TAKING action against idling cars, encouraging the public to have more ‘environmentally friendly gardens’ and decreasing waste per household — these are just some of the key projects identified to reduce the borough’s contribution towards climate change.

The council has revised its action plan to address Bracknell Forest’s impact on the environment with each of its 41 projects now given a ‘sense of identity’.

Each project is now assigned to a department, lead officer and lead councillor from within Bracknell Forest Council and is broken down into three sections based on how much influence the authority has on achieving its aims.

READ MORE: new climate group to be set up at the council

Considered to be a ‘live document’, officers responsible for each of the projects within the action plan will be asked to provide quarterly updates on their area of work.

Some of the 41 projects which could affect residents include:

  • Enforcement against idling vehicles within the borough, with actions on this project planned to commence in 2021
  • Encouraging residents to have more environmentally-friendly gardens through getting involved with annual gardening competitions
  • Decreasing the amount of waste each household produces through the council’s new greening waste strategy, which involves rolling out food-waste bins
  • Encourage more children to cycle to school; encourage more employers to support sustainable travel choices among employees; promote greener fuel vehicles and technology

More projects could be added to the plan which could be adopted in the months and years to come.

Bracknell News:

The project list will be reviewed quarterly enabling new actions to be commissioned and added to the plan.

READ MORE: Punny names shortlisted for food waste trucks

An annual project progress report will also be presented to the council with updates on how the authority’s work is advancing.

The revised plan comes following extensive investigations by the council’s overview and scrutiny commission into how Bracknell Forest can achieve its goal of becoming a net-zero greenhouse gas emitting borough by 2050.

BFC’s top team are set to recognise the updated plan and approve a proposal for a new climate change advisory group at a meeting next week (January 26).

READ MORE: Campaigners call on council to improve climate plan

In a statement attached to the climate change strategy, council leader Paul Bettison said: “BFC’s current Corporate Plan covers its commitment to tackling climate change. We all need to understand that we have a part to play and everyone in the Bracknell Forest Council area is encouraged to build climate change considerations into their day to day actions and behaviours.”