The Isle of Wight has declared an urgent need for ocean recovery, recognising its importance in the fight against climate change.
Earlier this week, the Isle of Wight Council became the latest local authority to pass the ‘Motion for the Ocean’ after councillors voted in favour of supporting the declaration.
In doing so, the council made a series of pledges ranging from embedding the sea into its decision and policy making, to growing ocean literacy and marine citizenship on the Island. The motion also calls on the government to do more to stop water companies discharging untreated sewage into inland coastal waters, and to strengthen the rules around single-use plastics.
This includes making it a legal requirement that all new washing machines are fitted with microplastic filters. This is to tackle the 500,000 tonnes of microfibres that are released into the oceans every year simply from washing clothes.
In putting forward the motion to Full Council, Councillor Jonathan Bacon, Cabinet member for climate change and biosphere, said the Island was on the front line of the ocean crisis.
He said:
“Poor water quality is impacting seafood and safe bathing. Our beaches suffer from litter with each tide, much of it plastic, and our coastline is fragile, increasing the risk to infrastructure and properties, and increasing the risk of flooding and storm damage.
“Island residents are being disproportionately impacted relative to inland communities, in particular because the ocean is a key part of our heritage and economy
Article continues below this advertisement “Urgent action is needed to halt these devastating changes.”
The Ocean Recovery Declaration — or Motion for the Ocean — was developed by marine experts supported by the Local Government Association Coastal Special Interest Group in recognition our ocean and climate are in a state of emergency.
Variations of the motion have now been passed by some 15 local authorities, including Portsmouth City Council and now the Isle of Wight Council. Like the Climate Emergency declared by the council in 2019, this pledge is multi-faceted and calls on everyone to play their part in protecting and investing in our coastal areas.
A clean, healthy and productive ocean has direct economic, health and wellbeing benefit and is an essential allay in our fight against climate change.
So-called ‘blue carbon’ — carbon captured by the world’s ocean — could also play an integral role in helping the Island meet its net zero targets.
Among the council’s key pledges are to:
- Ensure the Climate and Environment Board receives regular updates as part of its ongoing work on actions and projects that will assist ocean recovery around the Island;
- embed ocean recovery in all strategic decisions, plans, budgets and approaches to decisions by the council, particularly in planning, regeneration, skills and economic policy;
- promote close working between the council and all relevant partners with interests and responsibilities relating to the waters around us;
- ensure the forthcoming Local Nature Recovery Strategy strives to support ocean recovery.
- through local schools and colleges, seek to grow ocean literacy and marine citizenship.
The Isle of Wight UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve is a large designation covering the whole of the Island’s land surface and all of its inshore waters, including most of the Solent.
The reserve borders 3 counties — the Isle of Wight, Hampshire and Dorset — and is 1 of only 7 UNESCO Biospheres in the UK and 3 in England. Biosphere status, together with other local protected site designations, provide the potential tools to address the issues and achieve the aims set out in the motion.
These also tie-in with the UN Sustainable Development Goals which the council is already supporting.
What a great name Motion for the Ocean, like there are not enough of people motions in it already. Fantastically clever council we DON’T have. I see Bacon put forward the motion, oh dear the jokes just keep coming. But as always this council, are the biggest and yet most unfunny joke ever. Biosphere what a load of rubbish, it is just a word, means nothing except spending more cash on a lost cause.
Sorry your council can no longer offer you the basic services you thought you were paying for cos climate change – they also have to increase the amount of hectoring surveillance, petty rule making and misery inducing restrictions they have to force upon you cos climate change and of course they are all very sorry at the gargantuan amounts you are still expected to pour into their gaping maws in exchange for receiving nothing in return but being constantly limited, lectured, sneered at and fined for stepping out of increasingly narrow lines, cos climate change
Sort out the floating bridge instead of banging on about filters in washing machines – literally nothing to do with anyone sat in the County Hall.
Plenty of motions in the ocean courtesy of Southern Water, Bob Seely, the Tories and Brexit.
QUESTION: What’s it got to do with Brexit
ANSWER: Nothing what so ever
Brexit had caused a shortage of the chemicals used to treat the sewage.
Perhaps if I blamed it on immigrants, like you and your fellow swivel-eyed loons do for everything, you would believe it?
Need fish in the sea to keep it clean but our soft government wouldn’t stop the foreign fishing vessels destroying our fish stocks.
Climate change is the biggest L I E
Very true, looks what’s happening in London with the ULEZ charge
as long as you pay £12.50 each day, you can pollute the City.
If it was not a Lie, you would not be allowed to pay to pollute.
It’s all about controlling people.
The so called Elite will pollute the world with their private jets, helicopters and
Sports cars.
They won’t be paying £12.50 a day.
If only we had Politicians who told us the truth.
they want to start with over flowing bins, alot of this ends up in the sea.before insisting on this and that from the public , biggest polluted is the water companies with raw sawage
Fantastic news that the IOW Council have pledged to ‘embed ocean recovery in all strategic decisions… particularly in planning,’ – surely this means they will be saying ‘no’ to all large planning applications to develop unaffordable housing on greenfield sites. During Saturday’s rain, every sewage storage tank in East Wight from Ryde round to Shanklin discharged into the sea – what a great start to the summer holidays on the beach!
Start by stopping southern water discharging sewage into the sea
Stop all the illegals. Whilst some assume they have no faults they all make extra sewage, use water, energy, transportation, need dental and doctors, and ALL will end up in a home eventually taking up greenfield sites or forcing those who would have lived there to do so.