retained to validate the data.

[Rockets]

The list of those on the Partnership Steering Committee for the climate emergency does really validate a lot of the accusations of echo chamber politics, that is so prevalent nowadays.

[legalalien]

Climate Emergency Strategy now published as one of the appendices to the reports for next week's cabinet meeting, for anyone interested.

https://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/documents/b50013388/Appendices Tuesday 13-Jul-2021 11.00 Cabinet.pdf?T=9

Document also includes Southwark Stands Together annual report and draft Southwark Equality Framework.

Other parts of the papers for the meeting indicate amends to the constitution to address climate emergency and equality issues, essentially to require their consideration when making decisions. Southwark are adopting the equality duty around socioeconomic status that was included in the Equality Act but has not yet been brought into force under that Act.

Haven't read any of the documents yet.

[malumbu]

I find this the general tone very disappointing. I'm probably the only person on this forum to have stayed in the rather drab town of Lytton in British Columbia. It burned down last week as that area of Canada hit record high temperatures of just under 50 degrees https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-57678054

So whilst East Dulwich howls at another initiative by Southwark, the world burns around us. OK rather dramatic words but emphasising my concerns. I'm sure that most of us are doing our best to live sustainably, and I could be criticised for the carbon emissions from my transatlantic flight. Large swathes of the temperate rainforest in BC are scarred through drought and deforestation. Once a great wilderness. Really brings it home to you.

[legalalien]

What? I didn?t comment on any of it I was just posting for info? That?s a pretty dramatic response if it?s responding to my post today.

[malumbu]

Apols, it was not aimed at you, just the general tone of some of the discussion.

[Earl Aelfheah]

I fear we?re pretty screwed when it comes to climate change and improving the environment. I walked passed a house with a sports car, a huge 4x4 SUV and a vintage car in their drive yesterday. They had a ?Clean Air for All? and a ?say no to road closures? sign displayed unironically.

[Spartacus]

rahrahrah Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I fear we?re pretty screwed when it comes to

> climate change and improving the environment. I

> walked passed a house with a sports car, a huge

> 4x4 SUV and a vintage car in their drive

> yesterday. They had a ?Clean Air for All? and a

> ?say no to road closures? sign displayed

> unironically.

The ironic thing is that the house you passed possibly is one of the few who can afford to convert their cars to fully electric so may well be part of the solution (providing they embrace electric cars)

[DuncanW]

"Probably" and "may well be" aren't gonna save the day here - hate to break that to you :)

[JohnL]

40+ degrees in the summer is only a few years off - everybody else seems to have had a dose of it this year.

[legalalien]

Early signs are that XR Southwark don?t think the new strategy goes far enough as they?ve made a deputation request for next week?s cabinet meeting : https://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/documents/b50013439/Supplemental%20Agenda%20No.%205%20Tuesday%2013-Jul-2021%2011.00%20Cabinet.pdf?T=9

You may recall that while XR and Fossil Free Southwark were involved in the early stages of policy formulation, by October last year they were expressing concerns about progress, see

https://xrsouthwark.earth/lobbying-xrs-open-letter-to-johnson-situ-on-his-appointment-as-cabinet-member-in-charge-of-transport-planning-and-the-climate-emergency

https://fossilfreesouthwark.wordpress.com/2020/11/27/climate-strategy-partnership-steering-group-statement-27-11-2020/ - I guess that prompted the various XR stickers that popped up around ED.

One of the things called for was an independent review by one of two named organisations, which seems to have happened (from late March)- see https://procontract.due-north.com/ContractsRegister/ViewContractDetails?contractId=94666f08-bd7d-eb11-810a-005056b64545&p=2241eb95-058a-e511-80f7-000c29c9ba21.(although if you google it, looks from linked in like the work was largely done by a junior intern, which may not be quite what the lobbyists had in mind).

See also a more recent lobbying letter from XRS to Cllr Dennis who is now in charge of the portfolio.

https://xrsouthwark.earth/xrs-letter-to-cllr-helen-dennis-climate

Kudos to XR and FFS for publishing these online, the more transparency there is around lobbying the better.

[Earl Aelfheah]

Closing a handful of side streets to through traffic has led to people losing their sht. They claim that they want to spread pollution to every street as a way of ensuring 'clean air for all' (rather than the reality of that move - clean air for no one).

