Vital for county to ‘grasp the nettle’ on renewable energy

Two groups, the York Open Planning Forum and the York Environment Forum, have joined forces for the meeting later this month in an attempt to radically overhaul the way the city generates and uses power over the next decade.

Many fear the issue of climate change has been pushed aside by the economic turbulence over the past few years, and the meeting is seen as vital to help map out a blueprint for the future and place sustainable living at the forefront of residents’ minds.

Coun Dave Merrett, York Council’s cabinet member for city strategy who is also a member of the Environment Forum, said: “This is a very important meeting.

“It is absolutely crucial that people grasp the nettle of renewable energy.

“People have been quite rightly concerned about the short-term problems with the economy but the real big issue is climate change.

“I hope this meeting will focus the debate in York.

“We have made limited progress but this is still small against the size of the challenge.

“What we face is massive and we have got a lot more to do than we have managed so far.”

Among the speakers at the meeting, called Powering York: A Sustainable Future, will be Professor John Whitelegg, research fellow at the Stockholm Environment Institute at York University, York Council’s sustainability officer, and Amanda Botterill, the chair of the Yorkshire and Humber Microgeneration Partnership.

Kate Lock, chair of the York Environment Forum said: “Rising electricity and gas prices are already becoming a real concern and plunging many more people into fuel poverty.

“This will only get worse as the fossil fuels we rely on run out.

“There are important decisions to make about how we power our homes, our city and our country and we want to make sure people in York have a chance to hear the issues and have their say.”

More than 150 people are expected at the meeting in the Priory Street Centre, at 7pm on September 27.