COUNTRYSIDE

Development and protection

The Greens would strengthen protections given to the Green Belt, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

Strategic planning is the responsibility of County Council. As councillor I would work to ensure that housing and other developments are appropriate to their locations and take account of their environmental impact.

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Nature Based Solutions

This means helping natural processes to restore some of the damage we have caused to the environment. This includes appropriate tree-planting to lock up carbon & stabilise soils, and enhancement of biodiversity through protecting & expanding wild areas.

If elected I would promote the adoption of Natural Flood Management techniques, in our role as Lead Local Flood Authority, rather than immediately looking to put down more concrete.

I would work to improve practices on the land managed by the highways department, such as hedges and verges, to enhance biodiversity and benefits to the community.

I would work to ending the practice of upland burning, which depletes biodiversity, degrades soils and intensifies downstream flooding.

Please see this blog post for more detail.

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Agriculture

It is uncertain what will replace the CAP funding for Derbyshire farmers after the end of the government’s transitional policy. As councillor I will work to ensure that access to this replacement is fair, and that it is directed to environmentally beneficial activities, and to smaller landowners, and tenants.

I will work with farmers to assist transition to more sustainable, diverse and environmentally friendly forms of land use, with reduced focus on intensive farming.

Please see this blog post for more detail.

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Ecotourism

We would invest in ecotourism and rewilding schemes to bring about habitat recovery.  But we need to focus on doing this in ways which benefit those living here: keeping more money local, improving the quality of tourism jobs and funding tourism infrastructure, such as cycling and walking trails, for example by improving e-bike charging stations, accelerating the creation of the Derbyshire Active Transport network and increasing public transport provision across the county.

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Badgers

The Green Party opposes badger culling because it is not the most effective method of controlling Bovine Tuberculosis (bTb).

Non-cull strategies have led to bTb reductions in Wales and Scotland, while it is increasing in England where culling is carried out.

As a councillor I would push for a ban of culling on council-controlled land, and a promotion of vaccination and other scientifically supported actions.

Please see this blog post for more detail.