Cllr Shabir Pandor, Leader of Kirklees Council, said:
"I'm really proud to say that we now have a plan to tackle climate change in Kirklees and to make the borough carbon neutral by 2038. This will be a top priority for us when we set our Budget for the next financial year.
As a council we take climate change and our responsibility for tackling it, incredibly seriously. This is much bigger than politics, it's the most important issue of our time and the right way forward for Kirklees is for us all to work together.
That's why we set up the cross party working group to produce this ambitious plan and I'd like to thank them for all of their hard work and input in putting this ambitious plan together.
Climate change is finally where it belongs, at the top of the agenda. We owe thanks to a young person from Sweden, Greta Thunberg, for making this happen. She has inspired the world and has given young people a voice. As local leaders, we will continue to listen to the voices of our residents as we move forward.
Climate change is no longer just an agenda for activists and that is something we need to celebrate. A key part of our plans will be to ensure they benefit and work for everyone. We are investing in significantly more green council vehicles and public charging points for electric vehicles. However, we don't want to leave people in, what I would call, green poverty.
Electric cars will help us lower emissions but they are not the answer for everyone. We have to also put some focus on more affordable forms of green travel so everyone can come with us on this exciting journey and our most vulnerable are not left behind.
Residents want to get involved and we will provide the leadership needed locally on this issue, whilst making sure that our hard working families and vulnerable individuals are not adversely affected and we need to poverty proof everything we do.
The work does not stop here, in fact it has just begun. What we now have is a foundation to build on and to make real change to the whole of society to act on and we must become activists and make changes to our everyday lives to make a positive impact. So I urge everyone to get behind this plan so we can truly make a difference to the world."
Cllr Peter McBride, Deputy Leader of Kirklees Council stated:-
"The Council's concern about climate change and carbon footprint is not new. Kirklees has a proud record of investing in the environment. Kirklees created the first environment unit in Britain in the 1990's. We massively invested in energy efficient housing stock 25 years ago.The fact that we have reached 32% of a 40% target to reduce carbon from 2005/6 to 2020 tells a story of systematic action over a long period. Clearly that is insufficient and we need to raise the bar.
That is why all our major road schemes A629, Leeds Road and Southern Gateways have at their heart greening features and involve enhancing cycling and walking opportunities. The Leeds Road scheme alone will add a hectare of green space.
We have the most advanced traffic lights in West Yorkshire which eases traffic flows as do all the initiatives themselves.
Our responses to serious air pollution hot spots has been to have 2 downscaled, no longer air quality management areas.
Additionally all future major West Yorkshire Highway schemes will be subject to environmental impact assessment and existing schemes already approved will be retrospectively assessed.
Still there is much more to do. The Council can bring its influence to bear on the school run.
The investment by ourselves in West Yorkshire in our bus station the most used in West Yorkshire, and our train station together with Network Rail will massively expand the passenger usage of the station. Within a year, the 800 seats on Transpennine will become 2000 and when the upgrade is completed it will be 3,000.
Massive investment in public transport will be the major means of changing behaviour to encourage the public to transfer from the car to public transport.
We are on the journey recognising the distance to go.