Ask people what they want and they'll say 'fewer cars, less pollution, more active travel'. On the climate, they'll say 'reduce emissions, improve energy efficiency'. But implement anything that causes inconveniences, or requires a change in behaviour ("perhaps stop driving an SUV around the local area, flying abroad for your holidays and cut out meat, for example)... Well we've seen what happens - "Put it all back how it was"!

I have been left feeling it's totally pointless. Perhaps our only way out is to invest more research into geoengineering and technological solutions.

[legalalien]

That's an interesting debate - "green technocapitalist solutions": Environmental Progress v Extinction Rebellion, and the question of nuclear power.

https://environmentalprogress.org/

https://extinctionrebellion.uk/2020/09/16/statement-on-zion-lights-michael-shellenberger-and-the-breakthrough-institute/

Late to the party but trying to educate myself a bit on some of this stuff...

[Earl Aelfheah]

Saw this https://twitter.com/rm_leeming/status/1420504470492958724?s=21

It makes you think that we might need to start ditching the SUVs for local journeys, even if it is slightly more convenient than walking. Or we could continue as we are, swapping them out for kayaks come 2050.

[hpsaucey]

I've only just seen this - so apologies if everyone's already aware. You can sign up for email notifications about Southwark's Climate emergency response here: https://www.southwark.gov.uk/environment/climate-emergency?chapter=5

HP

[first mate]

And yet Rah, you still drive a car?

rahrahrah Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Closing a handful of side streets to through

> traffic has led to people losing their sht. They

> claim that they want to spread pollution to every

> street as a way of ensuring 'clean air for all'

> (rather than the reality of that move - clean air

> for no one).

>

> Ask people what they want and they'll say 'fewer

> cars, less pollution, more active travel'. On the

> climate, they'll say 'reduce emissions, improve

> energy efficiency'. But implement anything that

> causes inconveniences, or requires a change in

> behaviour ("perhaps stop driving an SUV around the

> local area, flying abroad for your holidays and

> cut out meat, for example)... Well we've seen what

> happens - "Put it all back how it was"!

>

> I have been left feeling it's totally pointless.

> Perhaps our only way out is to invest more

> research into geoengineering and technological

> solutions.

[hpsaucey]

For anyone interested - on now but also recorded:

https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/see-and-do/climate-talks/climate-talks-tony-blair-conversation-john-kerry

[legalalien]

Article about response from environmental groups to Southwark strategy

https://www.southwarknews.co.uk/news/environmental-campaigners-tear-into-southwark-councils-long-awaited-climate-strategy/

[malumbu]

It's a reasonably balanced article, and you would expect some of the environmental groups to want to go a lot further. It's their job. It would be fun if XR infiltrated local authorities - now that would stir up a s..t storm and the 1000s of posts complaining about restrictions on our 'normal' life would turn into 10,000s!

[Earl Aelfheah]

This seems pretty emphatic - 'Major climate changes inevitable and irreversible ? IPCC?s starkest warning yet': https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/aug/09/humans-have-caused-unprecedented-and-irreversible-change-to-climate-scientists-warn

[edited to add precis / article title]

[malumbu]

Hi Rah Rah. It would be good to have views on the article or a precis. I know you normally do this, so not having a go, just I get grumpy when others just post links.

It may be a wake up call but we had these half a generation ago. But not a lot changed. I listened a little to Jeremy Vine today, not representative of what the country thinks but gives some indication. A little sad by two callers. One was still referring to it's all due to the sun's activity. Another was having a go at environmentalists who he viewed as going from less consumption to buying electric cars. Gross over-simplification.

I've got to write to the PM. This nonsense about Thatch being an eco warrier for closing the mines. Done economic/political reasons. She switched from supporting nuclear power (OK, controversial but one means for reducing carbon emissions) to burning much of our natural gas to generate electricity. Of course over population is one of the biggest issues, and as a nation that has a low birth rate he is not setting a great example.

I was involved in the first Hinkley Point Inquiry - it got a go ahead and then was shelved when Thatch privatised the generating industry and pulled the plug on our nuclear industry (hence the French fund the new power stations and the Chinese build them as we have lost that capability). There were millions of pages on the case for this nuclear power station, including carbon emissions from the whole nuclear fuel cycle. I suspect that we missed an opportunity at that point to invest more in renewable energy technology. The then Atomic Energy Authority had a Division looking at renewables, maybe an odd place but that's where many of our expert scientists and engineers were at the time.

Yes I am a scientist. Albeit rather rusty.