To consider the recommendation of Executive 4th July, 2022,
RECOMMENDED to Full Council that:-
1. A report be brought to Full Council within 6 months on the actions and projects that will begin an ocean recovery in Teignbridge;
2. Embed ocean recovery in all strategic decisions, budgets and approaches to decisions by the Council (particularly in planning, regeneration, skills and economic policy), aligning with climate and ecological emergency plans;
3. Ensure that the Local Plan supports ocean recovery, and the health of our coastal environments both naturally and socio-economically;
4. Work with partners locally and nationally to deliver increased sustainability in local marine industries and support investment in the development of a sustainable and equitable blue economy, including the local fishing industry and the vital work of 3 relevant partners, including Devon & Severn IFCA, the Environment Agency and Marine Management Organisation;
5. Create an online portal of the Council website to update on ocean recovery progress, signpost to ocean literacy development opportunities, and marine citizenship pledges;
6. Write to South West Water to request details of their urgent and revised plans to eradicate the practice of sewage discharges to rivers and coastal waters around Teignbridge;
7. Work where possible with South West Water, the Environment Agency, Catchment and Coastal Partnerships, developers and other agencies to combat threats to the quality of water being discharged into the rivers and coastal waters around Teignbridge;
8. Call on government to:
A. Set meaningful targets and deadlines for water companies to end sewage discharges and introduce a Sewage Tax on water companies’ profits to fund the clean-up of waterways.
B. Reduce the number of licences given to water companies permitting them to discharge sewage into rivers.
C. Strengthen Ofwat’s powers to monitor the annual financial plans and reports of the water companies in order to compel them to achieve a fair and transparent balance between consumer prices, shareholder dividend, staff remuneration and ongoing long-term investment in storm water infrastructure.
D. Add local environmental groups onto water companies’ boards.
E. Promote a public benefit company model for water companies, so that particular economic and environmental policy objectives must be considered explicitly in the running of the companies.
F. Work with local authorities to ensure water companies protect our rivers and seas by:
i. Water companies being required to invest upfront in sewerage infrastructure to reflect environmental objectives in Local Plans and planning applications.
ii. Identify powers of local authorities under the statutory duty to promote wellbeing of the area and provide councils with the funding to meet this duty.
iii. Cease making cuts to Environment Agency funding and ensure that it has enough staff to significantly improve its monitoring of the threats of inadequate storm-water infrastructure and pollution from sewage and agricultural nitrates;
9. Further call on the Government to put the ocean into net recovery by 2030 by:
A. Ensuring Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities have the resources they need to effectively research and monitor our growing number of marine protected areas, and to set and enforce appropriate fishing levels that support local economies and deliver environmental sustainability.
B. Incorporating social scientific evidence and lived experience to improve community co- production of policy and develop more effective and equitable 4 solutions.
C. Listening to marine scientific advice to update the Marine Policy Statement and produce a national Ocean Recovery Strategy which will:
i. Enable the recovery of marine ecosystems rather than managing degraded or altered habitats in their reduced state.
ii. Consider levelling up, marine conservation, energy, industrial growth, flood and coastal erosion risk management, climate adaptation and fisheries policy holistically rather than as competing interests. 3
iii. Develop a smarter approach to managing the health of the entire ocean that moves beyond Marine Protected Areas and enables links to be made across sectors towards sustainability.
iv. Establish improved processes for understanding the benefits from ocean management, leaving no doubt the links between this and human lives, livelihoods, and wellbeing.
D. Recognising the value of, and contribute resourcing towards, multi-agency Integrated Coastal Management Partnerships which operate at the local geographic level and are able to respond to issues and opportunities which effect the local maritime environment and adjacent communities.
Minutes:
The Executive Member for Climate Change, Coastal Protection and Flooding proposed the recommendation, this was seconded by Executive Member for Recycling, Household Waste and Environmental Health.
RESOLVED that:-
(1) A report be brought to Full Council within 6 months on the actions and projects that will begin an ocean recovery in Teignbridge;
(2) Embed ocean recovery in all strategic decisions, budgets and approaches to decisions by the Council (particularly in planning, regeneration, skills and economic policy), aligning with climate and ecological emergency plans;
(3) Ensure that the Local Plan supports ocean recovery, and the health of our coastal environments both naturally and socio-economically;
(4) Work with partners locally and nationally to deliver increased sustainability in local marine industries and support investment in the development of a sustainable and equitable blue economy, including the local fishing industry and the vital work of 3 relevant partners, including Devon & Severn IFCA, the Environment Agency and Marine Management Organisation;
(5) Create an online portal of the Council website to update on ocean recovery progress, signpost to ocean literacy development opportunities, and marine citizenship pledges;
(6) Write to South West Water to request details of their urgent and revised plans to eradicate the practice of sewage discharges to rivers and coastal waters around Teignbridge;
(7) Work where possible with South West Water, the Environment Agency, Catchment and Coastal Partnerships, developers and other agencies to combat threats to the quality of water being discharged into the rivers and coastal waters around Teignbridge;
(8) Call on government to:
A. Set meaningful targets and deadlines for water companies to end sewage discharges and introduce a Sewage Tax on water companies’ profits to fund the clean-up of waterways.
B. Reduce the number of licences given to water companies permitting them to discharge sewage into rivers.
C. Strengthen Ofwat’s powers to monitor the annual financial plans and reports of the water companies in order to compel them to achieve a fair and transparent balance between consumer prices, shareholder dividend, staff remuneration and ongoing long-term investment in storm water infrastructure.
D. Add local environmental groups onto water companies’ boards.
E. Promote a public benefit company model for water companies, so that particular economic and environmental policy objectives must be considered explicitly in the running of the companies.
F. Work with local authorities to ensure water companies protect our rivers and seas by:
i. Water companies being required to invest upfront in sewerage infrastructure to reflect environmental objectives in Local Plans and planning applications.
ii. Identify powers of local authorities under the statutory duty to promote wellbeing of the area and provide councils with the funding to meet this duty.
iii. Cease making cuts to Environment Agency funding and ensure that it has enough staff to significantly improve its monitoring of the threats of inadequate storm-water infrastructure and pollution from sewage and agricultural nitrates;
(9) Further call on the Government to put the ocean into net recovery by 2030 by:
A. Ensuring Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authorities have the resources they need to effectively research and monitor our growing number of marine protected areas, and to set and enforce appropriate fishing levels that support local economies and deliver environmental sustainability.
B. Incorporating social scientific evidence and lived experience to improve community co- production of policy and develop more effective and equitable solutions.
C. Listening to marine scientific advice to update the Marine Policy Statement and produce a national Ocean Recovery Strategy which will:
i. Enable the recovery of marine ecosystems rather than managing degraded or altered habitats in their reduced state.
ii. Consider levelling up, marine conservation, energy, industrial growth, flood and coastal erosion risk management, climate adaptation and fisheries policy holistically rather than as competing interests.
iii. Develop a smarter approach to managing the health of the entire ocean that moves beyond Marine Protected Areas and enables links to be made across sectors towards sustainability.
iv. Establish improved processes for understanding the benefits from ocean management, leaving no doubt the links between this and human lives, livelihoods, and wellbeing.
D. Recognising the value of, and contribute resourcing towards, multi-agency Integrated Coastal Management Partnerships which operate at the local geographic level and are able to respond to issues and opportunities which effect the local maritime environment and adjacent communities.
The vote was unanimous.