Agenda, decisions and draft minutes

Members are required to notify any substitutions by midday on the day of the meeting.

Late substitutions will not be accepted and Members attending as a substitute without having given the due notice will not be able to take part in the meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Joe Graziano.

Audio recording – 2 minutes 31 seconds

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Joe Graziano.

Councillor Lisa Nash was absent.

To take as read and approve as a true record the minutes of the meeting of the Committee held on the 17 July 2024.

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 17 July 2024 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Audio Recording – 2 minutes 44 seconds

Councillor Mick Debenham, as Chair, proposed and Councillor Amy Allen seconded and it was:

RESOLVED:That the Minutes of the Meeting of the Committee held on 17 July 2024 be approved as a true record of the proceedings and be signed by the Chair.

Climate Emergency

The Council has declared a climate emergency and is committed to achieving a target of zero carbon emissions by 2030 and helping local people and businesses to reduce their own carbon emissions.

A Cabinet Panel on the Environment has been established to engage with local people on matters relating to the climate emergency and advise the council on how to achieve these climate change objectives.

A Climate Change Implementation group of councillors and council officers meets regularly to produce plans and monitor progress. Actions taken or currently underway include switching to green energy, incentives for low emission taxis, expanding tree planting and working to cut food waste.

In addition the council is a member of the Hertfordshire Climate Change and Sustainability Partnership, working with other councils across Hertfordshire to reduce the county’s carbon emissions and climate impact. The Council’s dedicated webpage on Climate Change includes details of the council’s climate change strategy, the work of the Cabinet Panel on the Environment and a monthly briefing on progress.

Ecological Emergency

The Council has declared an ecological emergency and is committed to addressing the ecological emergency and nature recovery by identifying appropriate areas for habitat restoration and biodiversity net gain whilst ensuring that development limits impact on existing habitats in its process.

The Council has set out to do that by a) setting measurable targets and standards for biodiversity increase, in both species and quantities, seeking to increase community engagement, b) to work with our partners to establish a Local Nature Partnership for Hertfordshire and to develop Nature Recovery Networks and Nature Recovery Strategy for Hertfordshire and c) to investigate new approaches to nature recovery such as habitat banking that deliver biodiversity objectives and provide new investment opportunities.

Declaration of Interest

Members are reminded that any declarations of interest in respect of any business set out in the agenda, should be declared as either a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest or Declarable Interest and are required to notify the Chair of the nature of any interest declared at the commencement of the relevant item on the agenda.  Members declaring a Disclosable Pecuniary Interest must withdraw from the meeting for the duration of the item. Members declaring a Declarable Interest, wishing to exercise a ‘Councillor Speaking Right’, must declare this at the same time as the interest, move to the public area before speaking to the item and then must leave the room before the debate and vote.

(1)   The Chair advised that, in accordance with Council Policy, the meeting would be recorded.

(2)   The Chair drew attention to the item on the agenda front pages regarding Declarations of Interest and reminded Members that, in line with the Code of Conduct, any Declarations of Interest needed to be declared immediately prior to the item in question.

(3)   The Chair reminded Members that the Council had declared both a Climate Emergency and an Ecological Emergency. These are serious decisions, and mean that, as this was an emergency, all of us, Officers and Members had that in mind as we carried out our various roles and tasks for the benefit of our District.

Audio recording – 3 minutes 24 seconds

(1)   The Chair advised that, in accordance with Council Policy, the meeting would be recorded.

(2)   The Chair drew attention to the item on the agenda front pages regarding Declarations of Interest and reminded Members that, in line with the Code of Conduct, any Declarations of Interest needed to be declared immediately prior to the item in question.

(3)   The Chair reminded Members that the Council had declared both a Climate Emergency and an Ecological Emergency. These are serious decisions, and mean that, as this was an emergency, all of us, Officers and Members had that in mind as we carried out our various roles and tasks for the benefit of our District.

Members should notify the Chair of other business which they wish to be discussed at the end of either Part I or Part II business set out in the agenda. They must state the circumstances which they consider justify the business being considered as a matter of urgency.

The Chair will decide whether any item(s) raised will be considered.

There was no other business notified.

Audio recording – 4 minutes 7 seconds

There was no other business notified.

To receive petitions, comments and questions from the public.

The Chair confirmed that members of the public were in attendance and would participate in any discussions related to Agenda Item 6.

Audio recording – 4 minutes 14 seconds

The Chair confirmed that members of the public were in attendance and would participate in any discussions related to Agenda Item 6.

INFORMATION NOTE OF THE POLICY AND STRATEGY TEAM LEADER

This note highlights the topic for this Panel meeting as well as a Work Programme and new proposed Action Tracker (at Appendix A) for the Cabinet Panel on the Environment for 2024/25.

A presentation was provided by the Strategic Sites Planning Officer on the ‘Sustainability SPD’.

The Policy and Strategy Team Leader led a review of the ‘Work Programme and New Proposed Action Tracker for 2024/25’.

Audio recording – 4 minutes 31 seconds

N.B. Councillor Dominic Griffiths joined the Zoom call at 19:41.

The Policy and Strategy Team Leader presented the Information Note entitled ‘Work Programme and New Proposed Action Tracker for 2024/25’ and advised that:

·       The Sustainability Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) had been approved by Cabinet in September 2024 and this would be discussed later in the meeting.

·       A new action tracker had been formulated following feedback from previous meetings and this included SMART actions, which had not been included on the previuos action plan.

·       The action tracker would include items with an anticipated completion date and would confirm ownership of the item.

·       Members could suggest items for the action tracker, by contacting the Policy team or through the Chair at the wash up meeting.

·       The action tracker would be discussed at every meeting and could lead to items being recommended to Cabinet.

·       Successful engagement events had been held for stakeholders and residents regarding the Local Nature Recovery Scheme led by Hertfordshire County Council. Phase 2 of the project would commence in autumn 2024 with a draft strategy ready for March 2025. During the winter months there would be online engagement with stakeholders in Hertfordshire.

·       Stage 3 of the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme was expected to be completed by the end of October 2024. Surveys have been completed and consultants will commence a review of the planning pack prior to applying the Heritage Foundation guidelines. 

·       Parish Councils and local groups had been encouraged to apply for funding under the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. The Grant Panel meetings considered applications last week and successful applicants would be advised and notices published as Delegated Decisions.

The Policy and Strategy Officer advised that:

·       The second round of the Solar Together scheme had closed, and installations had been finalised. In total 104 installations had been completed in North Herts and 514 installations in Hertfordshire.

·       The Hertfordshire Growth Board had launched their ‘Sustainable County’ mission with a specific focus on developing an energy plan for Hertfordshire. A working group would be formed shortly.

·       The Retrofit guidance document was now available, and a link was sent to attendees in the group chat.

·       The Home Upgrade Grant 2 (HUG2) closed at the end of September 2024 and aimed to improve the EPC rating of homes in fuel poverty.

·       There were now 380 subscribers to the Engagement Hub and updates were sent out on a regular basis.

·       The presentation included as Appendix B was presented at the latest Hertfordshire Climate Change and Sustainability Partnership (HCCSP) meeting and highlighted the key priorities for the new government.

·       The focused objectives of GB Energy were to produce clean energy and reduce greenhouse gases. £8.3 billion had been invested by the government with £600M allocated to local authorities.

·       There were five functions of GB Energy, one being the Local Power Plan, a scheme for renewable energy projects in the local community with commercial assistance and this was detailed in Appendix B.

·       The restriction on onshore wind farms  ...  view the full minutes text for item 15.