Meeting documents

To consider a report by the Coast and Countryside Service Manager.  This item will also include presentations on The Healthy Places Project (Rupert Lloyd),

Stepping into Nature (Julie Hammon), Social, Economic and Environmental initiatives on our Coast (Bridget Betts) and The Low Carbon Dorset Project (Antony Littlechild).

The Committee considered a report from the Coast and Countryside Service Manager which included a summary of the Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan and showed how these were relevant to all four of the County Council’s corporate outcomes.

Members also received the following presentations:-

·         The Healthy Places Project - which gave members a focus on natural environment and prevention, along with an overview of collaborative work with Public Health and Dorset County Council.

·         Stepping into Nature – which highlighted the Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) on Stepping into Nature project to deliver health and wellbeing benefits for older people. It was a partnership of cross sector organisations. The increase in wellbeing and quality of life was highlighted.  The Chairman was keen for members to receive regular updates to see how this work was progressing.

·         Social, Economic and Environmental Initiatives on our Coast - This Partnership was hosted by the County Council but funded by a number of organisations. The litter free coast and sea campaign was highlighted to reduce the environmental, social and economic impacts of marine and beach litter. The Plastics Surgery campaign was highlighted which was a campaign throughout the whole of Dorset.  Litter Free Dorset aimed to reduce the environmental, social and economic impacts of litter in Dorset and had been running for around a year. Park yoga had been a very successful project which was free for people to attend. The Dorset Coastal Connections Project was all about businesses and having good public places.

·         The Low Carbon Dorset Project - Helping Reduce Dorset’s Footprint with the aim to stimulate growth in Dorset’s low carbon economy.

In respect of the healthy side of the agenda, it was commented that in the past the promotion of cycling and walking had been aimed at more energetic people, a better approach would be to design routes closer to people’s homes to avoid reliance on cars and public transport. The Service Director for Economy, Natural and Built Environment advised that the Health and Wellbeing Board were currently discussing these issues and what improvements could be made.  It was all about localities, making small improvements that could make a huge difference.  The Director highlighted that the real challenge was to work with those groups who chose not to access and to then try and remove those boundaries.

The Vice-Chairman highlighted that with the removal of stiles and gates being put in place, the biggest group affected would be the elderly and she urged officers to ensure that the gates were accessible.

One member made reference to the huge network of horse riders and the difficulty they had with the increasing amount of traffic when trying to get to the areas that they needed to get to. The Service Director emphasised the importance of looking at all users and all modes to ensure access for all.

Following a discussion about the future in respect of Local Government reorganisation (LGR), the Service Director advised that colleagues in Planning were in constant discussion about the changes and that all local authorities were reviewing their local plans at different stages. It was also noted that already a number of projects involved joint working with the Districts and Boroughs.

A member questioned if perhaps Appendix 2 of the report could be a bit more ambitious in respect of Dorset Topsoil, the cutting down of trees and the sustainable catch of fish.  The Coast and Countryside Service Manager advised that there were already a number of designated marine protected areas and that Rights of Way officers were doing joined up work across the county, including tree conservation in Dorset.  It was also confirmed that there was no fracking taking place in Dorset and that any change would of course come back to members.  A question was also raised about the setting off of Chinese lanterns from County Council land.

The Chairman added that he felt the waterways needed to be maintained to ensure they didn’t become a health hazard and to also ensure there were facilities in place to enable someone to be able to get out of water should they fall in.  He would also like to see some reference to chewing gum being discarded thoughtlessly. He also made reference to the vulnerability of heathland following a recent decision by the Planning Inspectorate and suggested it would be helpful for local businesses and members of the Committee to meet.

The Chairman thanked officers for their very informative presentations and felt that Dorset had a unique opportunity to highlight the fantastic work in the community. The major headline as he saw it was ‘making Dorset a better place to live and work’ with a focus on increasing tourism.

Resolved

1.That the implications of the 25 Year Environmental Plan across the full range of local authority services and County Council functions as summarised in Section 2 of the report be noted.

2. That consideration be given to the opportunities arising from the 25 Year Environment Plan, and support given to the officers to pursue these.

3. That the interim conclusions of the ‘green asset’ review summarised in Appendix 1 of the report be endorsed.

4. That the presentations be shared with all elected members.

Reason for Decisions

To support delivery of corporate outcomes, particularly in respect of ‘healthy’ and ‘prosperous’, associated with maintenance and enhancement of Dorset’s environment.