Bolton Council’s new lead member for climate change aims to build on successful projects as the borough works towards its environmental goals.
Last month Cllr Richard Silvester was appointed as the council’s first Executive Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environmental Services.
The role was created by the new leader, Cllr Nick Peel, who had pledged to make environmental issues a cabinet-level priority for the council.
In 2021, the council adopted the Climate Change Strategy which aims to make council operations net-zero carbon by 2030, while also supporting other organisations to achieve the same goal.
The plan was developed with the help of several key local partners and reflects the views of residents that were collected during Bolton’s Big Climate Conversation.
Since then, a number of initiatives have already been adopted and a number of climate milestones have been reached.
Among them are schemes aimed at boosting active travel and encouraging residents to use public transport as an alternative to driving.
Bolton recently secured £5m from the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Challenge Fund to improve active travel infrastructure to the East of the town centre.
The newly installed segregated CYCLOPS junction on Trinity Street won a North West sustainability award from Chartered Institute of Highways and Transport.
A new cycle lane now connects Farnworth to Bolton town centre and the borough will be among the first to benefit from Greater Manchester bus franchising.
Other climate projects include:
- A Youth Environment Summit attended by 300 local children
- Achieving 50.9% recycling rates for waste in Bolton
- More than £194,000 has been awarded via Bolton’s Fund for climate change projects
- Bolton Council, local schools and Bolton at Home have planted 125 large trees across various sites
- The 2022/23 planting season saw the introduction of 379 meters of hedgerows and 1,449 woodland tress in partnership with City of Trees
- Council staff are receiving climate change training
- Solar panels and heat pumps have been installed in 13 schools and council buildings
Bolton is also lucky to have a number of active climate volunteers and community groups.
Among them is Bolton Green Umbrella, whose volunteers provided £1.4m worth of hours worked over the year 2021-22.
More information can be found in the annual report on the Bolton Climate Change Strategy.
Cllr Silvester said:
“The climate crisis is the biggest challenge facing our planet and it is right that people expect us to take action at a local level.
“Climate change is everyone’s responsibility which is why our strategy is based on working with partners, volunteer groups and local communities in order to achieve our goals.
“I hope residents will have already noticed the work being done to make Bolton greener and I look forward to announcing more initiatives in the near future.”
Bolton Council Leader, Cllr Nick Peel, said:
“Tackling the climate crisis is a central part of our programme and I am pleased to deliver on our promise to create a new cabinet member for this vital issue.
“This means the climate crisis will be considered as part of all top-level discussions, ensuring all council decisions reflect our goals for creating a greener Bolton.
“We know the environment is a key priority for our residents and this is now reflected in our cabinet as we work to deliver on our climate goals.”